King Ahab and his wife Jezebel had three children, two sons and a
daughter. The names of the two sons were Ahaziah and Jehoram or Joram. The name
of their daughter was Ataliah who was married to the son of Jehoshaphat, who
shared the same name as her brother, Jehoram.
We
are told in 1 Kings 22 that Ahaziah succeeded his father Ahab after the
latter’s death. But he had a very short reign of only two years.
Influenced by his parents, he was as wicked as his father. The first chapter of
2 Kings tells us that two things happened to him after he came to the throne.
Firstly, the Moabites rebelled against Israel and secondly, he fell through the
lattice of the upper chamber of his palace in Samaria and was mortally
wounded. While his messengers were on the way to inquire Baal- Zebub
concerning the outcome of his fall, they were intercepted by Elijah, who
revealed to him through his messengers that he would die and not recover from
his injury.
Since
he had no son, his brother Jehoram (Joram) succeeded him. Here in 2 Kings 3:1, we are told that Jehoram reigned over Israel for 12 years after he was
installed as the king in Samaria. It all happened in the 18th year of the reign
of King Jehoshaphat of Judah when he succeeded his brother as king of Israel.
Being the son of Ahab and Jezebel he was also wicked. However, he was not as
bad as his parents or his brother Ahaziah. At least he removed the sacred
pillars his father had built to worship Baal. But he did not depart from the
sin of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin against the Lord. He
stuck to the worship of the golden calves that Jeroboam introduced to Israel
and did not remove them.
In walking with God, there must be a
total commitment to Him. A partial and half-hearted change is not an adequate
response to God. Jehoram did not go all the way with God. Since he was bold
enough to remove the sacred pillar his father built for Baal, he should have
continued and removed the golden calves Jeroboam had introduced as well. But he
did not. Hence, he is a symbol of one who would not go all the way with the
Lord. Going all the way with the Lord begins with our desire. When our desire
for the Lord is not complete, we will not be prepared to give up the competing
loves in our life. They will always be competing with our hearts for the Lord.
But when we are consumed with a desire to follow Him, we will be willing to say
like David, “One thing have I desired of the Lord and that will I seek after
(Psalm 27:4).” And like Paul, we can triumphantly say, “I have fought the good
fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the
future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to
me, but also to all who have loved His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8).” Would
that we all have this ambition!
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