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THE K I N G ’ S BUS I NE S S
PRACTICAL POINTS '(1 ) God’s purpose for Israel was to provide for Himself a peculiar people. (2) The will of man is opposed to the Word of God. (3) To worship aright men must walk in the light. (4) One step in the wrong direc tion often seals the destiny of a nation. (5) A divided religion is a devil’s device. (6) Warnings from God were not wanting, but they had no heart to heed them. (7) No sadder words were ever heard by the human ear than these: “ Depart from me; I never knew you.” (8) No prophet, no priest, no pro test, can stay the anger of a righteous God. (Jer. 15:1). v. 2. Did that which was evil. This is a constant refrain. See chapter 10:31; 13:2, 11; 15:9; 18:24.—Eliot. Not as the kings. Unlike his predeces sors from the COMMENTS FROM t i m e of Jero- MANY SOURCES boam, he neither Keith L. Brooks established t h e rites of Baal nor compelled the people to the symbolic worship of the calves. Although in these respects he acted as became a constitutional king of Israel, yet through the influence of the nineteen princes who had swayed the sceptre before him, all of whom had been zeal ous patrons of idolatry and many of whom had been famous for personal crimes, the whole nation had become so completely demoralized that the righteous judgment of God impended oyer it.— J. F. & B. Out of nineteen kings who reigned, seven were mur dered, one died from wounds received in battle, one died from a fall out of a window, one was struck down by the judgment of God, and one committed suicide.— Anno. Bible. In the sight of the Lord. Whatever may have been the standard of morals about him, however he may have seemed comparatively clean in the eyes of others when meas ured by the kings who were before him, the one blinding, blistering record is written against him: “ He did evil in the sight of the Lord.” It is not a question of what man may think, but
what God thinks (Heb. 4:13).—Halde- man. v. 5. King of Assyria came np. With these foreigners in the land of Israel begins the history of the Samari tans of whom we read in the Gospels (John 4). Note the character of their religion (v. 33-41).— Gray. v. 6. Carried Israel away. See Deut. 28': 15-68. From this captivity the ten tribes have never been restored to Palestine. A remnant of Judah re turned under Zerubbabel, Ezra and Ne- hemiah, and individuals out of the ten tribes went back, but the national restoration is yet to be fulfilled.— Sco field. v. 7. Israel had sinned. Note the sevenfold sin of Israel. 1. “Walked in the statutes of the heathen” (v. 8). 2. “ Did secretly things that were not right” (v. 9). 3. “ Built them high places” (v. 9). 4.. “ Set up images” (v. 10). 5. “ Burnt incense” to idols (v. 11). 6. “Wrought wicked things” (v. 11). 7. “ Served idols” (v. 12).— Sel. So it was. No wonder the divine patience was exhausted and that the God whom they had forsaken permitted them to go into captivity that they might learn the difference between His service and that of their despotic con querors.— Brown. A lost nation is a prophecy of a lost soul. God’s love was born out of His wrath against sin. Because He hated the sin He would save the sinner. The sinner who re jects His saving love takes the place of sin and must face the wrath of God against sin.— Cook. v. 9. Against the Lord. How greatly the complexion of our sin is deepened when we remember the an guish by which we have been redeemed. Our sin is against the Lord.— Devo. Com. v. 13. Testified against Israel. For two thousand years, by and through the ministry of His written and spoken Word, God has invited men to turn unto Him and be saved. Heaven has been silent while listening to the appeal made on earth, waiting to know the decisions of the sons of men; and the solemn declaration of holy Scripture warns us that “ they will not endure sound doc trine.” (2 Tim. 4 :3 .)—-Haldeman. All the prophets. The people did not perish for lack of knowledge. The min istry was not short in that day. Prophets came in great numbers. The land was full of teaching ministers, yet the people sinned against all the light. How much can be resisted by the wicked!— People’s Bible.
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