Jehu Anointed King of Israel

 

 

 

2 Kings 9:1-13

 

September 14, 2021

 

Jehu Anointed King of Israel

Then Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Tie up your garments, and take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead.  And when you arrive, look there for Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat, son of Nimshi. And go in and have him rise from among his fellows, and lead him to an inner chamber.  Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, ‘Thus says the Lord, I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and flee; do not linger.”

So the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead.   And when he came, behold, the commanders of the army were in council. And he said, “I have a word for you, O commander.” And Jehu said, “To which of us all?” And he said, “To you, O commander.”   So, he arose and went into the house. And the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, I anoint you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel.   And you shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, so that I may avenge on Jezebel the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord.   For the whole house of Ahab shall perish, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel.   And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah.   And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and none shall bury her.” Then he opened the door and fled.

When Jehu came out to the servants of his master, they said to him, “Is all well? Why did this mad fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the fellow and his talk.”   And they said, “That is not true; tell us now.” And he said, “Thus and so he spoke to me, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, I anoint you king over Israel.’”   Then in haste, every man of them took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, “Jehu is king.”

 

When you or anyone reads the Scripture, it is important, to remember, God’s ways are not our ways, His thoughts and ways are higher than ours.  Be very careful not to get derailed trying to understand from a human understanding or culture the ways of our Lord.

 

You may wonder why Elisha picked this young man and did not go himself, or why he gave the young man the order to flee as soon as he had finished the task?  But are they of importance, and the answer is no, it was God who gave Elisha the orders and they were carried out.   It is what happens next, is very much human.

 

The young servant of the prophet enters the room where Jehu was this is what he encounters. And when he came, behold, the commanders of the army were in council. And he said, “I have a word for you, O commander.” And Jehu said, “To which of us all?” And he said, “To you, O commander.”

 

As a very young salesperson, I had the Kings Ranch as one of my accounts and had sold Bobby Shelton who was over that part of the Ranch a copy machine.  I had also cut a deal with him that I could put a number of beehives on the ranch if he got a gallon of honey each year.  One day I was at the office and I ask if Bobby was there and the young person told me yes he was in the meeting room.  I open the door to encounter him in a meeting with the Kleberg’s and one of the sons told me to get out of the room and follower me out to ask what I was up to.  It was very embarrassing and I told him I had some honey for Mr. Shelton.  He told me Mr. Shelton would not be available to meet with me and did not let me explain that I was not aware that he was in a meeting.  Now I was not there to do anything but honor a deal I had made, and it was not to anoint a new king.

 

But the servant was not received in that way, and delivered the message to Jehu, and got out of there.  What happened next was all the ones under his command wanted to know what the crazy man wanted and Jehu told them what he had done and they began to proclaim Jehu as king.

 

What we must understand is it is God who put rulers over people and often it is for our judgment, think about what we as a nation have done, mass murders of 62 + million babies and expects God’s blessing, this nation, you got to be kidding.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice