Hoshea Reigns in Israel

 

2 Kings 17:1-6

 

October 29, 2021

 

Hoshea Reigns in Israel

 

In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and he reigned nine years.   And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him.   Against him came up Shalmanese, king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute.   But the king of Assyria found treachery in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore, the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison.   Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it.

It could be said in today's terms Hoshea cleaned up his act a little, using the 2021 timeline, he no longer drank adult beverages in his coffee at the temple, and he joined the choir.  But he did not turn his heart to God and obey the laws handed down from God.

The Fall of Israel

In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Harbor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

Sin always brings us into captivity, many a person who goes by the name Christian is living below their status, for they are King's kids, and yet the enemy has them living in fear of many things.  Let me list a few, fear of failure, in marriage, in child razing, in business, and of death.  If you have been captured, run to Jesus and ask Him to forgive your unbelief.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice