Is God’s Word really true?
1 Kings 15:25-34; 16:1-34
The first doubt sown about God’s Word was in the serpent’s question, ‘Did God really say…?’ (Gen 3:1), followed by the lie, ‘You shall surely not die… [but] you will be like God!’ (Gen 3:4-5). The difficulty for the first couple, was that the serpent seemed to have got it right because they did not die when they ate the forbidden fruit and, in one sense, they did become like God (Gen 3:22).[1] Of course, their relationship with God died that day and death became an inevitable reality. Neither did they become like God in the sense of being all-knowing, all-powerful and so on. Nevertheless, reality appeared to justify the serpent’s claims and belie God’s Word that sin leads to destruction. The question is as present in our circumstances as it was for Adam and Eve. We do not always see the immediate effects of sin. In fact, initially it may appear that we are better off not following God’s will. It is the point the psalmist makes, when he complains to God that the wicked get away with anything and live a life of ease and plenty, while he suffers for nothing (Ps 73:3-5, 13-14).
God’s Word comes true
As the dismal sequence of Israelite rule unfolds in Kings, however, the book affirms that God’s Word will come true. While Asa reigns in Judah, Israel’s kings follow each other in violent coups. Jeroboam’s son only lasts two years before a usurper, Baasha takes over and kills all the males in Jeroboam’s family ‘according to the word of the LORD’ (1 Kings 15:25, 28-29). Baasha, like Jeroboam, is raised/exalted by God to be king but fails to follow Him (1 Kings 16:2; 14:7-8). His fate, as his sin, will closely match Jeroboam’s in that Baasha’s family will also be eliminated with no proper burial of the dead (1 Kings 16:3-4; 14:11) by another usurper. In an uncanny similarity, Baasha’s son only reigns for two years (like Jeroboam’s son, 1 Kings 16:8; 15:25) before the family’s massacre (1 Kings 16:10-11). The same sins lead to the same end and once again, all this is ‘according to the word of the LORD’ (1 Kings 16:12).
Taking the long view
Yet, we should notice that the outcome is only visible when we take the long view. Both Jeroboam and Baasha died in peace (1 Kings 14:20; 16:6) without seeing the fulfilment of God’s Word. Neither is an evil reign necessarily short or a failure in political terms. While the next usurper, Zimri only reigns for a week (1 Kings 16:15), Omri establishes a dynasty that will last for four kings and a little over forty years (1 Kings 16:23, 29; 22:51; 2 Kings 3:1).[2] This royal family will bring some stability into a volatile political situation, but will be rather worse spiritually than its predecessors (1 Kings 16:25, 30). Ahab’s intermarriage with the Sidonian princess Jezebel brings a new layer of evil when Baal worship will become entrenched in Israel’s religious life (1 Kings 16:31-32). The incident about the terrible loss of life over the re-building of Jericho (1 Kings 16:34) points to the long-standing curse Joshua made Israel swear over anyone who would try and rebuild that Canaanite city (Josh 6:26). The fulfilment of the curse reminds us once again that the truth of God’s Word may only become apparent in the long-term.
What we do with God’s truth
Today, the message that God’s Word is reliable is as relevant as ever. As Western society moves away from its Christian roots and ethics, most live as they please without any reference to a recognised standard of morality or an appeal to God. Many succeed in life and feel no particular drawback for not following God. Yet, underneath the prosperity and the comforts, many know confusion, hopelessness and despair. Neither is this only true of non-Christians. Like Israel who were God’s people, we Christians can also be sucked in by the cultural norms around us. Do we see our identity as being ‘in Christ’ (loved and forgiven by God, redeemed from an old way of life and belonging to Him) or in terms of our achievements, physical attributes, abilities and so on? Are our priorities defined by what matters to the Lord or what we think would make us fulfilled and happy in the short term? We are a work-in-progress, but as we let God’s truth penetrate our heart, we will be set free to live for the Lord.
[1] This is the point R.W.L. Moberly makes and concludes that we face the same challenge about believing God’s Word today. “Did the Serpent Get It Right?,” in From Eden to Golgotha: Essays in Biblical Theology (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1992), 1-27.
[2] It is a noted problem in Kings that if we add up the years that the various kings ruled, we get a much bigger number than the timespan from the schism of Israel and Judah to their respective captivities, which we can confidently date correlating various ancient sources. The fifty years of Omri’s dynasty is too long and historians estimate that the number is closer to forty. One way to account for the difference is co-regency (when a son was taken on to reign with his father to make for a smoother transition when the father died). Another reason that can explain the discrepancy is that the regnal years can be counted from the year of accession or from the first full year a new king reigned. Since the custom varied according to region as well as time period, simply adding up the regnal years of kings will not necessarily yield an accurate result.
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