2 Kings 16
Second Kings 16 describes the reign and actions of Ahaz, the king of the southern kingdom of Judah. The passage records that King Ahaz did evil in the sight of the LORD, the invasions by the northern kingdom of Israel and Aram, and how Ahaz sought help from Assyria and brought in a new altar design he saw in Damascus. This chapter describes how the corruption of faith took place in Judah’s history.
1verseIn the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign.
2verseAhaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn’t do that which was right in the LORD his God’s eyes, like David his father.
3verseBut he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel.
4verseHe sacrificed and burned incense in the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.
5verseThen Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war. They besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
6verseAt that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drove the Jews from Elath; and the Syrians came to Elath, and live there to this day.
7verseSo Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me.”
8verseAhaz took the silver and gold that was found in the LORD’s house, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
9verseThe king of Assyria listened to him; and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus and took it, and carried its people captive to Kir, and killed Rezin.
10verseKing Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and King Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest a drawing of the altar and plans to build it.
11verseUrijah the priest built an altar. According to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so Urijah the priest made it for the coming of King Ahaz from Damascus.
12verseWhen the king had come from Damascus, the king saw the altar; and the king came near to the altar, and offered on it.
13verseHe burned his burnt offering and his meal offering, poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings on the altar.
14verseThe bronze altar, which was before the LORD, he brought from the front of the house, from between his altar and the LORD’s house, and put it on the north side of his altar.
15verseKing Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, “On the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, the evening meal offering, the king’s burnt offering and his meal offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, their meal offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle on it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice; but the bronze altar will be for me to inquire by.”
16verseUrijah the priest did so, according to all that King Ahaz commanded.
17verseKing Ahaz cut off the panels of the bases, and removed the basin from off them, and took down the sea from off the bronze oxen that were under it, and put it on a pavement of stone.
18verseHe removed the covered way for the Sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s outer entrance to the LORD’s house, because of the king of Assyria.
19verseNow the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
20verseAhaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in David’s city; and Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.
Flow and Structure of the Passage
- The accession and evaluation of King Ahaz (verses 1-4): Ahaz took the throne in Judah, and unlike his father, he is evaluated as having done evil before the LORD. In particular, he followed foreign gods and even practiced the custom of making his son pass through the fire.
- National crisis and political choice (verses 5-9): Aram and the northern kingdom of Israel encircled Jerusalem but failed to take it. To deal with this crisis, Ahaz sent tribute to the king of Assyria and asked for help.
- Corruption of worship (verses 10-18): Ahaz went to Damascus to meet the king of Assyria, saw the foreign altars, and then commanded that an altar be made in Jerusalem modeled after their design. This marks the beginning of a serious corruption in which the established order of worship in the temple was changed.
- Ahaz’s death (verses 19-20): The rest of his accounts are recorded in the annals of the kings of Judah, and the chapter concludes as his son Hezekiah succeeds him.
Overall Meaning and Lessons
Ahaz’s actions show the downfall of faith and the political and religious turmoil that resulted. When faced with crisis, instead of trusting God, he relied on the power of a great nation; and the process of chasing outward success while losing the essence of faith also teaches us a deep lesson even today. It prompts us to examine the forms of faith, the essence of it, and what we truly depend on.
Meditation Points
- In a crisis of faith, where do we put our trust?
- We must be cautious that even small compromises can lead to the distortion of faith as a whole.
- It becomes an opportunity to look again at the essence of worship and life that God has entrusted to us.
Apply It to Me
- When I face a crisis in life, I check who the first person—or object—I look for is.
- Rather than being bound by appearances or customs, I need to make a decision to live in a way that preserves the essence of faith.
- Even amid the flow of change, it leads me to pray for an attitude that steadfastly keeps my relationship with God.
