2
Kings chapter 7 continues the story from the previous chapter. The
army of the Arameans “marched
up and laid siege to Samaria.
There
was a great famine in the city“.
We read, “The
siege lasted so long that a donkey’s head sold for eighty shekels
[about
2 pounds]
of silver“.
The people inside the city walls were starving and desperate. The
king of Israel did not consider his own disobedience, or how the
nation of Israel had turned away from worshipping God. Instead he
directed his wrath toward the prophet Elisha. “May
God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of Elisha…
remains on his shoulders today!”
He eventually blamed God Himself, “This
disaster is from the Lord“.
There was no thought of repentance, there is no mention seeking to
know God’s direction, there is only anger at God and His faithful
messenger. Are you angry with God? 1 John 1:9 is your solution,
“If
we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness“.
Often God uses circumstances to make us see our need for change.
Chapter
7 begins with a shout to the desperate, “Hear
the word of the Lord“.
The prophet spoke to the king’s officer, “About
this time tomorrow, a seah of flour will sell for a shekel“.
In other words, overnight there would be an abundance of food. The
officer did not believe God’s promise. Instead, the prophet
describes what happens to the proud, “You
will see it with your own eyes… but you will not eat any of it!”
Notice the first ones to receive the provisions of God, “four
men with leprosy at the entrance of the city gate”.
They were the lowest and most desperate of all. They reasoned,
“Why stay here until we die? Let’s go over to the camp of the
Arameans and surrender”.
It wasn’t until they left the false safety of the city walls that
they discovered that God had already done a great work. “At
dusk they got up and went to the camp of the Arameans. When they
reached the edge of the camp, not a man was there… They ate and
drank, and carried away silver, gold and clothes“.
We learn that “the
Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots and horses
and a great army”.
Fearing attack, “They
left the camp as it was and ran for their lives”
leaving all of the provisions behind. What is holding you back from
believing God’s promise to you?
These
men did not keep the good news to themselves. “So
they went and called out to the city gatekeepers and told them… The
gatekeepers shouted the news, and it was reported within the palace“.
The king refused to believe the truth. He thought it was a trap of
the enemy, but the people that were hungry and thirsty heard the news
and took action. Once the people of the city found out about God’s
gift, “the
people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans“.
In the melee, the king’s officer that had earlier doubted God’s
promise was killed, “the
people trampled him in the gateway“.
If you are empty and tired of people letting you down, I have good
news for you too. Jesus has a promise for you, “Come
to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and
lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke
is
easy and My burden is light”
(Matthew 11:28).