Falling Fire

2 Kings 2:1-18

Introduction. As we jump forward in the book of Kings to the second scroll or Second Kings, we find that things have changed. The judgment which was promised to Elijah on Mount Horeb has come to pass. King Ahab has been killed in battle by the Syrians (Damascus), and his son, Ahaziah, has become king of Israel, and it is not going well. One of the big questions being answered by the book of Kings is, Which god is the true God? Additionally, the events and circumstances recorded in the book of Kings ask us, What God are you looking for? As we look at 2 Kings 1:1-18, we will be looking at: 1. Which god is worthy to be God?, 2. How will you know God when you find God?, and 3. The God we find.

Read Sermon Passage: 2Kings 1:1-18 (ESV). After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.

Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.” But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the LORD, You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” So Elijah went.

The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have you returned?” And they said to him, “There came a man to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” He said to them, “What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?” They answered him, “He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order, ‘Come down quickly!’” But Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties, but now let my life be precious in your sight.” Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’”

So he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken. Jehoram became king in his place in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, because Ahaziah had no son. Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

With another generation, we have another showdown between the Lord’s prophet and his king. Firstly, let’s look at, 1. Which god is worthy of being God? To see the conflict, we need to be able to see how the Lord and Baal-zebub are contrasted.

Firstly, let’s (1.) Look at the names. The proper name for God is used here. What is God’s proper name? It is the name which He gave to Moses to tell to the enslaved Israelites in Egypt. It is the name which is translated, “I Am” or “I Shall Be.” The Name speaks both the proposition that the true God is not contingent upon any other, but also that the true God is with those who turn in faith to Him. Additionally, the Lord, “I AM,” is the “Lord of the Hosts of Heaven,” a name sometimes rendered: Jehovah Sabbaoth. But what about the god of whom King Ahaziah seeks to inquire? That god is Baal-zebub. Baal-zebub is most likely a moniker for Baal-zebul which is translated “prince of heaven.” Baal-zebub, the name given to Baal by the author of Kings is translated, “lord of flies” or “lord of a fly.” By using this name, the author of Kings is contrasting the true God, Who Is and Is the Lord of the Hosts of Heaven and the false god, Baal, who is lord of what? [...a fly.]

Secondly let’s (2.) Look at capability? A god’s name speaks to the how the god is honored, but what about what the god can do? King Ahaziah sends his messengers to inquire of the god of Ekron, most likely in Ekron. The Lord, on the other hand, sends his messenger, Elijah, to inquire of the king. Do you see? The Lord himself, has an agenda. The Lord God is active and seeking, and though Lord is inquiring. That is, the Lord has sent his messenger to ask a question, He already knows the answer to the question. What’s more, the Lord answers King Ahaziah’s question without needing to be asked. King Ahaziah on the other hand, is asking because he does not know. And note this, he never gets an answer from the god whom he intended to ask. The name shines a light on the true God, and so the capability of the deity tells us which is the true God.

Third, let’s (3.) Look at which is growing their dominion. The first two captains sent by King Ahaziah together with their companies are defeated, but the third captain and his company approach Elijah humbly and acknowledge the prophet’s authority and by default, the Lord’s sovereignty. How about King Ahaziah and the god to whom he is inquiring? Is his sphere of influence increasing or decreasing? Well, we begin chapter 1 by reading a painful truth: “Moab rebelled against Israel.” You’ll remember that King Ahab, sent Hiel to rebuild the city of Jericho. Jericho as the cornerstone of Israel’s southeastern flank. It is the stronghold of the Jordan plain and adjacent to Moab. That Moab rebels seems to show that Israel is falling to pieces. King Ahaziah’s sphere of dominion is shrinking, not growing.

And lastly, (4.) Look at which god is in control. Only the Lord knows his adversaries’ plans, defeats his army, uses his weapons against him, and sends news of his imminent death. Baal, the god of fire, life, and fertility does nothing. Why? Because Baal is nothing.

Now, if there is any question about the worthiness of the Lord in being God, it is usually asked in this sort of way: Isn’t killing the captains and their fifty, cruel and brutal? 110 men are killed by fire falling from heaven. In answering the question of brutality or cruelty, I don’t think we need to couch it in the terms of “the day” or “the times were different back then.” Rather, look at what is transpiring. On its face there is something that is patently obvious. As obvious as what will happen if you lean too far out of a latticed, second or third story window. We come to this passage with unfamiliarity and ignorance. King Ahaziah on the other hand has knowledge. He has personal experience. He knows what happened at Mount Carmel. King Ahaziah is acting contrary to what he knows is true. Why else would the Lord send Elijah with such a sarcastic message: “... Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?” Ahaziah knows better. What is more, to show just how foolish and arrogant he is, he sends a company of soldiers to intimidate the Lord’s prophet and attempt to boss the Lord around.

Listen to what the first company commander say when he comes to Elijah? (Verse 9), “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” That is, the king orders you to “come down.” Do you remember how a kingdom is properly ordered? The Lord’s anointed king, follows the Lord’s appointed prophet. Here it seems, the king thinks his word goes before the Lord’s word. And Elijah’s response is understandable. (Verse 10), “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Which is to say, ‘You call me a man of God, but you really think the king’s word is greater.’ And when King Ahaziah sends a second company, that second captain hasn’t taken to heart reality. (Verse 11), “O man of God, this is the king’s order, ‘Come down quickly!’” Which is to say, Maybe you didn’t hear the king the first time. Now! [As if, ‘He speaks, and listening to his voice, prophets their lives do keep.’] Is that the way it works? Both of these first two captains and their king believe Elijah is alive because they continue to suffer their remaining alive. Elijah only lives and prophesies because the king of Israel allows it. Is that right? And consequently, the Lord only continues to be acknowledged as a god because the king allows it. Wait…what? Do you see? The king of Israel is living in an upside down world. Where is the king at this very moment? He is already on his deathbed. He has already received word that he would not come down from it. There is only one god in this passage worthy to be called God.

And this brings us to 2. How will you know God when you find God? Firstly, (1.) You’ll know the true God by his mercy. All of the judgments of God which have come with the ministry of Elijah have come because mercy was rejected. The mercy extended to the third captain shows us. What do you think would happen if King Ahaziah came down off his high horse – or rather, deathbed? How do you think the Lord would respond to King Ahaziah if he would only turn to Him? You see, it’s not that King Ahaziah wants too much from the Lord; the shocking surprise is that he is satisfied with so little.

You’ll remember, that the Lord, I AM, is not merely the Lord of Israel. He is the Lord of Hosts, the Lord of Heaven and Earth. Going back to the book of Exodus where the Lord gives his name to Moses, when the Lord proclaims his name and passes in front of Moses on Mount Sinai after the episode of the golden calf, do you remember who the Lord says he is? We read in Exodus 34:6-7, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” The answers which King Ahaziah needs are only found in the glorious face of the One in whom is both justice and mercy. It is in precisely this point where the glory of the Lord is revealed. The Lord holds both justice and mercy, and it is in the lengths to which He will go to uphold justice and to extend mercy that his glory is revealed. And so, (2.) You will know God when you see His glory. In what, and at what time, is our Lord glorified?

3. The God who reveals himself and whom we find is tied closely to this passage. In Luke 9, we have a significant turn in Jesus’ ministry. The chapter is full of seemingly unconnected events, but the chapter as a whole speaks to the significance and goal of Jesus’ mission. Just in the second half of the chapter, Peter confesses that Jesus is Christ. Peter, James, and John witness Jesus’ transfiguration in which Elijah, himself shows up. Jesus heals and explains his mission in specific detail as well as how they are to pursue glory and who they are to receive as disciples. In Luke 9:51 we read, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” Now, they are traveling through Samaria – through the very towns and villages where Elijah ministered 800 years earlier. Possibly looking for a place to rest or get food, we read that (Luke 9:52-53), “And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him.” [And what happens?] “But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.” [They did not receive Jesus because he was not one of them…was not on their side. James, John, and the rest of the disciples knew the story of King Ahaziah, his captains, and their companies, and how they disrespected God’s prophet. Going on we read (Luke 9:54)], “And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” [These zealous ‘baal-zee-bros,’ my take on their nickname, ‘sons of thunder,’are asking, ‘Man of God, may we call down fire from heaven to consume them and their fifty?’] But friends, is to bring judgment why Jesus came? Is condemnation what he has come to hand out? It’s as if they have not been watching and listening to anything at all. Jesus has set his face towards Jerusalem not to bring judgment, but to bear it. The Lord will not simply “clear the guilty.” He will redeem them by dying in their place. He will bear the fire of judgment in their place, and so fill full the mercy of God for all those who would turn to God for mercy.” James and John’s question seems to bring Jesus to a point of exasperation. He has been challenging and teaching his disciples through chapter 9, does he again pause and instruct them. No. We simply read that (Luke 9:55-56), “he turned and rebuked them. And they went on to another village.” I wonder if that village was the village of Sychar and if they came to the well of Jacob where a woman had come to collect water in the heat of the day…? Do you see? The God who reveals himself, the God whom we are seeking, and the God whom we find, is the God who has come seeking us. He has come to pay the debt of our sins, to kneel and plead our mercy, to work our forgiveness, to vindicate our faith, to bring us into fellowship with the Father and the Spirit, to secure our blessing that we may behold the beauty of the face of God.

Conclusion. Friends, we are a people who have fallen out a window. We may think that there are things in this world that can lift us up, give us confidence, grant us sure success. We may think that in the works of our own hands, we could find the answers and satisfaction and the power to overcome the brokenness. Dear brothers and sisters, we are all walking through the same hostile country. Our answer to our fears and questions is found in the face of Jesus Christ who set his face towards Jerusalem and saved us, and who by his Spirit, through his sacraments, in His word, among our fellowship, is with us.

References

Dillard, Raymond B. Faith in the Face of Apostasy: The Gospel According to Elijah and Elisha. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 1999.

Davis, Dale Ralph. 1 Kings: The Wisdom and the Folly. Focus on the Bible Commentary Series. Fearn, Ross-shire: Christian Focus Publications, 2002.

Davis, Dale Ralph. 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury. Focus on the Bible Commentary Series. Ross-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2005.