November 20

Journey-through-the-Bible-with-us

READING FOR NOVEMBER 20, 2025: 2 KINGS 9, 2 PETER 3, PSALM 119:57-64                                2 KINGS 9 The duplicate names in this historical period of Judah and Israel have caused great problems for this writer. Hopely this guide will help readers avoid similar frustrations, if in fact the writer gets it right and communicates it well. Elisha is an interesting prophet in that he sometimes delegates important jobs to others. In this case, he tells one of his student pro- phets to take some oil, find Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi in Ramoth-gilead, and anoint him King of Israel. Today this would be like the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court telling one of his/her law clerks to swear in the President of the United States. Either Elisha had no ego, or he was getting too old to travel. The identify confusion is caused because Jehu is listed as the son of Jehoshaphat, the same name as a prominent king of Judah, not Israel. The problem is solved by noticing Jehu’s grandfather is Nimshi, not Asa, the father of Judah’s King Jehoshaphat. Who knew there were so many Jehoshaphats at this time? It was trendy.

Elisha then hurried his student prophet out the door to find Jehu. Jehu appeared to be sitting on break with all his fellow army commanders. The student asked for a private word with Jehu during which time he anointed him as King of Israel and charged him with eliminating all the males in the House of Ahab. This was punishment also particularly targeted at Ahab’s wife Jezebel, who mistreated the prophets, among many others. Her body was not to be buried but left on her own property for the dogs to eat, a disgraceful occurrence in antiquity. This entire anointing ceremony had a drive-by feel to it. Once the anointing was completed and God’s message delivered, the student prophet raced out of the room and fled. He did his job!

After some good-natured joking about this strange young student, Jehu’s colleagues learned what transpired. They immediately hailed Jehu as the new king. Thus, they joined him in going to Jezreel, where King Joram of Israel was recovering from a serious battle wound. The watchman at the gate of Jezreel correctly identified Jehu due to his furious, and possibly reck- less, chariot driving. Kings Joram of Israel and Ahaziah of Judah came out of town to confront him. Jehu accused Joram’s mother Jezebel of acting like a witch and prostitute and then shot Joram with an arrow, which pierced his heart. Jehu then likewise shot and killed the fleeing Ahaziah. When Jehu arrived at Jezreel, Jezebel was putting on her makeup. Why then? Jehu just asked Jezebel’s servants to throw her out the window. Then Jehu trampled her to death with his horse. This then fulfilled the prophecy made long ago by Elijah: “‘On the property of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; and the corpse of Jezebel will be like dung on the face of the field in the property of Jezreel, so they cannot say, “This is Jezebel’” (vs. 36). Listen to Jesus’s comment about the tragic end of non-believers, no matter how luxuriously they lived on earth: “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, but now... you are in agony.” (Luke 16:25). 

READING FOR NOVEMEBER 20, 2025 CONTINUED: 2 PETER 3, PSALMS 119:57-64                      2 PETER 3 This short chapter contains truths that are essential and rarely stated so clearly. God’s Word: In verse one Peter equates the writings of the Old Testament prophets, which Jesus clearly taught as God’s Word (Matt. 5:17-19, John 10:35-36, and John 5:39), with the words of Jesus as conveyed by the Apostles. This would cover the gospels and the epistles of the New Testament. Later on and even more remarkably, he confirms that people have trouble under- standing/believing certain content in Paul’s letters (true today more than ever) but that they are Scripture: “In all his [Paul’s] letters, speaking in them of these things, in which there are some things that are hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction” (2 Peter 3:16).    

The End of the Current Age:  People could fall into error about Jesus’s second coming because it has not yet happened. Peter suggests that’s because we view reality from a human, not di- vine, perspective. We look at the 2,000 years since Jesus lived on earth and consider that such a long time. Some as proof that He isn’t coming back. Peter says God looks at 2,000 years the same as 2 days. From the viewpoint of timeless eternity, it is almost nothing. In fact, we learn that He is waiting that long to ensure that the maximum number of folks will hear and respond to the Gospel to be saved. The patience of God: “Do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and restraint and patience not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” (Rom. 2:4).    

Losing Salvation: Directly related to not obeying the entire Bible and no longer believing in the Second Coming is the real danger of being so deceived such that one’s salvation is lost: “You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unscrupulous people and lose your own firm commitment” (2 Peter 3:17).

PSALM 119: 57-64 The Psalmist declares the Lord his “portion.”  This Hebrew word “helqi” is related to the concept of inherited land or share, extremely important concepts in traditional cultures. By making the Lord his true portion, he is placing the Lord above any other human object of value or security. This is what it means to declare Jesus our Lord when we come to faith. Jesus cannot be a secondary add-on to life. He is our life. The rest of these verses express what naturally flows from that declaration to “seek first the Kingdom of God” (Matt 6:33): 

  • We commit to following His word and seeking His favor with all our heart—not casually. 
  • We study His word and trust in all His promises found there. 
  • We shift our priorities away from our interests or our culture’s values and live according to His word.
  • We don’t agonize about whether to obey His commands in the Bible; we obey them immediately. 
  • We remember His word even and especially when we are going through difficult times in life. 
  • We ponder and give thanks for His word always, even in the middle of the night when we can’t sleep.
  • We take care to associate with other people who have a similar high view of God and the Bible. 
  • We view the world as an expression of God’s goodness and seek to keep learning from the Bible.