READING FOR DECEMBER 8, 2025: 2 KINGS 15, REVELATION 4, PSALM 119:153-160                  2 KINGS 15 Reigns of the Kings in Judah and Israel, Quality of Rule, and Prophets Active 

Sometimes looking at reality in the form of a chart can give us a different way of understand- ing than just reading a historical narrative of the exact same content. Here we see that after the reign of King Jeroboam II, there is a comparatively frequent turnover with the kings of Israel, especially compared to the kings of Judah. Length of reign does not guarantee quality of service, but often there is a correlation between leadership stability and health of the nation. The evaluation of the kings’ reigns as generally good or evil might be a subjective judgment, but the text itself gives us helpful indicators that are more detailed:

Kings of Judah

• Azariah-“He did what was right in the sight of the Lord... Only the high places were not eliminated; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. And the Lord afflicted the king, so that he had leprosy to the day of his death” (vs.3-5). Stay tune for more details in 2 Chronicles 26 tomorrow.
• Jotham-”He did what was right in the sight of the Lord...Only the high places were not eliminated; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord” (vs. 34-35).  

Kings of Israel

• Jeroboam II-”He did evil in the sight of the Lord” (14:24).
• Zechariah-”He did evil in the sight of the Lord” (vs. 9).
• Shallum-”Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him [Zechariah] and struck him in the presence of the people and killed him and reigned in his place...he reigned for one month in Samaria” (vs. 10-14).
• Menahem-”He did evil in the sight of the Lord; for all his days” (vs. 18).
• Pekahiah-”He did evil in the sight of the Lord” (vs. 24).
• Pekah-”He did evil in the sight of the Lord” (vs. 28).                                                                                 

God’s evaluation for Israel is much more negative than that for Judah. Not surprisingly we will read about the end of the Northern Kingdom soon (2 Kings 17). God’s patience is vast, but not unlimited, due to His justice: “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? But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God” (Rom. 2:4-5). 

READING FOR DECEMBER 8, 2025 CONTINUED: REVELATION 4, PSALM 119:153-160 REVELATION 4: Chapter 3 ends with Jesus standing at a closed door, but Revelation 4 begins with an open door that leads to one of the most fantastic scenes in the Bible. It is a scene of worship around the throne of God. (God’s throne is a prominent theme in Revelation that is mentioned over 30 times.) John gets a glimpse of this throne that is far beyond his comprehension. He attempts to describe what he has seen in terms that are familiar to him, so he uses words like: had the appearance of…, resembling…, what looked like…. He is in awe as he sees flashes of lightning coming from the throne and hears peals of thunder. Fire is blazing before the throne as well as a sea of glass said to be as clear as crystal. One thing is certain, one cannot stand before the awesomeness of this throne and not be moved. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Around the throne are four beings identified as “four living creatures.” They are not given names, and each has a different appearance. One looks like a lion, another like an ox, another like a man and the last like an eagle. Their constant cry (v8) teaches us at least three things about the one seated on the throne:

• Purity (Holy, Holy , Holy…)
• Power (…Lord God Almighty…you created all things)
• Presence (…who was and is and is to come.)    

Surrounding the four living creatures are 24 other thrones upon which 24 elders are seated. Like the four living creatures, they are not named. Most scholars think they represent the apostle and leaders of the church. Their statement reveals (v11) at least two additional things about God. 

• Worthy (You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power…)
• Sovereign (..by your will they were created and have their being.)                                                                  

In light of this picture of God’s throne, consider this powerful truth: Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Heb 4:16           When we bow our heads and cry out to God, we are transported to the very throne of God depicted in these verses. Revelation 8:3 specifically says that the prayers of the saints (which includes all who believe) are before the throne of God. When we pray, we are ushered into the very presence of the Pure and Powerful God who takes great pleasure in meeting our needs.

PSALM 119:153-160 This section is similar to the preceding one. Here the Psalmist asks several times to be rescued according to the promises that he has read from God’s word. This reveals several realities about the Psalmist: He has read God’s word; he remembers God’s word; and he believes it can be relied upon in times of crises. We experience spiritual failure and general life failure when we fall short in any one of these three areas. The fact, that we are studying the Bible is a good start. Now we just need to remember and apply it in every situation of our lives. Jesus puts it this way: “If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7). Conversely, the Psalmist states this about the wicked: They don’t seek to know God’s word. No matter how respectable and nice someone appears on the outside, if they aren’t seeking God’s word, the Psalmist appears to categorize them as wicked. In verse 159 the treacherous are defined as those who, even though they might know God’s word, don’t obey God’s word. Finally, the Psalmist admonishes us to not pick and choose from God’s word but study its fullest context: The sum of God’s word is truth. Each of His judgments are everlasting; they don’t become culturally irrelevant—as we sometimes wrongly assume.