2Ki 13:14 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.
2Ki 13:15 And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows.
2Ki 13:16 And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands.
2Ki 13:17 And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the LORD'S deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them.
2Ki 13:18 And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed.
2Ki 13:19 And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.
2Ki 13:20 And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.
2Ki 13:21 And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.
Sermon Transcript
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2nd Kings and chapter 13. We're going to read from verse 14. 2nd Kings chapter 13 and verse 14. and we're going to be thinking about the death of Elisha. Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him and wept over his face and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof, And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows.
And he took unto him bow and arrows. And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it. And Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands. And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, shoot. And he shot. And he said, the arrow of the Lord's deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria. For thou shalt smite the Syrians in Afik till thou have consumed them. And he said, take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, smite upon the ground, and he smote thrice, and stayed. And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times, then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it, whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.
And Elisha died, and they buried him. and the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men, and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha. And when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood up on his feet.
But Hazael, king of Syria, oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoiaz. And the LORD was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet. So Hazael, king of Syria, died and Ben-Hadad, his son, reigned in his stead. And Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz, took again out of the hand of Ben-Hadad, the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz, his father, by war. Three times did Joash beat him and recovered the cities of Israel. Amen. May the Lord bless to us this reading from his word.
Today we're going to be thinking about the death of Elisha. Now, I hope you haven't forgotten Elisha. It's been some time since we mentioned him. And yet his influence in Israel had not diminished. Yes, we've been thinking about some other things that have been happening, but Elisha has still been serving the Lord, still ministering during this period. And when he now has gotten very old, When he was on his deathbed with a sickness that would cause his death, the King of Israel went to visit him. And out of respect for Elisha, the King of Israel wept over him.
Just let me have a little aside here if I may. I'm sure you realize by now that studying the histories of the kings of Judah and Israel isn't an easy thing to do. When we first started to talk about Israel and Judah and the kings of Israel, it was quite straightforward.
There was Saul, the first king, then there was David, and then there was Solomon, and there was one kingdom. When Solomon died, the kingdom broke into two. Rehoboam was in Judah, the southern kingdom. Jeroboam was in Israel, the ten tribes, or the northern kingdom. And you might remember that Jeroboam established two centers for worship, one in Dan, one in Bethel, in order to stop the people from having to travel back to the temple in Jerusalem for worship.
That was the beginning of open idolatry in Israel. And that idolatry continued all through the reigns of the subsequent kings. Now, I mentioned it was difficult to think about all of these kings. And one of the things that makes it difficult to study these kings is that during this period, The rulers of the separate kingdoms, the Southern Kingdom and the Northern Kingdom, or Judah and Israel, the rulers of the separate kingdoms often had the very same name. So that there was a Jehoram king of Judah and a Jehoram king of Israel. Two different people with the same name. There's an Ahaziah in both kingdoms, there's a Joash in both kingdoms and a Jehoahaz in both kingdoms. Now, few of these men proved to be very good kings. There were A few, there were some good kings in Judah, men such as Asa and Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah and Josiah, who we'll come to a little bit later.
But we would be hard-pressed to find a single God-honouring man in the whole history of the northern tribes. There wasn't a man amongst them who honoured God from the breakup of the kingdom following Solomon's death until Israel was taken into captivity by the Assyrians, never to return. That teaches us that when nations turn away from God, when they stop worshipping God in spirit and in truth, when they reject the prophets and the preachers that God sends to instruct them, that nation and its people will suffer God's judgment.
Now last week we were speaking about a man called Joash in Judah and he reigned in Jerusalem. His reign seemed to start well because he rebuilt the temple wall. But then in the end, he slew a man called Zechariah, who was the Lord's prophet and son of Jehoiada. Today, we're going to meet another Joash, but this time it's Joash in Israel and Samaria.
And he too, like his contemporary in or his namesake in Judah and Jerusalem he too was a wicked king and despite this episode where he went to visit Elisha and seemed to respect Elisha when he went to visit him near his death, or close to the prophet's death, we are told emphatically that this man in the northern kingdom, this Joash, he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.
Now Elisha was old and he was dying. And Joash, this Joash, came to weep for him. As he did so, it's interesting that he cried out the very same words that Elisha himself had used many years before when Elijah died. Joash said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof. He was saying that Elisha's prayers were more powerful than the horses and chariots of the land.
He was saying that Elisha's death would be a greater loss to the nation than the loss of an army, the loss of chariots and horsemen. I just think it's too bad that Joash hadn't listened more to Elisha during his lifetime, that he hadn't honoured the Lord's prophet and followed his direction and advice. He realised that Elisha's death would be a loss to the nation, though I doubt it affected him personally.
It's like people who say, I'm glad that my country is a Christian country, but they don't go to church, they don't read the Bible and they certainly don't trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. They just like the history and the traditions. Actually, As Jehoash went to Elisha at the end of his life, Elisha did have a message for Jehoash. A message from the Lord.
Syria had greatly troubled Israel and the Lord intended to break the strength of the Syrian army. So Elisha told Joash to take his bow and some arrows and fire an arrow out of the window of Elisha's room. It was the arrow of the Lord's deliverance and it was symbolic that Joash and Israel would fight and defeat Syria. As Joash prepared to shoot, Elisha laid his hands on the king's hands, signifying that while Joash would shoot the arrow at Syria, the Lord would direct its flight and strike the enemy, so that Joash, as it were, would be the tool in God's hands. And then Elisha told Joash to take his arrows and smite upon the ground with that handful of arrows.
Joash obliged, but his response was half-hearted. He struck three times and then he stayed or he stopped. That wasn't what Elisha had intended, and Elisha, we're told, was angry. He should have struck more times. Now he would have three victories, one for each time he struck. He would have three victories over Syria, enough to recover some cities, but insufficient to destroy Syria completely. And with this, Elisha's last word and prophecy to Israel had been delivered. And the faithful old prophet died and went to be with the Lord. However, that's not the end of Elisha's story. A strange thing happened following Elisha's burial.
Later that year, Another funeral was taking place. The men burying their friend on this occasion spied a band of Moabite raiders approaching them. Now that caused them some fear. And rather than take time to dig a new grave, as they had intended to do, the men simply opened the top of Elisha's grave and placed the body of their friend inside. Perhaps they meant to come back and recover him again and dig a grave at another time. But that wasn't necessary. When the man was let down into Elisha's grave and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and he stood upon his feet.
Even in death, the bones of the old prophet were used to confirm his final prophecy. Here's a few lessons that we can take from this passage. We may well get confused with all these names of the kings of Israel and Judah. And as I've said, especially when there are doubles and duplicates.
However, Do you know that the Lord Jesus has a book in heaven? Not the book of the kings of Israel, but this book has the names of all those who believe on him written inside. And these are the names of all that will be saved. And despite all the names that are in the Lord's book, there is absolutely no confusion at all in that book. It is called the Lamb's Book of Life because Christ is the Lamb of God and it is his book. And all whose names are recorded there will receive the gift of spiritual life from the Lord. Now that is a very important and a very powerful truth. that the names of all those for whom the Lord Jesus Christ died and for whom his blood was shed are written in heaven and have been recorded there since before the world was made. These people whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life are called God's elect or His chosen people. And these are the people that God gave to His Son for Him to die for and for Him to redeem.
We get to look in the history books of the children of Israel in our scriptures, in our Bible. We don't get to look in that book which is in heaven. We don't get to look in the Lamb's Book of Life to see whose names are there. But we can discover our own name is included. It is possible to know if our name is in the Lamb's Book of Life.
For this simple reason, everyone who trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation and peace with God can be sure that their name is written in his book, because only those whose names are written there will believe on Jesus Christ and be saved. Here's another thing that we might take from this passage. When Joash went to see Elisha, he probably was hoping for some wise advice from the old man, some suitable direction from the dying prophet, maybe even a word from the Lord.
Well, he was not disappointed. And yet it is clear that Joash had no real spiritual understanding. He was insensitive to the meaning and significance of Elisha's words. It was as though he came and he heard and he went away again untouched. Many people are like Joash. They hear the gospel. but it does not affect them. It's like the good seed that is sown on stony ground. It doesn't take root and it's soon carried away.
That's like Joash. Joash had no enthusiasm for the Lord, no passion for the things of God, for the ways or power of the Lord. And he had no humility. His tears for Elisha were self-serving tears. His interest was for his immediate need, not his eternal soul. And I'm sorry that for the sake of Joash, Elisha's last emotion in this world, the last thing that Elisha felt in this world, was anger. He was angry at the King's careless attitude.
The gospel tells us that there is deliverance and victory to be found in Christ. This was a message of deliverance and victory that Elisha was giving to Joash. It was a picture of the deliverance and victory that is to be found in Christ. The Bible speaks to you and me of a door that is open and a pathway that leads to heaven.
If you are not on that path, and if you have not yet passed through that door, don't be like Joash and just carry on regardless. Look for it, ask the Lord to help you to find it. Isaiah 55, verse six and seven says, Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him. And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. And then just one final thought, if I may.
The case of the dead man who sprang from the grave of Elisha, having touched the prophet's bones, seems very strange indeed. But at the very least, Because it was a miracle that was performed in that time, in that day, at the very least it was confirmation to Joash and the people of Israel that the prophets' words would be fulfilled, that they would come true. Because it showed that Elisha was the Lord's man. But I think there's a deeper significance as well. As Elijah had entered into heaven without dying, so too with Elisha, this amazing event after the prophet's burial pointed to resurrection and life after death. This man had died, he was being buried, and yet he came to life again.
You see, piece by piece, God was teaching his faithful people in those Old Testament days what Jesus, his son, would do. And he was preparing the world for the accomplishments of Christ, the resurrection that would be given by Christ's death. These were signs that had been supplied. These were evidences given to those men and women of that age who had faith, who had eyes to see and ears to hear.
There is resurrection life in Jesus Christ for sinners like you and me. Christ brings sinners from the dead, those who are dead in sin, and he will raise again our bodies from the dead because he has power over life and death. May the Lord give us all eyes to see and ears to hear. and a will to trust in Him who is the resurrection and the life. Amen.
About Peter L. Meney
Peter L. Meney is Pastor of New Focus Church Online (http://www.newfocus.church); Editor of New Focus Magazine (http://www.go-newfocus.co.uk); and Publisher of Go Publications which includes titles by Don Fortner and George M. Ella. You may reach Peter via email at peter@go-newfocus.co.uk or from the New Focus Church website. Complete church services are broadcast weekly on YouTube @NewFocusChurchOnline.
Pristine Grace functions as a digital library of preaching and teaching from many different men and ministries. I maintain a broad collection for research, study, and listening, and the presence of any preacher or message here should not be taken as a blanket endorsement of every doctrinal position expressed.
I publish my own convictions openly and without hesitation throughout this site and in my own preaching and writing. This archive is not a denominational clearinghouse. My aim in maintaining it is to preserve historic and contemporary preaching, encourage careful study, and above all direct readers and listeners to the person and work of Christ.
Everything that exists is a thought in the mind of God.
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I spent the majority of my adult life building something I didn't know had a name. It started with the Scriptures and a lot of late nights. It ended with one sentence that generates every theological position I hold, from the nature of God to the nature of heaven and hell, without contradiction. One sentence. Thirty chapters. Sixteen appendices. And if you accept the sentence, everything else follows.
Most systematic theologies start with a list of doctrines and work through them one by one. This book starts with an ontological claim - that everything that exists is a thought in the mind of God - and derives everything from that single proposition. This is not a rearrangement of existing theology. This is a paradigm shift. Since Augustine imported Plato's metaphysics into the church in the fourth century, every major system of Christian theology has been built on a foundation the Scriptures never laid. This book identifies that foundation, names it, traces its influence across sixteen centuries, and replaces it with an ontology derived from Scripture alone. If the claim holds, this is the most significant shift in the theological starting point since Augustine. And I believe it holds.
This is not a devotional. This is not a commentary. This is a systematic theology built from the ground up by a computer programmer with no seminary degree, no denominational backing, and no one's permission. It uses the vocabulary of information theory, computer science, and quantum physics to describe realities that traditional theological language has never been able to reach. If you are a scientist who suspects that information is fundamental to reality but can't bring yourself to call it God, this book speaks your language. If you are a sovereign grace believer looking for a system that follows the logic all the way, this book does that. And if you have been told that the sharpest doctrine produces the coldest heart, this book ends with the widest arms you have ever seen in a Reformed theology.
The digital edition is free. The truth doesn't come with a price tag. - Brandan Kraft
Where this book stands in the tradition
4th century BC
Plato
Idealism — forms over particulars
The Republic ethic: “God is not the author of evil”
“Everything that exists is a thought in the mind of God, sustained by His will, authored by His purpose, and held together by personal covenants of love.”
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