The Man of God Wept (2 Kings 8:7-15)
“The Man of God Wept”
2 Kings 8:7-15
This morning we come to the conclusion of the “Elisha” section.
It is not the end of his ministry, but it does end the section
Which focuses on his miracles and prophecies.
As you know this section has not really been about Elisha,
But rather it has been using the ministry of Elisha
To reveal how God is at work in Israel.
For those who are seeking and trusting God,
God has been using Elisha to bless them
With miraculous deliverance, and merciful and insightful warnings.
We called them “The Blessed”.
Regardless of their hardships they had God on their side
And therefore they always seemed to find deliverance.
But for those who did not seek or trust God,
God has been using Elisha to call them to faith in him.
We called them “The Cursed”
Regardless of the situation, life would never go as planned
And they found themselves suffering continuously because of their sin.
And through the ministry of Elisha
We have been able to see a very definite contrast between the two.
Today we close this section with a very vivid and tragic scene.
The section chronicling Elisha
Does not end with Elisha rejoicing over Israel’s repentance,
But rather weeping because of Israel’s coming judgment.
To put things in proper perspective,
You must know that this story began several years prior.
There was a wicked king in Israel named Ahab.
He was an idolatrous, murderous, rebellious man.
His wife’s name was Jezebel and she was even worse.
During the reign of Ahab, God sent a 3 ½ year drought on Israel
In order to get their attention.
As the drought was about to end, Elijah went to show himself to Ahab and what ensued was the show down on Mt. Carmel, in which Elijah humiliated the 450 prophets of Baal and the slaughtered them.
Following that event, the rains fell for the first time in 3 ½ years and Elijah ran back to Jezreel expecting revival.
What he found was a death threat from Jezebel and so Elijah fled to the mountain of God and awaited God’s counsel.
God revealed to Elijah that
He would completely remove Baal worship from Israel,
Though the manner in which God did it,
Would not be through revival, but rather judgment.
Here is what God had to say:
1 Kings 19:15-18 “The LORD said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus, and when you have arrived, you shall anoint Hazael king over Aram; and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place. “It shall come about, the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall put to death, and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall put to death. “Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
God was planning to remove Baal, but not solely through Elijah.
God would use 3 other significant characters to do it.
• He would use a prophet named Elisha who would confront the people…
• He would use a king named Jehu who would attack Baal…
• He would use a king named Hazael who would attack Israel…
This morning we see the fulfillment of the reign of Hazael.
He is about to come to power,
But that does not mark a pleasant thing for Israel.
Let’s look at our text.
3 things
#1 THE REVELATION
2 Kings 8:7-10
Elisha now has left Israel and is visiting the capital of Aram.
It was uncommon for Israel’s prophets to do this, but not unheard of.
(Jonah visited Nineveh)
But most likely Elisha is on this trip in reference to the prophecy
And to anoint Hazael as king over Aram.
Now when he arrives we find once again that the PROVIDENCE OF GOD is at work, for there is another DIVINE APPOINTMENT.
Elisha does not have to find Hazael, Hazael finds Elisha.
The reason is because Ben-hadad is sick
And he wants to know if he will recover.
Ben-hadad is convinced that Elisha is legitimate.
He has had too many run-ins with the man, and he knows Elisha has great insight.
He also is willing to humble himself before Elisha
And to pay him an enormous amount for his services.
(Verse 9) “So Hazael went to meet him and took a gift in his hand, every kind of good thing of Damascus, forty camels’ loads; and he came and stood before him and said, “Your son Ben-hadad king of Aram has sent me to you, saying, ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’”
And so you can see the humility and submission of Ben-Hadad,
And that this also has arranged the meeting between Hazael and Elisha.
Elisha’s response:
(Verse 10) “Then Elisha said to him, “Go, say to him, ‘You will surely recover’, but the LORD has shown me that he will certainly die.”
Now that is an interesting statement.
IS ELISHA PURPOSELY LYING TO THE KING?
No, in regard to the sickness Ben-hadad inquired about, he will recover.
But he will also die, from another cause.
And that is the initial revelation from Elisha,
But the main idea is that it allowed he and Hazael to meet.
The Revelation
#2 THE REMORSE
2 Kings 8:11-13
And this is really the heart of our passage.
After the revelation of the kings recovery and death,
Elisha had a stare down on Hazael.
“He fixed his gaze steadily on him until he was ashamed…”
God had revealed to Elisha the conspiracy of murder in Hazael’s heart
And so Elisha stared him down.
Hazael planned to use this sickness
To murder the king and take his throne.
It may have only been conceived in Hazael’s heart, but Elisha knew it.
Many think that no one ever knew of Hazael’s act, since he was indeed made king, and that the only place this incident was ever revealed was under the inspiration of Scripture.
But none the less, because of his wickedness, Elisha stares him down.
I’m sure his gaze pierced Hazael’s heart, and just as it is with the word of God, there was nowhere for Hazael to hide.
But as soon as Hazael reached a point of shame,
Elisha instantly changed the mood.
(11) “He fixed his gaze steadily on him until he was ashamed, and the man of God wept.”
So just when Hazael is at his breaking point,
It is not he, but Elisha who breaks into tears and begins to weep.
That poses a legitimate question:
(12) “Hazael said, “Why does my lord weep?” Then he answered, “Because I have seen the evil that you will do to the sons of Israel: their strongholds you will set on fire, and their young men you will kill with the sword, and their little ones you will dash in pieces, and their women with child you will rip up.”
Now of course Hazael denies it with false humility
VERSE 13
The main point is that when Elisha is given a glimpse from God
As to what this man will do, he begins to weep.
And the answer is to why he is weeping is very clear.
“Because I know the evil…”
Elisha is weeping because in Israel it has come to this.
Israel is so stubborn, and so obstinate, and so defiant, and so hard of hearing
That in order to get their attention it has resorted to this.
• It would have been nice if the 3 ½ year drought or the 7 year famine would have changed their hearts…
• It would have been nice if the marauding bands of Arameans had accomplished the purpose…
• It would have been nice if the preaching of Elijah and Elisha had accomplished this, but Israel refused them all.
And so now it has come to an oppressive tyrant
Who will absolutely mutilate Israel.
And when Elisha sees the coming judgment all he can do is weep.
And let me remind you that Elisha is God’s representative on the earth,
And so you are not just seeing the tears of Elisha,
But the tears of Almighty God.
God is mourning, God is in remorse, for this was not God’s intention.
In fact, Scripture reminds that God does not favor judgment.
Ezekiel 33:11 “Say to them, ‘ As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’”
The prophet Isaiah gave tremendous insight into God’s judgment.
Isaiah 28:21-22 “For the LORD will rise up as at Mount Perazim, He will be stirred up as in the valley of Gibeon, To do His task, His unusual task, And to work His work, His extraordinary work. And now do not carry on as scoffers, Or your fetters will be made stronger; For I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts Of decisive destruction on all the earth.”
Of course the New Testament continues this thought.
1 Timothy 2:1-4 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”
God does not rejoice in judgment, nor does He take any pleasure in it.
It is peculiar to Him, it is strange to him, and He does not enjoy it.
As we said last week.
God is not a tyrant, nor is God a thief, or destroyer.
GOD IS A SAVIOR – seen most clearly in the person of Jesus.
John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
You may remember when Jesus and His disciples were heading through Samaria:
Luke 9:51-56 “When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem; and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the Samaritans to make arrangements for Him. But they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem. When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But He turned and rebuked them, [ and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.”
And the point is seen over and over that
God does not rejoice in destroying men, but in saving men.
In fact Scripture says:
Luke 15:7 “I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”
God is a Savior, He wants men saved.
He takes no pleasure in having to exercise divine judgment.
Yet that is precisely what Israel has pushed Him to,
And so through the eyes of Elisha, God is weeping.
And I wish I could say that this was an isolated incident.
I wish I could say that this is the only time in Scripture
In which God showed remorse through His messengers.
BUT IT IS NOT.
When Jeremiah was God’s prophet:
Jeremiah 9:1 “Oh that my head were waters And my eyes a fountain of tears, That I might weep day and night For the slain of the daughter of my people!”
Jeremiah 13:16-17 “Give glory to the LORD your God, Before He brings darkness And before your feet stumble On the dusky mountains, And while you are hoping for light He makes it into deep darkness, And turns it into gloom. But if you will not listen to it, My soul will sob in secret for such pride; And my eyes will bitterly weep And flow down with tears, Because the flock of the LORD has been taken captive.”
Jeremiah 14:17-18 “You will say this word to them, ‘Let my eyes flow down with tears night and day, And let them not cease; For the virgin daughter of my people has been crushed with a mighty blow, With a sorely infected wound. ‘If I go out to the country, Behold, those slain with the sword! Or if I enter the city, Behold, diseases of famine! For both prophet and priest Have gone roving about in the land that they do not know.'”
It was even Jeremiah who wrote an entire book of weeping.
We call it “Lamentations”.
God wept through Jeremiah over the coming judgment on Judah.
In regard to Israel the Psalmist had this to say:
Psalms 119:136 “My eyes shed streams of water, Because they do not keep Your law.”
Paul shared his grief as he wrote of their rejection by God.
Romans 9:1-3 “I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh,”
But of course ultimately the weeping of God was seen through Jesus.
Luke 19:41-44 “When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. “For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
Time and time again we God weeping
Over the coming destruction of His people.
It is not the pleasure of God to send men into judgment.
He gets no satisfaction from it.
BUT WHY DOES IT UPSET GOD SO?
Elisha answered that.
“Because I know the evil…”
DO YOU KNOW WHY GOD IS SO MOVED OVER THE JUDGMENT OF MEN?
Because God knows better than anyone what hell is like.
If we truly knew what hell was like,
Then we would be just as distraught as God is
Over the fact that men and women are rapidly filling that place.
J. Hudson Taylor said, “Would that God would make hell so real to us that we cannot rest; heaven so real that we must have men there.”
And so this morning,
Allow me to remind you about this dreadful place we call hell
I do not wish to manipulate you, or to move you emotionally,
Only to help you see what the Bible says about this dreadful place.
Let me give you a few describers of this place called hell.
1) Outer darkness
Matthew 22:13 “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
2) Place of weeping and gnashing of teeth
Matthew 24:51 “…in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
3) Eternal punishment
Matthew 25:46 “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
4) Furnace of Fire
Matthew 13:42 “and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
5) Lake of Fire
Revelation 20:15 “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
6) Fire and Brimstone
Revelation 14:10 “he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.”
7) Unquenchable Fire
Matthew 3:12 “His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
8) Place that destroys both the body and the soul
Matthew 10:28 “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
9) A GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF IT
Isaiah 30:33 “For Topheth has long been ready, Indeed, it has been prepared for the king. He has made it deep and large, A pyre of fire with plenty of wood; The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of brimstone, sets it afire.”
If you want some illustrative descriptions of hell,
We have some of those as well.
TURN TO: Luke 16:19-26
TURN TO: Revelation 9:1-11
The point is that hell is a terrible place.
And when God sees mankind headed there,
It does not cause Him joy, but grief.
He does not resort to singing, but weeping.
The thought of men enduring a judgment He so desperately tried to save them from, is extremely grievous to Him.
Hell is a dreadful place.
Jesus even gave an indicator of how badly it should be avoided.
TURN TO: Mark 9:42-48
The idea is that hell is no place to go.
Jerry Vines once said, “There are three reasons why you should be saved. Number one, you don’t want to go to hell. Number two, you don’t want to go to hell. Number three, you don’t want to go to hell.”
And yet men continually choose that place
Over the salvation of God.
IS IT ANY WONDER GOD IS WEEPING?
Elisha is weeping because
He sees the judgment of God being poured out,
And he knows what the children of Israel are about to endure.
“Because I know the evil…”
So we see the revelation
We see the remorse
#3 THE REALIZATION
2 Kings 8:14-15
And the point is that what Elisha said would happen is being fulfilled.
Hazael suffocated the king and seized the throne,
And now it is only a matter of time
Until the promised judgment is also realized.
And that is something that this world
Desperately needs to understand.
Hell is not a possibility, hell is a reality.
There are men there now, and more are headed.
God has promised it for those who reject Jesus,
And some day with tears in His eyes
He will most certainly cast men there.
What I tell you about this morning is not a myth.
What I tell you about this morning is not a gimmick.
What I tell you about is absolute truth.
1) If you are not saved, then be saved today.
• Repent of your sin and wickedness and the evil of your life…
• Turn to the Lord Jesus Christ and submit your life to Him…
• Trust in His saving work as absolutely sufficient to save you forever…
DO NOT REJECT JESUS
2) If you are saved, then warn a lost and dying world.
We spend much of our lives attending funerals, but contrary to what 95% of the funeral preachers are telling you. NOT EVERYONE WHO DIES IS IN HEAVEN.
In fact Scriptures says that most people who die are in hell.
Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. “For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
Most people do not go to heaven. Most people go to hell.
That tells me that our job is urgent.
Men must be warned.
But long gone is the weeping of the church.
No longer do we weep for the lost.
We laugh with them…
We socialize with them…
We entertain them…
We sympathize with them…
We work with them…
But seldom do we weep for them.
Charles Spurgeon said, “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one go there unwarned or unprayed for.”
It is a call to a church for a general concern for the lost.
Hell is real And men are suffering And more will join them.
Don’t be one of them.
John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”
