SPIRITUAL GEMS 2022: Week of December 19 to 25, 2 Kings 18 to 19, Answers.

SPIRITUAL GEMS 2022: December 19-25, 2022, 2 Kings 18 to 19, Answers.

Let's look for hidden pearls (10 min.)

2Ki 19:37. How does this verse show that we need to take a balanced view of archaeological discoveries? (it-1 203 para. 1).

Because in this verse it is said that the children in the plural murdered their father, but a Babylonian Chronicle said that only one was the one who killed their father. However, later a fragment of the Prism of Esar-Hadon, one of his own sons affirmed that his brothers in the plural rebelled and killed their father, as we see there are writings that want to enhance the character, that is why the story is changed and at the same time Analyzing these fragments we must be careful not to fall into this error that these writers made.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

According to the Babylonian Chronicle, the Assyrian king Sennacherib was killed by one of his sons in a revolt, as was the Babylonian king Nabonidus in the 6th century BC. CE, how the third-century BC Babylonian priest Berosus. EC, they wrote the same thing. But regarding this event, a more recently discovered fragment of Esar-haddon's prism shows that Esar-haddon himself claims that his father, King Sennacherib, was assassinated by two of his sons who rebelled to obtain the kingdom.

This teaches us that only the Biblical narrative turned out to be correct, since it was confirmed in all its details by the Inspiration of Esar-haddon. Hence, we must see the archaeological discoveries with balance.

This verse also teaches us that it is necessary for the Christian to show due caution before accepting without reservation the interpretation given to the many inscriptions found in the various ancient languages.

The Babylonian Chronicle, Nabonidus and Berossus were wrong; only the biblical record proved to be reliable. The Esar-hadon inscription confirmed this down to the smallest details, thus proving to be more accurate regarding this event in Assyro-Babylonian history than the Babylonian sources themselves. This is a fact of the utmost importance, even for the evaluation of contemporary sources that are not in accordance with the Biblical tradition.

What spiritual pearls have you found about Jehovah, the ministry, and other topics in this week's Bible reading?

2 Kings 18:5-8. In this text we can see that Hezekiah trusts in Jehovah and was obedient and loyal to him, and also acts wisely because he refused to serve the king of Assyria. In reward, Jehovah blessed him by giving him victory over his enemies. This teaches us that Jehovah greatly blesses the efforts we make to remain faithful and obedient despite the pressures of this system, the attacks of Satan, and the bad tendencies that are the product of our imperfection. This should encourage us to continue trying harder every day.

2 Kings 19:35. He says that one angel of Jehovah alone struck down 185,000 men. This gives us confidence that Jehovah can protect his people from the attacks of Satan and his followers.

2 Kings 18:28. Jehovah told Sennacherib that he was going to make him return and everything he said would punish him, so with Jehovah's actions this Assyrian king had to renounce the siege of Jerusalem and return to Nineveh, where later his own sons murdered him, not of his own will, but by the hand of Jehovah. Which teaches us that those who rise up against Jehovah's people will not succeed, for Jehovah will move matters to humiliate them and show them that he is the true God.

2 Kings 19:15-19. It is an example of prayer that Hezekiah made in times of distress, I always seek to extol Jehovah, with the right attitude, It is certainly a gift for us to be able to read this heartfelt prayer and learn from it to imitate King Hezekiah.

2 Kings 19:35. Jehovah saved the people from him in a way that no one imagined, but they totally trusted him, God's people will witness how Jehovah will save his people from a coalition of Nations. In ways no one imagined, this motivates us to be faithful to Jehovah no matter what.

2 Kings 18:36. There are opponents with whom we do not know how to argue or try to make them reason, the Slave has suggested that we should never debate with apostates or other people, better instead, we continue to serve Jehovah faithfully, at the end of everything will be clarified by Jehovah and he will give to each one what corresponds to him.

2 Kings 18:29. We must never doubt Jehovah and his existence, there are people who call themselves wise and intellectuals of this world who emphatically question God and his word the Bible. They are totally wrong, in fact, their atheistic ideas have not brought any benefit to humanity, on the other hand, the people who have been guided by the word of God, the Bible, have left great contributions to humanity, the worst mistake that someone can commit is to doubt and believe another human being.

2 Kings 18:19-21. We see that Rabsaqué used false information so that the people would stop trusting the king. Today it is very common for us to also listen to bad reports from Jehovah's Organization so that people do not listen when we preach to them. But we see that our conduct has made many people willing to study the Bible and be servants of Jehovah.

2 Kings 18:21. Although the accusation was false, since the king had not entered into any Alliance with Egypt, it made clear what Rabsaqué wanted to instill in the minds of the Jews when he said: "They are alone and without anyone to help them, completely isolated" Our enemies too They think that Jehovah's servants are alone, so they can hurt us, but they don't realize that we have the support of Jehovah, the creator of the universe.

2 Kings 18:4. We see that the Israelites twisted the purpose of the copper serpent and turned it into an idol, which teaches us that we should never apply biblical texts in order to support our own benefits, since we would go beyond what Jehovah is asking of us. .

2 Kings 18:32. In this text Rabsaqué speaks things completely contrary to the truth. For example, he says that Jehovah will not deliver us, thus trying to discourage the people and make the people surrender to Assyria. Today we also receive comments from people urging us to make the most of the world or excel in this system of things, so we must be very careful that those desires do not take root in our hearts and make us forget the true purpose of our life.

2 Kings 18:7. We see that Hezekiah rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. At that time Assyria was powerful enough to defeat the Northern Kingdom. However, the kingdom of Judah remained strong because Jehovah blessed the trust and obedience of his king Hezekiah. This teaches us that if we want to do well in life, it is in Jehovah that we must trust and not in ourselves or in other human beings.

2 Kings 18:9-12. He shows how the northern kingdom made a grave mistake in rejecting Jehovah as its king and in disobeying his commandments, as this led to a national disaster at the hands of the Assyrians. This teaches us that we should never stop listening to Jehovah through his word, the Bible. Nor should we fail to obey his arrangements or instructions. To do otherwise could mean our spiritual ruin.

2 Kings 18:9-12. We see that although the people of the Northern kingdom were not Israelites or less descendants of Abraham than the people of the South, they lost Jehovah's protection and faced judgment for failing to listen to him and obey his commandments. In this way, it became a clear warning to Judah. This account also brings a warning to all of us today, for if we stop listening to Jehovah and obeying his righteous standards, we too will suffer the consequences.

2 Kings 18:32. He shows that Rabsaque speaks things contrary to the truth thus trying to discourage the people from surrendering to Assyria. Today, we also find many people speaking ill of Jehovah and his organization in order to discourage his faithful servants. Therefore, instead of allowing that to affect us, we will see it for what it really is: one more misleading advertisement from Satan and as such we will reject it.

2 Kings 19:19. It shows that although Hezekiah might have been afraid, his prayer was not focused on him, but on the hallowing of Jehovah's name. This reminds us that although it is okay to pray to Jehovah considering our personal needs, First of all we must pray that his Name be hallowed and his Sovereignty be vindicated, Consequently, Jehovah will give us what we are needing. 

2 Kings 18:19-25. We see that Rabsaqué's words were false, as was his claim that he had Jehovah's authorization to attack and destroy the country. Fortunately, Hezekiah trusted only in Jehovah. This teaches us that even if someone claims to speak in the name of God, if what he says is not entirely verifiable with the Bible, we should not trust that person. Like Hezekiah, we must put our trust only in Jehovah.

2 Kings 19:32-37. It shows that by mocking Jehovah and threatening his people Sennacherib did not enter the citizenship he shot a single arrow, Since the angel of Jehovah in a single night struck down 185,000 Assyrians, And Sennacherib himself died, then Nineveh at the hands of his own sons. This should serve as a warning to those who today mock Jehovah and threaten his faithful servants.  

2 Kings 19:6-7.  It shows us that Jehovah would take care of the Assyrians who had blasphemed against him, so Hezekiah need not be afraid. This teaches us that today, even if we meet these types of people, we should not feel afraid or debate with them. Rather, we should withdraw in peace, for in due time Jehovah will take care of all of them.

2 Kings 19:1,2. Here we see that King Hezekiah entered the temple to pray and consult the Prophet Isaiah. Similarly, today among Jehovah's people we can gain strength and comfort in these difficult times by associating with our fellow nations in Jehovah's spiritual temple. Hence the importance of not failing to attend meetings.

2 Kings 19:35. We see how Jehovah, Through a single Angel and in a single night he killed 185,000 sides like this. From this account we can imagine the scene when Jesus Christ and his heavenly beings deliver all those who participated in true worship by destroying all our opponents in the battle of Armageddon. This should encourage us to continue preaching with Courage. 

2 Kings 19:19. Here we can see the prayer of King Hezekiah, He knew that it was impossible to hope for salvation by human efforts in the face of the threat of attack from Syria. However, this plea was promptly answered, the very night that Hezekiah uttered his prayer. This teaches us the importance of prayer and putting our faith and trust in Jehovah.

2 Kings 18:1, 2. Doing calculations, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah when he was less than twelve years old, although in temperate climates boys generally reach puberty between the ages of twelve and fifteen, in hot climates they can reach it earlier, although both a Hebrew manuscript and the Syriac Peshitta Version and some Septuagint Version manuscripts say in 2 Chronicles 28:1 that Ahaz's age when he began to reign was “twenty-five years”, not twenty, making Hezekiah born around the 17 years of Ahaz.

2 Kings 18:4. The Israelites kept the copper serpent that Moses had made, Hezekiah destroyed it after more than seven hundred years because the people had turned it into an idol because they worshiped it and offered sacrificial smoke, which happened with the copper serpent it exemplifies for us that we should avoid all reverence or worship of objects or things that have been associated with pure worship.

2 Kings 18:3. Hezekiah wholeheartedly supported the true worship of Jehovah. he compiled many of the Psalms into book form for temple worship, including the one composed by David. Hezekiah himself may have written the 33rd Psalm quoted above, as well as other psalms that seem to praise Jehovah because of his triumph over the Assyrian.

2 Kings 18:4. The Israelites kept the copper serpent, and over time they used it improperly, worshiping it and offering sacrificial smoke. Hence, King Hezekiah reduced to pieces the copper serpent that was more than 700 years old as part of her religious reform, since the people had turned her into an idol. In much the same way that many today in Christendom worship the cross that is sacred to them, there is no place in Jehovah's true people ancient or modern for idolatry. It is true that we keep old things, like relics that are part of the modern history of the organization, but at no time do we fall into idolatry.

2 Kings 18:4. This leaves us a clear lesson, anything unclean that has to do with idolatry, images, movies, music objects or among others, we must destroy it, instead of keeping it there, since this could fall into other hands and thus it would be tripping the same to others, on the other hand, when we destroy it, we are not uprooting it, because it only remains as a bad memory.

2 Kings 18:5. Hezekiah stood out for being a king who continued to adhere to Jehovah, doing what was right in his eyes and following his commandments. From the beginning of his reign he demonstrated his commitment to promoting true Worship, not only in Judah, but in all of Israel. Because the ways of Jehovah were given just like his ancestor David's, it could be said that after him it turned out that there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, not even those who had been before him. Therefore, Jehovah turned out to be with him.

2 Kings 18:6. Many people worship God in his own way, how best he feels, they remove and put verses from the Bible, they interpret it at his convenience. But that is not what Hezekiah did, he adhered to God's commandments, without a doubt, it is of vital importance to understand that humans must worship God as he wants, instead of what it may seem to us.

2 Kings 18:12. Anyone who does not listen to the voice of Jehovah, that is, who does not obey him and follow his Biblical commandments and principles, will do badly, there are those who ignore God's commandments, and perhaps they are not doing badly at the moment, but eventually things fall under their own weight, and the consequences come. Keeping this in mind will help us take seriously our vow of dedication to Jehovah. 

2 Kings 18:6. Knowing the commandments of Jehovah is important, but living each day practicing what we learn is a challenge, Hezekiah had the commandments and did not stop following God, without a doubt, we want to do the same, that is why we should not allow anything or no one separates us from Jehovah, Remember that a privilege or with a lot of knowledge does not guarantee that we will always follow Jehovah, since only Jehovah is the one who will help us to take care of ourselves every day and follow in his footsteps with great care and attention.

2 Kings 18:6. For Hezekiah, the worship of Jehovah was not a game, or a mere ritual, it was something very important, to such an extent that the text says that God clung to his commandments received and transmitted by Moses. That gives us a model of how we see the worship of Jehovah, since we could see it as a game or also as a way of life, without a doubt our actions will give the answer.

2 Kings 18:13. The invasion of Judah during the reign of Hezekiah, as predicted by Micah, was well recorded by Sennacherib as a large four-panel relief depicting the capture of Lachish was discovered on the wall of his palace at Nineveh. tribute Hezekiah paid him, these discoveries confirm the Biblical account.

2 Kings 18:22-25. With great cunning, the rabsaqué tried to sow doubts by affirming that Jehovah was not going to defend his servants, because he was angry with them. But the truth was that God was very pleased with Hezekiah and with the Jews who had returned to true worship, so even though our friends try to sow doubts in us, let us always remember that Jehovah is pleased with the loyalty and service we give him. .

2 Kings 19:1-4. Here it is mentioned that after hearing the rabsaq's accusations, he tore his clothes, the Talmudic tradition also prescribed that when religious judges heard blasphemous words supposedly uttered by the accused in testimony, they had to tear their clothes following the example of said passage.

2 Kings 19:25. Through progressive action, Jehovah becomes the Keeper of all his promises. Thus, Jehovah is said to 'shape' or shape his purpose in regard to future actions or events, just as a skilled potter can shape a piece of clay into a beautiful vessel, Jehovah can shape, or maneuver , matters to carry out his will.

2 Kings 19:35. The angel of God struck down 185,000 Assyrians, Sennacherib withdrew and returned to Nineveh, due to humiliation the proud Sennacherib would not be expected to boast of this loss of soldiers as he tried to disguise the information by saying that his invasion of Judea had been a success and that Hezekiah was still subdued, sending tribute to Nineveh, this example shows us Jehovah's ability to humiliate his enemies.