April 9, 2020: Day 68 – II Kings 10

For 28 years Jehu, the one who was anointed by the minion, rules over Israel.  But look at what he does once he comes into power.  He slaughters all of the children of Ahab, which we must assume were followers of Baal as Jezebel was.  There were 70 children in all.  He slaughters anyone who was friends with Ahab.  He calls a solemn day of sacrifice and worship for Baal and that anyone who loved Baal had to come.  They all came and they were all slaughtered.  From all across the land Jehu is involved in a theocide by destroying all the priests, worshipers, followers of Baal.

So we find Jehu cleans house, literally, and turns the people away from the worship of Baal which was very pleasing to the Lord.  He didn’t 100% follow the Lord, he maintained the sins of Jeroboam, vs.29.  But God was somewhat pleased and promised him, in vs.30ff, that to the 4th generation the ruler of Israel would come from the family of Jehu.  But God did start to trim away the territory that Israel controlled and so we begin seeing that Israel starts to lose some of the land that had originally been considered as theirs.  As a result Israel begins to lose some of its power.

We find that Jehu, that crazy driver (II Kings 9:20), is succeeded by Jehoahaz, his son.