1 Reis 2

1 Reis 2

Utley points out that There are three deaths mentioned in the Bible. (1) spiritual death ‒ Gen. 2:17; 3; Isa. 59:2; Rom. 7:10-11; James 1:15 (2) physical death ‒ Gen. 2:16-17; 3:4-5; 5 (3) eternal death ‒ Rev. 2:11; 20:6,14; 21:8 Be strong (chazaq;Lxx = ischuo) , therefore, and show yourself a man - Therefore is a term of conclusion clearly based on David's imminent departure. These are both strong exhortations to Solomon. THOUGHT - David's words remind me of Paul charge to Christians - "Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love. (1 Cor 16:13-14) (All verbs in red present imperative see our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) Be strong (chazaq;Lxx = ischuo) and courageous (amets;Lxx = andrizo = act like men, conduct yourself in a courageous way) and act - The expression "be strong and courageous occurs 12 (see passages above). This is still a good admonition today. This charge is repeated from 1 Chronicles 22:19+ Utley - "Be strong" This VERB (BDB 304, KB 302, Qal PERFECT with waw) was used by Moses to Joshua ‒ Deut. 31:7,23 by YHWH to Joshua ‒ Josh. 1:6,7,9,18 by Joshua to Israel ‒ Josh. 10:25 by YHWH to David ‒ 1 Chr. 22:13 by David to Solomon ‒ here; 1 Chr. 28:20 by Azariah to Asa ‒ 2 Chr. 15:7 by Hezekiah to Judah ‒ 2 Chr. 32:7 by Isaiah to the weak-faithed ‒ Isa. 35:4 by an angel to Daniel ‒ Dan. 10:19 by Haggai to Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the people ‒ Hag. 2:4 by Zechariah to returning Judah ‒ Zech. 8:9,13 Ian Paisley - The Way of All the Earth "I go the way of all the earth." I Kings 2:2 The Same Way It is the same way for us all. There are no exceptions. It is a common path. Here all men, of all colours, creeds and classes jostle one another. The Single Way It is a one way street. It is a single way. There is no return. All must keep going. The end thereof are the ways of death. The Short Way It is a short way. It is not a long journey from the cradle to the coffin, from the day of birth to the day of death, from life to death. Time is most certainly short. The Solemn Way It is a solemn way, a way for the consideration of our latter end and to be wise unto salvation. When death has called you it will be too late for you to call on God 1 Kings 2:3 "Keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, BGT 1 Kings 2:3 καὶ φυλάξεις τὴν φυλακὴν κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ σου τοῦ πορεύεσθαι ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ φυλάσσειν τὰς ἐντολὰς αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ δικαιώματα καὶ τὰ κρίματα τὰ γεγραμμένα ἐν νόμῳ Μωυσέως ἵνα συνίῃς ἃ ποιήσεις κατὰ πάντα ὅσα ἂν ἐντείλωμαί σοι LXE 1 Kings 2:3 and keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep the commandments and the ordinances and the judgements which are written in the law of Moses; that thou mayest understand what thou shalt do in all things that I command thee: KJV 1 Kings 2:3 And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself: NET 1 Kings 2:3 Do the job the LORD your God has assigned you by following his instructions and obeying his rules, commandments, regulations, and laws as written in the law of Moses. Then you will succeed in all you do and seek to accomplish, CSB 1 Kings 2:3 and keep your obligation to the LORD your God to walk in His ways and to keep His statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees. This is written in the law of Moses, so that you will have success in everything you do and wherever you turn, ESV 1 Kings 2:3 and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, NIV 1 Kings 2:3 and observe what the LORD your God requires: Walk in his ways, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go, NLT 1 Kings 2:3 Observe the requirements of the LORD your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and laws written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go. NRS 1 Kings 2:3 and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn. NJB 1 Kings 2:3 Observe the injunctions of Yahweh your God, following his ways and keeping his laws, his commandments, his ordinances and his decrees, as stands written in the Law of Moses, so that you may be successful in everything you do and undertake, keep: De 29:9 Jos 1:7 22:5 1Ch 22:12,13 28:8,9 29:19 statutes: De 4:1,5,8 5:1 6:1,2 testimonies: De 4:45 Ps 19:7 119:2,111,138 written: De 17:18-20 Mal 4:4 that: De 29:9 succeed, Jos 1:7-8 1Sa 18:5,14,30 2Ch 31:20,21 Ps 1:2,3 119:98-100 Pr 3:1-4 whithersoever: 2Sa 8:6,14 2Ki 18:7 Related Passages: Joshua 1:7-8+ “Only be strong and very courageous; be careful (shamar; Lxx - phulasso - guard like posting a sentry) to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go (OBEDIENCE). 8 “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that (PURPOSE) you may be careful to do (THE KEY - OBEDIENCE) according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success (sakal; Lxx - suniemi). (BLESSING) Deuteronomy 29:9+ (MOSES ADDRESSING THE SONS OF ISRAEL) “So KEEP (shamar; Lxx - phulasso - guard like posting a sentry) the words of this covenant to do them (OBEDIENCE), that you may prosper (sakal; Lxx - suniemi) in all that you do. (BLESSING) 2 Kings 18:1-7 Now it came about in the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 (NOTE THIS PHRASE) He did right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father David had done. 4 He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan. 5 He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him. 6 For (TERM OF EXPLANATION) he clung to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses. 7 And the LORD was with him (AS HE WAS WITH DAVID); wherever he went he prospered (sakal; Lxx - suniemi). And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. DAVID'S CHARGE OBEDIENCE BRINGS BLESSING Keep (shamar; Lxx - phulasso - guard like posting a sentry) the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses - David points Solomon to the only source of wisdom, God's Word, which gives him the signposts and guidance that he needs to navigate life as one of the greatest kings in the history of the world. The first order of spiritual business is to get God's word in your heart, the "control center" of your life! Utley - "to walk" This is a biblical idiom of faithful living out of one's covenant faith. YHWH's covenant requirements were like a well marked path. Stay on the path! One is reminded of Moses' words to the future kings of Israel in Dt 17:14-20+ which mentions several things that were prohibited for Israelite kings, and these were the very things that Solomon stumbled in - lots of horses (Dt 17:16), wives, and money (Dt 17:17)! Especially important to all future kings of Israel was the word about the Word... “Now it shall come about when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. “It shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life (NLT = "READ IT DAILY AS LONG AS HE LIVES" NJB = "READ IT EVERY DAY OF HIS LIFE"), that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, by carefully observing all the words of this law and these statutes (OBEDIENCE), that his heart may not be lifted up above his countrymen and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left, so that he and his sons may continue long in his kingdom in the midst of Israel. (Dt 17:18-20+) THOUGHT - Do you read the Scripture daily? Do you really read it carefully (cf observing it carefully) or do you just speed read it to get through your daily Through the Bible in a Year Program? Here is the point -- it is not how many verses you go through each day, but how many verses go through you! Do you see the difference? Notice from the above advice to the kings, the first thing we should learn is the Fear of the Lord. It is interesting that FEAR is something that has to be learned. Why is this so important? Fear of the Lord is the foundation for obedience to the Lord (see Pr 8:13, Pr 14:27, Pr 16:6, Pr 19:23, Job 1:1 = In context, why did Job turn away from evil?) The NIV translates Dt 17:19 "Read it all the days of his life so that he (YOU) may learn to revere the LORD his (YOUR) God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees (Dt 17:19NIV) That - Term of purpose. What's the basis for this purpose? You may succeed (sakal; Lxx - suniemi) in all that you do and wherever you turn - David is passing the baton, just as Moses passed the baton to Joshua at a pivotal time in Israel's history. And so it should not surprise us that the charge to Joshua was similar to David's charge to Solomon, and the key to success is twofold - (1) know the Book and (2) obey the Book. It is not complicated, but given the enemies of Solomon, the world, the flesh and the devil, he would need to continually be vigilant and continually depend on the enabling power of the Spirit to keep the ways, statutes, etc. Note the pattern for blessing is timeless - same for Joshua (above), for sons of Israel (above), for Hezekiah (above) and here for Solomon! Guard the Word of God and then Obey the Word of God. This is God's recipe for success in life! David was exhorting Solomon from his personal experience as we read in 1 Samuel 18:14 where "David was prospering (sakal) in all his ways for the LORD was with him." Why was David prospering? Recall that 1Sa 16:13 said "the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward." Even when David disobeyed and later confessed, he cried out to God "do not take Your Holy Spirit from me." (Ps 51:11) He knew that apart from the Holy Spirit's empowering him, he could do absolutely nothing of eternal value, nothing that would bring glory and honor to Yahweh. He knew that Solomon needed the same supernatural power Source and thus he was alerting Solomon to the importance of obedience lest he lose access to the power Source and fail to succeed and prosper. Sadly his latter days were dark days of disobedience and of great loss. THOUGHT - If David could do nothing of eternal value unless God was with him, the same truth applies to every NT believer. If we fail to rely on the supernatural power of the Spirit and instead seek to "do things" in the energy of the flesh, those "things" will be of no eternal value. John 15:5 is the key passage for a successful spiritual life. Jesus said "“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing." Are you abiding (by obeying enabled by His Spirit)? Are you keeping short sin accounts that you may not grieve/quench the Holy Spirit and short circuit your only supernatural Source of power? Proverbs 28:13+ makes it clear that "He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion." Succeed (prudent, wise) (07919) sakal/sākhal primarily means to act with insight, to be prudent, to give insight, to teach, to prosper, to consider, to ponder, to understand, to act prudently, to act with devotion. The primary sense of sakal/sākhal is to be prudent, which means "marked by wisdom or judiciousness, shrewd in the management of practical affairs, marked by circumspection." One who manifests prudence is more likely to have success. The Septuagint (LXX) translates sakal/sākhal in 1 Kings 2:3 with the Greek verb "suniemi meaning to understand, the idea being that one is able to "put together the pieces" (so to speak) and make sense out of a set of facts presented to one's mind. In simple terms, suniemi conveys the idea of putting "2" and "2" together. In other words, one has the ability to assess a situation and decide what practical course of action is necessary. This is a quality which was especially valuable for Joshua who was daily faced with decisions as he led Israel into enemy territory where the nation might possess their (divinely given) possessions. Mark Water - When I Want to Prosper Bible Promise No. 25 “… observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in his ways, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go …” 1 Kings 2:3 In the Eyes of the World In the eyes of the world prosperity means success and wealth. How one achieves that “success” is not usually questioned. In the Eyes of God In the eyes of God prosperity means to live in love and peace, and with God and one’s neighbor. It comes about as a result of: 1. Obedience to God “We are God’s glory, when we follow his ways.” Florence Nightingale 2. Being faithful to God In the parable of the talents Jesus used exactly the same words to commend that servant who had used wisely the five talents as he did when he commended the servant who had used wisely only two talents. “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness.” Matthew 25:21, 23 Likeness to Jesus Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s law. “It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God.” Robert Murray M’Cheyne 1 Kings 2:4 so that the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.' BGT 1 Kings 2:4 ἵνα (HINA INTRODUCES A PURPOSE CLAUSE) στήσῃ κύριος τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ ὃν ἐλάλησεν λέγων ἐὰν φυλάξωσιν οἱ υἱοί σου τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτῶν πορεύεσθαι ἐνώπιον ἐμοῦ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ἐν ὅλῃ καρδίᾳ αὐτῶν καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ ψυχῇ αὐτῶν λέγων οὐκ ἐξολεθρευθήσεταί σοι ἀνὴρ ἐπάνωθεν θρόνου Ισραηλ LXE 1 Kings 2:4 that the Lord may confirm his word which he spoke, saying, If thy children shall take heed to their way to walk before me in truth with all their heart, I promise thee, saying, there shall not fail thee a man on the throne of Israel. KJV 1 Kings 2:4 That the LORD may continue his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Israel. NET 1 Kings 2:4 and the LORD will fulfill his promise to me, 'If your descendants watch their step and live faithfully in my presence with all their heart and being, then,' he promised, 'you will not fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel.' CSB 1 Kings 2:4 and so that the LORD will carry out His promise that He made to me: 'If your sons are careful to walk faithfully before Me with their whole mind and heart, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.' ESV 1 Kings 2:4 that the LORD may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.' NIV 1 Kings 2:4 and that the LORD may keep his promise to me: 'If your descendants watch how they live, and if they walk faithfully before me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.' NLT 1 Kings 2:4 If you do this, then the LORD will keep the promise he made to me. He told me, 'If your descendants live as they should and follow me faithfully with all their heart and soul, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.' NRS 1 Kings 2:4 Then the LORD will establish his word that he spoke concerning me: 'If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.' NJB 1 Kings 2:4 and that Yahweh may fulfil the promise which he made me, "If your sons are careful how they behave, and walk loyally before me with all their heart and soul, you will never want for a man on the throne of Israel." NAB 1 Kings 2:4 and the LORD may fulfill the promise he made on my behalf when he said, 'If your sons so conduct themselves that they remain faithful to me with their whole heart and with their whole soul, you shall always have someone of your line on the throne of Israel.' YLT 1 Kings 2:4 so that Jehovah doth establish His word which He spake unto me, saying, If thy sons observe their way to walk before Me in truth, with all their heart, and with all their soul; saying, There is not cut off a man of thine from the throne of Israel. That the Lord: Ge 18:19 De 7:12 1Ch 28:9 Joh 15:9,10 Jude 1:20,21,24 his word: 2Sa 7:11-16,25 1Ch 17:11-15 22:9-11 28:5-7 Ps 89:29-37 Ps 132:11,12 walk: 1Ki 3:3,14 8:23 Ge 17:1 Lev 26:3 2Ki 20:3 23:3,25 2Ch 17:3 Lu 1:6 with all their heart: Dt 6:5 Dt 10:12 Dt 11:13 Mt 22:37 Heb. be cut off from thee from the throne, 1Ki 8:25 2Sa 7:12,13,16 Ps 37:9,22 Zec 14:2 Related Passages: Deuteronomy 6:5 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Deuteronomy 10:12 “Now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require from you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, Deuteronomy 11:13 “It shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, CONDITIONAL PROMISE TO SONS OF SOLOMON So that - Purpose clause. What's the basis for the purpose or result now expressed? the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, If - Introduction of a conditional clause. your sons are careful of their way, to walk (1Ki 2:3) before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, All your heart - 21x in 21v - The heart of spiritual success is the state of one's heart. Deut. 4:29; Deut. 6:5; Deut. 10:12; Deut. 11:13; Deut. 13:3; Deut. 26:16; Deut. 30:2; Deut. 30:6; Deut. 30:10; Jos. 22:5; 1 Sam. 7:3; 1 Sam. 12:20; 1 Sam. 12:24; Prov. 3:5; Jer. 29:13; Joel 2:12; Zeph. 3:14; Matt. 22:37; Mk. 12:30; Lk. 10:27; Acts 8:37 you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel. - Here is God's promise of perpetuity to the line of Solomon. Here is speaks of a human representative F B