Tag: Jehoram

The Only Sensible Choice

Neal Pollard

The “good news” is that Jehoram, the son of Ahab, was not AS BAD as his father and mother (2 Kings 3:2), but that was little consolation. He still “did evil in the sight of the Lord” (2) and “clung to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin; he did not depart from them” (3). Like his older brother, Ahaziah, he had a political and military mess on his hands. The king of Moab, Mesha (4), rebelled against Israel after Ahab’s death, and Jehoram mustered his military while leaning on a new ally, Judah, to join them in going to war with their neighbors. For good measure, they traveled through the oft-unfriendly territory of their cousins, Edom, and the king of Edom joined them in the attempted rout of the Moabites. 

But, in the route they took to meet the enemy, after a week the troops and cattle were suffering from a lack of water. Jehoram’s immediate reaction is to attribute this to divine punishment (10). But, Jehoshaphat exhorts his fretting northern counterpart, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of the Lord by him?” (11). Will you notice the contrast in attitude toward faithful prophets that sets Jehoshaphat apart from the house of Ahab? Jehoshaphat held God’s spokesmen in such high regard (12). Remember Micaiah (1 Ki. 22:7). He respected the men and revered their word. But look at Jehoram. Does his servant reflect his contempt as he describes Elisha  as the one who used to wash Elijah’s hands (11; 1 Ki. 19:21). In return, Elisha has complete disdain for Israel’s king but condescends to them on behalf of Judah’s righteous king, Jehoshaphat (12-19). Elisha works through the words of a minstrel to prophecy an incredible act of God to both water their men and animals and facilitate the destruction of Moab in an unthinkable way. 

The miraculous induction of water came via Edom, filling the country with water (20). To the Moabites, the water appeared to glisten like blood. Their king made the reasonable deduction, given the turbulent history between Israel, Judah, and Edom, that they had turned on one another. He took this as an invitation to despoil his enemies (23-24). Only when he reached the camp of Israel did he and his army discover their fatal error. Israel and her allies handily defeat Moab and mar their land, and after one last-ditch effort to break through to Edom, King Mesha retreats to his citadel and offers his son, also his heir, as a burnt offering on the wall (27). 

What do we learn from this unusual incident? Among the many potential lessons is one overriding reminder. God’s Word and will are sure. He cannot be thwarted, surprised, or overcome. He sees the end as the beginning (Isa. 46:10). He had already foretold the demise of Ahab’s house (1 Ki. 21:21-24). He not only foresaw what for man was the unforeseeable fate of Moab, but He produced it. He knew that Israel would persist in the ways of Jeroboam and would eventually reject Israel and allow her destruction (2 Ki. 17), but He was engineering the incarnation of His Son through Jehoshaphat’s lineage (cf. Mat. 1:8). Providentially, he protects the seed of David in times of war and peace until the Messiah descends through this family tree. There were human heroes throughout these centuries, kings like Jehoshaphat and prophets like Elisha, but they simply submitted to the sovereignty of Jehovah! 

Today, God has promises yet to be fulfilled (Matt. 25; Rom. 8; 1 Thes. 4:13-18; 2 Pet. 3:9-13). It will happen as surely as these past events occurred. We have the choice to follow the legacy of the wicked like Ahab and Jehoram or the legacy of the righteous like Jehoshaphat and Elisha. If you stop and examine it, it’s not much of a choice, is it? Victory or defeat? 

“Sackcloth Beneath”

Neal Pollard

Jehoram, son of Ahab, was still king over Israel when Ben-hadad, king of Syria, was able to besiege Israel’s capital city (2 Kings 6:24). This prolonged siege led Samaria to suffer “a great famine” (25). It was so bad that donkey heads and dove dung were sold at exorbitant prices as food (26). There have been famous sieges in history, both ancient and modern, and the details of historians are soberingly terrifying. The German siege of the unprepared Russian town of Leningrad went on for 872 days. The city of three million inhabitants “ate everything from wallpaper paste to shoe leather to supplement their meager bread rations, and some even resorted to cannibalism” (Evan Andrews, 8/22/18, history.com). The writer of 2 Kings reveals that this siege was of the same sort. 

King Jehoram was “passing by on the wall” when a woman cried out to him to intervene and arbitrate between herself and another woman. According to her, they had struck a gruesome bargain to eat one’s son the day before and then the other’s son that day. She had kept her end of the bargain, but the other woman had a change of heart and had hidden her son. Such was the unimaginable depths of the people’s hunger. When the king heard this grisly story, he tore his clothes and, as the people witnessed, there was sackcloth beneath (30). Unfortunately, Jehoram was neither penitent nor reliant upon God. His grief turned to wrath against God’s prophet, Elisha, whom he resolved to kill (31-33). 

But I want you to focus on something in the heart of this story. As Jehoram walked above the people, they must have known these events disturbed him. But they understood the depths of his sorrow when in his grief and dismay he tore his clothes to reveal the sackcloth underneath. Sackcloth is a very coarse, rough fabric woven from flax or hemp, much like a burlap bag. It would itch and chafe and be very uncomfortable. It was often worn as a way of demonstrating how irritated and agitated of heart one was. 

Will you remember as you interact with people each day that they may be wearing “sackcloth beneath.” A brother or sister in Christ may be wearing some hidden cares. That person who waits on you at the bank, the store, or the restaurant, that customer service agent you interact with, that fellow driver on the road, they may be distracted, obsessed, or focused on their great grief or fear. This may help us to season our words (Col. 4:6) and soften our judgment. The way we treat them may greatly impact what happens next in their lives. When we stop and practice compassion, we may be the way God heals the hurts of those who are wearing their figurative sackcloth beneath. 

“SACKCLOTH UNDERNEATH”

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Neal Pollard
The first time I recall understanding the significance of the story in 2 Kings 6:30 was sitting in a class taught by Wendell Winkler. He called the lesson “Hidden Cares.” He told us to remember that sitting in the audience each week we preached would be any number of folks carrying around hidden cares. In over twenty years of full-time preaching, I become more aware of that every day. Recently reading about the woman in Mark five who had been suffering for twelve years, I was reminded of this as I thought about the faces of individuals I see all the time suffering in a variety of ways. While we usually know some of the burdens our brothers and sisters are bearing, there are still many others whose troubles are not as widely known.

Jehoram is no Old Testament hero, but is rather a wicked Israelite king. He does not make the cut for the Hebrews eleven list and he does not even behave properly regarding Elisha after the event mentioned in the verse above, but he does illustrate the many who walk around with hidden cares. The verse reads, “When the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his clothes-now he was passing by on the wall-and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth beneath on his body.”

The sackcloth was coarsely woven cloth, often made of goat’s hair. It was worn to show mourning and submission to God. No doubt, wearing one of these for any length of time would bring itching, irritation, and discomfort. The garment was apparently meant to reflect outwardly the feelings of the heart and affliction of the spirit of the wearer.

Whether we are preaching or teaching or simply dealing with one another, may we keep a few things in mind. At any given point, the person with whom we are dealing is likely wearing their own “hidden sackcloth.” We may not be able to tell this by looking at their facial expressions or through any verbal cues when we converse. Further, the hidden cares they carry may affect the way they respond to us. Let us not assume they are upset with us or that it is even about us at all. Finally, keep in mind that people cope with their hidden cares in different ways. It is no reflection on the quality of our friendship or relationship if they do not share it. Each of us must determine how, when, and with whom we disclose these things. Let us pray for family, church family, coworkers, neighbors, and others with whom we have relationship as they wear these unseen cares.

To those with sackcloth underneath, remember that God has made us family. There are those you can trust to help bear the burdens. Pray about this and then act. Let these cares refine your relationship with God and sharpen your focus on the place where there will be no such cares. Remember that God is gracious and will not give you more than you can bear. This may seem doubtful at times, but on the other side of the sorrow it will be clear.

No matter how “spiffily” or “slobbily” one is dressed, be aware that underneath may be that figurative sackcloth. May this drive us to be more compassionate and understanding in our dealings with one another.