Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. Which had been in subjection to them from the times of David, 2 Samuel 8:2 refusing to pay a tribute as they had done; taking advantage of Ahab's ill success with the king of Syria, and of his death, and the condition and circumstances of his successor. read more
Moab rebelled - The Moabites had been subdued by David, and laid under tribute, 2 Kings 3:4 , and 2 Samuel 8:2 . After the division of the two kingdoms, the Moabites fell partly under the dominion of Israel, and partly under that of Judah, until the death of Ahab, when they arose and shook off this yoke. Jehoram confederated with the king of Judah and the king of Edom, in order to reduce them. See this war, 2 Kings 3:5 . read more
Then Moab rebelled ; literally, and Moab rebelled , but with an idea, not merely of sequence, but of consequence. The "Moabite Stone," discovered in 1869, throws considerable light on the character and circumstances of this rebellion. Moab had, we know, been subjected by David ( 2 Samuel 8:2 ), and had been very severely treated. Either in the reign of Solomon, or more probably at his death, and the disruption of his kingdom, the Moabites had revolted, and resumed an independent... read more
The revolt of Moab. (On this cf. 2 Kings 3:1-27 .) Moab, one of the conquests of David ( 2 Samuel 8:2 ), perhaps regained its independence after the death of Solomon, and, if the Moabite Stone can be trusted, was again subdued by Omri, Ahab's father. Now, on the occasion of the death of Ahab, it renewed the attempt to throw off the Israelitish yoke. 1. The original conquest had been not unstained by cruelty. These things burn into the memory of peoples. 2. The rule of Omri and... read more
Seeking after strange gods: its cause and consequence. We are here introduced to a kingly home. All the pomp of royalty is there. But it is not a happy home. To beta with, there is sickness in that home. Royalty, or rank, or riches cannot keep sickness out. Ahaziah had been looking through the window of his chamber, or, as some think, leaning over the frail baluster of wicker-work which ran round the roof on the inner or courtyard side, when the lattice-work gave way, and he was... read more
Worldly royalty and personal godliness. "Then Moab rebelled against Israel," etc. The two Books of Kings, which form but one in the most correct and ancient edition of the Hebrews, whilst they constitute a very strange and significant history, are fraught with much moral and practical suggestion. These verses bring under our notice two subjects of thought—worldly royalty in a humiliating condition, and personal godliness truly majestic. I. WORLDLY ROYALTY IN A HUMILIATING ... read more
Ahaziah's sickness. Son of a doomed house ( 1 Kings 21:29 ), Ahab's successor on the throne reigned for two inglorious years. His evil character is described in the words, "He walked m the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin" ( 1 Kings 22:52 ). A weak ruler, he was probably the mere tool of his mother Jezebel, whose worst qualities he inherited. In determined idolatry, open defiance of Jehovah, and... read more
THE REVOLT OF MOAB . THE ILLNESS , IMPIETY , AND DEATH OF AHAZIAH The narrative of the Second Book of Kings follows on that of the First Book in the closest possible sequence. The history of Ahaziah's reign begins in 1 Kings 22:51 , and is carried on, without any real break or pause in the sense, to 2 Kings 1:18 . How the two books came to be divided at this point is quite inexplicable. The division is most unhappy. Not only does it, without apparent reason, draw... read more
The short reign of Ahaziah: his sins, and their punishment. For homiletic purposes we must attach to this chapter the last three verses of the First Book of the Kings. We find in that passage a short but very complete account of the general character of Ahaziah's sins; we find in this chapter a tolerably full account of one great act of sin, and a clear declaration of the manner in which that act and his other sins were punished. It will be well to consider separately I. THE SINS .... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 2 Kings 1:1-8
We have here Ahaziah, the wicked king of Israel, under God's rebukes both by his providence and by his prophet, by his rod and by his word. I. He is crossed in his affairs. How can those expect to prosper that do evil in the sight of the Lord, and provoke him to anger? When he rebelled against God, and revolted from his allegiance to him, Moab rebelled against Israel, and revolted from the subjection that had long paid to the kings of Israel, 2 Kgs. 1:1. The Edomites that bordered on Judah,... read more