REVOLUTIONS IN THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL This chapter tells us about the successive revolutions in the kingdom of Israel within a short period of time. With many assassinations committed, one evil royal family replaced another as evil. After Baasha destroyed the house of Jeroboam, Zemri came to destroy the house of Baasha; then Omri attempted to kill Zimri. 1- Jehu’s prophecy against the house of Baasha 1 - 8 2- Zemri assassinates Elah 9 - 14 3- Zimri reigns for a week 15 4- Zimri commits suicide, burning his house down upon himself 16 - 20 5- Omri builds Samaria 21 - 24 6- Ahab the worshipper of Baal 28 – 34 1- JEHU’S PROPHECY AGAINST THE HOUSE OF BAASHA: (1-8) Having been a shrewd and active politician, Baasha made his house a royal family; Yet destroyed it by being an idol-worshipper. God warned him through the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani, with the hope that he may return from his evil and live; as He did when He sent the prophet Hanani to Asa king of Judah. “Then the word of God came to Jehu the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying: ’Inasmuch as I lifted you out of the dust, and made you ruler over My people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and you have made my people Israel sin, to provoke Me to anger with their sins; Surely I will take away the posterity of Baasha and the posterity of his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nabat. The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Baasha and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the fields” (1-4) https://coptic-treasures.com/ Hanani rebuked Asa the king for trusting in Aram in his war against Jeroboam (2 Chronicles 16: 7). Now came Jehu, Hanani’s young son as a messenger from God to deliver to king Baasha a strong and serious message, proclaiming the destruction of the house of Baasha in an extremely disgraceful way. Then, 40 years later God sent him to rebuke king Jehoshaphat for joining forces with king Ahab (2 Chronicles 19: 2, 3). It so seems that Jehu was an inhabitant of Jerusalem. Jehu’s message to Baasha conformed to that of the prophet Ahija to king Jeroboam, sent to him through his wife, when she came to inquire from the prophet about the illness of her son Abijah (12: 11). Before proclaiming His chastisement to the wicked king, God reminded him of him His divine work and goodness to him; and of how He lifted him out of the dust up to the throne. Then He revealed to him the extent of the crime he committed; as though he pays His goodness back with great evil. God gave the wicked king the reasons behind the verdict He issued against him; not to justify His harsh chastisement; but to give him a chance to reconsider his evil actions, and return to God with repentance. God’s chastisement might appear too severe; yet, in reference to the bitter denials of Baasha of the exalted goodness of God, not only by committing evil, but by making the people sin, we can perceive the secret behind the severity of the verdict. Yes, indeed, the sin of the leader or the shepherd has to be severe and bitter, on account of that he provokes his brethren together with him to evil. Baasha was a tool to chasten the house of the evil Jeroboam; Yet, having walked in the same way of Jeroboam, and did not heed the lesson, God sent someone to chasten him as well. God allowed to postpone the chastisement of Baasha till after his death, by taking the throne away from his descendants; and allowed it for theircorpses to be eaten by the dogs and the birds of prey…. Why? … So that the wicked would think, not only about what will dwell upon them of chastisement while still alive, but about the eternal punishment that will dwell upon them after their death; ,,, To fear Him who after killing the body, has the authority to cast in the fire of hell. https://coptic-treasures.com/ The heart may probably become so hard, not to care for any chastisement that would dwell upon his person; But, it would be most difficult for him to realize how his evil deeds would cause bitterness to his children and grandchildren. Hence God often threatens the wicked to bring bitter fruition upon their descendants. But this does not mean that the children and the grandchildren are punished for sins they have not committed; but chastisement would dwell upon the descendants who consummate the evil cup of their fathers. “Now, the rest of the acts of Baasha, what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. Then Elah his son reigned in his place” (5-6). And also the word of the Lord came to the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha and his house, because of all the evil that he did in the sight of the Lord in provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he killed them” (7) We do not know much about the prophet Jehu, except that he suddenly appeared to proclaim the chastisement of the Lord against Baasha; then, 40 years later, appeared to tell us about the life of king Jehoshaphat. We know nothing of the prophetic work or other aspects of Yehu’s life, other than those two situations that might have taken from him just few minutes, yet could be as important as his whole life. Man’s life is not counted by the number of years he lives on earth, but by the work he does by the Spirit of the Lord. According to the scholar Origen, on the great day of the Lord, we shall be surprised to see many children who appear like elders; whereas many elders appear as little children. What St. John the Baptist did while a babe in his mother’s womb in few minutes may be evaluated as many years; and the few months he ministered to prepare the way of the Lord, are beyond evaluation. Whereas in his days many of the Jewish leaders spent tens of years studying the Holy Book; teaching, and leading the people in worship; yet those years are counted as nothing. “In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha became king over Israel, and reigned two years in Tirzah” (8) https://coptic-treasures.com/ 2- ZIMRI ASSASINATES ELAH: (9-14) “Now his servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him as he was in Tirzeh, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, steward of his house in Tirzah” (9) While Nadab was assassinated while he, together with his army laid a siege around Gibbethon (1 kings 15: 27); and was honorable even in his death; Elah, on the other hand, being a man of pleasure, was assassinated in his palace while drunk . The Holy Book presents to us many examples that reveal the perdition brought over man by drinking wine: Elah was assassinated while drunk; Abishalom killed his brother Amnon while the later was drunk (2 Samuel 13: 28); Lot fell into a disgraceful sin with his two daughters while drunk; and the Babylonian empire fell into extinction through the drinking of Belshazzar (Daniel 5). When death suddenly comes to someone, watchful and faithful in his work and life with the Lord, it would be a joyful gift, and merely a cross-over to the new life; Whereas he, whom death surprises while drinking and having pleasure, death would be like a thief robbing him of his eternal life (Luke 2: 34). Concerning ‘Arza’, a steward of the house, was a very prominent position, that Solomon gave only to princes. In Persia, the steward of the house used to act as a deputy of the king when absent. “Zimri went in, struck him, and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place. Then it came to pass when he began to reign, as soon as he was seated on his throne, that he killed all the household of Baasha; he did not leave him one male, neither of his kinsmen nor of his friends” (10, 11) God sent Jehu the Seer to Baasha, who did not heed the words of the Lord on his mouth. Miserable is he, who does not respond to the word of the Lord sent to him one way or https://coptic-treasures.com/ another. To everyone on earth, God sends an inner Jehu, namely, the law of nature, or an outer Jehu, through the events and others, in the hope that he would come to enjoy the fellowship with God, and the response to His will, instead of going astray from Him. “He did not leave him one male, neither of his kinsmen, nor of his friends” (11); The expression “kinsmen” came here to mean anyone who may have the right to avenge his death; (According to a Jewish saying: up to the fifth neighbor of someone would be killed, to wipe out all his memories from the face of the earth). … Although Zimri thought that he so did, and there is no one left to avenge the death of his master ‘Elah’, Yet it was the divine justice that chased him; to hear Jehu, after a long time, utter the common proverb, saying: ”Is it peace, Zimri, murderer of your master?” (2 Kings 9: 31) Many are those who, disregarding the divine justice, may assume that, by their authority, wealth, or high position in the society, can do whatever they like, caring for no one; Yet, eventually to hear the divine voice, saying: “As you have done, it shall be done to you” (Obadiah 15). And some may assume that time will cover up any sin or fault; But man will certainly drink from the same cup he filled for his brethren, as long as he did not repent for what he has done. Everyday we feel the amazing touch of the hand of God; when the words of Solomon the Sage would be realized in our life, saying: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days” (Ecclesiastes 11: 1). “Thus Zimri destroyed all the household of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord, which He spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet” (12) The prophet Ahijah prophesied about the destruction of the house of Jeroboam; And God allowed for Baasha to be the rod of chastisement against him; Yet, because he did that with a vicious spirit, he came to be responsible for his horrible actions. Because God did not command him to destroy the house of Jeroboam, and he did not do it out of a reforming motive, but with the spirit of crime; it came to be a sin for which he would be punished. “For all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, by which they had made Israel sin, in provoking https://coptic-treasures.com/ the Lord God of Israel to anger with their idols. Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?” (13, 14) 3- ZIMRI REIGNS FOR A WEEK: (5) “In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri had reigned in Tirzah seven days. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines” (15) By the assassination of Elah, the third royal family of Israel cane to reign, just for a week, to be replaced by the fourth family on the throne. The throne of Israel came to be a serious stage for the wicked, who assumed to rise high up, and no harm could reach them; and who thought that, by their own might and ability, could govern and reign; taking no lessons of what happened to the wicked kings who previously came before them. Yet while rising high up, they would be cast down to the ground, to be destroyed together with their household. God granted them the throne as a gift from him; yet, by their evil, they turned the divine gift into a cause for their own destruction. Many of us may think that the wicked are strong, and would last longer; but, according to St. Ambrose, they are more like a shadow which will soon disappear; Time will quickly pass, their strength will be destroyed, and their authority will go away; Or, according to the prophet David, they are like a dream from which the believers will awake to find the wicked no more. + The wicked, therefore, while rising high up, they are cast down; What they get, therefore, is not a gift, but is rather a calamity, when their enjoyment of it does not endure for a long time. For what would weigh as much as the divine complaint we find in the book of the prophet Micah; saying: “O My people, what have I done to you? And how have I wearied you? Testify against Me. For I brought you up from the land of Egypt; I redeemed you from the house of bondage” (Micah6: 3, 4). See how the wicked are cast down while rising up; How their punishment piles up; Having got so much divine heavenly gifts, they ought not to desert the Giver of hope, and of the comfort of life, but rather to obey Him. But, as great is God’s justice, so is https://coptic-treasures.com/ his revenge. For the wicked holds fast to his wickedness; concerning him it is written: “I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree. Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found” (Psalm 37: 35, 36). How fast he would be destroyed, is beyond imagination; He is like a shadow which is now here, then in no time it will disappear. If there is disturbance here, lift your spirits up to the things to come; for then you will realize that the wicked whom you assumed to be here forever, will be no more. For, according to the words of the apostle Paul: “The Lord knows those who are His” (2 Timothy 2: 19); But He would nor recognize who are not there; those who did not recognize Him whose name is “I am who I am” (Exodus 3: 14). + Concerning the later, David also says: “Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment. They are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awakes, so Lord, when You awake, You shall despise their image” (Psalm 73: 19, 20).This implies that the wicked will cease to exist, and will vanish like a dream, once one awakes from his sleep. They are in darkness, and walk in darkness (Psalm 82: 5); And so being, they are denied the Sun of Righteousness (Malachi 3: 20; 4: 2), and the heaven of virtue; for they are always asleep, and do not watch; about them it is said: “They have sunk in their sleep; and nothing is found in their hands” (Psalm 76: 5). For indeed, once their souls separates from their bodies, and are free from the sleep of the body, they will find nothing, and will have nothing. They will lose what they assumed to possess; For the foolish, even if he is weighed with wealth, he will leave it to strangers; and the glory of his house will not go down with him to the pit (Psalm 49: 17). (St. Ambrose) 4- ZIMRI COMMITS SUICIDE; BURNING HIS HOUSE DOWN UPON HIMSELF: (16 - 20) “Now the people who were encamped heard it, said, ‘Zimri has conspired and also has killed the king’. So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp (16). https://coptic-treasures.com/ The Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah (17). And it happened when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the citadel of the king’s house, and burned the king’s house upon himself with fire and died” (18) Having killed Elah, men of the army, probably provoked by Omri their commander, intending to take revenge against him, went up from Gibbethon, and besieged the capital Tirzah. That led Zimri to kill himself with fire and died. It could also be that the Philistines provoked the Israeli army to act that way, to create a dissension in Israel. As Tirzah was a beautiful city, yet not fortified; And as the army, he hoped to guard him against enemies has become an enemy against him, Zimri had no other way than to burn the royal palace upon himself; to deny his enemies from using it; and on another aspect, for fear that he would be dishonorably treated if taken alive; That is how sin would do to us when we dwell in an atmosphere of pleasure, and do not care for the divine protection; For then our talents that are supposed to be for our service, would turn to become an enemy who destroy our depths; we would lose our inner life, which would turn into a deadly flame of fire. The army and the people did not think of taking revenge against Baasha when he assassinated the whole house of Jeroboam, and killed Nadab the king; probably on account of that they were all fed up with Jeroboam and his household, because of their violence and abuse of their positions. According to Solomon the Sage, “Because of the transgression of a land, many are its princes” (Proverb 29: 2). Zimri, Omri, and Tibni, who fought one another for the sake of getting the throne; Zimri killed himself in his palace, Tibni died in a vague way, and Omri reigned and walked in the evil way of Jeroboam. Zimri reigned for just seven days, then burned the house upon himself, as a fruit of his persistence on walking in the way of Jeroboam, and of provoking the people to do evil. … Here the fruit of evil came very fast. For, although God is longsuffering, even on the wicked, Yet He sometimes allows for some of them to drink fast from the cup they filled, as an example for others who may misunderstand His longsuffering; as according to the apostle https://coptic-treasures.com/ Paul, “Or do you despise the riches of his goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous rightness of God” (Romans 2: 4) “… because of the sins which he had sinned in doing evil in the sight of the Lord, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he had committed to make Israel sin” (19). Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and the treason he committed, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel? (20) Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Gimath to make him king, and half followed Omri” (21) The people were divided into two parts: one half supported Omr who rebelled against Zimri; and the other half supported Tibni; The later group were probably those who supported Zimri, and had bitter feeling against Omri who provoked the army to move against Zimri. That division probably lasted for four years, and caused a plenty of blood shed on both sides. According to Josephus, Tibni was probably killed by Omri or one of his followers, to have the way completely open before himself. Some may wonder, in the midst of such horrible atmosphere of continuous assassinations and divisions, Why did Israel not think of returning to the house of David, and of uniting with Judah?! … Kings and leaders of Israel kept enflaming the spirit of dissension among the new generations, claiming that the kings of Judah -- giving Rehoboam as an example – reigned with a spirit of arrogance. That is beside the fact that only a few number of those pure and godly, who worshipped the true God, in the northern kingdom, have already crawled to Judah; But the rest of the people were not ready to forsake their enjoyable abominations, adultery, and transgressions, even if the fruit of that would be the destruction of the kingdom, the shedding of blood, and the division within the army and the people. 5- OMRI BUILDS SAMARIA: (24 – 26) “But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni the son of Gimath; So https://coptic-treasures.com/ Tibni died and Omri reigned (22). In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel, and reigned twelve years. Six years he reigned in Tirzah (23). And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; then he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built Samaria, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill” (22-24) According to some the army has been supportive to Omri, their commander; while the people were supportive of Tibni; And the army prevailed. Omri moved the capital from where Zimri burned the house upon himself, and purchased the hill of Samaria to build his new capital of Israel; he purchased it from Shemer for a cheap price, for a promise that he would call it Samaria (Shemeren in Hebrew); although, according to others, two talents of silver (about 700 Sterling pounds), could have been a big enough price for such a hill. It was impossible for the dissident kingdom of Israel, which gave her back to God, to be wellestablished. While in the days of Jeroboam,the capital was Shechem; then Tirzah; then Samaria; Whereas the capital of the kingdom of Judah has always been Jerusalem, the city of God. So it is with the soul that gives her back to God; it will never be well-established; Whereas the soul that gets bound to Him, will always find her comfort in the higher Jerusalem, whose Maker is the Lord. Omri, who got fame for building Samatia, for his courage, and his conquests; died on his bed, and was buried with his fathers. Yet, with his wickedness, he left behind him an inheritance of evil, that destroyed all his household and descendants. Like Jeroboam, and Baasha, so was Omri; even though all were evil, they died and were buried, but their households did not endure, but were destroyed by the evil they committed, which was taken up after them by their descendants. On an antique tablet, unearthed in the ruins of Nineveh, an inscription was discovered, in which the city of Samaria was called, ‘Beth Khumri’, namely (the house of Omri). https://coptic-treasures.com/ In the days of Tiglath Pileser it was called ‘Sammerim’; and after being rebuilt, Herod called it ‘Sebustiyeh’, then called later ‘Sebaste’. Politically, Samaria could be better than Shechem, and probably better than Tirzeh; For, on a military aspect, it was a fortified city. And on an economic aspect, it was surrounded by many springs of water, contrary to Shechem and Tirzeh, that were dry and deserted. “Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did worse than all who were before him” (25) That reminds us of what used to happen in the Roman Empire; Whenever the army heard that the king was assassinated, they instantly presented the purple royal robe to their general commander. Omri received the throne after a long struggle against Tibni; Yet, after settling down in the new capital which he himself built, he started to act against the truth, and to do evil, more than all who were before him. He, and his son Ahab, became two examples of evil, about whom the words of the Lord said: “For the statutes of Omri are kept; All the works of Ahab’s house are done; And you walk in their counsels; that I may make you a desolation, and your inhabitants a hissing; Therefore you shall bear the reproach of My people” (Micah 6: 16). Jeroboam provoked the people to idol-worship, seducing them by setting two centers of worship and the two golden calves; Whereas Omri used violence to commit them to it. “For he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, and in his sin by which he had made Israel sin, provoking the Lord God to anger with their idols” (26) In the Arabic language version it came as: :”… provoking the Lord God with their ‘vanities’”. The Hebrews call the idols (vanities), (void), or (nothing); and whoever gets bound to them would become ‘vanity’, contrary to whoever gets bound to the True God, who would, himself, become ‘truth’. Whoever worships God in truth, through union with Him “will be a partaker of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1: 3, 4)’ While whoever worships ‘vanity’ will partake of its vain nature through union with it. For worshipping is not just a routine practiced by the body, but it is in https://coptic-treasures.com/ truth a union of man, with his whole being, with the one he worships; to become one with him, to partake of His nature, his glories (or his reproach in case of idols), his eternity, (or his eternal perdition (in the case of worshipping the devil). We do not marvel to see, in our modern age, how the devil-worship publicly invaded the West, and crawled to the East; and how his worshippers came to bear many of his features, particularly his blasphemy of the true God, opposition of the divine word, use of violence, abnormal practices, and even breaking the natural law. We can truly say that they came to be ambassadors of the devil, carrying his features, to realize his goal of distribution of vain lies, corruption, spirit of vanity, and blood shed. “Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and the might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?” (27) 6- AHAB THE WORSHIPPER OF BAAL: (28 – 34) “So Omri rested with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria. Then Ahab his son reigned in his place” (28) Omri reigned about 12 years: the first four years struggling against Tibni, and about eight years after the death of the later. He spent the first six years in Tirzeh, until he built the new capital (Samaria), to which he moved and lived the remaining six years of his reign. In the twenty-seventh year of the reign of Asa king of Judah, Omri was set a king by the army. In thirty-first year of Asa (namely after four years) of Asa’s reign, he reigned alone after the death of Tibni. In the year 32/33 of Asa’s reign, Samaria became the capital (after two years of Omri’s reign). “In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of omri reigned over Israel; in Samaria, twenty-two years” (29) “Now Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all who were before him” (30) https://coptic-treasures.com/ Although his father Omri did more evil than all who were before him, Yet Ahab his son surpassed him, when he issued a decree committing the people to worship the idols, something that never happened before. The kings before Ahab provoked the people to idolworship with every possible mean, but without issuing laws to commit them. But by marrying Isabel, not only by committed the people to worship the idols, but he killed the priests of the true God, destroyed His altars, and declared a public war against whatever has something to do with the Lord (1 kings 18: 4). Worshipping the two golden calves has become, no more a symbolic worship of the living God, but came to be a worship directly meant to the idols, “And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal , king of the sidonians, and he went and served Baal and worshipped him” (31) ‘Ethbaal’ is related to ‘Ithobalus of Menandrt’ who prevailed over Tyre, and probably over all Phoenicia, 50 years after the death of ‘Hiram’. The word ‘Baal’ means (Baal is with him). ‘Ethbaal’ was a priest in the great temple of Ashtoreth in Tyre. And when he became 36 years old, he killed ‘Pheles’ or ‘Philetes’, king of Tyre, and took his throne by force. He reigned for 32 years, and established a royal dynasty that reigned for 62 years. His daughter Jesebel dedicated all her energy to establish the Baal-worship in Israel, and to wipe out every trace of the worship of the living God; that her name became a symbol of every corruption (Revelation 22: 24). This marriage of Ahab to the daughter of the king of Tyre, undoubtedly carried a political feature, as a kind of peace treaty between Israel and Sidon; the way king Solomon did, who married many wives to establish good relationship with the surrounding nations. As the daughter of the priest of Baal, she might have assumed that it was her mission to dictate Baal-worship, to kill the priests of the true God, and to destroy His altars everywhere. But there was no excuse for Ahab to give a free hand to his wife to do whatever she likes in the people’s life; to build a temple for Baal, and to establish the worship of ;’Ashtoreth’, the Sidonian goddess ‘Venus’. “Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria” (32) https://coptic-treasures.com/ He set up an altar for Baal in the capital, to make ‘Samaria’ one of the main centers of Baal worship, where sacrifices were continuously offered, and incense was perpetually burnt, and where the priests ministered barefoot, dancing around, and kissing the idol (1 kings 19: 18), as a main rite of the worship. “And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel before him In his days, Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn; and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the Lord, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun” (33-34) Five centuries before, Joshua prophesied, saying, ‘’Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds Jericho, he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates” (Joshua 6: 26) What does it mean, that Hiel of Bethel “laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates”? (1) By a divine verdict, curse dwells upon his family, through the death of the firstborn, the hope of the family, when the foundations are laid; followed by the death of all his siblings one after the other, until the youngest dies when the gates are set up (2) This text might also refer to the fact that building that city took a very long time, its foundation laid with the birth of the firstborn, until its gates were set up with the birth of the youngest son. In other words God allowed for many things to happen to slow down the process of its building, to give Hiel the chance to quit and repent; but having persisted, the curse prophesied by Joshua dwelt upon him. (3) That Hiel of Bethel might have dedicated building the city by offering his firstborn as a sacrifice to the idols, to let them support his endeavor; and his youngest son when he set up its gates; a view adopted by the Chaldeans. https://coptic-treasures.com/ Up to this very day, this city is cursed; not wiped out of existence, but remained as a humble village, with no more than 30 little houses; and with no significant remains that may reveal its past glory. That was a sample of evil that prevailed upon the people, their persistence on rebellion and their lack of care, regardless of the curse declared by Joshua the son of Nun. ---------------------- AN INSPIRATION OF 1 KINGS 16 WHO WILL TAKE MY CORRUPTION AWAY, BUT YOU? + The revolts of Israel will ever remain before my eyes; How they were divided, and how they have forsaken Jerusalem, Your holy city; How they have forsaken Your holy temple, and how they have set up for themselves two golden calves; How they defiled their life by idol-worship; How Jahu assassinated the household of Baasha; How Zimri murdered Elah; How Zimdi killed himself, to be replaced by Omri; How Omri was replaced by Ahab his son, the worst of the kings of Israel. Draw me to You, to keep me from walking with the spirit of dissension; Keep me in Your holy city, the blameless church of Christ; Sanctify my worship, to keep Your statutes by the spirit and truth; To keep Your commandment with faithfulness; + Grant me not to deflect together with Israel; Keep me from worshipping vanity, so as not to become vanity; myself Let me worship You. O the eternal Truth; Let me unite with You; to have fellowship with Your divine nature; And to become Your partner in the eternal glory; + Who will take away my corruption, but You? https://coptic-treasures.com/ Who will sanctify me, but You”? Who will keep me safe, but the bosom of Your Father? ----------------------------------- AN ANNEX OF I KINGS !6 THE MOST PROMINENT CAPITALS OF THE OLD WORLD IN THE HOLY BOOK God chose Jerusalem, which means (Light of peace) or (Vision of peace), to represent the encounter of God with His people, and His dwelling among them, to grant them His heavenly peace. Being called ‘the city of the Great King’, it became the capital of the kingdom of Israel before the dissension. As to the northern kingdom of the divided Israel, it could not settle down on one capital, for its first king Jeroboam chose the city of Cheshem, followed by Tirzeh, then Samaria. (1) Ur of the Chaldeans: The capital of the ancient Somer on the bank of the Euphrates. It was occupied by the Somerites, the Elamites, the Babylonians, and the Chaldeans . Its history goes back more than 1000 years before the time of Abraham, the father of fathers, and was his home town before God called him to go to Haran, then to Canaan (Genesis 11: 28; 15: 7; Nehemiah 9: 7). Its inhabitants worshipped the moon. Its remains nowadays are the ruins of ‘Mogher’ midway between Bagdad and the Persian Gulf. (2) Shushan or Susa: Capital of the ancient Elam; East of Mesopotamia; was stronger than Babylon, then submitted to Persia, and became its capital. In it, the events mentioned in the book of Esther took place (Esther 1: 2-5). (3) Achmetha: Capital of the empire of Media (Ezra 6: 2); became the summer resort of the kings of Persia. The Medians were the descendants of ‘Madai’ the son of ‘Japheth’ (Genesis 10: 2), connected to the Persians in nationality, language, and history. In the days of Cyrus, the two kingdoms of Media and Persia united together in the year 588 B.C., to be called as ‘Media and Persia’ (Daniel 5: 28; Esther 1: 18). https://coptic-treasures.com/ (4) Nineveh: Capital of the Assyrian empire, an ancient fortified city, where the prophet Jonah preached, and its people repented (the Book of Jonah). (5) Babylon: Capital of the Babylonian empire in the land of the Chaldeans (Jeremiah 41: 3); where the people of Judah were captivated three times. (6) Jerusalem: Capital of Israel in the time of the prophet David (2 Samuel7: 5-6). In it, Solomon built the temple of the Lord; It bears a symbol of the heavenly Higher Jerusalem (Revelation 21). (7) Samaria: Built by Omri, the sixth king of the northern kingdom in the year 880 B.C. made it the capital of Israel, up till the Assyrian captivation. (8) Damascus: Capital of Syria (Aram); an important commercial center, one of the most ancient cities of the world (Genesis 14: 15). (9) Hebron: West of Jerusalem; was the capital of king David when he reigned on Judah (2 Samuel 2: 1-4); It was where Abraham settled down after returning from Egypt (Genesis 13: 18). (10) Nu: Known also as ‘Thebes’, in Lower Egypt; was the capital of Egypt, and a center of idol-worship in the Egyptian Valley (11) Shechem: The first capital of the northern kingdom after the dissension, in the days of Jeroboam. (12) Tirzeh: A very beautiful city (Songs 6: 4); became the capital of the northern kingdom for as long as 50 years (1 kings 14: 17; 15: 21; 16: 16); until Omri built Samaria;
Welcome