Ahaz became king of Judah in the seventeenth year of Pekah king of Israel. Ahaz was twenty years old, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, but he did not do right in God’s eyes (v1,2). He rejected the ways of his father Jotham and his ancestor David. He was idolatrous following the abominations of the nations who the LORD had cast out when the Children of Israel entered the land of Canaan. He made his sons pass through the fire (this was the worship of Molech and sacrificed and burned incense on the high places and under every green tree. One commentator says that this is the first instance recorded that Judah, the southern kingdom imitates the northern kingdom of Israel in their apostasy (v3,4).
In Micah 7:2-7 we have a description of the depraved situation in the times of Ahaz.
The pagan deity, Molech, was worshiped by heating a metal statue of himself and placing the red-hot statue on the the child while drums sounded to drown out the screams. God pronounced the death penalty on all who did this (Leviticus 20:1-5), and yet, people like Solomon sanctioned it and built a temple to Molech (1 Kings 11:7). The northern tribes of Israel worshiped Molech, and this led to their captivity in the hands of the Assyrians (2 Kings 17:17); King Manasseh of Judah gave his son in this way (2 Kings 21.6). Molech continued to be worshiped until Josiah, king of Judah destroyed a place of worship to Molech (2 Kings 23). God said that such worship defiled his holy name and the sanctuary (Leviticus 20).
The following verses bring into focus the last two verses of the previous chapter with Rezin and Pekah coming to Jerusalem to make war. They surrounded Ahaz but couldn’t overthrow Jerusalem and Ahaz. Rezin did capture Elath for Syria and drove out men of Judah from there and the Edomites occupied Elath (v5,6).
At Christmas time we often hear Isaiah 7 which announces the coming of Immanuel. This prophecy was given at this time of Ahaz and the joint invasion. Rezin’s goal was to dethrone Ahaz and set up a Syrian king over Judah but as we have seen, nothing was going to derail God’s plan. The dynasty of David would succeed and the eventual coming of the Messiah would happen even though Ahaz didn’t listen.
According to 2 Chronicles 28:5-15, Judah suffered greatly in this attack – 120,000 soldiers and 200,000 civilians were taken as hostages to Samaria, but a prophet named Oded rebuked the invading army calling on them to return the captives to Judah, and they clothed and fed them and did return them.
Sadly, Ahaz did not trust in the LORD, instead he put his trust in Tiglath-Pileser, king of Assyria, to whom he sent messengers requesting him to save them from the joint invasion of Syria and Israel. He even sent gifts, treasures from his house and silver and gold from the LORD’s house. Tiglath-Pileser went and took Damascus, took the people captive and killed Rezin (v7-9). Isaiah (7) had told Ahaz of the sign of God’s help, but he trusted in the king of Assyria, an enemy, rather than God.
How important it is that we put our trust in God for every part of our lives. God doesn’t expect us to ignore common sense, He has given us a brain and there is nothing unspiritual in using it, but overall, we need to trust Him. Proverbs 16 is very important and should be read and kept in mind very carefully- verses 1-9 say, “The preparations of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,
But the Lord weighs the spirits. Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established. The Lord has made all for Himself, yes, even the wicked for the day of doom. Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord, though they join forces, none will go unpunished. In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the Lord, one departs from evil. When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Better is a little with righteousness, than vast revenues without justice. A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.”
It was one thing for Ahaz to put his trust in Tiglath-Pileser, and that was bd enough, but he went much further by visiting him in Damascus. It was a rare event for kings of Judah to make visits to other kingdoms. They were usually at war with each other, and it could be dangerous. This was an act of submission to the king of Assyria. Ahaz saw an altar in Damascus and was taken in by it, and immediately sent the design to Urijah the priest, who, before Ahaz had returned, had built the pagan altar in Judah (v10,11).
2 Chronicles 28:23 tells us why Ahaz liked what he saw in Damascus, “He sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him, saying, “Because the gods of the king of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me”, but they were the ruin of him and of all Israel.”
The result was inevitable, but he was not alone in his foolishness. It still happens today – churches take in worldly things and practices under the pretence of reaching the world. We do not need to copy the world, and it is not a good move and is totally unspiritual. It doesn’t work and will be counterproductive.
It was incredible that Ahaz attributed Assyria’s victory to their gods, which couldn’t hear, couldn’t speak, couldn’t do anything, particularly having been brought up by Godly family, and having Godly prophets around, but it shows how easily we can be led astray.
Urijah was at fault but Ahaz more so. It is thought that Urijah was likely to be the same as Uriah (Isaiah 8) who was said to be ‘a faithful witness’. He apparently started well but later compromised.
When Ahaz returned from Damascus, he saw the altar and he made offerings on it, burnt offerings, grain offerings, poured a drink offering and sprinkled blood of a peace offering on it (v12-20). He also moved the bronze altar which was before the LORD at the front of the temple and put it beside and probably, behind the new altar. God had said, you shall have no other gods beside or before me when giving the Ten Commandments. Also, we should remember, as he should, that this temple was built to the worship and glory of God, the One, True God. This was a blatant disregard of God’s commands. Not only this but he was usurping the role of priest by doing this. Surely, he should have remembered his grandfather’s downfall when he did this (2 Chronicles 26, Isaiah 6), being struck with the dreaded disease of leprosy.
The king then instructed Urijah, the priest, to use the new altar for the sacrifices and offerings, and Urijah complied with his instructions. It was pity that Urijah was not like the priests in King Uzziah’s day who did their best to restrain the king from doing what he was forbidden to do in the temple (2 Chronicles 26:17,18).
Ahaz went further in his apostasy by cutting off the panels of the carts and removing the lavers, the Sabbath pavilion, the covered way, and the king’s outer entrance which Jotham had built. The brazen altar had been ordered by God when the temple was set up. To bring in the pagan rites he had to remove things from the temple to discourage the worship of the True God. He also made small pagan altars around the kingdom of Judah (2 Chronicles 28:24,25).
The truth was still being spoken by the prophets Isaiah and Micah despite the idolatry which was taking place.
Ahaz seemed to be in love with new things and introducing them to worship, despite God’s Word being available from the prophets. He had a Godly father and experienced God’s deliverance from total defeat by Assyria. However, he had no relationship with God. He had a great interest in spiritual things but not Godly things. He trusted in himself and others like the King of Assyria. His reign was a disaster, thought to have been among the worst of Judah’s kings.
As with all the kings, the rest of Ahaz’s acts were recorded in the books of the chronicles of the kings of Judah. He died and was buried in the City of David and Hezekiah succeeded him.
