Grace and Wrath Podcast

Joash was seven years old when he became king of Judah. Jehoiada, the high priest, taught the king and helped him live a godly life. As long as Jehoiada lived, Joash followed the ways of the Lord. When the king was older, he decided to make repairs on the Temple of the Lord. Athaliah had taken every thing of value out of it to use in the worship of Baal. Joash assigned priests and Levites to go th...

King Jehoshaphat wanted to establish a good relationship between Judah and Israel. To do that, he had his oldest son marry Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab, king of Israel. Unfortunately, Athaliah influenced her husband to follow the sinful ways of Israel. As soon as Jehoshaphat died, his son became king and put idols all around Judah, and built a temple to Baal in Jerusalem. He killed his six broth...

After Jehu killed the two kings, he went back to Jezreel to find Jezebel. She knew he was coming, so she put on makeup, brushed her hair, and sat next to her second floor window. When he arrived, she called down to him, “Why are you here – to keep killing people who are better than you?” He looked up at her, and then yelled, “Is anyone up there that’s on my side?” Some men who worked for the queen...

Elisha selected one of the sons of the prophets. He said to him, “Take this bottle of oil and go to Jehu. He’ll be with his friends, so ask to see him alone. Anoint him king of Israel. Once you’re done, open the door and run away.” The young prophet found Jehu visiting with the other commanders of the army. The young man said to him, “I have a message for you.” The two of them went into the house....

Elisha went to the Shunammite woman and said, “Take your family and leave Israel as soon as you can. A famine will hit the land and last for seven years.” She did as the man of God said. Her family left Israel and moved to the land of the Philistines and stayed there seven years. When she came back to Israel, she went to the king to ask that their family house and land be returned to her. When she...

The king of Syria once again invaded Israel. His army surrounded Samaria and set up camp just outside the city walls. They cut off all supplies going into the city. Eventually there was no food, and the people started to starve. It was so bad that a donkey’s head sold for two pounds of silver, and a small bowl of dove’s droppings sold for two ounces of silver. A woman saw the king walking along th...

The king of Syria invaded the land of Israel. He brought in his military leaders and told them his plans – where he was going to set up camp and how he was going to attack the Israelites. As soon as he spoke the words, Elisha went and told the king of Israel exactly what the Syrians were planning. The army of Israel made preparations and won the battle. This happened several times until the king o...

After Naaman was healed at the Jordan River, he and his men went back to the prophet’s house and stood before him. Naaman said, “Today I’ve learned, and now know, that there’s no god on earth except the God of Israel. Please accept my humble gift.” Elisha said, “As sure as God lives, I won’t take a gift from you.” Naaman insisted, but the prophet still refused. Then the commander said, “Please let...

Naaman was the commander of the Syrian army. He was a brave warrior and led his men to win many victories. His king considered him a great man. During one of their wars with Israel, he captured a young girl and brought her back to be a servant for his wife. In time, Naaman realized he had leprosy, a crippling disease of the skin. The young slave girl said, “I wish my master could go to Israel. The...

Elisha traveled to a town called Shunem. A prominent woman provided a meal for him. She then gave him an invitation to eat at their home whenever he was in their town. Some time later, the woman said to her husband, “The man who comes here is a holy man. Let’s make a small room for him upstairs. We’ll provide a bed, table, chair, and a lamp. He can stay there whenever he comes to our city.” They p...

Elisha was in charge of the school of the prophets. There are several miracles associated with that group of young men. There was the time when one of men died. His wife came to Elisha and said, “You know my husband followed the Lord and honored him. When he died, he owed a man some money. Now that man is coming to collect. He is going to take my two sons and sell them as slaves.” The prophet said...

For many years, Moab was controlled by Israel and paid them high taxes. When Ahab died, the king of Moab refused to pay Israel any more taxes. Ahab’s son, King Joram organized his army and prepared to march against Moab. He sent a message to Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. “Please join me in our campaign against the king of Moab. He has rebelled against me.” Jehoshaphat agreed and the two armies march...

The time came for the Lord to take Elijah to heaven. So the old prophet said to Elisha, “Stay here. The Lord is sending me to Bethel.” Elisha said, “As sure as the Lord lives, I won’t leave you.” So they went to Bethel. There was a group of prophets at Bethel. They said to Elisha, “Do you know the Lord is going to take your master away from you today?” “Yes, I know. Now be quiet.” Elijah said, “El...

After Ahab died, his son Ahaziah became king of Israel. A short time later, he broke through a wooden rail and fell to the ground from the second floor of his house. His was seriously injured, so he said to his servants. “Go ask the god Baal-zebub if I’ll recover from this.” Elijah stopped the servants along the road and said, “There is a God in Israel. So why are you taking this question to Baal-...

Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king of Judah. He ruled for 25 years. He set up an educational system, established justice in the land, and reformed the legal system. Things were going well in Judah, until suddenly the nations of Moab, Ammon, and Edom decided to unite together and fight against Jehoshaphat. A massive army moved from the east side of the Dead Sea to En-gedi, on the west...

After Asa died, his son Jehoshaphat became king of Judah. The Lord was with him, and he followed the example of King David. The first thing he did was make the nation more secure. He also set up an educational program so people could understand God’s Laws. The Lord made the surrounding nations fear Jehoshaphat, so they didn’t want to go to war with him. The king decided to build an alliance with t...

In the town of Jezreel, a man named Naboth owned a vineyard next to the palace of King Ahab. The king told Naboth he wanted to buy the vineyard and make it into a vegetable garden. He said, “I’ll pay you full value in silver, or if you prefer, I’ll give you a better vineyard someplace else. Naboth said, “No. I couldn’t sell this vineyard. It has been owned by our family for several hundred years.”...

The king of Syria invaded Israel and marched his army against Samaria. He sent a message to King Ahab saying, “Give me your silver and gold. I also want your wives and sons.” Ahab sent a message back. “I’ll give it all to you. I even give myself to you.” The king of Syria sent another message. “There’s one more thing. Tomorrow, I’m sending people to search your palace and all the best houses. They...

Ahab told Jezebel what Elijah had done on Mount Carmel. He told her how all the prophets of Baal had been killed. Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah. She said, “I am going to kill you! Mark my word. You’ll be dead before tomorrow night.” This struck fear in the heart of Elijah. He ran away to save his life. He left Israel and went to the southern part of Judah. He left his servant there and went o...

The famine in Israel was severe and lasted for three years. Finally the Lord said to Elijah, “Go tell King Ahab that I am going to send rain to the land.” The person in charge of Ahab’s courts was a man named Obadiah. He was faithful to God, and even hid 100 prophets of the LORD when Jezebel was trying to hunt them down. He and the king went out to find grass for the palace livestock. They went di...

Israel had many wicked kings. They all followed the example of Jeroboam. While Asa was still king of Judah, Ahab became king of Israel. He was extremely evil, more than any of the kings that were before him. He married a woman named Jezebel, who worshiped Baal. Through her influence, Ahab built a temple of Baal in the capital city of Samaria. The prophet Elijah stood before the king and said, “I h...

When Rehoboam died, his son Abijah became king of Judah. Soon afterward, Israel invaded Judah. Jeroboam was still king of Israel at the time. When the two armies faced one another, Israel’s army was twice as big. Still, Abijah stood and yelled over at the men of Israel. He told them how he trusted the Lord. He compared how Judah worshiped the Lord at the Temple to how Israel worshiped the two gold...

One of the sons of Jeroboam became sick. The king said to his wife, “When I was a servant of Solomon, a prophet told me that I’d become king of the northern ten tribes of Israel. He lives in Shiloh. Take him gifts of food and ask him what will happen to our son. Put on a disguise, so he won’t know you’re my wife.” The prophet was now old and blind. The Lord said to him, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming...

There was an old prophet living at Bethel. His sons told him about the young man of God from Judah, and what he had done at Jeroboam’s altar. The old prophet said, “Which way did he go?” He then told his sons to saddle his donkey. He rode down the road until he found the man of God sitting under an oak tree. “Are you the man of God from Judah?” “Yes, I am” The old prophet said, “Come home with me...

Jeroboam chose the city of Shechem to be the capital of Israel. He built it up and put his palace there. He realized his people had a natural tendency to be loyal to the family of David. He said to his advisors, “The people keep going to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple. Eventually, they’ll decide their true loyalty is to the king from the line of David. They’ll kill me and reunite with Judah.”...