2 Kings 15:1–38

15:8–12 If life in Judah is unremarkable and slightly disappointing, the corresponding turmoil in Israel charts a rapid decline into anarchy. “Zechariah the son of Jeroboam” rules for only “six months,” but that is more than enough time to establish an ungodly pattern for his regime: “He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.” In addition, the old Israelite propensity to rebel against the monarch reemerges: “Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and struck him down at Ibleam and put him to death and reigned in his place.” Thus, with the kind of abbreviated obituary that will now be the norm for Israel’s kings, Jehu’s dynasty comes to an end, ironically at the very place where it all started (cf. 9:27). In 15:12 the writer reminds us that all of this “action” is still unfolding under the control of the “word of the Lord”: “This was the promise of the Lord that he gave to Jehu, ‘Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.’ And so it came to pass.”

Zechariah is the fourth generation since Jehu to sit on the throne, and then the dynasty comes to an end, just as God said it would. Because Jehu had done what God had told him and wreaked vengeance on the idolatrous Ahab and his clan, Yahweh had said that his dynasty would replace them for four generations. Presumably if any one of those generations had learned the rather obvious lesson that worshiping Yahweh is the way to go, their rule could even have been extended—but they did not learn. God’s verdict “came to pass.” This last phrase is the recurrent “and it was so” of Genesis, a reminder that God’s word always “comes to pass.” It is always effective. And yet the Israelites pay no attention to it.

15:13–16 The usurper “Shallum the son of Jabesh” manages to hold on to the throne for a mere “one month” (only Zimri manages a shorter incumbency) before “Menahem the son of Gadi came up from Tirzah and came to Samaria, and he struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria.” Tirzah served as the capital of Israel from the time of Jeroboam I to that of Omri (cf. 1 Kings 14:17; 15:33; 16:8, 15, 23), but now Samaria is the focus of the action. The emphasis on Samaria seems to suggest that such actions are now typical of the kings of the north. The unexpected reference to “Uzziah” (2 Kings 15:13), rather than Azariah, suggests a deliberate attempt to orient readers to other material, most likely the prophecy of Isaiah. Beyond his treachery, there is nothing to say about the “deeds of Shallum.”

In verse 16 we discover that Shallum’s nemesis, Menahem, is particularly brutal. In attacking “Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah,” he treats the inhabitants like Canaanites “because they did not open it to him.” According to 1 Kings 4:24, Tiphsah was the northern extremity of Solomon’s kingdom, and it may be that those living there had made some alliance with the Assyrians. It is striking that Kings has no interest in the politics that may lie behind these actions (or the regime changes that follow). The main point is simply that his vengeance is terrible: “Therefore he sacked it, and he ripped open all the women in it who were pregnant” (cf. the anticipated actions of Hazael of Syria in 2 Kings 8:12). Menahem takes out his frustration with a particularly abhorrent crime against pregnant women. No further details are given, but it is clear that this king is a very long way from God’s ideal.

15:17–22 The reign of the vicious Menahem extends to “ten years in Samaria.” Like Zechariah, and typical of his predecessors, “he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart all his days from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.” The other unique feature of his reign sounds an ominous note as the end of Israel looms (in 722 BC). When “Pul the king of Assyria” (an alternative name for Tiglath-pileser) threatens the land, “Menahem [gives] Pul a thousand talents of silver, that he might help him to confirm his hold on the royal power.” This massive bribe (c. 7,500 lb./3,400 kg) effectively reduces Israel to vassal status, beholden to Assyria rather than to God himself.⁴ Menahem raises this money by means of a wealth tax, garnering it “from all the wealthy men, fifty shekels of silver from every man, to give to the king of Assyria.” In the short term, this action has the desired effect, as “the king of Assyria turned back and did not stay there in the land.” One is left wondering about the damage this will have on Israel’s long-term fortunes. Verses 21–22 summarize Menahem’s reign in the by-now familiar fashion and also introduce “Pekahiah his son,” who succeeds him.

15:23–26 As the long reign of Azariah (Uzziah) begins to draw to a close, “Pekahiah the son of Menahem . . . reigned two years.” The depressing rhythm established and maintained by the kings of Israel continues, as he too does “what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.” As with Shallum, the only notable feature of his reign is his demise. In this case, “Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him with fifty men of the people of Gilead.” Given the involvement of the Gileadites, this assassination is more like a straightforward coup. The murder takes place at the “citadel of the king’s house with Argob and Arieh [“the lion”],” perhaps sons of the king, and Pekah assumes the throne.

15:27–31 Finally the time of foment comes to an end, as “Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned twenty years.” However, while Pekah brings stability to the country, the refrain of verse 28 is all too familiar: “He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin.” As in the reign of Menahem, the lasting legacy of his reign involves skirmishes with Assyria. This time, the foreign power does not simply threaten and withdraw, but “Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and he carried the people captive to Assyria.” The writing is on the wall for the people of Israel, and yet there is no sign that they are coming to their senses. After the reign of Pekah, however, the old Israelite habit resurfaces, and “Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah and struck him down and put him to death and reigned in his place.” This regime change brings the quick-fire account of these Israelite kings to an end, as the narrative switches back to the succession in Judah.

This has been a sorry tale of decline and disobedience. Zechariah manages to do little else than worship idols and lose the throne in an action-packed six-month reign. Menahem tries to buy off the Assyrians (which merely delays the inevitable). Pekahiah does nothing notable other than to worship idols and get assassinated. Pekah manages to lose part of the land to Assyria before getting himself killed by Hoshea—it really is a case of downhill all the way. But Yahweh is not silent through all of this. He keeps speaking to his people, urging them to come to their senses (cf. Hos. 7:1–7; Amos 4:6–12). The problem is that Israel will not listen. It all comes down to the founding sin of the northern kingdom: blatant, persistent idolatry. The northern kingdom is born in idolatry, lives in idolatry, and dies in idolatry. They never get the foundations right. And that is fatal.

15:32–38 “Jotham the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign” at the age of “twenty-five. . . . And he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.” In the usual marked contrast to the kings of Israel, verse 34 notes that Jotham “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah had done,” albeit with the usual caveat that the “high places were not removed. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places.” Jotham’s notable achievement is that he “built the upper gate of the house of the Lord.” His rule, however, is marked by the rise of a Syro-Israelite alliance, as “in those days the Lord began to send Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah,” creating a growing sense that both Israel and Judah are sitting on a political powder keg.