Ahaziah: Seeks Answers in the Wrong Places

By Mary Vee
II Kings 1

From the Journal of Ahaziah's Messenger

My king, Ahaziah, king of Israel, had a terrible fall in his chamber this morning. He fell through the lattice in the room. His pain mounted and no one could help him. He sent for me and two other messengers.

I entered his chamber, "Yes, King Ahaziah."

His faced winced with pain. He held his leg and cried out. "Go to Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, to see if I will recover from this injury."

We left immediately, running part of the way. On our journey we met a prophet. His name was, Elijah. The prophet's eyebrows furrowed and he held his hand up to stop us.

I, of course want to hurry along with my duty, but Elijah would not let us go until we heard his message from God. 

"Go back to Ahaziah, king of Israel, and deliver this message. Do not continue your journey for the message from the Lord will answer the king's question. The Lord says, 'Have you gone to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, because there is no God in Israel? Because you wanted answers from something that is a fake god, you will never leave your bed. You will die."

The prophet didn't give us a chance to ask him any questions. He turned and walked away.

We obeyed the prophet and took his message back to the king. We were allowed into the king's chambers right away. 

The king opened his weary eyes and groaned, "Why are you back so quick?"

"My king, a man met us on the road. He said to return at once with this message: 'The Lord says: Have you gone to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, because there is no God in Israel? Because you wanted answers from something that is a fake god, you will never leave your bed. You will die."

The king's face turned red. "Who met you on the road and gave you this message?"

I answered, "He had clothes made of hair and a leather belt around his waist."

His face turn a darker shade of red. "That was Elijah the Tishbite. Send for the captain of the army at once!"

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photo courtesy of visualbiblealive.com

1. What happened to king Ahaziah?
2. How badly was he hurt?
3. Who did he choose to ask if he would get well?
4. Who stopped the messengers?
5. What message did he have.
6. When Ahaziah heard the message was he pleased?
7. What do you think Ahaziah will do?