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Speaker 1: Let us pray, And the Angel of the Lord said,

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Speaker 1: unto Elijah, go down with him. Be not afraid of him.

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Speaker 1: And he arose and went down with him unto the

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Speaker 1: King Second Kings one fifteen. As I humbly come before you, God,

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Speaker 1: I will fix my attention and set my gaze to

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Speaker 1: your command to trust and rely on you. When I

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Speaker 1: fall and make a mistake, Let the broken state of

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Speaker 1: my heart and spirit look to you to be my

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Speaker 1: physician and healer. No longer will I look to others

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Speaker 1: to heal the areas in my life that only you

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Speaker 1: can restore. No longer will I put my trust in

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Speaker 1: man made traditions and outcomes. But instead I will pray

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Speaker 1: to you, Lord and wait in faith as you move

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Speaker 1: on my behalf. I declare that pride an ego will

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Speaker 1: not have a seat at the table of my heart.

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Speaker 1: I will not let a haye's behavior become my reality.

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Speaker 1: So as I stand in integrity and deliver the message

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Speaker 1: you desire for me to give to the world, I

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Speaker 1: can stand confident knowing that when others rise up against me,

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Speaker 1: I will be like Elijah. You will send a fire

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Speaker 1: of justice to speak on my behalf. Then protect what

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Speaker 1: you've placed inside of me in Jesus name. Amen. Thanks

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Speaker 1: for making prayer a priority in your life. To hear

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Speaker 1: the Bible come to life. Stay tuned for the Bible

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Speaker 1: in a Year brought to you by Bible in a

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Speaker 1: Year dot com, A fallen king and falling fire. In

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Speaker 1: our last story, we witnessed the faithful rule of King

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Speaker 1: Jehosaphat and Judah. His desire to seek God and his

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Speaker 1: peace fueled many victories for Judah. Under his leadership, God

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Speaker 1: provided a hedge of protection and prosperity over them. Now

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Speaker 1: we learn about King Ajosiah's fall from God literally and spiritually,

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Speaker 1: and we witness the return of Elijah to once again

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Speaker 1: bring difficult truths to a corrupt king. Inspired by the

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Speaker 1: Book of Second Kings. Hello, this is Jack Graham with

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Speaker 1: the day's episode of the Bible in a Year podcast.

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Speaker 1: In our last episode, we heard about the rule of Jehosaphat,

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Speaker 1: the King of Judah, who guided his people back to

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Speaker 1: God and established justice and worship of the Lord throughout

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Speaker 1: this southern kingdom. He was much like his ancestor David,

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Speaker 1: earnestly seeking the Lord and being open to correction by

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Speaker 1: God's prophet today will return north to a kingdom in shambles.

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Speaker 1: After the death of Ahab, Israel's new king, a Haziah,

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Speaker 1: will suffer a great fall, and in his moment of despair,

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Speaker 1: his cries will reveal where his trust really is. We'll

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Speaker 1: also see the return of Elijah, who will speak God's

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Speaker 1: heavy judgment upon a dishonorable king. So lesst listen to

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Speaker 1: God's word today. The troubled king Ahab had fallen as

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Speaker 1: arrows flew and pierced his flesh on the battlefield, The

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Speaker 1: tides of power in the north began to turn. Israel

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Speaker 1: was kingless for a short while, and the land of

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Speaker 1: Moab tossed and turned with unrest. Moab had been under

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Speaker 1: the rule and protection of Israel since King David. However,

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Speaker 1: once Ahab was killed, the land that settled on the

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Speaker 1: coast of the Dead Sea saw an opportunity to rebel.

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Speaker 1: So the new king of Israel Asia took over during

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Speaker 1: a time of incredible strain and unrest. One evening, Aosiah

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Speaker 1: was pacing in the upper room above his palace in Samaria.

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Speaker 1: The warm summer breeze only made him more anxious. His

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Speaker 1: nervous stomping rumbled the floor below him. He paced to

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Speaker 1: and fro on his balcony, worrying over his kingdom. Lost

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Speaker 1: in thought, Aosiah paid no attention to the lattice work

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Speaker 1: slowly cracking beneath his feet. All of the sudden, his

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Speaker 1: troubled thoughts were interrupted by the floor giving way from

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Speaker 1: underneath him. The king fell more than a dozen feet

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Speaker 1: through the floor of the upper room, slamming on to

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Speaker 1: the palace floor below. The fall took all the breath

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Speaker 1: out of him. His ears were ringing from the impact

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Speaker 1: to his head. Slowly, he began to feel the sting

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Speaker 1: of several broken bones coursing through his body. King Aosiah

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Speaker 1: laid there motionless for what seemed like days. The pain

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Speaker 1: was intense, and his already muddied mind began to panic.

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Speaker 1: He took everything in him to scream to his servants

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Speaker 1: for help. After several cries for help echoing through the

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Speaker 1: silent chambers, he finally found aid. His servants tended to

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Speaker 1: his broken bones and fractured skull. His lungs were beginning

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Speaker 1: to recover more of the air they once lost. However,

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Speaker 1: the injuries to his body and head seemed beyond repair.

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Speaker 1: Ay Aziah sat in despair. He had only been king

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Speaker 1: a few weeks, and he feared he would never recover.

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Speaker 1: His paranoid mind began to wander into dark places. He

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Speaker 1: wanted answers to questions not worth asking. He desired for

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Speaker 1: hope in his dark and painful state. So, in a

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Speaker 1: moment of weakness, ay Aziah sent his messengers to find

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Speaker 1: priests in the temple of Baalzebub, the god of Ekron.

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Speaker 1: He sent them to ask if he would ever recover.

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Speaker 1: In so doing, Easiah revealed where his hope truly was.

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Speaker 1: His heart was attached to the philistine god of plagues

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Speaker 1: and flies. His request revealed how far his heart was

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Speaker 1: from the true God of Israel. Elijah was walking the

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Speaker 1: fields of Tishbee, enjoying the peace of a mild summer day.

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Speaker 1: The wind blew slightly from the west. Elijah had enjoyed

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Speaker 1: peace since Ahab's death. No longer pursued by a witch

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Speaker 1: queen and her puppet king, Elijah could now fully set

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Speaker 1: his mind on the things of God. In a moment

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Speaker 1: of prayer, the Lord spoke to Elijah, saying, go and

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Speaker 1: confront the messengers from the king. They are on their

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Speaker 1: way to Balzebub. To ask Ekrone for wisdom. Elijah was

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Speaker 1: disturbed at the news. Not only did this reveal the

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Speaker 1: wicked state of King Eyoziah's heart, but it also showed

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Speaker 1: that Philistine influence had crept into his counsel. King Eyoziah's

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Speaker 1: mind and heart were compromised. God spoke clearly again, saying,

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Speaker 1: go and tell them that he will never leave his bed.

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Speaker 1: He will surely die where he lies. Elijah knew not

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Speaker 1: to waste any time when it came to matters of God,

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Speaker 1: so he left where he was and ran to intercept

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Speaker 1: the king's messengers. He found them almost at the temple

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Speaker 1: and told them of all God had said. Disturbed and afraid,

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Speaker 1: the messengers turned around and ventured back to the palace.

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Speaker 1: King Eyozaia was alone in his chambers. Just within sight

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Speaker 1: pass the entrance to his door, he could see the

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Speaker 1: hole in the ceiling where he fell. It tormented him,

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Speaker 1: and he longed for a day where he could walk again,

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Speaker 1: to be rid of the view. The king looked to

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Speaker 1: his left out the window. Feeling an intense pain in

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Speaker 1: his chest, he coughed and covered his mouth with the

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Speaker 1: cloth in his hand. He looked down at the cloth,

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Speaker 1: blood a grave, sighing for the king. He sighed deeply

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Speaker 1: and closed his eyes. Then a sudden echo of footsteps

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Speaker 1: could be heard from the halls. His messengers had returned.

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Speaker 1: They bowed before his bed. They had just left that morning,

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Speaker 1: so the king was confused at their arrival. Why have

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Speaker 1: you returned so soon, the king asked. A man intercepted

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Speaker 1: us and told us that he had a message from God.

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Speaker 1: A Josiah's eyes widened. He had seen King Ahab's war

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Speaker 1: with the God of their forefathers. As a child, he

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Speaker 1: witnessed his father's constant turmoil with the God of David.

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Speaker 1: At one time, he considered following the God of David,

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Speaker 1: but decided not to, for the Philistine gods offered him

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Speaker 1: more room for sin and luteness. He knew that no

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Speaker 1: good news awaited him. The servants delivered the message from God, saying,

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Speaker 1: is there no God in Israel? Why have you sent

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Speaker 1: messengers to Balza up? Your request reveals much. You shall

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Speaker 1: never leave your bed. You shall die on the bed

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Speaker 1: you are lying on. What sort of man was he?

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Speaker 1: What did he look like? The king whispered, for he

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Speaker 1: had an idea of who it was. His father's sworn

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Speaker 1: enemy was still alive. They replied. He was a hairy

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Speaker 1: man who wore a leather belt to hold his robes together.

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Speaker 1: Aziah sat up in his bed. His lungs began to strain,

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Speaker 1: and his chest swelled up with coughing. Blood spattered all

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Speaker 1: over his sheets, and his chin was dripping with blood

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Speaker 1: and saliva. Elijah, he yelled, as blood flung across the room.

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Speaker 1: Take my army, captain with fifty soldiers, go and arrest him.

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Speaker 1: The king's coughing filled the room, and his servants came

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Speaker 1: in the room to attend to him, while the messengers

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Speaker 1: sent word for his captain. Elijah was sitting on top

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Speaker 1: of a grassy hill overlooking the city below when the

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Speaker 1: captain and his fifty men approached. He remained sitting as

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Speaker 1: the captain drew his sword and pointed it at Elijah.

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Speaker 1: Man of God, the King has commanded for you to

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Speaker 1: come with us. Elijah looked at all the men closely.

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Speaker 1: He observed their angry scowls and violent eyes. He closed

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Speaker 1: his eyes and gave a brief sigh. He opened his

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Speaker 1: eyes and looked to the skies. The sun was still

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Speaker 1: high in the air. However, the clouds were shifting slightly,

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Speaker 1: and it looked like a storm was possibly approaching. Elijah

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Speaker 1: replied nonchalantly, if I am truly a man of God,

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Speaker 1: perhaps fire should come down from heaven to destroy your

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Speaker 1: small army. As Elijah said this, a flash from the

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Speaker 1: sky pierced downwards and sent all fifty men flying through

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Speaker 1: the air. Immediately they were consumed with flames. They were

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Speaker 1: dead almost instantly. Word reached the king of this incident,

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Speaker 1: so he sent fifty more men to pursue and arrest Elijah.

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Speaker 1: The other captain pointed his spear at alia Jah and said,

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Speaker 1: Man of God, you must come with us. It was

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Speaker 1: a foolish mistake, for Elijah gave the same reply he

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Speaker 1: did before, and fire from heaven consumed him and his men.

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Speaker 1: The king heard of this and was insistent on sending

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Speaker 1: another group of fifty men to pursue Elijah. Only this

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Speaker 1: time the captain fell at Elijah's feet and said, please,

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Speaker 1: oh Man of God, spare us. We are following orders,

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Speaker 1: but do not want to be consumed like the others.

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Speaker 1: Elijah smiled at the men for the humility. At the

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Speaker 1: very least, they had learned their lesson, unlike their King

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Speaker 1: Elijah could hear the slight whisper of God comforting him.

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Speaker 1: He said, do not fear the king, go down to him.

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Speaker 1: So Elijah sat up and willingly walked down with the

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Speaker 1: soldiers to the palace. He stood before the broken king.

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Speaker 1: Asiah could barely say a word, for his body was

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Speaker 1: failing him. Elijah once again delivered the message of God,

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Speaker 1: and with those words, King Asaiah breathed his last and died.

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Speaker 1: Ayaziah had no sons to succeed him. His brother Uram

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Speaker 1: became the next king of Israel. Ayaziah's death was not

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Speaker 1: a result of injury. Rather, it was the result of

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Speaker 1: a generational sickness in the kings of Israel. Their corrupt

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Speaker 1: and selfish hearts were slowly killing the integrity of their nation.

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Speaker 1: The passion of King David had disappeared in the land

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Speaker 1: of Israel. What replaced it was a lineage of kings

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Speaker 1: determined to seek their own glory above the children of God.

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Speaker 1: Their imperfection only made them more vulnerable to attack and corruption.

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Speaker 1: One day there would be a king to humbly into

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Speaker 1: the Kingdom of Israel, a king that would not be

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Speaker 1: self serving or evil. He would be a king that

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Speaker 1: would enter in humbly, lying in a manger. He would

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Speaker 1: come to serve the people and lay down his life

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Speaker 1: for them. He would bring peace, love and truth to

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Speaker 1: a people far off and lost. Yet for now, the

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Speaker 1: ups and downs of kings continued. We begin today's passage

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Speaker 1: in the aftermath of King Ahab's death. With the king dead,

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Speaker 1: Moab rebelled against Israel. It was a time of great

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Speaker 1: turmoil in the Northern Kingdom, which is no big surprise

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Speaker 1: given the corruption and the wicked rule of Ahab and

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Speaker 1: the wicked queen Jezebel. It is also no great surprise

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Speaker 1: that a Hasiah, the new king, son of Ahab and Jezebel,

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Speaker 1: would follow in his parents' footsteps and seek out idols,

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Speaker 1: pagan gods, and deities. One morning, King a Hasiah fell

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Speaker 1: through the lattice in his bedroom and plummeted to the

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Speaker 1: hard floor below. He was seriously injured and became sick

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Speaker 1: confined to his bed. But rather than call out to

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Speaker 1: God for help, what did he do? He turned to

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Speaker 1: false gods, just as his parents had done throughout their lives.

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Speaker 1: A Hasiah sent messengers to seek answers from Beelzebub, the

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Speaker 1: philistine God of plagues. He wanted to know if he

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Speaker 1: would recover from his injuries, and what a Hassiah failed

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Speaker 1: to recognize was that his real sickness was not in

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Speaker 1: his broken body, but in his broken soul. But God

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Speaker 1: saw the king and was grieved because of his unfaithfulness.

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Speaker 1: So God sent an angel to give his prophet Elijah

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Speaker 1: a message to a Hassiah. Because the king had turned

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Speaker 1: to a foreign God, acting as though there was no

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Speaker 1: God in Israel, he would never leave the confinement of

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Speaker 1: his bed, but would die there. Elijah set off to

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Speaker 1: find the messengers who were headed to Akron to seek

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Speaker 1: out Baelzebub. He told them all the angel had said,

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Speaker 1: and they returned to a Hassiah with bad news, bad

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Speaker 1: news from the strange man on the road. When a

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Speaker 1: Hassiah asked what the man looked like, the description confirmed

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Speaker 1: what surely he had already knew. Elijah, the same man

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Speaker 1: who had troubled his father, was at it again. God's

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Speaker 1: man was being God's man. A Hasiah sent a captain

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Speaker 1: with fifty men to bring Elijah. In no doubt the

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Speaker 1: king had a mind to make him pay for his words.

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Speaker 1: But when they found Elijah, They called him a man

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Speaker 1: of God and told him to come quickly because the

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Speaker 1: king had ordered it. But Elijah answered to a much

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Speaker 1: higher king, the Lord God. So he replied that if

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Speaker 1: he was indeed a man of God, then fire would

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Speaker 1: come down from heaven and consumed the men. Just then,

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Speaker 1: God sent fire from the skies and wiped out a

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Speaker 1: Hassiah's men. This sign would deter any reasonable and wise king.

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Speaker 1: But a Hasiah was far from reasonable or wise, so

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Speaker 1: he sent a second captain with fifty men, the same order,

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Speaker 1: the same response from Elijah, and the same outcome, fire

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Speaker 1: from heaven that consumed the men. A Hasiah sent a

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Speaker 1: third contingent of men, but this time the captain did

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Speaker 1: not demand that Elijah come with him. Instead, he humbled

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Speaker 1: himself before Elijah, saying, as recorded in Second Kings one

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Speaker 1: thirteen Old Man of God, please let my life, in

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Speaker 1: the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious

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Speaker 1: in your sights. In other words, please don't kill us,

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Speaker 1: Please don't take us out from the power of your God.

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Speaker 1: So this man had a different attitude and in a

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Speaker 1: different request a different response. Therefore, God told Elijah to

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Speaker 1: go with a man and deliver his message personally to

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Speaker 1: a Hasiah. So Elijah went to the king and again

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Speaker 1: told him that because he turned to the felistine God,

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Speaker 1: his very life would be taken from him in that bed.

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Speaker 1: And just as the Lord said, a Hasiah died then

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Speaker 1: and there a short reign marked by idolatry and foolishness

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Speaker 1: and death. Today's passage reminds us that our God is

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Speaker 1: the one true God, and that he is a jealous

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Speaker 1: God who deserves our full focus, attention, adoration, and affection.

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Speaker 1: Let there be no other gods before him. Like his

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Speaker 1: parents before him, a Hassiah gave his heart to false gods,

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Speaker 1: and it cost him not only an abundant and peaceful

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Speaker 1: life and a beautiful reign among the people, it cost

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Speaker 1: him everything. It cost him his life. Because God will

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Speaker 1: not be mocked. The Bible says whatever a person sows,

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Speaker 1: he will also reap. So let's pray, Dear God, thank

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Speaker 1: you for this story that teaches us that you are

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Speaker 1: a great God, a glorious God, and you and you

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Speaker 1: only are God. And we pray that we would never

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Speaker 1: turn to the world and the idols of this world

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Speaker 1: and the things of this world to find relief or

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Speaker 1: rescue or comfort in any false God. We thank you

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Speaker 1: that you are jealous for us, that you love us

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Speaker 1: because we are yours, and you love us deeply and dearly,

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Speaker 1: and you always want our best. Remind us God today

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Speaker 1: that our hearts are to be completely yours in Jesus name. Amen.

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Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.

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Speaker 1: I'm pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Let me encourage

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Speaker 1: you to go ahead right now and download the Prey

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Speaker 1: dot com app and make the Word of God and

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Speaker 1: prayer a huge priority in your life. Let me also

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Speaker 1: encourage you to tell others about this podcast because you

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Speaker 1: can pass the word to others. And if you want

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Speaker 1: more resources on how to tap into God's power for

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Speaker 1: living the Christian life, be sure to visit Jack Graham

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Speaker 1: dot org. That's Jack Graham dot org. We would love

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Speaker 1: to connect with you right now. This episode is sponsored

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Speaker 1: by Medicine, an innovative healthcare solution for Christian to save

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Speaker 1: money without sacrificing quality.