This BIBLE study of 2 Kings Chapter 15, gives us glimpses into the lives of five kings from the Northern kingdom (Israel), and two kings from the Southern kingdom (Judah). During this study, we will examine 2 Kings chapter 15, but we will also need to examine 2 Chronicles chapter 26, and 2 Chronicles chapter 27, to get a better understanding of the two kings from Judah. King Uzziah of Judah, is a famous king, who had the second longest reign among all the kings in both Israel and Judah. His son, king Jotham was not as famous, but he too was powerful. King Jotham, followed in all the ways of his father, except that which caused his downfall. In this study our Beloved LORD GOD will provide the following truths:

• “Until the end” means until the point that a person, or thing, ceases to be what he, or it was; the point of death, termination, or transfiguration (a complete change in form or appearance)
• All those who take up the sword, shall perish by the sword
• Our lives, affect the lives of our children and the generations yet to be born

King Uzziah of Judah (2 Kin 15:1-7, 2 Chr 26:1-23)
King Uzziah of Judah reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. And as long as he sought our Beloved LORD GOD, HE prospered him (2 Chr 26:5), by marvelously helping him (2 Chr 26:15). Because of our GOD, king Uzziah was a:

• Warrior, whose fame spread far and wide:
  • He victoriously warred against the Philistines and Arabians (2 Chr 26:6-7)
  • The Ammonites paid tribute to him (2 Chr 26:8)
  • He always had an elite army battle ready (2 Chr 26:11-13)
  • His army, was not only fully equipped, but also had engines of war (2 Chr 26:14-15)
• Builder, who built:
  • A seaport (Eloth aka Elath) on the Red Sea in the territory of Edom (1 Kin 9:26, 2 Kin 14:22, 2 Chr 26:2)
  • Cities (2 Chr 26:6)
  • Fortified Towers (2 Chr 26:9-10)
  • Hewed many cisterns, or dug many wells (2 Chr 26:10)
• Farmer or man of the soil, who had many livestock, vineyards, and fertile fields (2 Chr 26:10)

King Uzziah did not remain faithful to GOD until the end. Just like his father king Amaziah, Uzziah fell because of pride (details about the fall of king Amaziah are found in the 2 Kings chapter 14 BIBLE study, titled “Pride before Destruction”). When king Uzziah became powerful, his heart became so filled with pride that he acted corruptly, and was unfaithful to our GOD. He decided to assume the role of burning incense on the altar of incense in the holy place of the temple; a role appointed by GOD only to HIS priests. When king Uzziah entered the temple to burn incense, Azariah the high priest, and eighty priests with him, opposed the king. King Uzziah became enraged at GOD’s priests, and our GOD struck him with leprosy. King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death (2 Kin 15:5, 2 Chr 26:16-23). According to the Jewish priest, scholar, and historian, Flavius Josephus, king Uzziah lived as a leper for the final eleven years of his life. Jotham, king Uzziah’s son, conducted his father’s civil duties as a judge until his death, when he became king (2 Kin 15:5, 2 Chr 26:21-23). Our Beloved LORD GOD has called each one of us to keep HIS commandments, and our trust in JESUS until the end (Rev 14:12, Mat 24:13, Rev 2:26). We cannot so trust in our righteousness, that we turn from HIM in the end (Eze 34:18). Our Precious JESUS CHRIST is our righteousness (2 Cor 5:21), and we must faithfully follow HIM until our time ends, or time itself is no more.

Five Israelite Kings who perished by the sword (2 Kin 15:8-31)
Our Precious LORD JESUS HIMSELF forewarned HIS disciples and us today, “for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.” (Mat 26:52). And we see this truth demonstrated with the five kings mentioned in 2 Kings chapter 15:

• Zechariah the king of Israel, and great-grandson of Jehu, was publicly assassinated by Shallum after reigning for 6 months (2 Kin 15:8-12). The dynasty (a line of hereditary rulers of a country) of Jehu begin with bloodshed, and ended with bloodshed. Jehu came into power through murdering every male of the house of Ahab, and Ahaziah king of Judah (2 Kin 9:1-28); it ended with the murder of his great-grandson Zechariah (2 Kin 15:10).
• Shallum the king of Israel, reigned one month, after he publicly murdered Zechariah. He was then killed by Menahem (2 Kin 15:13-15). Truly Shallum experienced “He who digs a pit will fall into it. And he who rolls a stone, it will come back on him” (Pro 26:27)
• Menahem, was the cruelest of the five Israelite kings (2 Kings 15:16-22). When Pul, king of Assyria, came against Israel for battle, king Menahem met him, and persuaded him to accept a thousand talents of silver instead of wage war. The king of Assyria accepted his offer and left. Later king Menahem, would exact fifty shekels of silver from every wealthy man in Israel, to get the money back he had paid to the king of Assyria (2 Kin 15:19-20). We are not told how he dies, but he reigned ten years in Samaria, and his son Pekahiah became king in his place.
• Pekahiah the king of Israel, reigned for two years, when he was killed by his officer, Pekah, who conspired to kill him, to become king in his place (2 Kin 15:23-26). Pekahiah’s father Menahem took the throne of Israel by much bloodshed, and his son’s blood was shed as the throne was seized from him.
• Pekah the king of Israel, reigned for twenty years in Samaria. Then Hoshea, the last king of Israel, before the deportation of the northern kingdom to Assyria, killed Pekah and begin to reign (2 Kin 15:27-31)

Unlike these five kings of Israel, who shed others blood so they could reign; our Precious KING JESUS CHRIST (Luk 1:30-33, Jhn 1:29, Rev 17:14, Jhn 1:1, Jhn 1:14, Rev 19:11-16) shed HIS blood that we might be redeemed and cleansed (1 Pet 1:18-19, 1 Jhn 1:7). Our Beloved SAVIOR also prevented HIS disciples from shedding blood, HIS last night before returning to our Heavenly FATHER (Mat 26:51-52).

Our lives, affects the lives of our children and the generations yet to be born
Through eight words “according to all that the father had done” we see several kings serve GOD as their fathers had. We will list and cite the Scripture reference for those kings, except Jotham, the son of Uzziah. We will give an abstract of king Jotham’s reign, as he is included in the conclusion of our study in 2 Kings chapter 15. There was one king in Israel and four kings in Judah that served GOD as their fathers had:

• Ahaziah the son of king Ahab of Israel (1 Kin 22:53)
• Uzziah the son of king Amaziah of Judah (2 Kin 15:3)
• Jotham the son of king Uzziah of Judah (2 Kin 15:34). King Jotham, followed in all the ways of his father king Uzziah, except that which caused his father’s downfall. (2 Kin 15:32-38, 2 Chr 27:1-9). This king became mighty like his father, because he continually walked upright before The LORD (2 Chr 27:6). Jotham like his father was a builder, and he too built gates, walls, cities, fortresses, and towers (2 Chr 27:3-4). He quelled the uprising of the Ammonites, and they continue to pay tribute to him, as they had to his father (2 Chr 27:5).
• Hezekiah the son of king Ahaz of Judah (2 Kin 18:3)
• Jehoiachin the son of king Jehoahaz of Judah (2 Kin 24:9)

Many of the world’s professionals in family counseling say there is no blueprint on parenting, only one’s parenting style will affect the lifestyle and socialization skills of the child. As demonstrated here in The WORD of GOD, how you conduct your life, is how your children will conduct their lives. Your day-to-day behavior is their blueprint, and will affect the lives of your descendants for generations to come. Therefore, through CHRIST be an example in holiness.