Daily Devotional

Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I have anointed you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. You shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel: ; (2 Kings9:6,7)

Every June 6, many in the United States, Canada, Britain, and France celebrate the anniversary of “D-Day,” the day in 1944 when Allied forces stormed the beaches of northern France to liberate that nation—and, eventually, much of Europe—from Nazi occupation. 

The Nazi forces were justifiably afraid. They knew the troops coming to meet them were out to avenge the occupation of these lands by the National Socialists under the command of Adolf Hitler. And it was a long, hard fight for the forces of freedom, as final victory wouldn’t come until the following April, ten months later. 

Jehu, whose righteousness found favour in the Lord’s sight, had his own challenges. God anointed him to wipe out another group of oppressors: the entire house of Ahab, including King Jehoram, who was not only Ahab’s son, but also Jehu’s boss.

In short order, and not without a little cunning, Jehu fulfilled God’s command: the anointed one dispatched King Ahaziah, from Judah, and Jehoram. Next, Jehu’s mother Jezebel, Ahab’s widow, died in the manner Elijah had prophesied. After that, the rest of Ahab’s children, and the princes fathered by Ahaziah, were slain. Finally, Jehu arranged an elaborate—and successful—ruse to get the remaining priests of Baal in one place and eliminate them as well. 

That may sound like a lot of bloodshed for one man to be assigned, and Jehu did have help. But remember that all this stemmed from God’s command to eliminate every trace of Ahab’s legacy. God was serious about removing Ahab’s sin. 

The Lord rewarded Jehu’s obedience: Four more generations of his descendants would be heirs as king of Israel. This was the longest line of kings in Israel’s history. 

Lord, may I be serious about asking You to remove all sin from my life.