God is glorified by protecting Judah: 05.11

We learned a couple of week's ago that the kingdom was divided into two.  Judah and Israel.

Suggested way to share the story with the children.

Read 2 Kings 18:1 -7.  This passage explains who Hezekiah was and what he did.  Hezekiah was king of Judah. 

Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord (18:1-3).  Talk with the kids about what this phrase means.  That God sees and knows all.   

Hezekiah broke the  the bronze serpent that Moses had made.  Do you remember that story in Exodus?  Why did Hezeikiah do that?  (See 18:4)  Because the people were worship a good thing that God gave instead of the God who gives good things.

Explain that in 2 Kings 18:9 - 12, foreign army, the Assyrians, defeated Israel because the Israelites did not obey God (v. 12)

Explain that in 2 Kings 18:13 - 19:13, this same foreign army came up against Judah and mocked God.

Read 2 Kings 19:15 - 19.  This is Hezekiah's prayer.  In it Hezekiah said that the Assyrians defeated many different nations whose gods did not protect them.  EMPHASIZE 19:19
Summary of prayer:  Save us in order to glorify you.

Explain 19:35 37.  God miraculously defeats the enemy. 


WE OBEY BECAUSE IT BRINGS GOD GLORY!

From the lesson guide:

"Although his father surely would have led Judah to the same judgment, Hezekiah was not like his father. King Hezekiah “did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father David had done” (2 Kings 18:3). Unlike his predecessors who followed the Lord, Hezekiah destroyed the high places where the people presented sacrifices, and he smashed the idols, including the bronze serpent made by Moses that the people had long worshiped (2 Kings 18:4). More than any other king of Judah, Hezekiah trusted the Lord and faithfully kept His commandments (18:5–6)."

Hezekiah was concerned for the Lord's glory and that God's name would be exalted among the nations.