2 Kings
2:6–15
Read this story. Arty has an idea. Pretend you were with Elisha when Elijah was taken up to heaven. Take photographs in your imagination of everything that happened that day.
Now draw a few of the photographs you have in your mind. Make sure that they’re in the order in which everything happened. Then write a short explanation under each photograph.
2:13–15
Elijah’s coat fell when a strong wind took him to heaven. Elisha picked it up. By receiving the coat, Elisha showed he was chosen to be the prophet in Elijah’s place. Elisha then used the coat to make the water of the Jordan River separate. Elijah had used the coat to do the very same thing. This miracle showed that Elisha had received the same power Elijah had.
4:32–37
The Lord used Elisha to bring the son of the woman from Shunem back to life. Thinky remembers that Elijah also brought a boy back to life. You can read the story in 1 Kings 17:17–24.
Thinky wants you to answer these questions about the two events. What did Elijah and Elisha do in the same way? What did they do differently? What do these two events show us about the Lord?
5:1–4
The soldiers of Aram had captured a young girl from Israel. She became a servant in Naaman’s house. Naaman was the army commander for the king of Aram.
Can you imagine how she felt when this happened to her? Choose a color from Hearty’s color chart on page 19 that shows her feelings.
The young girl lived in a country far away from her home. And she lived with people she didn’t know. But she still loved the Lord. And she told Naaman’s wife about the Lord. Are you willing and brave enough to tell someone about the Lord?
5:9–16
Naaman was an important man. And Naaman was angry with Elisha. He thought Elisha would perform a great miracle for him. Instead Elisha told Naaman to simply wash in the Jordan River. But Naaman thought his own country’s rivers were much better. Inny wants you to think about obeying instructions. Who gave Elisha the power to do miracles? So when Naaman didn’t follow Elisha’s directions, who was he really not listening to? And how did Elisha want Naaman to know? Read verses 15 and 16 to find the answer. Now think about yourself. Do you know the Lord? Do you know that the Lord uses your parents and others in authority to guide you? Are you willing to follow the directions the important people give you?
7:3–9
The army of the king of Aram surrounded the city of Samaria. Eventually there was no food left in the city. But there were four lepers outside the city in King Aram’s army camp. No one wanted them in the city because this skin disease left them unclean. And they had to stay far away from people. Then the Lord had caused Aram’s soldiers to run away. What they ran from we don’t know. The Lord had caused them to hear the noise of an army. And they fled in fear. Was that the right thing to do? What did they do next? (Read verses 8 and 9.)
If the Lord is with you, nothing will be too much for you. We need the Lord’s help every day. Ask him to be with you and to help you.
9:1–3
King Ahab’s family worshipped false gods. They also led the people to worship those false gods. Then the Lord anointed Jehu to be king of Israel. He was given the task of punishing Ahab and his family for their evil deeds. Jehu did what the Lord asked him to do. Later Jehu did exactly what the other kings of Israel had done. Jehu turned away from the Lord. He led the people of Israel in worshipping false gods. So the Lord also punished Jehu’s family.
This is the sad story of the ten tribes of Israel. For many, many years they refused to obey the Lord and they worshipped false gods.
13:1–5 (Thinky)
Thinky noticed that none of the kings of the ten tribes of Israel worshipped the Lord. However, the Lord was always ready to forgive them and help them.
In the beginning King Jehoahaz also worshipped the golden calves in Samaria. The Lord sent the king of Aram to punish the people. Then King Jehoahaz asked the Lord to help them. In verses 4–5 you can read what the Lord did then.
Thinky wonders about this. The Lord promises to listen to anyone who prays to him. And the Lord promises to care for those who love him. Do you know these promises are also for you?
17:1, 11–20
The Lord had brought the Israelites out of Egypt. He led them through the desert to the land he had promised them. Then the Lord gave them a country to live in. Then the tribes of Israel didn’t obey the Lord’s laws. They worshipped false gods. They didn’t listen to the prophets who told them to serve only the Lord. The people of Israel broke the promises they had made to the Lord. This went on for 200 years. The Lord loved his people. He gave them many chances to come back to him. But they were too stubborn. And so he stopped helping them. The Israelites were taken from their land. They lost everything the Lord had given them.
20:20
King Hezekiah served the Lord. He was a good and wise king. He did many good things. One of these was building a dam and a canal that were used to bring water into Jerusalem. People also think he built an underground tunnel. It runs from the Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam. Archaeologists have discovered the tunnel. Today tourists visiting Jerusalem can walk through the tunnel.
22:1–14
King Josiah sent workmen to repair the temple. When they started working, they found the Book of the Law there. Then King Josiah and Hilkiah, the high priest, went to Huldah, the prophet, for advice. They asked her what they must do about the book. Huldah prophesied that the people of Judah would be captured. She said they would be taken away if they didn’t serve the Lord.
Then the Book of the Law was read to the people. When they heard it, they turned back to the Lord. Because they did this, Huldah told King Josiah he wouldn’t see the troubles Judah would experience.
24–25
The things we read about in 2 Kings show us that Israel and Judah didn’t serve the Lord. So the Lord allowed the Babylonians to attack Judah and conquer them. Jerusalem was destroyed and many people were taken away as prisoners to Babylon. The people were exiles in Babylon. And they stayed there for 70 years.
But God still loved his city and his people. Many people were sad at having abandoned the Lord. They realized that they had sinned. They turned back to him. Eventually God led them back to Jerusalem.
