Up From The Grave He Arose (2 Kings 13:10-21, Matthew 27:45-54)
Rev. William L. Barron, August 7, 2022Part of the Morning Worship at North Greenville Church series, preached at a Sunday Morning service
The first few verses of this passage recount the succession of wicked kings in the northern kingdom. Beginning in vs. 14, we see a flashback to an early part of King Joash's life. Joash recognized that Elisha had helped the nation. With Elisha's impending death, Israel would be losing a national treasure, in Joash's estimation. Joash and Israel would have to stand on their own. The idea of the chariot, symbolizing power and force, showed that God was taking power away from Joash. Elisha provided a prophecy. He used arrows to demonstrate to Joash a victory over the Syrians at Aphek and then only three follow-on victories instead of more, because of Joash's half-hearted acceptance of the Word of God and its commands. The lesson for us is that most of us ask little of God, receive little in return and yet are content with this situation. The next section recounts the death and burial of Elisha. Raiding Moabites interrupted the funeral of a man being added to Elisha's grave. This man, "Mr. Anonymous," came to life when his body contacted Elisha's bones. This foreshadows strange events to come. This sequence is similar to the curious events after Jesus' crucifixion; the earthquake, tombs opening, the rending of the veil into the holy of holies, and the rising of dead saints (who died again, unlike Jesus). There are three applications of true prophecy: present time, near future and long off future. For the present regarding the northern tribes--Elisha really was God's man who followed Elijah. Both were taken to heaven to be with God. In the near future, 150 years later during the exile, the people of Judah were warned to be true to the covenant of God. If they weren't only a remnant would survive, like Mr. Anonymous. In the far off future, death would be defeated during Jesus' crucifixion, demonstrated by the coming to life of the saints. Death's dominion was broken. Believers will be in heaven with Elijah, Elisha and Jesus as part of God's covenant with His people.
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2 Kings 13:10–21 (Listen)
10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years. 11 He also did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin, but he walked in them. 12 Now the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did, and the might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 13 So Joash slept with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
14 Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, Joash king of Israel went down to him and wept before him, crying, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” 15 And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow,” and he drew it. And Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands. 17 And he said, “Open the window eastward,” and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. And he said, “The LORD’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Syria! For you shall fight the Syrians in Aphek until you have made an end of them.” 18 And he said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them.” And he struck three times and stopped. 19 Then the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Syria only three times.”
20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. 21 And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.
(ESV)
Matthew 27:45–54 (Listen)
45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. 54 When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
(ESV)