2 Reis 1

ARC · Chapter 1/25

1E depois da morte de Achab, Moab se rebellou contra Israel.

2E caiu Achazias pelas grades d'um quarto alto, que tinha em Samaria, e adoeceu: e enviou mensageiros, e disse-lhes: Ide, e perguntae a Baal-zebub, deus de Ekron, se sararei d'esta doença.

3Mas o anjo do Senhor disse a Elias tesbita: Levanta-te, sobe para encontrar-te com os mensageiros do rei de Samaria: e dize-lhes: Porventura não ha Deus em Israel, que vades consultar a Baal-zebub, deus de Ekron?

4E por isso assim diz o Senhor; Da cama, a que subiste, não descerás, mas sem falta morrerás. Então Elias partiu.

5E os mensageiros voltaram para elle; e elle lhes disse: Que ha, que voltastes?

6E elles lhe disseram: Um homem nos saiu ao encontro, e nos disse: Ide, voltae para o rei que vos mandou, e dizei-lhe: Assim diz o Senhor: Porventura não ha Deus em Israel, para que mandes consultar a Baal-zebub, deus de Ekron? Portanto da cama, a que subiste, não descerás, mas sem falta morrerás.

7E elle lhes disse: Qual era o trajo do homem que vos veiu ao encontro e vos fallou estas palavras?

8E elles lhe disseram: Um homem era vestido de pellos, e com os lombos cingidos d'um cinto de coiro. Então disse elle: É Elias, o tesbita.

9Então lhe enviou um capitão de cincoenta: e, subindo a elle, (porque eis que estava assentado no cume do monte), disse-lhe: Homem de Deus, o rei diz: Desce.

10Mas Elias respondeu, e disse ao capitão de cincoenta: Se eu pois sou homem de Deus, desça fogo do céu, e te consuma a ti e aos teus cincoenta. Então fogo desceu do céu, e o consumiu a elle e aos seus cincoenta.

11E tornou a enviar-lhe outro capitão de cincoenta, com os seus cincoenta; este lhe fallou, e disse: Homem de Deus, assim diz o rei: Desce depressa.

12E respondeu Elias, e disse-lhe: Se eu sou homem de Deus, desça fogo do céu, e te consuma a ti e aos teus cincoenta. Então fogo de Deus desceu do céu, e o consumiu a elle e aos seus cincoenta.

13E tornou a enviar outro capitão dos terceiros cincoenta, com os seus cincoenta: então subiu o capitão de cincoenta, e veiu, e poz-se de joelhos diante de Elias, e supplicou-lhe, e disse-lhe: Homem de Deus, seja, peço-te, preciosa aos teus olhos a minha vida, e a vida d'estes cincoenta teus servos.

14Eis que fogo desceu do céu, e consumiu aquelles dois primeiros capitães de cincoenta, com os seus cincoenta: porém agora seja preciosa aos teus olhos a minha vida.

15Então o anjo do Senhor disse a Elias: Desce com este, não temas. E levantou-se, e desceu com elle ao rei.

16E disse-lhe: Assim diz o Senhor: Porque enviaste mensageiros a consultar a Baal-zebub, deus d'Ekron? Porventura é porque não ha Deus em Israel, para consultar a sua palavra? portanto d'esta cama, a que subiste, não descerás, mas certamente morrerás.

17Assim pois morreu, conforme á palavra do Senhor, que Elias fallara; e Jorão começou a reinar no seu logar no anno segundo de Jehorão, filho de Josaphat rei de Judah: porquanto não tinha filho.

18O mais dos feitos de Achazias, que tinha feito, porventura não está escripto no livro das chronicas dos reis de Israel?

📖 Chapter study

Summary

King Ahaziah of Israel falls and is injured, and sends messengers to consult the Philistine god Baal-Zebub about his recovery. Elijah intercepts the messengers with a prophecy of death, and then consumes with fire from heaven two companies of fifty soldiers sent to arrest him, sparing only the third captain who humbles himself.

Explanation

This chapter shows the continuity of Elijah's prophetic authority even under a new king, and the seriousness of seeking spiritual guidance from foreign gods when the God of Israel was available. The act of consuming the soldiers with fire, though shocking, demonstrates that mocking or trying to forcibly capture a genuine messenger of God had serious consequences in that specific prophetic context. The third captain, by humbling himself instead of arrogantly making demands, is spared — showing that the posture of the heart matters even in situations of direct confrontation with the supernatural.

Fun facts

  • Baal-Zebub, 'lord of the flies,' was a Philistine god of Ekron associated with healing and divination; later, this name would be distorted and used in the New Testament as a synonym for the prince of demons ('Beelzebub').
  • Jesus, in Luke 9:54-55, explicitly rebukes his disciples for wanting to repeat this act of Elijah (calling down fire from heaven on Samaritans), showing a clear shift in approach between the prophetic era of the Old Testament and Jesus' ministry of grace.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. 2 Reis 1:1This line connects directly to the end of 1 Kings: as soon as King Ahab of Israel (northern kingdom) dies, Moab takes advantage of the change in power to rebel. The war from this rebellion is only told later, in chapter 3.
  2. 2 Reis 1:2Baal-zebub, “lord of the flies,” was the local god of Ekron, a Philistine city. The name was probably a mocking distortion the Israelites themselves made of the god's original name, a way of ridiculing the rival cult.
  3. 2 Reis 1:3Before the messengers reach Ekron, an angel intercepts Elijah and tells him to cut across their path. The question he must ask is the whole point: why does the king of Israel (north) turn to a foreign god?
  4. 2 Reis 1:4Elijah delivers the sentence: the king will not rise from that bed, he will die for having consulted Baal-zebub instead of the Lord. He disappears right after speaking, without identifying himself.
  5. 2 Reis 1:5The messengers come back to the palace too quickly, and the king is puzzled — he doesn't yet know they ran into a prophet along the way.
  6. 2 Reis 1:6The messengers repeat to the king the same death sentence the mysterious man gave them, still without knowing who that man was.
  7. 2 Reis 1:7King Ahaziah asks what the man who intercepted them looked like, trying to identify who dared send this message against him.
  8. 2 Reis 1:8The hairy garment and leather belt are enough for the king to recognize him: it could only be Elijah the Tishbite, with his well-known look of a desert prophet.
  9. 2 Reis 1:9The captains treat Elijah as far more than a mere messenger, calling him a man of God even knowing he might call down fire on them. The scene shows the prophet defending his authority against a king trying to seize him by force.
  10. 2 Reis 1:10Elijah doesn't use force of his own — he asks for fire to come down from heaven, and God answers by consuming the captain and his fifty men. It is the proof that he really is a man of God.
  11. 2 Reis 1:11The king sends a second captain with the same tone of arrogant urgency, repeating the order to come down quickly.
  12. 2 Reis 1:12The result repeats itself: fire from heaven consumes the second captain and his fifty soldiers, just like the first group.
  13. 2 Reis 1:13The third captain changes strategy: instead of giving orders, he kneels and begs for his own life and his men's, citing the horrible fate of the two previous groups.
  14. 2 Reis 1:14It's this humility from the third captain, so different from the arrogance of the first two, that finally spares someone from the fire of heaven.
  15. 2 Reis 1:15The angel assures Elijah that this time he can go down without fear — the third captain doesn't pose the same threat as the first two.
  16. 2 Reis 1:16Elijah repeats face to face with the king the same sentence he had already given the messengers: for consulting a foreign god, he will not rise from that bed.
  17. 2 Reis 1:17With no direct heir, the throne of Israel passes to Ahaziah's brother. The text also starts cross-referencing the dates of the kings of Israel with those of Judah, a synchronizing system that will appear throughout the whole book.
  18. 2 Reis 1:18The closing formula points to a historical source that hasn't survived to this day, the chronicles of the kings of Israel (northern kingdom), repeated to close out the reign of each king in the book.

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