Ralph Waldo Emerson first brought it into western culture by paraphrase, “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” The idea that children will not stray far from what they see in their own parent's behavior. Sure, I’ve seen some people stray pretty far from the tree, but the fruit is still an apple and as people age and wise up, indeed the apple will taste as the others from the same tree.
As we come to chapter 15 of 2 Kings today, we hit the jackpot of kings. Seven different kings discussed in one short chapter. If you thought the names and titles were confusing in prior chapters, just behold chapter 15. But what you might have already noticed in the book of Kings and throughout the entirety of God’s Word, is the importance of parents. And folks, if it’s in God’s Word, He sees it as important and we should too. As we look at the 7 different kings today, you’ll notice they all fit the same pattern of the rest of the kings that have ruled Israel prior. That pattern being, every single king has at least one parent named; some both. Every single king’s rule has a parent associated with it. Whether they were good or evil, we will see a parental figure noted with their rule. And just why do you think God did that?
I remember many moons ago bellying up in front of our 25” tube television for Little House on the Prairie. Yes, there was a time when every TV was not 70”. The bulk of the show was spent on the lives of the Ingalls but when the storyline expanded to include the Olsen’s, my stomach would turn. Little Willie and Nellie Olsen really took the cake. They were always conniving, lying, seeking to serve only themselves and well, just generally causing trouble and discord wherever they went. There was only one character that was worse. Their mom, Harriet. You see, in a made for TV life lesson, I learned that the apple does not fall far from the tree. Harriet was the town gossip, the town instigator and the self-proclaimed town police of what she perceived as right and wrong. And her children simply looked to her for how they should model their behavior. And if there is one guarantee in life, no matter how the kid looks, acts or responds to their parents, they are watching mom and dad closer than you can ever imagine.
Seven kings, seven sets of parents, seven different life paths and seven different reigns. But one constant, the influence their parents had upon them rippled out into this world and made it onto the pages of God’s Word.
King Azariah – His father was Amaziah and his mother was Jeconiah. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord according to all that his father had done. He rules for 52 years. (2 Kings 15:1-3)
King Zechariah – His father was Jeroboam, and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord as his fathers had done. He ruled for 6 months. (2 Kings 15:8-10)
King Shallum – His father was Jabesh and he continued the evil of his fathers. He reigned for only one month before being assassinated. (2 Kings 15:13)
King Menahem – His father was Gadi and he did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He reigned for 10 years. (2 Kings 15:17-18)
King Pekahiah – His father was Menahem and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord as his fathers had done before him. He reigned 2 years. (2 Kings 15:23-24)
King Pekah – His father was Remaliah and He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not depart from the sins of his fathers. He reigned 20 years. (2 Kings 15:27-28)
King Jotham – His father was Uzziah and his mother was Jerusha. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord according to all that his father Uzziah had done. He reigned 16 years. (2 Kings 15:32-34)
The beauty of God’s Word is that the longer you invest, the more God rewards. Do you see the glaring pattern that emerges here that you would have missed if you simply sped read through the chapter and dismissed it as a bunch of old guys with crowns? Do you see that out of 7 kings only two were righteous and they are the only two where God gives us the names of their mothers as well as their fathers? Very, very interesting.
Life is not always perfectly cut and dry but if you admit it, most of the times it is. Bad father, bad kid. Bad mother, bad kid. Bad mother and father, really bad kid. Truth is woven within God’s Word like a fine wool blanket, a quick glance reveals a bold pattern, but a closer study reveals the fine colored threads that make it whole. The truth is, the actions, beliefs, and behaviors of the parents determine the actions, beliefs, and behaviors of the young man or woman that they rear. Sad to say but more times that not, if you see a little Nellie or Willie running around, there’s a Harriet not too far away.
Parents, in order to develop good men and women, you need to train them in the ways of God, for that is the foundation of true wisdom, joy and abundant life. Kids, you need to listen to your parents, for God has entrusted your development to them. How can they do what God has commanded them if you won’t listen and obey? Parenting is a two-way street, and with God as the center white line, the process can be blessed, loving, and always bring both the parents and the children closer to the power and love of Jesus Christ.
Margie and I arrived safely back into the U.S. last night, we are staying with my parents whom I am blessed to say, trained me up in the way I should go. Thank you Mom and Dad.
“Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
“Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.” Proverbs 1:8-9
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