1 KINGS 16
Whenever the kings or priests led the people into sin, God sent faithful prophets to warn them and to call them back to the true worship of Jehovah. Jehu was such a prophet; he was not afraid to give God’s message of judgment to evil King Baasha. Are we today willing to take our stand against evil, or do we just drift with the crowd?
Baasha had imitated Jeroboam’s sins, so he would suffer Jeroboam’s judgment (1 Kings 14:7–11). God used Zimri to fulfill His word against Baasha. If we do not heed what God says, we must suffer His judgment.
Zimri’s reign was brief. Rather than fall into the hands of Omri and his faction, Zimri committed suicide. Omri, too, chose to disobey God and “did worse than all who were before him” (v. 25). And one of the worst things he did was to leave his son Ahab to reign over Israel.
Ahab married a heathen princess, worshiped a heathen god, and provoked the Lord greatly. He made Baal worship a popular religion in Israel. Baal was the Canaanite storm god, and his worship was attractive to a nation that depended so much on rain. Besides, the rituals involved temple prostitute, and that appealed to the baser appetites of the people.