Tolerance

Read 2 Kings 8:16–10:36

23. Jehu went into the temple of Baal with Jehonadab son of Recab. Jehu said to the worshipers of Baal, “Make sure no one who worships the Lord is here—only those who worship Baal.”
24. So they were all inside the temple to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had stationed eighty of his men outside the building and had warned them, “If you let anyone escape, you will pay for it with your own life.”
25. As soon as Jehu had finished sacrificing the burnt offering, he commanded his guards and officers, “Go in and kill all of them. Don’t let a single one escape!” So they killed them all with their swords, and the guards and officers dragged their bodies outside. Then Jehu’s men . . .
26. dragged out the sacred pillar used in the worship of Baal and burned it. . . .
28. In this way, Jehu destroyed every trace of Baal worship from Israel. 2 Kings 10:23-26, 28

In 1908, Israel Zangwill, a British Jew, published The Melting Pot, a play about America that portrayed it as, well, a huge melting pot. He observed that people from all over the world go to America, rub shoulders with each other, and mix until their individual ways of life disappear. What ends up inside the vat bears no resemblance to what went in. It’s a whole new concoction—like a cake mix.

People try to do that with religion, too, melting and stirring until the result is a personal belief system that looks nothing like any of the original ingredients. This reading is about several of the kings of Israel and Judah: Jehoram, Ahaziah, Jehu, Joram, and Ahab. They have a lot in common—most notably that they become experts on cooking up new religions in the name of tolerance. Are these really God’s people? Learn from their bad examples.

The other lessons in this passage fall into two categories: when to seek peace and when to seek war.

Israel was supposed to be intolerant of any religion that did not worship the true God. The religions of surrounding nations were evil and corrupt. They were designed to destroy life, not uphold it. Israel was God’s special nation, chosen to be an example of what was right. Instead of obeying God, however, Israel’s kings, priests, and elders first tolerated and then incorporated surrounding pagan beliefs. This led to their becoming apathetic and even hostile toward God’s way (2 Kings 10:31).

Be completely intolerant of any sin—especially false religion. You should always be tolerant of people who hold differing views, but you should never tolerate or follow any belief or practice that is contrary to God’s Word. It will lead you away from God and his standards for living.