#126: The Return of the Syrian

Published by Ben Stahl on November 23, 2020November 23, 2020

Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, “My camp will be in such and such a place.

II Kings 6:8

In some periods of history, the most famous individuals are not necessarily the longest living individuals. No history of World War I is considered complete without an account of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria who was assassinated to initiate the War. One of the most famous individuals of the Old Testament was Elijah. He came on to the historical scene in I Kings 17:13 and just eight chapters later he was taken up into Heaven.

By II Kings 6, Ahab and Jehoshaphat, Jezebel and the Prophets of Baal, Obadiah and Naaman, the Widow of Zarephath and the Shunammite’s son have all come and gone from the pages of Scripture. Just one unlikely figure continued through it all: Ben-Hadad, King of Syria. [1]

Ben-Hadad predates all of the men and women we have met in our studies beginning with Elijah’s call in I Kings 17. He first appeared in I Kings 15:18 during the reign of Jehoshaphat’s father, King Asa. Since that time he fought against Judah and Israel with massive defeats and great victories (especially against Israel). Perhaps more than any person besides Elijah and Elisha, Ben-Hadad bore witness to the tremendous power and might of the Lord God of Israel. And with all this, Ben-Hadad never ceased warring against Israel.

Even though his general (Naaman) came to faith, the Bible does not tell us that Ben-Hadad ever came to faith in the Lord God of Israel. Quite the opposite Ben-Hadad is set up through I and II Kings as a picture of the world seeking to destroy the Christian and the Church. Every time he was defeated in battle, he came back on the attack (I Kings 20:26). If he could not mount a full scale invasion he would send out raiders (II Kings 5:2). Whether in victory or defeat, he was always looking for a new point for breakthrough against Israel as we find him doing again in II Kings 6:8.

The account of Elisha, Dothan, and the army of Syria that begins in this verse is to Elisha like Mt. Carmel was to Elijah. Mt. Carmel was the high point of Elijah’s public ministry and Dothan is the high point of Elisha’s public ministry. As the historical narrative unfolds we are presented with King Ben-Hadad once again plotting the next place to capture en route toward invasion of all Israel.

We must always be on guard against the attacks of the world, the flesh, and devil for they will not cease this side of eternity. We may temporarily defeat the temptations that the world throws upon us but as soon as we defeat the world in one place it seems to come at us again from another place. Over and over again the world’s flood of sin and temptation seeks to overwhelm us. We must be on guard against it for the world was warring against God’s people before our time and it will be warring against the Christian and the church after we are gone.

As Ben-Hadad probed for a strategic victory against Israel so the spiritual forces of the enemy are always probing for a strategic attack on the Christian and Christ’s church! Watch and pray. Jesus Christ is still more powerful than they.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

I John 2:15-17

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[1] Some historians believe that the Beh-Hadad of King Asa’s reign (I Kings 15) was the father of the Ben-Hadad during Ahab and Jehoshaphat’s reign. If true, that would make for three Ben-Hadads in I & II Kings:

1) Ben-Hadad I (Asa time period / I Kings 15);
2) Ben-Hadad II (Ahab, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Elijah and Elisha time period);
3) Ben-Hadad III (the son of King Hazael who was also named Ben-Hadad (II Kings 13:24)). This was the same Hazael who smothered and killed Ben-Hadad in II Kings 8:15.

While it could be the case that there were three Ben-Hadads of Syria, the easiest count I think we see in Scripture is two. It would be about 40 years between Asa’s reign and Ben-Hadad’s death in II Kings 8 which is well within the possible length of a King’s reign during the period.

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