2 Kings 13:22-23

Now Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.  

(A little background for our verses today.  Israel was ruled by kings starting with King Saul in 1 Samuel 10.  As we learned a few days ago, God was not pleased with Saul and anointed David as king instead.  David's son, Solomon, inherited the kingdom after David's death; then after Solomon's death, his son, Rehoboam took the throne.  Under Rehoboam's corrupt leadership [which is full of much drama, as royal dynasties often are...], the nation of Israel splits in to two kingdoms.  Israel to the north, and Judah to the south.  So from then on, Israel refers to the northern kingdom with its own king; and Judah is the southern kingdom with its own king. We can't begin to cover all of the twists and turns that lead us to this place, but hopefully this will help us understand context a little better.) 

We did a study on 1 Kings a couple of years ago, and we were all weary of reading "So and so was king, and they did evil in the sight of the LORD."  2 Kings isn't much better.  Just for reference, here is a list of good and bad kings, both of Israel and Judah.  

The kingdom of Israel has been under the oppression of Syria for years. Israel and Judah both face oppression, captivity, and exile at different times, a result of their unwillingness to stay faithful to God.  

One of my favorite lines from any movie is from "The Count of Monte Cristo".  Edmond, in a crisis of faith, tells Priest--"I don't believe in God."  To which Priest replies, "It doesn't matter.  He believes in you."  We see something like this time and time again, in Israel, in Judah, and in our own lives.   God is gracious and compassionate.  He turns toward us; He doesn't destroy us; He doesn't cast us from His presence.  But it's not because He believes in us; we, like Israel and Judah, will continually let Him down.  The quote would better fit by saying it this way..."I don't believe in God."  "It doesn't matter, He believes in Himself."  Only  the steadfast, single-minded, stubborn, unwavering love and commitment of God to His Promise can hold us together.