“Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against him; and Hoshea became his vassal, and paid him tribute money.” ~ II Kings 17:3
REFERENCE
Our text chronicles a brief account of the life of King Hoshea of Israel. He reigned for nine years, but the bible shows that he did evil in the sight of God. At some point, Shalmaneser, the Assyrian king, used his military might to make Hoshea his vassal (an enslaved person with charge over a jurisdiction on behalf of a master/lord). Hoshea endured it for a while but later sought help.
Hoshea went behind his lord, Shalmaneser, to send emissaries to So, the king of Egypt, to form an alliance (or a conspiracy) with him to break the Assyrian siege. He stopped paying the tribute money he had to pay Shalmaneser as his vassal. This audacity of Hoshea must have surprised Shalmaneser, so upon inquiry, he found out that Hoshea went behind him to broker a deal with Egypt and perhaps diverted funds there.
Hoshea failed to see that he was only changing masters; he switched his submission to Shalmaneser to So, king of Egypt. Wherever he turned, he would still be a vassal and still pay tribute money. The only thing is that the Israeli flag and currency would no longer bear the color or insignia of the Assyrians but of the Egyptians; however, Israel would still be subjugated, a colony of the Assyrian kingdom.
Hoshea and all of Israel could have humbled themselves and appealed to God for help instead of seeking help from Egypt against Assyria. All it would have cost them was to acknowledge their sins, repent, and ask God to intervene; that simple. However, they chose their masters – Assyria and then Egypt. Hoshea’s decision cost him bitterly. Shalmaneser besieged Israel for three years, plundered her, carried her people away as captives, and locked Hoshea in prison.
Choose your master today because whomever you choose to give allegiance to will lord it over you. Choose God to be Lord and Master over your life and all that concerns you. Only in God can we find help and salvation at no price or cost. Make Him master your life, health, marriage, finance, children, and career. Renounce every other master to whom/which you look for a life of meaning and support. Trust God; He is a good Master, ‘Daddy wey dey pamper.’
PHOTO QUOTE
Additional texts:
Psalm 146:1-10 and Isaiah 26:13
PRAYERS:
+ Lord, I stop running away from You and seeking help from every quarter. I give up and run to You.
+ I break free from every master I have given authority over my life, knowingly or unknowingly.
+ Father, I give You control of my life. Be my reward system. Do what colleagues can never do, in Jesus’ name.
