My Strong Tower - Part 2

My Strong Tower - Part 2

< Recommended Reading:
 2 Kings 9 >

Photo: Tower of David and Jerusalem Walls at Night by Adiel Lo    
 CC by SA 3.0


Did you see Part 1 of this study? If not, you might want to go back and take a look so that Part 2 makes sense.

In part one we got some insight into the use of a tower, based on what we learned of the tower at Shechem.

Let's take a look at another tower in the Bible and see if we can discover a little more of what it means when we say God is our Strong Tower.


2. Tower at Jezreel
Before we go into what took place at the tower at Jezreel, a little background might be useful to set the scene. At the end of 2 Kings 8, we find that King Joram, son of evil King Ahab had gone to Jezreel to recover from wounds suffered in battle with the Syrians.

At the beginning of chapter 9, we learn that while Joram was in Jezreel, Elisha sent a prophet to find Jehu, anoint him with oil and deliver this message:

"Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel. And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of the servants of the LORD at the hand of Jezebel." 

[Jezebel, as you may know, was the wife of Ahab.]

Imagine this young army captain's surprise.  Here he was, meeting with other military leaders, and this prophet barges in and insists on speaking with him alone.

The prophet not only pours oil over Jehu's head but basically tells him, "God says you're the king now and you have to kill everyone that's left of Ahab's family."

Jehu immediately obeyed the word of the LORD and set out to find Joram.

As Jehu approached Jezreel, he was spotted by a watchman.

"And there stood a watchman on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company."

Where was the watchman? He was at his post, high above the city, in the tower.  It was from that vantage point that he was able to see an enemy approaching and to sound the alarm.

In part 1 of this study, we learned 2 important points about a tower:

- a tower is a regarded as a safe zone.
- a tower is a place to run to when the enemy comes.

In 2 Kings 9, we find a watchman in the tower, using the tower as a means to see who and what was approaching so that he could give a warning.

Take a look at the solemn instruction God gave to Ezekiel.

"Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.

When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand." (Ezekiel 3:17-18)

So, what can we conclude about our Strong Tower?

- As long as we stay with our Strong Tower (who is obviously stronger and more able to protect than any tower made by human hands) we are safe. 

- Since we stand on our Strong Tower, we have a job to do. 

Those are just a couple of suggestions regarding what conclusions we may draw about our Strong Tower from the way in which towers were used in Bible times.

"The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." (Proverbs 18:10)

Questions
1. In what ways has God been a strong tower for you?
2. What is the job of a watchman?

Share your thoughts in the comment box below.

My Strong Tower - Part 1

Photo: Tower of David and Jerusalem Walls at Night by Adiel Lo  CC by SA 3.0

My Strong Tower - Part 1

< Recommended Reading: Judges 9 >

We talk and sing of our Strong Tower, but have you ever really thought about what that means?

Let's take a look at 2 towers mentioned in Scripture to get an better understanding.

1. Tower at Shechem
Do you remember Gideon, the guy who threw out a fleece to get an answer from the Lord? God cut his army down to just 300 men against thousands of Midianites, and then, with God's help, Gideon's little band of soldiers won the victory with the cry, "The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon!" (Judges chapter 7). Remember him?

A tower plays an important role in a story about Gideon's son, Abimelech. Abimelech did not follow in his father's footsteps (see Judges 8 & 9). In fact, he really wasn't a nice guy at all.

After Gideon died, Abimelech killed 70 members of his own family, then caused Shechem to defect from Israel and set himself up as their king.  When the Shechemites rebelled against Abimelech's rule while he was out of town, he came back and fiercely attacked them. He divided his army into 3 companies. One group stood by the gate of the city and killed anyone entering or leaving and the other 2 companies killed anyone working out in the fields outside the city walls.

The rest of the inhabitants fled to "a strong tower within the city,"  shut the door and went up to the top floor (Judges 9:51). Unfortunately for the Shechemites, Abimelech decided to burn down the doors to the tower. Those who were hiding in the tower didn't survive that day, but neither did Abimelech (read the rest of the story in Judges 9).

So, from the the incident related in Judges chapter 9 that took place at the tower in Shechem, we learn that:

- a tower is regarded as a safe zone.
- a tower is a place to run to when the enemy comes.

< Questions >
1. In what ways has God protected you from the enemy?
2. In Psalm 32:7, David sings to the Lord, "Thou art my hiding place." What does that mean to you?


Go to part 2


Photo: Tower of David and Jerusalem Walls at Night by Adiel Lo    CC by SA 3.0