BibleProject | One Story That Leads to JesusSample

A new king takes the throne and sends the nation into a moral nosedive. To put it mildly, Ahaz creates a hellscape.

He fills the land of Judah with statues of Ba’al. He boards up Yahweh’s temple and tears its furniture to pieces. He burns incense to foreign gods. He even sets up altars in the Valley of Ben Hinnom (on the southeast side of Jerusalem) and there sacrifices his own children as burnt offerings to idols!

Idolatry? Child sacrifice? This valley is hell on earth—literally. Today’s video explains how the Valley of Ben Hinnom became known as the valley of gehenna, often translated as “hell.”

After this atrocity, this valley is rendered cursed land. By the time of Jesus, it’s worthless space used for throwing trash. It's always on fire to keep the trash pile controlled. An ever-burning trash heap just outside Jerusalem’s city walls.

The monstrous disobedience of Ahaz contrasts starkly against the wholehearted faithfulness of his son, Hezekiah. We already had a positive impression of Hezekiah from the books of Kings and Isaiah. They highlighted Hezekiah’s trust in Yahweh. Chronicles celebrates Hezekiah’s care for the temple.

As soon as Hezekiah takes the throne, he reopens the temple doors and sends in a team of Levites to clean up the spiritual mess. It takes two weeks to scrub the stench of Ahaz’s idolatry off the walls and furniture. Once Yahweh’s sacred space sparkles again, Hezekiah throws a massive worship party to celebrate—sacrifices, music, the whole bit.

Things keep going uphill from there. A Passover celebration where both northern and southern kingdoms unite for a nationwide idol-smashing campaign. A tithe so generous that the leftovers pile up in heaps beside the temple. Extravagant blessings leap off the page. Is Hezekiah poised to turn this nation around?

Reflection Questions

• Reread Jeremiah 7:30-34. What does Yahweh warn will happen in the Valley of Ben Hinnom when divine judgment comes for Jerusalem? How might the history of this valley inform your understanding of gehenna and God’s justice?
• Compare Hezekiah’s temple rededication parties (2 Chron. 30:23-27) to the original temple dedication parties under Solomon (2 Chron. 7:1-10). What parallels do you notice? What might the chronicler be communicating about Hezekiah’s reign through these hyperlinks?