Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 1
The palace in Samaria was a new, impressive and extremely wealthy building. It had good defences against attacks by enemies. It should have been a place of safety and comfort for the new king of northern and central Israel. However, even here there were dangers for Ahaziah, the new king.
Soon after Ahaziah became king, he fell from an upstairs room. He did not die at once but he suffered a severe injury. It became clear to him that his life was in danger.
Ahaziah decided to inquire of the false god Baal-Zebub. Perhaps he chose that god because he had an open cut. A deep cut in the skin attracts flies, which will lay their eggs in it. The name Baal-Zebub means the ruler of the flies.
Of course, Ahaziah did not merely want to know whether he would recover. He also wanted to know how he could recover. He was willing to pay well for a cure. He believed that the priests of Baal-Zebub could cure him by means of powerful magic.
The priests of Baal-Zebub served their god at the town called Ekron in Philistia. It was about 40 miles (65 kilometres) from Samaria. The people in Philistia had long considered disgusting objects to be powerful in religion (1 Samuel 6:4-5). So, it did not seem strange to them that the god of Ekron was called the ruler of the flies.
Next part: Elijah's message from God to Ahaziah (2 Kings 1:3-4)
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