2 Kings 16-25

<p><span data-contrast="auto">Causing children to pass through the fire is a euphemism for human sacrifice, probably the worst sin in the Bible&mdash;any nation that practiced human sacrifice was abhorred by the writers of the Bible. The summary of all the sins &ldquo;[the Israelites] sold themselves to do evil&rdquo; is particularly poignant. Whenever we sin, we are selling ourselves as slaves to that sin. When the Israelites sold themselves, the ultimate price was literal slavery to the Assyrians. But core to the gospel message is that Christ redeems us from sin, paying the price to free us.</span><span data-ccp-props="{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}">&nbsp;</span></p> <p><span data-ccp-props="{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}"><span id="page3R_mcid75" class="markedContent"><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Author:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid76" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Ryan Combs</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid77" class="markedContent"></span><span id="page3R_mcid78" class="markedContent"><br role="presentation" /><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">General Editor:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid79" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Taylor Halverson</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid80" class="markedContent"></span><span id="page3R_mcid81" class="markedContent"><br role="presentation" /><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Associate Editor:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid82" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Morgan Tanner</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid83" class="markedContent"></span><span id="page3R_mcid84" class="markedContent"><br role="presentation" /><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Senior Editor:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid85" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Sarah Whitney Johnson</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid86" class="markedContent"></span><span id="page3R_mcid87" class="markedContent"><br role="presentation" /><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Assistant Editor:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid88" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Verlanne Johnson</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid89" class="markedContent"></span><span id="page3R_mcid90" class="markedContent"><br role="presentation" /><span dir="ltr" role="presentation">ScripturePlus Design:</span></span><span id="page3R_mcid91" class="markedContent"> <span dir="ltr" role="presentation">Jasmin Gimenez Rappleye</span></span></span></p>