The verse, “Thou God seest me” (Gen 16:13, KJV) is the bane of the sinner and the boon of the saint.
You’ve heard the phrase, “two peas in a pod”? Well, here they are—Pekahiah and Pekah, the next two kings of Israel. You can see that the second name is the root of the first. The only difference is the addition of the suffix -iah, a form of Jah, the shorter version of Jehovah. But what does pekah mean? If you think “peek” you wouldn’t be far wrong. Here is the definition: “a primitive root; to open (particularly the senses, especially the eyes); figuratively, to be observant.” The short biographies of these two men are also similar. Concerning Pekahiah we read, “he did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin” (2 Ki 15:24). And Pekah? “He did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin” (v 28). My version of an old song goes, “Second stanza, same as the first; A little bit longer, a little bit worse.” Longer? Yes, Pekahiah “reigned two years” (v 23) and Pekah “reigned twenty years” (v 27). And worse? Yes, Pekahiah was the son of an assassin; Pekah was an assassin himself, who “conspired against [Pekahiah] and killed him in Samaria, in the citadel of the king’s house, along with Argob and Arieh; and with him were fifty men of Gilead” (v 25). Then, to complete the circle, “Hoshea the son of Elah led a conspiracy against Pekah…and struck and killed him” (v 30). But back to their names for a moment. Jehovah is observant; He always keeps His eyes open. “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good” (Prov 15:3). But we shouldn’t neglect to “be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion” (1 Pet 5:8). Watch out, Christian! There’s danger afoot!