Oded rescues captured women and children

Oded 1
King Ahaz (735-715 AD) became King of Judah at the age of 20. He turned his back on God to worship Baal and other false gods instead. Others in the nation followed his wicked example.
Oded 4
In one day of fighting, the armies of Israel and Aram killed 120,000 of Judah’s troops.
Oded 5
Zichri, a great warrior from the tribe of Ephraim, is mentioned as killing Maaseiah, the son of King Ahaz, along with the King’s administrator, Azrikam and the King’s second in command, Elkanah.

Oded 6
King Ahaz survived the battle, but a large number of people were captured and deported back to Damascus in the land of Aram.
Oded 7
However, the armies from Israel also captured 200,000 Judean women and children and tremendous amounts of booty.
Oded 8
It did not matter that the women and children prisoners were fellow Jews. The army of Israel planned to take them back to Samaria in Israel to sell them as slaves. They also intended to steal their animals and treasures.

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Although this tribe has sent soldiers to fight, when the tribal leaders saw the women and children taken as prisoners, they knew this could not be the right thing to do.
Oded 13
In the town of Samaria there was a prophet of God called Oded. God had a message for him to deliver to the triumphant troops. He bravely went out to meet the returning army.
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‘Look’ he exclaimed. ‘The Lord God was angry with Judah and let you capture them, but you have butchered them without mercy, and all heaven is disturbed.

Oded 15
‘Are you going to make slaves of these people from Judah and Jerusalem? What about your own sins against the Lord your God? Return these fellow Jews to their homes, for the Lord is angry with you.’
Oded 16
Some of the top leaders of Ephraim spoke out and supported Oded. These men were Azariah, Berechiah, Jehizkiah, and Amasa.
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‘You must not bring the captives here!’ they declared. ‘If you do, the Lord will be angry, and this sin will be added to our many others. We are in enough trouble with God as it is.’

Oded 18
Amazingly, the army officers turned over the captives and booty to the tribe leaders to decide what to do. The four men immediately distributed captured stores of food and drink to the women and children
Oded 19
They gave clothing and shoes to the prisoners who needed it.

Oded 20
Then they put the elderly and sick on donkeys and led the prisoners back to Judah with an armed escort.
Oded 22
And so, because the prophet Oded bravely gave God’s message, and the leaders of Ephraim supported him, over 200,000 women and children were rescued from slavery and set free.


Oded rescues captured women and children
The prophet Oded warns against the capture of women and children prisoners.
2 Chronicles 28:1-14