This week we read about the lives of six kings and one queen of Judah. In many ways the events recorded read like a novel with intrigue, betrayal and murder.
Once again, we see kings begin their reign in obedience to God and end their reign in rebellion. There is a persistent theme linking WHO the king sought advice from and his success. We will look at each chapter for an overview.
Chapter 22:
Jehoram’s youngest son, Ahaziah, becomes King of Judah at the age of 22 years old. He reigns one year. His mother, Athaliah, encourages him to do wrong and he also seeks the advice of King Ahab’s family. They lead him to ruin. King Ahaziah joins forces with King Joram of Israel in a battle against Ramoth-gilead. King Joram is injured in battle. King Ahaziah travels to visit King Joram and is killed during the visit by Jehu. We read in vs. 7 that Jehu is appointed by the Lord to destroy Ahab’s dynasty. Jehu also kills Ahaziah with some of the officials and relatives traveling with him.
Athaliah, King Ahaziah’s mother, learns he has been killed. She proceeds to kill the remainder of the royal family and set herself up as queen. Ahaziah’s sister hides his infant son, Joash. Joash remains hidden in the temple for 6 years while Athaliah rules.
Chapter 23
In the 7th year of Ahaliah’s reign, Jehoiada the priest summons five army commanders. The five commanders secretly travel throughout Judah to summon the Levites and clan leaders to Jerusalem. They make a solemn pact with Joash who is now 7 years old. In an intricately established plan to protect the king, these men anoint Joash and proclaim him king. Ahaliah hears the celebration and runs to the temple shouting “treason!” She is taken outside the temple and killed. The chapter ends with a telling statement of her reign “So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was peaceful because Athaliah had been killed” (v. 21).
Chapter 24
This chapter focuses on the reign of Joash. “Joash did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest” (vs. 2). Once again, we witness the importance of godly advisors. Joash rebuilds and restores the temple. Burnt offerings are sacrificed in the temple throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest. Jehoiada lives a long life and passes away at the age of 130. After his death, however, Joash is persuaded to listen to the advice of Judah’s leaders. The king who did “what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight” forsakes worshiping God and sets up worship to Asherah poles and idols. God sends prophets to warn Joash and the nation of Judah, all of whom are ignored. Finally, God sends Zechariah, Jehoiada’s son, to warn Joash.
Joash has him murdered. Considering the influence Jehoiada had on Joash’s life, we can only assume that Joash knew Zechariah, his son, well. They may have even grown up together. Verse 22 states “That was how King Joash repaid Jehoiada for his loyalty—by killing his son.” Zechariah’s last words were, “May the Lord see what they are doing and avenge my death” (vs. 22). This is precisely what happens. The Aramean army attacks Judah. King Joash is severely wounded. Joash is murdered in his bed by his officials. They kill him for the murder of Zechariah.
Chapter 25
Amaziah, Joash’s son, becomes king of Israel at the age of 25. He reins in Jerusalem for 29 years. We are told he did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, but not wholeheartedly.
Amaziah works to increase Judah’s military. After a battle with the Edomites, Amaziah brings back the Edomites’ idols and begins worshiping them. Once again God sends a prophet to warn the king. The king completely ignores the prophet’s warning and threatens to kill him. The prophet leaves, forewarning Amaziah that God is determined to destroy him for worshiping idols and ignoring the counsel of the prophet. As forewarned, Israel invades Judah, and Amaziah and his grandson are captured. He is brought back to Jerusalem to witness the demolition of 600 feet of Jerusalem’s wall, and articles being taken from the temple. As predicted, Amaziah is later killed by his enemies.
Chapter 26
In chapter 26, Uzziah, King Amaziah’s sixteen-year-old son, is crowned king. Uzziah reigns for 52 years. We are told that he did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight. We are given a clue that this is not always the case in verse 3. “And as long as the king sought guidance from the Lord, God gave him success.” Once again, the advice the King seeks is a determining factor in his reign. Uzziah is given great military success. He also improves the lives of his people through improvements in agriculture and digging more cisterns for water.
Verse sixteen chronicles a distinct change in Uzziah spiritual health. “But when he had become powerful, he also became proud, which led to his downfall.” Uzziah enters the sanctuary of the Lord’s temple to burn incense on the incense altar. This is an act only the priests may perform. Azariah, the high priest, runs after him with eighty other priests to stop him. Uzziah becomes furious. He immediately breaks out with leprosy. The king who had been so blessed during his reign spends the remainder of his years in isolation. He is a leper until the day he dies.
Chapter 27
We concluded this week’s reading with a brief look into the reign of King Jotam, Uzziah’s son. He becomes king at the age of twenty-five and reigns for sixteen years. He does what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight. Jotam follows the example of his father’s reign prior to entering the Lord’s temple. Jotam rebuilds towns and fortresses, works on the temple and is given victory in battle. In this very short chapter, we are told “King Jotham became powerful because he was careful to live in obedience to the Lord his God” (v. 6). Jotham dies of natural causes.
There is a lot to digest in these six chapters. The importance of godly counsel is a consistent theme. WHO a king sought for counsel directly affected his reign. Many of the kings in this week’s reading had the course of their reign changed simply by who they listened to. A thought to ponder in our own lives as we leave this week’s readings.
