In today's section we read about:
Joash's reign, his faithfulness while Jehoiada was alive and his subsequent disobedience
Amaziah, Uzziah and Jotham are kings
Ahaz turns Judah against God
Hezekiah's reign and his whole-hearted commitment to God
Manasseh's evil, and then his repentance, succeeded by his son, Amon
Josiah's reign, the rediscovery of the law and people turn to God
Some thoughts that struck me:
Jehoiada is a real hero, and he even lived until he was 130! He was so venerated that he was buried among the kings - something that did not happen to some of the evil kings. The people rejoiced because of the covenant they made with God, and it is interesting that this is set next to the fact that Athaliah had been killed.
Joash loses the plot after Jehoiada's death, even killing his son, who dares rebuke him. As it says in 24:22 "That was how King Joash repaid Jehoiada for his loyalty—by killing his son."
The dialogue in 25:7-10 is so true! We worry about what we have to give up if we follow God, but need to reminded that God is able to give us so much more than we ever give up.
How stupid was Amaziah! (25:14) 'This made the Lord very angry, and he sent a prophet to ask, “Why do you turn to gods who could not even save their own people from you?”' There are also a couple of pointed references - "refused to accept my counsel" (v16), "refused to listen" (v20).
Uzziah too starts believing that his success is due to him and not to God (26:16), and the punishment he suffered is terrible - leprosy. His son, Jotham seems to have learnt this lesson (27:6)
It was during the reign of Ahaz that Israel was defeated and exiled by the Assyrians.
Ahaz didn't just worship idols, but he locked the temple and stopped others from worshipping God.
I like the way that 29:3 says that it was in the very first month that Hezekiah reopened the doors of the temple and repaired them. Hezekiah was completely committed to restoring the worship of God, and even sent messengers out throughout the length and breath of both kingdoms, even though the northern one was now full of peoples exiled from elsewhere. This probably explains why most people laughed at them. But some people from three of the tribes humbled themselves and went up for the Passover.
30:12 is great - "At the same time, God’s hand was on the people in the land of Judah, giving them all one heart to obey the orders of the king and his officials, who were following the word of the Lord." They were having such a good time, that they celebrated Passover for twice as long as normal. It's interesting that the priests were less clued up than the ordinary Levites.
31:21 bangs home the message again "In all that he did in the service of the Temple of God and in his efforts to follow God’s laws and commands, Hezekiah sought his God wholeheartedly. As a result, he was very successful."
32:25 is a timely warning - Hezekiah didn't respond appropriately to the kindness God had shown him. But in the end, he did humble himself and repent.
There is a whole litany of Manasseh's sins and detestable practices at the beginning of ch 33, which led to him being taken away as a prisoner with a ring in his nose. And yet, he humbled himself and sought God. It reminds me of Ahab, who was probably Israel's worst king, and now the same is true for Manasseh's, Judah's worst king. God hears the prayers of even the worst. I like 33:13 "Then Manasseh finally realized that the Lord alone is God!" -shame it had taken so long and such degradation to bring him to that point.
Josiah is inspiring in the way he wholeheartedly commits himself to God and makes every effort to ensure that everyone else does. "The king took his place of authority beside the pillar and renewed the covenant in the Lord’s presence. He pledged to obey the Lord by keeping all his commands, laws, and decrees with all his heart and soul. He promised to obey all the terms of the covenant that were written in the scroll. And he required everyone in Jerusalem and the people of Benjamin to make a similar pledge. The people of Jerusalem did so, renewing their covenant with God, the God of their ancestors." (34:31-32)
No comments:
Post a Comment