Teaching Notes

TH1064: II CHRONICLES

As we move into II Chronicles chapter 24, we are moving away from a dark period for the Southern Kingdom of Judah and towards a short period of spiritual reform. Jehoshaphat's son, Jehoram was a wicked king, and because of that God brought judgment upon him in the form of some kind of deadly intestinal disease, which took his life after 8 years of his reign.

In his death his son, Ahaziah became king, and he too was evil. And he listened to the council of wicked men. He was also judged for his wickedness and only after 1 year on the throne, he was assassinated by Jehu, a military leader from the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

Now Athaliah, his mother, instead of mourning over the death of her son, kills all the royal heirs to the throne, and now, for the next 6 years, will be the king in the Southern Kingdom of Judah. But in destroying all her grandsons, she missed one. Joash was only a year old at this time and he was hidden away by Jehoshabeath, sister of Ahaziah. And both Jehoshabeath and her husband, Jehoiada, hid Joash away in the temple apartments for 6 years, and now it was time to make this child king.

As they crowned this 7 year old boy as the next king in Judah, word gets back to Athaliah on what is happening, and she cries out "Treason! Treason!" But in the end she is put to death for her actions. And Joash is now king, being trained by the high priest, Jehoiada, who was the real power behind the throne. And thus, the false worship was destroyed, and the true worship of God was brought back to the Southern Kingdom of Judah.

II CHRONICLES 24

VERSES 1-3

1. Jehoiada, who was the high priest, was truly the power behind the throne. He brought a godly influence back into the land and was influencing young Joash in the things he should do. He was a good role model for this child king. And the people of Judah were blessed by the actions of this man. It is as Solomon said in Proverbs 29:2, "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan."

VERSES 4-5

1. During her 6 years on the throne, Athaliah built a temple for Baal. She obtained many of the materials for her project by dismantling parts of the temple of God. Now Joash wants to rebuild and repair the temple of God and he sets the Levites in charge of this project. But they don't do it quickly, they are dragging their feet, moving at a snails pace. They had no heart to restore the worship of God.

2. Many leaders in the church today are doing the same thing. They have no concern for the house of God, to them, it is a job and not a calling. And if your heart is not in it, then don't get involved. Don't do it for the money, recognition or whatever. If you can't do it out of love, knowing that God has called you into the ministry, then you don't belong in that ministry. Today we see shepherds, pastors, that are nothing more than hirelings, more concerned with self and what they will make and less concerned for the sheep that God has entrusted to them.

VERSES 6-7

1. Joash lets Jehoiada have it. He can't understand why the work has not been started. Athaliah and her sons plundered the house of God, and now it is time to restore and rebuild what she destroyed.

VERSE 8

1. Joash has a box placed outside the temple so that the people could give to God for this restoration project.

VERSE 9

1. What collection did Moses impose on the children of Israel in the wilderness? In Exodus chapter 30 we see that a half-shekel was to be given by every male, 20 years old and up, each year. This money was then used for the upkeep of the tabernacle, and now it was to be used in the upkeep of the temple. Now they could give more for this project if they wanted to, but this was the least they could do.

VERSE 10

1. We all dread those phone calls in which people are begging you for money for some cause, and many times we just give in so we can get off the phone. Here we see the people wanting to give to the Lord. They rejoiced in it. No one made them feel guilty, no one said the work of God was going to stop. They gave out of a joyful heart. And to get things into proper perspective, God owns everything anyway. All He is asking us to do is freely give back to Him that which He has given to us for the work of the kingdom. If your heart gives just to get in return your hundred-fold or whatever, keep your money, God doesn't need it. Give because you want to give, and the reality is, we are blessed when we give, not always physically, but definitely spiritually. I have seen this with the Thanksgiving meals we gave away to needy families, how they have written back thanking us for the gift and how it blessed them. Folks, to me, that is our blessing, to know we as a body of believers were able to help someone in need.

VERSE 11

1. When God works on the hearts of the people, there is such an abundance of giving, not only of money, but of time, investment in the lives of others, and-so-on. We see here that the people gave so much to the work of God that this box had to be emptied daily.

VERSES 12-14

1. Once worship was restored, then the service began. If your heart is not filled with the worship of God, then your service is empty. We will see that come to life when we look at the next king, Amaziah, in chapter 25. He was doing the work but his heart was far from the Lord.

2. Again we see that Jehoiada was the one who influenced Joash in his service to God. He kept him moving in the right direction, on the right track.

VERSE 15

1. Jehoiada did not die because of some illness, but because he was full of days. He completed the work he was called to do and God was gracious in allowing him to live for 130 years, for he was a positive influence in the life of Joash and because of that the nation was blessed by God.

VERSE 16

1. Now his burial is in sharp contrast to that of Jehoram. When Jehoram died no one cared and they had such a lack of respect for this king, that they did not even bury him in the tombs of the kings, there was no great burning of incense for him. Because of his evil influence, the people were glad he was dead. But Jehoiada, the high priest and not a king, was buried with the kings because the people loved him for bringing spiritual reform to the nation, by putting God back on the throne. It was a sad day when this man died.

VERSES 17-18

1. Isn't it amazing how quickly Joash changed after the death of Jehoiada. He loved the honor of men and was molded by their influence. In a sense Joash was like a spiritual chameleon, changing his behavior to fit those that were around him. This just tells me that Joash never really had a heart for the Lord, he was just influenced by those around him, and in the end his true colors came out, and as we will see, they are not pretty.

2. Peter picks up on this idea of people looking good, but in the end their true heart is revealed. He said in II Peter 2:22 "But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: "A dog returns to his own vomit," and, "a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire." You see, you can wash a pig up all you want, but in the end it will return to the mud for it is a pig and pigs love mud. The same is true of the lost, you can clean them up outwardly, but in the end they will return to their evil ways for they are sinners. Only Jesus can give you a new heart and change you into a new creation. For Joash, it was not a true relationship with God, it was only a show for those that were around him, and in the end he returned to his evil ways.

VERSE 19

1. God's desire is not to bring judgment and destroy Joash, but to see him turn from his evil ways and live. So he sends prophets to warn him, but he refuses to heed their warnings.

VERSE 20

1. And now God sends Joash another prophet, the son of Jehoiada. Now understand that Zechariah must have been like a brother to Joash, they grew up together. And now this brother is coming to warn Joash of his ways, that "...'Why do you transgress the commandments of the LORD, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, He also has forsaken you.'" Joash has a choice to heed the warnings or ignore them.

VERSES 21-22

1. Joash orders the death of Zechariah to be carried out at the very place he was anointed king by Jehoiada. How quickly he forgot the love that was shown him by Jehoiada, as he executes the son of Jehoiada for speaking the truths of God.

2. This is a good lesson for us to learn. When you reach out to someone, try to help them, correct them, and-so-on; you would expect them to love you in return. That my friends does not always happen. And many times they do as Joash did, they kill you. No, not physically, but with an assassination upon your character. And our immediate response is to strike back, as David said in Psalm 58:6. We read "Break their teeth in their mouth, O God! Break out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!" But that is not how we are to respond. We are to love them, not because they deserve it, but for Jesus. If you do everything for him, no matter what happens, you won't lose anything. Put things in proper perspective, God loved us when we didn't love Him, when we did not deserve it, and so we should reach out to others with that same kind of love, no matter how they treat us, DO IT FOR JESUS! But if you can't reach out with that kind of love, what ends up happening is you only become bitter, angry, frustrated and full of hatred. As Jesus said in Matthew 25:40 "...'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'"

3. It is also interesting to note that as we move to the New Testament, the Jews began to almost worship their fathers. And yet it was their fathers that turned from God, persecuted and killed the prophets. And Jesus rebuked them for placing the worship of man over God. In Luke 11:47-52 we read "Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation. Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."

VERSES 23-24

1. God brings judgment by the hands of the Syrians, who only had a small company of men compared to Judah, and yet they were victorious.

VERSES 25-27

1. Joash is wounded in this battle and he is then assassinated by his own servants because he killed the son of Jehoiada. And just like the other evil kings, no fan fare was given in his death, he was not even buried with the other kings. In his death, Amaziah, his son is now king over the Southern Kingdom of Judah.

II CHRONICLES 25

VERSES 1-2

1. This verse sheds some light on a works theology. You can do good things, help all kinds of people, and yet if your heart is not right before God, it is meaningless. You can even serve God but if your heart is far from Him, if you don't have a relationship with Him, then all the work you do is meaningless. Amaziah did good things but his heart was far from the Lord. Yes it was far better for Amaziah to do good rather than evil, the people benefited from that. But he was still lost, his heart was far from the Lord. And that my friends is a sobering thought! And Jesus makes it even clearer in the New Testament when He spoke of those that honored Him with their lips and yet their heart was far from Him He said in Matthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'"

VERSES 3-4

1. The pagan kings, if they uncovered an assassination plot against them, they would not only put to death the person responsible with this plot, but also their families and sometimes even their friends. They showed no mercy. Amaziah executed only those who murdered his father, just as God had said in Deuteronomy 24:16.

2. In today's society we are told to get even with those that hurt us, to get back and take vengeance upon them. Don't let people walk all over you. But God tells us to show mercy upon them just as our heavenly Father shows mercy to us. Also, we see today people blaming others for their sin. They don't want to be responsible for their actions. But God is saying that it doesn't matter what anyone has done to you, you are responsible for your own actions. You are the only one responsible for your sins. And thus, if you have rejected the gift that has been given to you in Christ, then you will stand before God a sinner, with no one to blame but yourself.

VERSES 5-8

1. Judah is coming against the Edomites and they only have 300,000 men. So Amaziah hires another 100,000 mercenaries from Israel to assist him in this battle. But a prophet of God warns him not to receive help from Israel for God is not with them. If he uses Israel to help him, they will be defeated. But if they don't rely on Israel for help, God will give them the victory.

2. There are many well intentioned Christians and Christian organizations that are trying to fight against the ungodliness of this nation. Organizations like pro-life and the Christian Coalition are out their fighting and in their zeal for help, they allow all kinds of people to join forces with them from Mormons to Catholics and anyone else that will help them fight against the forces of evil. And that is wrong. You never join forces with the world to do battle, God is telling us not to be unequally yoked!

VERSE 9

1. Notice the concern of Amaziah, the money he is going to lose if he lets these men go. Amaziah wants God's help but he also wants the money. Jesus spoke on this issue of serving two masters in Luke 16:13 when He said "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." God is telling Amaziah not to worry about the money, God is not broke. I have struggled with this from time to time when people come and ask for money. It is hard to know if they are not just using churches to supply their needs so they don't have to work. But God has shown me that as long as my heart is right, as long as I am being wise, it is better to error in the giving than not to give. For I may unintentionally with hold from someone truly in need. And in saying that, God has always supplied our needs, and He has given me a great peace about it.

VERSE 10

1. Now why in the world were they so angry. Yes they were dismissed from the battle but they should have rejoiced, they still got paid for doing nothing. The reason is this. If you were victorious in battle you would take home with you much spoil from the victory as you plundered the troops and the cities. Thus, they had lost lots of money by being dismissed and they were not happy about it, and they will try to get even with Amaziah as we shall see in a few verses here.

VERSES 11-12

1. God gives Amaziah and the children of Judah a great victory over the Edomites. They kill 10,000 around the area of the Valley of Salt, which is down by the Dead Sea, and another 10,000 are taken captive and then thrown off some of the many high hills in that area, to their death. In this victory you would think that Amaziah's faith has got to grow. That his relationship with God has to be strengthened by this victory. Not so as we shall see.

VERSE 13

1. On their way home to Israel, these mercenaries attack some of the cities and villages in Judah, getting back some of the spoil that they would have gained if they were able to fight against the Edomites. And in obtaining all this spoil, they killed 3,000 people.

VERSE 14

1. I find this truly amazing. God has just given him the victory over the Edomites with 100,000 less troops, and in this victory Amaziah gathers the gods of the people he has just defeated, and brings them home with him. In doing this, he is now worshipping these gods. And you think "Why in the world would he do something as stupid as that?" It is really quite simple for we see it done all the time today. When your backs are up against the wall, and you have no other place to turn, you turn to the true and living God for help. But after the trouble is over you turn back to the gods of this world, the gods of the flesh. They appeal to you, even though you know they can't help you, but they can satisfy your flesh. Amaziah does just that, he went to the gods of this world, the gods of the Edomites, for he no longer needed the true and living God. Well, he may have thought that way, but the reality is, he needed God more than ever in his life, and so do we!

VERSES 15-16

1. God is so gracious, even when Amaziah turned his back on the Lord, He sends him a prophet to warn him of his destructive ways. And I love what this prophet has to say. He tells him "Why in the world did you turn to the god's of the Edomites - they lost the battle!" How foolish we are at times. But as Amaziah, we too refuse to listen to what God has to say and we become angry at His representatives and come against them. The more you harden yourself to God, the farther you will be moving from Him till you finally reach a point of no return. Amaziah had reached that point.

VERSE 17

1. Why did he want to fight against the Northern Kingdom of Israel? He found out what those mercenaries did to his people and since he was just victorious against the Edomites, surely God would help him defeat Israel.

VERSES 18-19

1. Joash tells him "Look, you may have had victory against the Edomites, but you are still nothing in my eyes son. You are not even in the same league as me!" And the King James Version makes it very clear when it says "Why shouldest thou meddle to thine hurt." To put it in our own vernacular, "Don't go looking for trouble, you will only get burned!"

VERSES 20-22

1. Judah was defeated because of its sin and the reality is, we too are defeated when we play with sin.

VERSE 23

1. Sin also has a way of destroying your defenses, just as Israel destroyed 600 feet of the wall of Jerusalem. And what I mean by that is the more you sin, the harder it becomes to resist it the next time. And the more you give in to sin, the easier it becomes till one day you have become a slave to sin.

VERSE 24

1. Not only was the house of God plundered, but so too was the kings house, and many were taken away captive as slaves. Sin too robs us of the preciousness of worship, your worship will decrease the more you sin. Also, it not only affects your worship of God, but it destroys and robs you of your character. Sin destroys your witness. And lastly, you become a slave to sin. All this because Amaziah did not heed the warnings of God.

VERSES 25-28

1. The people are so upset by what Amaziah has done that he flees away to Lachish, and while there, they catch him and murder him. Again, this all happened as a result of Amaziah not serving God with a whole heat and then not heeding the warnings that God was sending by the prophets. A good lesson for us all to learn. Let me close this evening with the words of a very wise man. He said that "This book, the Bible, will keep you from sin. And sin will keep you from this book!"