Josiah, at 16, cleans house.

At 26, he encounters the Word of the Lord for the first time and tears his clothes. He receives the words of the prophetess, makes a wholehearted covenant to the Lord, and sets out to obey and perform what is written in the law.

Josiah leads the people in one of the biggest Passover celebrations on record. Lots and lots of sheep. May we never forget why they celebrated Passover.

Finally, Josiah dies fighting an enemy, and three evil kings follow in succession. Decline. Capture. Exile. Mourning. The book does end on an up note though, and thus the Old Testament in the original Hebrew ends on an up note: It ends with the hope of the temple being rebuilt and the Messiah coming.

“LET HIM GO UP!”

It’s quite simple:

I want to be like Hezekiah.

I hope you do too.

One thing is typical, one thing is not. As for the former, I list the things I found noteworthy in the text, but as for the latter, I follow each note with some questions. I would love to hear some interaction:

• 26:5- As long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper. Do you think the same principle applies today? Does God prosper those who seek Him? In what ways (financially, militarily, with physical health, emotional health, or….)?
• 26:16- But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. Does this same principle apply today? Does God punish the proud? Do the proud punish themselves?
• 26:19- A leprous breakout occurs. It stays with him until death. Can God inflict people with sickness today, due to their sin? How much do you think illness is related to sin?
• Reading 1 & 2 Chronicles, you’ll notice that the kings and great men are always summarized by their wealth, their war victories, the size of their armies, the size of their families, and their loyalty or disloyalty to the Lord. Is life summed up any differently today?
• 27:6- Jotham became mighty because he ordered his ways before the Lord his God. See questions at 26:5.
• 28– The whole chapter is just ugly and depressing. Ahaz was terrible, even worse, he caused everyone else to be terrible. When sin is judged, what is the balance between blaming an individual and blaming a national leader? Do you think national leaders should ever be blamed for the immorality of a country, even if they don’t perform the acts themselves?

Jehoiada, the priest, takes care of the crazy grandma, Athaliah.

Joash becomes king at age seven. Age seven, a king, can you imagine? Now, I’m sure he wasn’t making the big decisions at that age, but still, the fact that he held the title at such a young age is remarkable. And for the most part, Joash does well (while Jehoiada is priest). Once he comes of age, he decides to repair the temple. This excites the people so much that they actually enjoy paying taxes to fund the project.

The people enjoy paying taxes!

What projects could we possibly do in this country in which people would enjoy paying taxes, gladly contributing a portion of their earnings toward a new project?

Unfortunately, things don’t pan out so well after the repairs. Jehoiada, the old priest, dies, and before you know it the nation goes astray. Joash won’t listen to the prophets that God sends his way, so eventually, God says He’s had enough. The Assyrians roll in, take over, and serve as God’s judgment on Joash.

As for chapter 25, let’s just say it’s complicated. I’ll close by saying this: sometimes it disgusts me to see how people refuse to listen. I pray I can always listen.

The previous day’s reading and today’s readings startled me. Why? Because I’ve read through the Bible a few times before and never do I remember Jehoshaphat being such a good king. He was though. And here’s the proof:

• When he’s afraid, he seeks the Lord (20:3)
• He proclaims a nationwide fast to seek the Lord (20:3). Could you imagine that happening today?
• He prays, “We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” (20:12)
• The prophet tells him, “The battle is not yours, but God’s.” (20:15) Then the prophet gives some faith-based battle instructions, aka don’t fight, just watch. Again, can you imagine someone following that advice today? Sidenote: God has prophets prepared for every generation, good or evil.
• Jehoshaphat and his army are rewarded for obedience (20:24-30).
• The one blemish on his record (20:35-37)

After Jehoshaphat, the whole story changes in tone. Jehoram takes the throne and kicks it off with a terrible series of events. Which makes me wonder, how could his father possibly allow him to succeed him as king?

Nevertheless, the Lord does deal justly with Jehoram’s wickedness through the rest of chapter 21. The simple lesson: DON’T DISOBEY OR CAUSE OTHERS TO DO THE SAME.

Chapter 22 can be summarized as depressing. It reaches such a low in the kingdom that a sister (a princess) has to hide her brother (a prince) from their crazed and demented grandma who is killing everyone in the royal family. No words can describe.

17:6 Jehoshaphat was courageous in the ways of the Lord.

17:9 The Levites have the law of the Lord, which is the only thing worth teaching.

18:13 Speaking of Micaiah, you have to respect a man like that. He will only tell you what the Lord tells you.

18:23 Sometimes you’ll be punished for speaking the truth.

19:6-7 If our judges viewed their occupation and responsibility in this light, we might be in a better situation in this country.

19:11 Great farewell address: Deal courageously and may the Lord be with the upright.