[Brother V]

2 Chronicles 22-24

Today we get

• Ahaziah becomes king
• Athaliah takes over as queen
• Joash becomes king

2 Chronicles 22

1 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his youngest son king in his stead: for the band of men that came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the eldest. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned.

Jehoram had just died from having his guts fall out, and Ahaziah became the king.

If you remember from yesterday, 2 Chronicles 21:17 And they came up into Judah, and brake into it, and carried away all the substance that was found in the king's house, and his sons also, and his wives; so that there was never a son left him, save Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.


Jehoahaz is another name of Ahaziah, apparently.

2 Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Athaliah the daughter of Omri.

He was the youngest son, and was 42 when his father Jehoram died. Um... what?

Jehoram reigned for 8 years, and was 32 when he became king. That adds up to 40 years old when he died. How did Jehoram have a son 2 years before he was born? 2 Kings 8 says that Ahaziah was 22 when he took the throne. In Chronicles (which is ONLY about Judah kings) he's listed as 42, and older than his father.

3 He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly.

Well, if he was 42 and still a momma's boy, he deserved to do evil.

4 Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father to his destruction.

Remember, Ahab was the evil king of Israel who married Jezebel. Ahab's father was Omri, so Athaliah was Ahab's sister.

5 He walked also after their counsel, and went with Jehoram the son of Ahab king of Israel to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramothgilead: and the Syrians smote Joram.

Ahaziah got injured in the battle, and then Jehu is set by the LORD to clear out the stain of Omri/Ahab from Israel.

8 And it came to pass, that, when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab, and found the princes of Judah, and the sons of the brethren of Ahaziah, that ministered to Ahaziah, he slew them.

So Jehu not only cleared house in Israel; he also took care of the Judah problem too.

9 And he sought Ahaziah: and they caught him, (for he was hid in Samaria,) and brought him to Jehu: and when they had slain him, they buried him: Because, said they, he is the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought the LORD with all his heart. So the house of Ahaziah had no power to keep still the kingdom.

So Ahaziah is dead.


10 But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah.

Athaliah then kills everyone who might have a claim to the throne in Judah.

11 But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king's sons that were slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Ahaziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.

Except for Joash. He was hidden from the slaughter in the temple for 6 years.

2 Chronicles 23

Jehoiada, the high priest, was the guy who took care of Joash. It was easy to hide him in the temple, because Athaliah never went there. She was busy with her Baal worship.

1 And in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself, and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, and Azariah the son of Obed, and Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, into covenant with him.


He also goes around and gathers up all the Levites (who were still faithful to the LORD), and brings them to Jerusalem.

3 And all the congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And he said unto them, Behold, the king's son shall reign, as the LORD hath said of the sons of David.

They got tired of having the queen as ruler, and felt the child was ready to take over.

So, Jehoiada stations the Levites around the temple.

7 And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever else cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.

So the Levites are to kill anyone who goes in to the temple, to disrupt the ceremony.

11 Then they brought out the king's son, and put upon him the crown, and gave him the testimony, and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and said, God save the king.

Joash then became king.

Athaliah heard the noise and went to check it out.

13 And she looked, and, behold, the king stood at his pillar at the entering in, and the princes and the trumpets by the king: and all the people of the land rejoiced, and sounded with trumpets, also the singers with instruments of musick, and such as taught to sing praise. Then Athaliah rent her clothes, and said, Treason, Treason.

It probably wasn't a pretty sight, seeing the tree worshiping queen with her clothes ripped off, yelling about treason.

Jehoiada told some of the guards to take her outside.

15 So they laid hands on her; and when she was come to the entering of the horse gate by the king's house, they slew her there.

So she's gone.

16 And Jehoiada made a covenant between him, and between all the people, and between the king, that they should be the LORD's people.

When a child is trained by the high priest, he's probably going to do well, and have the people follow the LORD.


17 Then all the people went to the house of Baal, and brake it down, and brake his altars and his images in pieces, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars.

Joash's kingship's first three acts were the killing of his mother, the destruction of the altars to Baal, and the slaughter of Mattan, Baal's high priest. That's a great start to being king, and all this at age 7.

21 And all the people of the land rejoiced: and the city was quiet, after that they had slain Athaliah with the sword.

They rejoiced quietly.

2 Chronicles 24

1 Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Zibiah of Beersheba.

Joash was the only living male who was descended from David. If David had a last name, Joash was the only guy who still had it. He must have been protected greatly by the Levites (who wished to keep David's lineage going) otherwise, the Salt Covenant would end with Joash.

2 And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.

Good for him!

4 And it came to pass after this, that Joash was minded to repair the house of the LORD.

That's a noble thing, to repair the house of the LORD. It's been ransacked how many times now?

8 And at the king's commandment they made a chest, and set it without at the gate of the house of the LORD.

Everyone happily gave to the chest. When it was full, they emptied it, and refilled it.

12 And the king and Jehoiada gave it to such as did the work of the service of the house of the LORD, and hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the LORD, and also such as wrought iron and brass to mend the house of the LORD.

Being Jews, they probably didn't work for free, nor would they have offered to work at a discount rate.

13 So the workmen wrought, and the work was perfected by them, and they set the house of God in his state, and strengthened it.

Good job.

15 But Jehoiada waxed old, and was full of days when he died; an hundred and thirty years old was he when he died.

137 years old, he was a good man. I'm sure he taught Joash well, and that Joash continued to fear the LORD after Jehoiada died.

17 Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them.

This doesn't sound good.

18 And they left the house of the LORD God of their fathers, and served groves and idols: and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass.

How friggin stupid are these jews? How did they ever survive? How is this religion still around? God walked in their midst and they still can't follow him. God blessed them for the slightest remembrance of Him, and seconds later they forget.

19 Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear.

God sends messengers, but they don't listen. How did they make it to modern times?

20 And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.

Surely the people listened to Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada. He spoke the truth. They must've realized the error of their ways.

21 And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD.

No, they killed him.

22 Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he said, The LORD look upon it, and require it.

Joash became an idiot after Jehoiada died. He even thought the killing of Zechariah was what God wanted.

23 And it came to pass at the end of the year, that the host of Syria came up against him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all the spoil of them unto the king of Damascus.

Because the people turned their backs on the LORD, He sent the Syrians to attack.

25 And when they were departed from him, (for they left him in great diseases,) his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died: and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings.

Joash's own servants were so angry that they killed him.

27 Now concerning his sons, and the greatness of the burdens laid upon him, and the repairing of the house of God, behold, they are written in the story of the book of the kings. And Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.

So Amaziah became the next king. So at least Joash fired off some rounds before dieing.

So what have we learned today.

1. A named queen will NEVER be a follower of the LORD.

2. When your mentor dies, it's best to do what he would have done and not try to figure it out on your own.

3. The jews had everything, so they always want more, like more gods and stuff.

YIC
V

[Pastor Billy-Reuben]

Originally Posted by Brother V

He was the youngest son, and was 42 when his father Jehoram died. Um... what?

Jehoram reigned for 8 years, and was 32 when he became king. That adds up to 40 years old when he died. How did Jehoram have a son 2 years before he was born? 2 Kings 8 says that Ahaziah was 22 when he took the throne. In Chronicles (which is ONLY about Judah kings) he's listed as 42, and older than his father.

In every commentary that I have read, the commentator asserts that the original Hebrew for II Chronicles 22:2 must have said that Ahaziah was 22, but someone made a copy error mistaking the Hebrew 22 for 42, and all the copies that said 22 were somehow lost, leaving only the copies containing the error.

I don't believe that for a minute. I have faith that God's Word is accurate.

Jesus said:
John 3:12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?

If we can't trust the Bible to be right on verifiable things like the dates and ages of kings, how can we trust it to be right on things that we can't verify but must take on faith?

The Bible also says:
Ps 12:6-7 The words of the LORDare pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.

God promised to keep his word pure and to preserve them forever. We therefore know that there is not one single error in the Bible.

This means that the accounts in II Kings and II Chronicles must both be correct. I'm not sure exactly how to reconcile the accounts, but I'm certain that there is an explanation that doesn't involve God breaking His promise and the Bible being wrong.

Perhaps after Ahaziah began to reign when he was 22, there was a coup and he was deposed, but he regained the throne 20 years later. He was 22 when he began to reign the first time, and 42 when he began to reign the second time.

Maybe if the Israelites hadn't lost The Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, we would know exactly why Ahaziah began to reign when he was 22, then began to reign when he was 42.

Frankly, It's easier for me to believe Brother Ahimaaz's coma theory from day 105 than to believe a Holy Spirit-inspired translator mistook כב (twenty-two) for מב (forty-two).

Pastor Billy-Reuben