2
Chronicles 24-25
2 Chronicles 24
Vs. 1-3 Jehoiada was Joash's uncle and really looked out for
him. Joash only lived to be 47. That will make sense later. Verse 2 doesn't
mean much now, but it will in a few verses.
Vs. 4-7 So far, so good. Joash looks like a model king. He
got the Levites and priests working to repair the temple.
Vs. 8-14 This is all very cool.
V. 14 Twice in this section there is a curious phrase, all the days of Jehoiada. This points to
another of those "weaknesses" that we are all prone to and have seen
in the church. There are believers who look good as long as there are others
around them. They are kind of like the seed sown on rocky ground. They pop up
and look good, but when the godly influence leaves them alone, they have no
"root in themselves," no genuine relationship with God. Church
activities and even working in the harvest provided them with a purpose that
was no deeper than the activity, and they never had "their own"
relationship with Christ.
Vs. 15-16 This was a great honor. Not only did God grant Jehoiada
a long life and influence, but he was buried among the kings. Jehoiada was used
by God to save the Davidic line. Now there were surely other people roaming
around who could trace their lineage back to David. You see this in the
genealogies of Joseph and Mary in the NT, showing that Jesus' lineage went back
to David two different ways. Still, Jehoiada showed great courage and faith in
the promise of God to do what he did. Also, you realize that Jehoiada was no
spring chicken. Humanly speaking, his goose should have already been cooked
before this all began. He was at least in his 90s when the Lord moved him to
save Judah and the line of David. As a result of God's use and purpose for him,
he lived to be 130. That's older than Moses was when he died.
Vs. 17-19 Just the mention of the Asherim gives you an idea
of how theses princes enticed Joash. This was very sexual worship. How could
you resist? It was immediately more fun than worshipping Yahweh. The Levites
and the Sons of Korah were no match to the wild women of Borneo who served at
the Asherim (“groves” or places of worship) in the worship of Astarte, the
sensual Canaanite goddess. And being king, who could tell him to stop? Notice
that there were many whom God sent to try to break through to Joash. The Lord
gave him many opportunities.
Vs. 20-22 This is kind of cool that the Spirit clothed Zechariah. The reason why this
rebuke went deeper is that it looks like it was public. Growing up, Zechariah
would have been like a big brother to Joash.
Jesus refers to this murder twice, the last time being the
Wednesday before He died. The fact that they waited until Zechariah came out of
the holy place and was walking toward the altar adds a deeper irony to the
ambush of these murderers. In the holy place Zechariah was standing before the
Lord, interceding for the people. Verse 22 is Ezra's commentary on King Joash,
the "fake" believer. This murder would be a foreshadowing of the
murder of Jesus.
Vs. 23-24 Notice that this judgment didn't come the next
day. God waited. The more you read the Bible, the more you see that
"waiting" is almost an attribute of God. His waiting causes His
people to grow in faith, and it causes the rebellious to think everything's
cool so they keep on sinning. The result is that God's people get stronger and
write psalms of praise, and the other guys get a rude awakening. Here,
Jerusalem was taken, the army was defeated and all these princes were killed by
a small force. It was a very obvious judgment on Jerusalem.
Vs. 25-27 Notice that Joash wasn't buried in the tombs of
the kings. It is interesting, and probably just trivia, that the two assassins
were both descendants of Lot, children from a forbidden relationship and an
awful heritage.
2 Chronicles 25
This is a very strange story and you only hear half of it in
Kings. This is now the great-great grandson of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat's sin
had now seeped into the 4th generation. Read this and try to figure out what
could possibly have been going on in Amaziah's mind. It blows me away, but
actually we saw this with some of the kings of the north who lived with Elijah
and Elisha. God helped them, but they didn't grow in faith or follow God.
Vs. 1-4 As you read this, except for Ezra's note in v. 2,
this guy looks pretty kosher and shows some genuine faith and obedience.
Vs. 5-13 This entire story will make you scratch your head.
He obeyed God in not facing Edom with a large army of mercenaries. God gave him
the victory, but he showed incredible cruelty to his prisoners. And then…
Vs. 14-16 What was going on? How did Amaziah view
spirituality? Was it that he had this victory and thought that he had done this
himself? Were the idols made out of diamond and incredibly valuable?
V. 16 is a pretty awesome verse. Notice that the prophet
stopped arguing with Amaziah.
Vs. 17-24 This is the story we have already seen in Kings.
Now we understand why Amaziah lost the battle and why he was so arrogant. In
fact, his arrogance shows us what must have been going on in his heart when he
won the battle with the Edomites. He really thought he had won the battle on
his own. God made sure Amaziah was publicly humiliated by having the city wall
torn down and the treasures taken.
V. 20 This is Ezra's commentary to the new generation
returning to the land.
Vs. 25-28 It is amazing that God punished Amaziah, but
didn't take him out. Actually, his ungodliness became a test of the godliness
of the people; and they took care of him. Maybe this is also Ezra's
encouragement to the people and leaders of Israel not to tolerate an ungodly
ruler.
V. 28 He was still honored in burial as a descendant of
David, the line of promise.
Romans
12
Vs. 1-2 One of the challenges in v. 1 is to be able to think
through all the past 11 chapters and understand the impact of I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God... How would
you summarize what Paul and the Spirit have said in such a way as to give you
such a spiritual shot of adrenaline that you would live a supernatural life on
earth, submitted to Christ and submitted to God's purpose of redemption in the
world?
The spiritual "awe" of what Paul has been writing
is going to be used to convince these people to take command of their lives on
earth, so that they can work together as a mixed church, proclaiming the
testimony of God's glory in a lost world.
V. 3 Do you detect that Paul is addressing a problem here?
Verses 1-2, then, are to have the impact of getting them to see their own
personal issues as insignificant in comparison to God's redemptive mercy, plan
and calling.
Vs. 3-8 How do you think having a mixed
"Jew-Gentile" congregation aggravated the problem with gifts? God
assigns gifts according to His will, not our background or ethnicity. What do
you see in these verses that gave them a spiritual understanding to help them
get along together? It all began with God.
Vs. 9-13 How would you title these verses? If Paul kept
referring back to vs. 1 and 2, it would sound something like, on the basis of
the past 11 chapters, (insert vs. 1 and 2), and so now let us….. God is expecting
our maturity to rise to the level of being able to do this in spite of what
goes on around us.
Vs. 14-21 These disciples were to have lived like Jesus
commanded in the Sermon on the Mount. The impact of chapters 1-11and the
summary of 12:1-2 were supposed to put these people in the spiritual frame of
mind to serve with strength, humility and sacrifice.
What Paul is writing here is very similar to what Jesus told
His disciples in the Sermon on the Mount. If disciples are focused on Christ
and the work in the harvest, their perspective on themselves and on life is
supposed to lift them above themselves and give them a spiritual vision of how
to live in this harvest.
Psalm
22:19-31
This part of the psalm still seems to be
"messianic" in describing the aftermath of Christ's death and
resurrection. The words here seem like something reflected from Isaiah
53:10-12.
Vs. 19-21 The deliverance has been from the irrational
violence of men. Notice the "wild life." I grew up around these kinds
of people.
Vs. 22-24 This seems like David is giving testimony to
Israel of deliverance and praising God.
Vs. 25-26 This is David's praise to God and confidence in
God’s blessing on those who follow Him.
Vs. 27-31 This is the proclamation to the earth that there
is deliverance in God. This is what we, as disciples, get to pass on in the
harvest.
Proverbs
20:8-10
These
all seem a little random. As I read this first one, I think of what Paul said
in 1 Corinthians 2:15, The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to
be judged by no one.
V. 8 This was God's ideal for a king or a person who ruled
others. David and Solomon were men like this, and were renowned for their
judgments, until their unconfessed sin and its damage ruined them.
V. 9 We all have sinned, but that doesn't mean we can't
judge. Verse 9 is true in that we cannot say we have made our
hearts pure, but we can say that God in His Word, through His Spirit, is
working on our hearts.
V. 10 The judgments, or the stuff that goes into discerning
one thing from another, come from true weights and measures. The one who sets
these weights and measures morally, and who sees the hearts of men, is God. It
is on the basis of God's truth that we can determine right from wrong and make
just judgments, even though we ourselves are needy. God's Word gives us the
true "weights and balances."
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One Year
Bible, click on this link http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/every-day-in-the-word/. If that doesn't
work, go to http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/
and click on “Every
Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these comments to and for those who are
following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple,
following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship
culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging
each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make
disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our
growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here
or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some
explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My
comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on
Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups
will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with
and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the
harvest.
If you would like a complete description of this model
of being and making disciples you can find it in my book: Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011WJIDQA?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is
still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's
keyed to the NIV, so the result is the commentators are constantly telling you
what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in
fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is
encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the
comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding,
that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but
only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it.
Send comments or feedback to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
If you would like documents containing an entire month
of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes. You can download
these to use on your computer or to print.
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