Kings of Judah, Pt. 7: "It Takes a Village to Raise a Child" (2 Chron 22)

IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD (2 CHRONICLES 22:10-24:27)
I enjoy reading bumper stickers on cars and one caught my attention more than most. It was on the back of a car that was in front of me at a red traffic light. The “Dear God” beginning made me curious and I read the rest before the light turned green and car sped away.

The first line on the bumper sticker was direct and challenging. It says, “Dear God, why do you allow so much violence in our schools? Signed, A concerned student.”

On the second line was a thought-provoking and eye-catching answer. It says, “Dear concerned student, I am not allowed in schools. Signed, God.”

Judah had a taste of what the kingdom was like under the evil queen Athaliah. After the excellent king Jehoshaphat’s death, his son Jehoram, the fifth king of Judah, succeeded him, with queen Athaliah by the new king’s side. Jehoram reigned for eight years and upon the unpopular king’s death (2 Chron 21:10) his son Ahaziah, the sixth king, inherited the throne, with mom pulling the strings and encouraging him to evil (2 Chron 22:2-3). When Ahaziah died a year after coronation, Athaliah seized the throne for herself and murdered all the royal babies except one who escaped and survived. Into such a family was the escapee Joash born, but he had help, the most sacrificial kind.

What if life throws you a lemon? What if life throws you a sucker punch? What if the world around you collapses? How do you respond if others around you are selfish, uncaring and ambitious?

Repair The Emotional Damage
10 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family of the house of Judah. 11 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes who were about to be murdered and put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Because Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and wife of the priest Jehoiada, was Ahaziah’s sister, she hid the child from Athaliah so she could not kill him. 12 He remained hidden with them at the temple of God for six years while Athaliah ruled the land. 23:1 In the seventh year Jehoiada showed his strength. He made a covenant with the commanders of units of a hundred: Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zicri. 2 They went throughout Judah and gathered the Levites and the heads of Israelite families from all the towns. When they came to Jerusalem, 3 the whole assembly made a covenant with the king at the temple of God. Jehoiada said to them, “The king’s son shall reign, as the LORD promised concerning the descendants of David. (2 Chron 22:10-23:4)

A man wrote a letter to a small hotel in a Midwest town he planned to visit on his vacation. He wrote: “I would very much like to bring my dog with me. He is well-groomed and very well behaved. Would you be willing to permit me to keep him in my room with me at night?”

An immediate reply came from the hotel owner, who said, “I've been operating this hotel for many years. In all that time, I've never had a dog steal towels, bedclothes, silverware or pictures off the walls. I've never had to evict a dog in the middle of the night for being drunk and disorderly. And I've never had a dog run out on a hotel bill. Yes, indeed, your dog is welcome at my hotel. And, if your dog will vouch for you, you're welcome to stay here, too.”

There is no limit to the evil that men do, including to their kin.

Joash was the eighth king of the southern Judah, the third good king of Judah, and the only surviving son of the short-lived King Ahaziah. He lived in a time of turmoil, betrayal and insanity. Sadly, the most bloodthirsty person in the land was his own grandmother, and she wanted the throne for herself. Joash’s grandparents, the royal couple of Jehoram and Athaliah, were one of the most ruthless couples in the Bible and the equal to Ahab and Jezebel in the north, because Athaliah was the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. To the couple, ambition was thicker than blood. After Jehoram, Athaliah’s husband, succeeded his father, King Jehoshaphat, he murdered all his brothers and rivals to the throne (2 Chron 21:4). When her son Ahaziah died after a year’s reign, Athaliah attempted to kill all her grandchildren, including Joash, in a coup; she reigned six years. Joash, who was born at about the time of his father’s coronation, escaped the massacre, saved by his aunt Jehosheba, his father’s sister, and her husband, the high priest Jehoiada (2 Kings 1210).

The dark spots in Joash’s life were that his father died very young and his grandmother wanted him dead, but the bright spots were that he escaped with his life and was loved and tutored by Jehoiada, a man of noble character, a priest of extreme devotion and a reader of biblical prophecy (2 Chron 23:3), who insisted and proclaimed that God will fulfill His promise to David through the young Joash. Joash had no better teacher, mentor and guardian than Jehoiada. For six years, the priest hid Joash in the temple, the perfect environment to supervise the child, to nurture his faith and to keep from detection. Jehoiada cared for young Jehoiada’s life and the Lord’s promise more than he cared for his and his family’s life. The priest thought the world of the baby, pledged his loyalty to the toddler and gave his best to the child. In due time and without a fuss, the priest risked all that he had and the lives of others – the five commanders of a hundred (2 Chron 23:1), the Levites and the heads of Israelite families (2 Chron 23:2), the priests (2 Chron 23:4) and even his own sons (2 Chron 23:11) - to restore the young king to the Messianic throne.

Uncle Jehoiada believed in all his heart that Joash was the rightful heir to the throne, and to this end the priest anointed him (2 Chron 23:11) and enacted Zadok the priest’s coronation of Joash’s forefather Solomon (1 Kings 1:39). The priest was so meticulous in preparation that he had trumpeters and singers with musical instruments leading the praises (2 Chron 23:13). The king, of course, was too young to appreciate the work that was involved, the tension of the moment and the sacrifice of many lives. With Jehoiada’s family by his side, the young king could sleep well, eat well, and everything went well.

Repair the Mental Damage
24:1 Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother’s name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba. 2 Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada chose two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters. 4 Some time later Joash decided to restore the temple of the LORD. 5 He called together the priests and Levites and said to them, “Go to the towns of Judah and collect the money due annually from all Israel, to repair the temple of your God. Do it now.” But the Levites did not act at once. (2 Chronicles 24:1-6)

The General went out to find that none of his G.I.s were there. One finally ran up, panting heavily. “Sorry, sir! I can explain, you see I had a date and it ran a little late. I ran to the bus but missed it, I hailed a cab but it broke down, found a farm, bought a horse but it dropped dead, ran 10 miles, and now I’m here.”

The General was very skeptical about this explanation but at least he was here so he let the G.I. go. Moments later, eight more G.I.s came up to the general panting, he asked them why they were late. “Sorry, sir! I had a date and it ran a little late, I ran to the bus but missed it, I hailed a cab but it broke down, found a farm, bought a horse but it dropped dead, ran 10 miles, and now I’m here.”

The General eyed them, feeling very skeptical but since he let the first guy go, he let them go, too. A ninth G.I. jogged up to the General, panting heavily. “Sorry, sir! I had a date and it ran a little late, I ran to the bus but missed it, I hailed a cab but...”
“Let me guess,” the General interrupted, “it broke down.” “No,” said the G.I., “there were so many dead horses in the road, it took forever to get around them.”

It’s been said, “Excuses are for losers; winners don't need them!”

Joash was a good king, and he reigned 40 long years, tying him with David (1 Kings 2:11) and Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 11:42). He had the best help around - the kind that money cannot buy. Jehoiada the priest even helped him find a bride or two. Still, the king was a success in his own right and had a mind of his own, and the Scriptures note that his biggest contribution was making repairs to the temple. The Hebrew word for “decide” (v 4) uses the Hebrew word “heart.” The king had a heart for God’s things and decided to restore the temple immediately, summoning the priests and Levites and ordering them to act at once. Nobody told him to do it, nobody thought of doing it and nobody had done it before.

The Chronicles account notes that the Levites did not do their job (2 Chron 24:5), but the corresponding Kings account insists that the priests did not do their job (2 Kings 12:6). It seems that the Levites did not save the money collected and the priests did not do the repairs. 2 Kings 12:6 records that up to Joash’s twenty-third year, more than two decades upon the throne, the repairs were left undone, but still the king did not give up. Everybody except Joash believed it could not be done. Their excuses included “It’s not my job,” “It costs too much” and “I don’t have time.”

Joash was a one-person spokesman, sponsor and supervisor for the job. Year by year he asked for updates, waited for results, but saw things slide. The only reason the commentators could think of was that the priest and Levites could have used the funds for daily temple operations instead. The repair fund most likely was put into the general fund, eating into its value. Further, the priests and Levites were not skilled or equipped for construction work and temple repair.

So the king came up with another idea, which worked fine this time. He reached into history to urge people to give a collection like their fathers did in the desert (2 Chron 24:9), and it worked. Beginning with the example set by the officials or captains or Lords, the people gave gladly, filling the “challenge” chest placed outside the temple. The Levites had work to do now; their job description changed to transferring the money to the officials (2 Chron 24:11). The work was wisely transferred to professionals and laymen, who could do the job better. The masons, the carpenters, the blacksmith (v 11), the supervisors (v 12) all proceeded to do their job and finished the work and completed their job with money to spare (v 14). The sacred objects that Athaliah had stolen from the temple could never be replaced, but the people dedicated new articles for service (v 14) and objects of gold and silver to the Lord. The temple did not lack of burnt offerings with Joash and Jehoiada as a team. Joash accomplished a most remarkable feat in Israel’s history. The glory days of David and Solomon were very much over and Athaliah had stripped the temple bare, but Joash restored the temple within and without from out of nothing by pooling the resources of ordinary folks and rallying them to do their part. No effort was spared, no detail was neglected and no force was necessary.

Repair the Relational Damage
17 After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. 18 They abandoned the temple of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God’s anger came upon Judah and Jerusalem. 19 Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen. 20 Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the LORD’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.’” 21 But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the LORD’s temple. 22 King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, “May the LORD see this and call you to account.” (2 Chron 24:17-22)

The man looked a little worried when the doctor came in to administer his annual physical, so the first thing the doctor did was to ask whether anything was troubling him. “Well, to tell the truth, Doc, yes,” answered the patient. “You see, I seem to be getting forgetful. No, it's actually worse than that. I'm never sure I can remember where I put the car, or whether I answered a letter, or where I'm going, or what it is I'm going to do once I get there -- if I get there. So, I really need your help. What can I do?”

The doctor mused for a moment, then answered in his kindest tones, “Pay me in advance.”

Joash forgot his spiritual, tutorial and relational roots upon his benefactor’s death. After the death of the resolute and unwavering Jehoiada, the princes of Judah, probably Joash’s cousins and relatives, convinced him to allow them to return to their idolatrous past and the king eventually succumbed to their persuasive words, repeated pleas and group effort. God’s anger came upon the land to no avail and God’s prophets deplored the people in vain (v 19), but the spirit of God stirred Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, to confront the people of their sin. Zechariah confronted the people (v 20) and not the king, probably out of respect for his father Jehoiada and the king’s relationship.

The king’s idolatrous relatives ganged up on the prophet and secured the king’s permission to stone Zechariah, right in the courtyard of the sacred temple (v 21). The Scriptures excoriated Joash for forgetting the kindness Zechariah had for him, the kind of “kindness” most associated with and the word made famous in the Bible for Jonathan and David’s kindness to each other (1 Sam 20:8, 1 Sam 20:14, 2 Sam 9:1, 9:3, 9:7). The priest suffered the most shameful kind of death – by stoning, which was meant for trespassers, transgressors and traitors, and his death was the first recorded death of a priest by stoning, but he died with a prophecy on his lips. Within a year just a small group of Syrian soldiers were able to invade the land, defeat the army, slay the leaders and plunder the city. The officials that murdered Joash in verse 25 were “servants” in Hebrew, not the same captains/officials in verse 10 or the overseers/officials in verse 11.

Joash was the first southern king to personally suffer God’s wrath, which Jehoshaphat escaped. He was so despised, disgraced and disliked that he was not buried in the tomb of the kings that was afforded Jehoaida the priest (v 15). Nobody had the heart to bury the disgraced king with his kindly mentor with the fresh memory of the king’s disregard for the priest’s son. The murder of Zechariah was a watershed in the Bible. Keil and Delitzsch and Matthew Henry believe that this Zechariah, and not the writer Zechariah with a book that bears his name, was the same Zechariah Christ referred to in Matthew 23:35 and Luke 11:51 as the last prophet slain, murdered between the temple and the altar. Yet Joash was still considered a good king because he was not guilty of idolatry and immorality, but of ingratitude and shamelessness.

Conclusion: It’s been said, “If life throws you a lemon, make a lemonade.”
Have you asked the Lord to deal with your past and to live in the present? Do you pine for the things and people you’ve missed and push away the things and people you have? Do things outside your control make you an unhappy person to be around? Are you grateful for the things you have? Do you show gratitude for the help you’ve had? Are your eyes fixed on Jesus so that you no longer walk in the dark and enjoy walking in His light?