Then the King Hearkened Unto Them

2012-03-31

“Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them.” (2 Chronicles 24:17)

King Joash of Judah reminds me of Ephesians 4:14: “That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.” This king basically did right while Jehoiada the priest, his mentor, was alive, but after that, he turned and did wickedly. He paid dearly for that.

Joash became king when his grandmother Athaliah, who was reigning over the land, was slain. Since Athaliah was the daughter of Omri of Israel, she was a wicked person (2 Chronicles 24:7). Jehoiada arranged to have her deposed, and the only living heir to the throne was Joash, who was seven years old. Obviously, a seven year old is going to need help in being a godly king, and it becomes clear that Jehoiada helped him.

We read in 2 Chronicles 24:2: “Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.” He was responsible for repairs made in the Temple, for he had organized a collection for these repairs.

Jehoiada lived 130 years and died, and since he was highly regarded, he was buried among the Judean kings. It appears that Joash must have been highly relying on the priest for help in ruling, because the princes knew they could come and begin to influence Joash. With this, false religion entered into the land once again: “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” (2 Chronicles 24:18). Joash murdered a prophet who rebuked him for forsaking the LORD, and we see soon after that foreign armies came in.

Joash was a poor leader. He let other people’s influences override what was right in the eyes of the LORD. What about us? Do we let other people or circumstances dictate what we do, or do we let our convictions drive us? Do the things of God motivate all that we do? We need to expect that living for the LORD is going to have its consequences.

We can learn the following from Joash:

  1. A godly mentor is good to have to teach us the things of God, but we cannot rely on that mentor to help us live for the LORD. We must choose to live for the LORD. Joash needed to keep following the ways he was taught after Jehoiada died.
  2. When we live for the LORD, there will be people out there to try to get us to turn away. The princes sought an opportunity to get their way when they recognized that the king was weak in his convictions.
  3. When we walk away from God, God will rebuke us. If we get to this point, we need to heed that warning. Zechariah son of Jehoiada rebuked Joash for his wickedness.
  4. If we blow off God and his rebuke, we can expect severe discipline. Joash killed the prophet of the LORD, so God allowed a small band of men from Syria to take out a huge host of Judah. Ultimately, Joash was assassinated.

We would do well to learn from the story of Joash.