Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

In the second year that Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, was king of Israel, Amaziah became king of Judah. He was twenty-five when he became king and reigned twenty-nine years. He did was what right in the sight of the Lord, but not like David – who was whole-hearted. Amaziah didn’t remove the high places and people still sacrificed and burnt incense there.

Amaziah took the throne and immediately killed the conspirators who had murdered his father. But he only killed the conspirators, not the rest of their families. Later he attacked Edom and seized Sela, renaming it Joktheel. He had killed ten thousand Edomites. He was riding a high. So he demanded that Jehoash come fight him. Jehoash told him that his victory was fine and dandy, but that he was no match for Israel so stay home. Amaziah ignored that and they came together at Beth Shemesh to do battle. Judah was defeated and ran away. Amaziah was captured by Jehoash. Jehoash then went to Jerusalem, plundered the city, broke down part of the wall, plundered the Temple, took hostages, left Amaziah, and returned to Samaria. He died there and his son Jeroboam took the throne.

Amaziah lived for another fifteen years, but his people conspired against him and he fled to Lachish. They followed him and killed him there. But they did take him back to Jerusalem and bury him in the City of David. The people then took his son Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father. He reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. He was a godly king, but he refused to deal with the high places. The people continued to sin sacrificing and burning incense there. Azariah ended up afflicted with leprosy (because of pride – 2 Chronicles 26:16-21) and lived in a separate house until he died. His son Jotham judged the people during this time, ruling in all bit name. When Azariah died (at about sixty-eight years old), Jotham formally took the throne. [Note: as with many of these kings, there is a lot more to this story in Chronicles.]

In Israel, Jeroboam reigned for forty-one years. He worshipped the golden calves. He also restored the border of Israel – as prophesied by Jonah, the son of Amittai, who was from Gath Hepher. Israel was in sad shape and no one was around to help them. But God had not said He would wipe them out, so He used Jeroboam to save Israel. Jeroboam recovered Damascus and Hamath. He helped stabilize the country because of God’s favour. Then he died and his son Zechariah reigned in his place.

“In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria for six months.” (2 Kings 15:8)

Zechariah was an evil man, the son of Jeroboam II (2 Kings 14:29). He did evil as his ancestors had done. He also still worshipped the golden calves. Shallum the son of Jabesh killed him and seized the throne. Zechariah was the fourth son of Jehu (4th generation) to sit the throne of Israel – just as the Lord had prophesied.

Shallum became king and he ruled for a month. Menahem, son of Gadi, went from Tirzah to Samaria and killed Shallum. Menahem ruled in his place, having taken the throne in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah of Judah. From Tirzah he attached Tiphsah and all its territory. Tiphsah refused to surrender, so he attacked and killed mercilessly. He reigned for ten years. He was an ungodly man and also refused to stop worshipping the calves of Jeroboam I. He was also the fourth king Israel had had in seven months. Imagine the turmoil that must have been present in the country.

During Menahem’s rule, Pul the king of Assyria came against him. Now Pul ruled from Nineveh. Jonah had already gone there to prophesy and cause their repentance – that happened during the reign of Jeroboam II, Zechariah’s father. Chronicles tells us that God stirred up the heart of Pul to come against Israel. Was Pul then the ruler who repented at Ninevah? We don’t know, but it is an interesting idea. Menahem extracted money from Israel, squeezing the rich people, and gave it to Pul. Because of this bribe, Pul went back to Assyria. Menahem died and his son Pekahiah took the throne in the fiftieth year of Azariah, king of Judah.

Pekahiah reigned two years. He was ungodly and also did not stop worshipping the calves of Jeroboam I. Pekah, son of Remaliah, who was an officer of Pekahiah, conspired against him and killed Pekahiah. Pekah ruled for about twenty years. He did not stop worshipping the calves either. Tilgath-Pileser of Assyria attacked Israel during that time and took a lot of territory from Israel. In the twentieth year of Jotham, king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah conspired against and killed Pekah. Hoshea took the throne of Israel.

Meanwhile in Judah, in the second year of Pekah on the throne of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah (Amaziah) took the throne of Judah. This was the same year that Isaiah the prophet had the vision of Isaiah 6:1. [A note on these dates: they tend to round years off, so any year where a king ruled six months was rounded up to a full year. That’s how Pekah started rule in Amaziah’s last year of rule, but Jotham reigned in the second year of Pekah’s rule. Rounding.]

Jotham was twenty-five when he became king and reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He was a godly man and walked in the ways of his father Amaziah. But he did not remove the high places and people still sacrificed and burnt incense there. He added to the Temple, building the Upper Gate. During his reign Pekah, king of Israel and Rezin, king of Syria, started to harass Judah. Israel and Syria were allies and friends now. After sixteen years, Jotham died, was buried in the City of David, and his son Ahaz took the throne.

Summary

Key Players: God, Amaziah, Jeroboam II, Pekah, Jotham

Key Themes: Conspiracy, Idolatry, Mercy

Key Verse(s): 2 Kings 14:1-4, 17-20, 26-27; 15:1-4, 8-10, 13-14, 17-18, 23-25, 27-28, 32-35