Reading: 2 Chronicles 25-27, Psalm 77
Today we read about three generations of the kings of Judah, all of whom are considered “good” in the history of the house of David. In the book of Chronicles there are two long stretches of good kings. The first was the reigns of Asa and Jehoshaphat, which ended disastrously with the marriage of Jehoshaphat’s son to the daughter of Ahab, resulting in the reign of Jehoram and his wife Athaliah. The second is these three kings, though we will see they were not equal to the task set before them either, and next king will be among the worst Judah ever had.
Yesterday’s reading began with the murder of Joash by his own servants. He had turned to idol worship towards the end of his reign, and had a prophet stoned to death for calling him out on it. So that wasn’t such a good ending. His son Amaziah is put on the throne, and he avenges his father, but in keeping with the books of Moses. Against the tradition of the day, Amaziah did not put the entire families of those who betrayed his father to death, because he believed the books of Moses that each one shall die for his own sins. Then he assembles the army and decides to pad his numbers by hiring mercenaries from Israel. When a prophet shows up and says this is a bad idea, Amaziah actually listens to him and sends them home. Then he does and smites the Edomites a good one. This seems promising! Then Amaziah takes the gods of the Edomites he just smote and starts worshiping them.
Okay, here is a guy who had all the right pieces. Trying to obey the books of Moses. Willing to repent when he got it wrong. Goes out to fight the enemies of God’s people, God’s way. And then he decides to worship the gods of his defeated enemies. Not brilliant. He then extends his brilliance by getting tangled up with the king of Israel and winds up in a fight he can’t win. His reign ends ignominiously as he flees a revolt, finally getting tracked down and killed in a nearby town. And this is called one of the good kings.
Next up is Uzziah, or Azariah as he is named in Kings. Uzziah also starts off really strong. He sets his heart to seek God. He accepts teaching from the prophets. He fights the enemies of Judah. He cares for the people and their welfare. He thinks ahead for the supply and defense of Jerusalem. Really, this guy seems to get it. And then, at the peak of his power, he oversteps his authority by offering incense in the Temple. May not seem like a big deal, especially considering the clues the Chronicler has been dropping about how the priesthood of Aaron is coming to an end. But in the context of the ancient world this was a really big deal. One of the standard claims of ancient kings was that on their ascension they were inhabited by the gods themselves. Entering the Temple and offering incense could be seen as a way to identify oneself with God. The priests are having none of it, and God isn’t either, as he strikes Uzziah with leprosy for his hubris. As a leper he is basically removed from office as king until his death, and his son Jotham takes over the kingdom.
Jotham gets a really good report in Chronicles, at least during his own reign. He is said to have ordered all his way before God. Jotham doesn’t get caught up in attempted alliances with Israel, hiring foreign mercenaries, or taking on priestly roles he shouldn’t. In fact, Chronicles says nothing bad about Jotham at all. Except for what it doesn’t say, and what it says about his son. Up to here, we’ve had a long string of irregular successions. Joash grows up hidden in the Temple, then is murdered. Amaziah dies while fleeing a revolt. Uzziah is a leper and must live apart while his son reigns. Jotham is the first king to pass the throne to his son in a fairly regular manner for a very long time in Judah. One might expect him to have taught his son well.
Unfortunately, this is not the case at all. As we will see in the opening lines of tomorrow’s reading, the next king is not the paragon that one might hope for. The next ruler the Chronicler tells us about is a nasty character and one of Judah’s worst kings, by the name of Ahaz.