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- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
2 Chron. 27
I don’t see where King Jotham succumbed to his pride as his fathers before him did. There is no mention of his having a divided heart. In fact, the Chronicler specifically states, “he did not waver in obeying the LORD his God.” (2 Chron. 27:6b). Curious, then, that he had a relatively short life and reign. No mention of how he died, either. Honestly, something about this record of his life seems rather insignificant to me. Perhaps that has something to do with the Chronicler’s remark that, though Jotham did not defy God like his fathers, the people remained corrupt. There is oddly no mention of anything this unwaveringly obedient king did to turn the people back to their God. Maybe that’s why it seems his life didn’t matter as much as it could have.
2 Chron. 23, 2 Kings 16
Ahaz was the antithesis of his father, Jotham. The Chronicler says he, “threw off restraint in Judah and was unfaithful to the LORD.” (2 Chron. 28:19b). What a commentary! Too bad Jotham didn’t put as much effort into turning people to God as Ahaz put into turning them away. He completely dismantled the temple set-up and turned to anything and everything BUT God for help. Both men reigned for sixteen years, but Ahaz seems to have had a bigger impact.
In Jotham’s defense, I believe it is far easier to influence people negatively than it is positively with regard to God. All the more reason, though, to live our lives actively rather than passively. I’m afraid I am guilty of being far too passive with living my faith. As Jesus said, God didn’t light a lamp in me for me to hide it under a basket. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not saying that Christians need to be standing on the street corners thumping their Bibles. But I, for one, need to be far more willing to come out from under my basket and make myself uncomfortable for the sake of others.
2 Kings 17
When God established His people, Israel, He set them up to be different than the other nations. Thus, many of the things in the Law and their methods of worship were in direct contrast to the things of those nations. God was showing the world through His people that He is not like other so-called gods. He is different. When I read about the other nations worship practices, practices that God’s people took up, I see statements like, “every high hill”, “every green tree”, “every street corner“, and “all the stars in the sky”. In contrast, God is all about “one”. He had one nation, one city, one temple, one altar. There was one way to worship God because there is only one God and only one way for mankind to be reconciled to Him.