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May 24, Sunday
Reading B144 — 2 Chron. 19 — Jehoshaphat’s Rebuke Audio: 2 Chron. 19 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Responding to Rebuke — King Jehoshaphat was a lot like most of us: his basic desire and intention was to please and serve God, but he made mistakes in judgment. When he returned from his tragic involvement with King Ahab, he was rebuked by the prophet Jehu for his political alignment with Israel. How would he respond to his failure and scolding? Would he decide that it was too hard to try to please God, and then turn away from Him? No, “he went out again among the people … and brought them back to the LORD” (v. 4). He went back to doing what he knew was right. That is how we ought to respond to our failures, too. We should confess and forsake our sin and come back to the primary purpose of our lives: pleasing God. Jehu told Jehoshaphat, whose name means “Yahweh judges,” that “wrath has gone out against you from the LORD” (v. 2), although we are not told what kind of punishment resulted. All we know is that the king responded in obedience, doing what he knew would please God. God is not hesitant to convict us of sin. Neither is He slow in forgiving us. We should be grateful that we serve a God of mercy and love.
May 25, Monday
Reading B145 — 2 Chron. 20 — God Fights for Judah Audio: 2 Chron. 20 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Seeking and Watching God — Most of this chapter’s contents is found only in 2 Chronicles, ancient information collected and shared by priests in Ezra’s day. Judah was faced with the very serious problem of three southeastern nations joining forces to fight against them. Judah’s king was told, “A great multitude is coming against you … Then Jehoshaphat was afraid…” (vv. 2-3). Great threats and great fears seem to go together naturally. But Jehoshaphat’s active response was perfect: He “set his face to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah” (v. 3). He knew where to go for help. He brought the people together at the temple and prayed, reminding God about what He had done in the past for His people and asking Him to do it again. In a great statement of humility and dependence, Jehoshaphat prayed, “we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (v. 12). We can’t but You can. What a great example for us! We need to recognize our weaknesses and rely on His power, wisdom, and love. Judah’s first great step in this story was to seek the Lord. God then gave them the second great step, which was to watch Him work. They were to march out against this overwhelming enemy with the worship team leading the way. Only God would have ordered that kind of approach. Through His prophet, God said, “You will not need to fight in this battle … see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf” (v. 17). What a lesson that is for us! Seek the Lord in our troubles and watch Him work for us!
May 26, Tuesday
Reading B146 — 2 Chron. 21 — Tragic Jehoram Audio: 2 Chron. 21 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Sucked into Shame — This was a tragic chapter in the history of Judah. It began with godly Jehoshaphat’s choice of Jehoram to follow him as king because he was his firstborn son (v. 3), instead of choosing from his other sons “who were better” (v. 13). One great emphasis in this chapter was the powerful negative influence of Israel’s King Ahab. In an earlier unwise decision, Jehoshaphat agreed to a marriage alliance by allowing his son, Jehoram, to be married to Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. Her influence on Jehoram was great: “he walked in the way of the kings of Israel … for the daughter of Ahab was his wife” (v. 6). Becoming king, Jehoram showed his true evil character by killing his brothers and leading Judah into the spiritual whoredom of idolatry. A second emphasis in today’s reading was the tragic and shameful end of Jehoram’s life after only eight years of being king: “… he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor … he departed with no one’s regret. They buried him … but not in the tombs of the kings” (vv. 19-20). These two lessons, the power of sin’s influence and the shame of its end, should be heeded by us today as well. Don’t partner with sinful people! Paul later warned about this danger: “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness?” (2 Cor. 6:14). Don’t end in shame by being sucked into sinful ways! On the other hand, one who “believes in him will not be put to shame” (1 Pet. 2:6).
May 27, Wednesday
Reading B147 — 2 Chron. 22 — From Ahaziah to Athaliah Audio: 2 Chron. 22 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Yahweh is Exalted — It is easy to get confused about ancient people named Jehoram, which means “Yahweh is exalted.” We read yesterday about the eight-year reign of Jehoram, the king of Judah and son of Jehoshaphat, who did not exalt Yahweh. Today, we see that the son of Israel’s King Ahab was also named Jehoram or Joram (vv. 5-6), who did not exalt Yahweh as well. Ahaziah, the son of Judah’s King Jehoram, reigned only one year (v. 2) because of God’s judgment that related to his close association with evil Ahab’s son, Jehoram (v. 7). It might seem unkind of God to punish the kings of Judah for making alliances and showing concern for the kings of Israel, but it was God’s will for these tribes to be separated because the north had rejected Yahweh. Israel was a powerful evil influence on Judah for many years. After King Ahaziah was killed in the north, his wicked mother, Athaliah, seized Judah’s throne for six years, killing all the royal family that might threaten her reign. God arranged His own plan, however, that would continue the promised line of David, when Ahaziah’s sister was able to hide the infant, Joash, in the temple grounds because she was also the wife of Jehoiada, the priest. Jehoiada becomes the hero in the continuing story, as he teaches and guides God’s chosen and preserved seven-year-old king, Joash. God executes His will for His people, which extends even to us, almost three thousand years later. He is exalted.
May 28, Thursday
Reading B148 — 2 Chron. 23 — From Athaliah to Joash (A) Audio: 2 Chron. 23 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Contrasting Leadership — There is a great contrast here between the leadership of godly Jehoiada and wicked Athaliah. The infant, Joash, was raised on the temple grounds by the wife of the high priest, Jehoiada. This high priest was a high-quality man of exceptional leadership. When Joash was only seven years old, Jehoiada made a brave move: “Jehoiada took courage and entered into a covenant with the commanders … gathered the Levites … and the heads of fathers’ houses of Israel, and … made a covenant with the king” (vv. 1-2). He also “made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they should be the LORD’s people” (v. 16). This high priest led the new king and all the people toward the Lord, and he would have a very strong godly influence on Judah until Jehoiada died. Athaliah, on the other hand, was an ungodly, selfish, and brutal leader. She did not have the support of the people like Jehoiada had. She had no idea that a coup against her was forming. There is an interesting contrast here about sound: “When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the LORD to the people” (v. 12). Then, after she was put to death, “all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet” (v. 21). It went from a wicked to godly rule, and from city noise to quiet. Please pray for the leader of your country today, and for him to listen to and follow the guidance of wise and godly advisors.
May 29, Friday—————————ACCOUNTABILITY TIME!
Reading B149 — Obadiah 1 — Judgment Against Edom Audio: Obadiah 1 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Pride and Gloating — Obadiah brought God’s message of judgment to Edom, the nation that descended from Jacob’s brother, Esau. Two major sins pointed out by God in Obadiah’s prophecy were Edom’s pride and their hostile attitude toward God’s people. They lived in dug-out caves in the high mountains southeast of Israel where they felt very secure from harm, but God said, “The pride of your heart has deceived you” (v. 3). Pride is deceiving partly because it is self-focused, not seeing the bigger picture of what is true. We need to be careful about pride because it is precarious. It is dangerous to depend entirely on oneself. We are made by God to be dependent on Him, not on ourselves. Prov. 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Check your pride! Edom said, “Who will bring me down…?” (Obad. 1:3), but God answered, “I will bring you down” (v. 4). God judges pride. The second sin of Edom was their unsympathetic posture toward Israel: “do not gloat over the day of your brother in the day of his misfortune … do not gloat over his disaster” (vv. 12-13). Obadiah’s vision looked ahead to the time of Judah’s punishment through invading Babylon, when Edom not only failed to help their “brothers,” but they handed over escaping survivors to the enemy (v. 14). Gloating over the misfortunes of others continues to be a temptation today. In some ways, we are as guilty as they are. Remember Jesus’ response to the scribes and Pharisees who brought the adulterous woman to Him: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7).
ACCOUNTABILITY TIME! If you are up to date in your reading as of today,
please let me know at accbibleread@gmail.com.
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May 30, Saturday——————-ACCOUNTABILITY REMINDER
Reading B150 — Ps. 82-83 — The God of “gods” Audio: Psalm 82-83 (ESV)
An audio recording of the following comments is available below:
Punishing “gods” — There is some question about two verses in Psalm 82, where “God … in the midst of the gods … holds judgment … [saying] ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High’” (vv. 1, 6). Who are these “gods”? The rest of the psalm makes it sound like these were human leaders of nations surrounding Israel, like Edom (v. 6). Jesus quoted this verse after the Jewish leaders violently objected to His statement that “I and the Father are one,” rightly thinking that He was claiming to be God (John 10:30-34). If Gentile kings could be called “gods,” certainly Jesus could be called the unique Son of God. Psalm 84 calls for judgment on those unbelieving nearby nations, but it adds the evangelistic desire to bring them to salvation. They needed to be brought to shame “that they may seek your name, O LORD” (v. 16), and “that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High” (v. 18). God’s judgment is not only punishment but also a call to repentance.
ACCOUNTABILITY REMINDER. If you are up to date in your reading as of today,
but did not report yesterday, please let me know at accbibleread@gmail.com.
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