A. The plan is put into
practice.
1.
(1-7) Jehoiada and his plan to restore Joash to the throne of Judah.
In the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself, and
made a covenant with the captains of hundreds: Azariah the son of Jeroham,
Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of
Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri. And they went throughout Judah and
gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the chief fathers of
Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. Then all the assembly made a covenant with
the king in the house of God. And he said to them, “Behold, the king’s son
shall reign, as the Lord has said
of the sons of David. This is what you shall do: One-third of you
entering on the Sabbath, of the priests and the Levites, shall be keeping
watch over the doors; one-third shall be at the king’s house; and
one-third at the Gate of the Foundation. All the people shall be in the
courts of the house of the Lord. But
let no one come into the house of the Lord
except the priests and those of the Levites who serve. They may go in, for they
are holy; but all the people shall keep the watch of the Lord. And the Levites shall surround
the king on all sides, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever
comes into the house, let him be put to death. You are to be with the king when
he comes in and when he goes out.”
a. Jehoiada
strengthened himself, and made a covenant with the captains:
Jehoiada was a godly man who was concerned
with restoring the throne of David to the line of David, and taking it away
from this daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. He was also the husband of
Jehoshabeath, the woman who hid the young boy Joash and protected him from the
Athaliah’s massacre.
i. “The easiest thing for Jehoiada would have been to shut himself up in the temple, and leave things to take their course. The noblest thing was to come forth, and boldly confront the rampant, evil of his time.” (Meyer)
ii. “The world is full of
Athaliahs, and it is not befitting that the Jehoiadas should remain at their
holy rites and services if there is a paramount need for action in the world’s
battlefield, in the strife against wrong.” (Meyer)
b. Then all the assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God: From the place where the oath was made and the context of the oath, we learn that the worship of the true God was not dead in Judah. These captains could respond to their responsibility before the Lord.
c. Behold, the king’s son shall reign: This was a dramatic moment. For six years everyone believed there were no more surviving heirs of David’s royal line and there was no legitimate ruler to displace the wicked Athaliah. The secret had to be secure, because the king’s son would be immediately killed if his existence were revealed. The captains must have been shocked by the sight of this six-year old heir to the throne.
i. One reason Athaliah was able to
reign for six years was that no one knew
any alternative. Many people live under the reign of Satan because they don’t
really know there is a legitimate king ready to take reign in their life.
d. This
is what you shall do: Jehoiada had a plan to depose the
wicked Queen Athaliah and to replace her with the boy king. These leaders
needed to follow his plan carefully, and to do it on the Sabbath.
Jehoiada chose the Sabbath for the day of the coup, because that was the day
when the guards changed their shifts and they could assemble two groups of
guards at the temple at the same time without attracting attention.
i. “It was a weighty work he went about, and therefore he took the
wisest course, the fittest time; on the Sabbath, when the congregation met; and
in the temple, wither Athaliah and her courtiers seldom came.” (Trapp)
2.
(8-11) Joash is crowned king.
So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that
Jehoiada the priest commanded. And each man took his men who were to be on duty
on the Sabbath, with those who were going off duty on the Sabbath; for
Jehoiada the priest had not dismissed the divisions. And Jehoiada the priest
gave to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and small shields
which had belonged to King David, that were in the temple of God.
Then he set all the people, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the
right side of the temple to the left side of the temple, along by the altar and
by the temple, all around the king. And they brought out the king’s son, put
the crown on him, gave him the Testimony, and made him king. Then
Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and said, “Long live the king!”
a. So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded: This was an important plan that had to be followed carefully. Athaliah was a powerful enemy and many had a vested interest in her corrupt reign.
b. The
spears and the large and small shields which had belonged to King David, that were in the temple of God: These men were
equipped with weapons dating from the days of King David. It was fitting for
these soldiers who would set the heir of David’s royal line back on the throne
of Judah to use these weapons which had belonged to King David.
c. Then they brought out the king’s son: First the king’s son had to be revealed. No one could support him and he could not take his rightful throne until he was brought out before the people.
d. Put the crown on him: Next the king’s son had to be crowned. This was the public and official recognition of him as king.
e. Gave him the Testimony: The king’s son had to come with the Word of God. Joash appeared before the people holding the scrolls of God’s Word.
i. Deuteronomy 17:18 says that the king should have his own copy of the Scriptures. “This is the basis for the British custom of presenting the monarch with a copy of the Bible during the coronation service.” (Wiseman)
f. And made him king: The king’s son had to be received. He had the royal right to impose his reign, but he instead allowed his rule to be received.
g. Anointed him: The king’s son could never fulfill his office without a divine anointing.
h. And said, “Long live the king!” The king’s son received praise once he was recognized as their king.
i. We can and should follow the
same pattern in our reception of Jesus Christ, the true king’s son.
ii. “Is not the spiritual
condition of too many children of God represented by the condition of the
Temple, during the early years of the life of Joash? The king was within its
precincts, the rightful heir of the crown and defender of the worship of
Jehovah: but as a matter of fact, the crown was on the head of the usurper
Athaliah, who was exercising a cruel and sanguinary tyranny. The king was
limited to a chamber, and the majority of the priests, with all the people, had
not even heard of his existence. There needs to be an anointing, an enthroning,
a determination that He shall exercise his power over
the entire Temple of our Being.” (Meyer)
B. Athaliah’s demise.
1.
(12-13) Her distress upon discovering the plot against
her.
Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and
praising the king, she came to the people in the temple of the Lord. When she looked, there was the
king standing by his pillar at the entrance; and the leaders and the trumpeters
were by the king. All the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing
trumpets, also the singers with musical instruments, and those who led in
praise. So Athaliah tore her clothes and said, “Treason! Treason!”
a. When she looked, there was the king: For the usurper queen mother this was a horrifying sight. For six years she ruled because she believed there were no legitimate claimants to the throne of David. Now she sees that one son of Ahaziah – Joash, her own grandson – escaped her murderous intent.
b. All the people of the land were rejoicing: They were obviously weary of the wicked reign of Athaliah.
c. Treason! Treason! The charge was
not unfounded. This was treason against her government, but it was a
well-founded and godly treason against a tyrannical, wicked ruler.
2.
(14-15) She and her supporters are executed
And Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of hundreds
who were set over the army, and said to them, “Take her outside under guard,
and slay with the sword whoever follows her.” For the priest had said, “Do not
kill her in the house of the Lord.”
So they seized her; and she went by way of the entrance of the Horse Gate into
the king’s house, and they killed her there.
a. Take her outside under guard, and slay with the sword whoever follows her: This was both righteous and prudent. It was a just sentence against this woman who had murdered so many, and prudent precautions were taken so she could not mount a resistance.
b. Do not kill her in the house of the Lord: As a priest, Jehoiada had a great concern for the sanctity and reputation of the temple. Yet in the place where horses entered, they killed her there.
i. “Her own treason against the true and abiding King of the nation was defeated. Thus, sooner or later, and in ways equally dramatic, the moment arrives when those who plot and plan against Heaven and righteousness, find themselves looking at the evidences of the triumph of God and of goodness over all their wickedness.” (Morgan)
C. The reforms of Jehoiada
the priest.
1.
(16-17) Jehoiada makes a covenant.
Then Jehoiada made a covenant between himself, the people,
and the king, that they should be the Lord’s people. And all the people went to
the temple of Baal, and tore it down. They broke in pieces its altars and
images, and killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars.
a. A covenant between himself, the people, and the king: This shows that God intends that both kings and citizens have mutual obligations towards the other. Neither have absolute rights over or against the other.
i. “Along with Jehoiada’s political revolution came a
corresponding religious revival – that king, priest, and citizenry would
together ‘be the Lord’s people.’”
(Payne)
ii. “The climax is not Joash’s coronation but a covenant renewing
the nation’s relationship with God.” (Selman)
b. That they should be the Lord’s people: The covenant was between the Lord and the king and the people. They re-committed themselves to honor, obey, and serve God.
c. And all the people went to the temple of Baal, and tore it down: In 2 Kings 10 Jehu supervised the destruction of the temple of Baal in Samaria. Here the temple of Baal in Jerusalem was destroyed, and appropriately destroyed by the people.
i. They didn’t stop at destroying the building itself; they went on to destroy both the sacred objects dedicated to Baal and to kill Mattan the priest of Baal. “The execution of ‘Mattan the priest of Baal’ carried out the requirement of God’s Word directed against those who should lead others into false religion (Deuteronomy 13:5-10).” (Payne)
2.
(18-21) Jehoiada restores the proper plans of worship and service.
Also Jehoiada appointed the oversight of the house of the Lord to the hand of the priests, the
Levites, whom David had assigned in the house of the Lord, to offer the burnt offerings of the Lord, as it is written in the
Law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, as it was established by
David. And he set the gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord, so that no one who was in
any way unclean should enter. Then he took the captains of hundreds, the
nobles, the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and
brought the king down from the house of the Lord;
and they went through the Upper Gate to the king’s house, and set the king on
the throne of the kingdom. So all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city
was quiet, for they had slain Athaliah with the sword.
a. Whom David had assigned . . . as it is written in the Law of Moses: The priest Jehoiada was careful to reinstitute these practices and customs according to Biblical patterns, based on what God had revealed to David and Moses.
i. So that no one
who was in any way unclean should enter: “Oh that we also had store
of such porters, to keep out the unclean from holy ordinances!” (Trapp)
b. And set the king on the throne of the kingdom: After more than six dark years, now the rightful king of Judah once again ruled over his grateful people. No wonder, the people of the land rejoiced.
i. “The people’s rejoicing augmented the joy of temple
worship, and sounded a note unheard since the days of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles
20:27). That the city was quiet was a
sign of God’s blessing, which often followed special acts of faith and obedience
(cf. 1 Chronicles 4:40; 22:9; 2
Chronicles 13:23; 14:4-5; 20:30).” (Selman)
© 2006 David Guzik - No
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