Woe to thee O land when thy king

“Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child” Ecclesiastes 10. 16 “Better is a poor and a wise youth than an old and foolish king, who no longer knew how to take advice. ” Ecclesiastes 4. 13

“Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses, nor did any like him arise after him. ” 2 Kings 23. 25

Background

ISRAEL JUDAH David Omri Ahab Jehoshaphat Jehoram Ahaziah Joash Athaliah Jezebel Ahazariah Jehoram

1. Jehosheba: ‘sworn of the Lord’ 2. A caring nurse 3. Jehoiada: ‘known of the Lord’

“So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been put to death with the sword at the king’s house. Jehoash was seven years old when he began to reign” 2 Kings 11. 20 -21

The Rise and Fall of Joash 2 Kings 12; 2 Chronicles 24

“And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. ” 2 Chronicles 24. 2 “And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord regularly all the days of Jehoiada. ” 2 Chronicles 24. 14

Joash after Jehoiada

“Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. ” 2 Chronicles 24. 17 -18

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers” Psalms 1. 1

“Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute, ’ so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you it will be required of this generation. ”

Practical Application

Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, Before the difficult days come, And the years draw near when you say, “I have no pleasure in them”: Ecclesiastes 12. 1

1. Test Yourself. (2 Cor 13. 5) 2. Check Your Pride at the Door. (Proverbs 16. 18; 1 Cor 10. 12) 3. Seek Wise Counsel. (Proverbs 12. 15; 24. 6) 4. Fill Your Life with God’s Word. (Psm 119. 9 -11)

For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. ” But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls. Hebrews 10. 36 -39