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Joash
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Also Known As |
Jehoash |
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Name Means |
"The Lord has given." |
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Reference |
II Kings 11:1 - 12:21
II Chronicles 24:1-25 |
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Reign |
40 years (835 - 796 B.C.) |
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Theme |
We need to live for God and not
for men. |
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Lesson |
Though men and women
of God may greatly influence us, our faith and devotion must be to
God alone. |
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Key Verse |
"And Joash did that which
was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoida the priest."
II Chronicles 24:2 |
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Memory Verse |
"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and
forget not all his benefits." Psalm 103:2 |
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Application |
Christians, too, must be careful not to magnify their spiritual leaders, be it
pastors, teachers, or those who disciple them. For when these men fall, so
do those who revere them. God and God alone is to be magnified, revered, and
worshiped. |
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Spiritual Epitaph |
"Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because
ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you" (II Chronicles 24:20). |
Joash was saved from Athaliah's maniacal wrath by his older sister
Jehoshabeath and her husband, Jehoida the priest. When Joash was seven,
he was made king, and Athaliah was put to death. Joash would remain king
for the next 40 years. So long as Jehoida lived, Joash was at his best.
He set his heart on repairing the Temple that had long been neglected
by his predecessors and resolutely did so. However, the turning point in Joash's
reign (and his life) came when Jehoida died. Without the good priest's counsel,
Joash went astray. "Now after the death of Jehoida came the princes of Judah, and
made obeisance to the king ... And they left the house of the LORD God of their
fathers, and served groves and idols" (II Chronicles 24:17-18). In fact, so great
was Joash's rebellion, that he ordered the stoning death of Jehoida's son, Zechariah,
who had confronted him about his sin. Joash died from the hands of his own
servants who sought revenge for Zechariah's death.
It was clear that Joash's heart was devoted more to Jehoida than to God. When
Jehoida was no longer in the picture, the king's true allegiances emerged.
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This teaching was written by David Holt Boshart, Jr. and David Ettinger.
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