2 Chronicles 15 "Obed's Prophecy - Part 1"

“They entered into the covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and soul.” (v.12)

What brought about this covenant, was a Word from the Spirit of God given to the prophet Oded for the ears of Asa saying, “The LORD is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; if you forsake Him, He will forsake you” (v.2).

So when Asa heard these words, he began to make reforms, one of which was a national covenant, to “seek the LORD”, the God of their fathers and turn from their idolatrous ways. And whoever would not seek the LORD God of Israel was to be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman (v.13). Pretty serious stuff, but as a result of all of Asa’s reforms and his heart being right toward God, there was no more war for 25 years.

A covenant is a spiritual agreement and was taken very seriously in Asa’s day. It could be taken between a leader and his people, between two individuals, or between man and God. Covenants made by men were more like resolutions or endeavors, and were more often than not, broken eventually. But, a covenant made by God to man is permanent, founded upon the oath and promise of God.

Therefore, while Asa sought the LORD, the LORD was with him and peace prevailed in the nation, as He promised.

The Truth

“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

2 Chronicles 14 "We Rest On You"

And Asa cried out to the LORD, and said. “LORD, it is nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power: help us, O LORD God, for we rest on You, and in Your name we go out against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God: do not let man prevail against You.” (v.11)

Here in chapter 14 Asa, son of Abijah, now reigns in Judah and did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God (v.2). “He removed the foreign altars and high places, tore down the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherim, and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to observe the law and the commandment” (vv.3-4). He built fortified cities in Judah, because the land was undisturbed, and the Lord had given him rest (v.6). Then, after 10 years of rest, Zerah the Ethiopian king, came to make war against Asa with an army of a million men and 300 chariots at Mareshah. So Asa went out to meet him in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah outnumbered two to one (vv.8 -10).

The odds against Asa were enormous. There were a million men in arms against him, beside three hundred chariots. It seemed impossible to hold his own against that vast a multitude. There were no allies who would come to his aid: his only hope therefore was in God. To Asa’s credit, he did not tremble before the power of the Ethiopian king, nor see the ensuing battle as hopeless. He called on the name of Jehovah for help, recognizing His power, His strength - then went out in His name against Zerah, resting on the LORD.

We too can be calm when everything seems to be going against us, by resting on the LORD. Bring Him between yourself and whatever trouble you are facing, and our God, Jehovah of Hosts, can summon unexpected reinforcements at any moment to the aid of His people. Believe that He is there between you and your difficulty, and what baffles you will flee before Him, as a million men did before Asa (v.12).

The Truth

“Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.” (Proverbs 29:25)

2 Chronicles 13 "God Hears our Cry"

When Judah turned around, behold, they were attacked both front and rear; so Judah cried to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets.” (v.14)

Here in chapter 13, Abijah king of Judah is about to go to war with Jeroboam king of the 10 northern tribes. Outnumbered two to one, Abijah tries to intimidate Jeroboam and all of Israel against fighting by saying, the LORD is with him, and not them…. for two reasons.

First, Abijah is a descendant of David (v.5), Jeroboam is not (v.6) and second, Abijah and his people still worship Jehovah (v.10), while Jeroboam kicked out the priests and the Levites, and made golden calves to worship (vv. 8-9). Therefore Abijah tells Jeroboam, you don’t stand a chance, because you will be fighting against God, who is for us (v.12).

The intimidation did not work and Jeroboam caused an ambush from behind Abijah (v.13). Judah, now surrounded both in front and behind cried out to the LORD, and the priests sounded the trumpets (v.14). Then as the men of Judah gave a great shout, it happened that God struck both Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah (v.15), fulfilling the prophecy of Ahijah in 1 Kings 14:14. 

Interestingly enough, Abijiah was not walking with the Lord at this time. But, this did not stop the promises of God. He remains true, even if every man is a liar (Romans 3:4). Yet here, in a moment of desperation, Abijah cried out to the Lord and his prayer was answered.

Therefore, we can take hope that our prayers will be answered if we humbly and sincerely call upon His name.

The Truth

“In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.” (Psalm 18:6)

 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” (Psalm 145:18)

2 Chronicles 12 "Seek the Lord"

Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, ‘You have forsaken Me, so I also have forsaken you to Shishak.’ ” (v.5)

From the time Rehoboam became king, he spent the majority of his rule preparing for war against the other 10 tribes of Israel. He built cities of defense in Judah, fortified them with strongholds, put captains in them, and stores of food, oil, and wine. In every city he put shields and spears making them very strong, and he had Judah and Benjamin on his side as well. (2 Chronicles 11:5-13). However, he had become so focused on preparing for an attack from the outside, he neglected to defend from one within his own countrymen’s hearts. Therefore, slowly over five years, the nation fell away from God and the “covenant obedience” (v.1).

1 Kings tells us that, Judah had built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and wooden images. That they practiced pagan worship, immoral religious sexual rituals, and did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel (vv.22-24). Now, because Rehoboam had allowed the nation to stray from God's covenant, He allowed Judah to be defeated in battle by Shishak, king of Egypt (12:1-2). However, because Rehoboam humbled himself and said, "The Lord is righteous", God's wrath was not poured out on Jerusalem (v. 6).

Just as God taught Rehoboam a humbling lesson by allowing him to be defeated in battle and making him watch foreigners cart away some of the treasures from Solomon's temple, so he teaches us through discipline as well when we go astray. Hopefully, we won’t have to learn our lessons by seeing something of value stripped away from us. Therefore, repent, seek the Lord, put Him first, defend your soul from evil - then He will not forsake you, nor turn you over to your own folly.  

The Truth

“Those who know Your name trust in You, for You, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek You.” (Psalm 9:10)

2 Chronicles 11 "Do Not Fight Against Family"

‘Thus says the Lord, “You shall not go up or fight against your relatives; return every man to his house, for this thing is from Me.” ’ (v. 4)

Here in chapter 11 we see Rehoboam ready to go to war against his own brethren to reunite the kingdom through force. But God speaks through the prophet Shemaiah to restrain Rehoboam’s hand from it, and to his credit, he listened. 

So what should we take from these last two chapters then? In chapter 10 the Lord allowed the division of Israel, but here in chapter 11 He seems to be against its unification. I’m sure division is never God’s first or best choice, just as I am also sure that bringing about a desired result through force is not either. However, He can work in our lives through subtraction or separation, if we allow Him to guide the way.

Family infighting, husband and wife disagreements, scriptural interpretation, differences of opinion from money to politics, can all lead to a battle against someone we love and create division. But, instead of going to war against a family member, we should pull back, remove ourselves from the situation, find a quite place and seek God’s will - for all things come through His hand to us for our learning.

Sometimes our lives need to be purged of junk, like cleaning out a closet. Therefore, let the Lord add to your life by subtracting the junk from it. You've probably been at war long enough.

The Truth

“Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.” (2 Corinthians 13:11)

2 Chronicles 10 "The Division of Israel"

When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: “What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse’s son? To your tents, Israel! Look after your own house, David!” So all the Israelites went home. But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them. (vv.16-17)

In 1 Kings 11, the prophet Ahijah predicted that the kingdom would split. Here in our text we see the fulfillment of that prophecy. The seeds of this situation lay in discontent with taxation and forced labor, a result of decades of building projects.

Here in chapter 10, Jeroboam led a delegation asking Rehoboam, the new king, to take it easier on the people. Rehoboam wisely asked for a delay to seek counsel, but then foolishly took the wrong advice. Jeroboam then led a revolt in which the majority of the tribes broke away and followed him. From this point on the ten northern tribes would be called Israel, while the two remaining tribes, Benjamin and Judah, would now be called the nation of Judah.

Today we still see denominational divisions, church splits, doctrinal differences, but when the Lord looks at His church, He sees us all as one people, one church, one body – His. And even though in our text God’s people went in two different directions, and formed two different nations, He still saw both nations as “Israel”, because He did not acknowledge their division.

Oh that we would all look to the One who unites us in Spirit and in Truth and not to those who would cause division, for ultimately we answer to Him.

The Truth

 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one - I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” (John 17:20-23)