2 Chronicles 21&22
The Sins of the Fathers
In our study today we read that a decision Jehoshaphat made based on what seemed to be wisdom nearly destroyed the line of David from which the Messiah, Jesus will come. It was a common practice for kings to enter into alliances with other nations by marriage. In this case Jehoshaphat’s son, Jehoram, married the daughter of King Ahab of Israel. Ahab’s wife, Jezebel, was the daughter of Ethbaal, the king of Tyre and Sidon. Ethbaal was a priest of Astarte and his brother, Phelles was king, but Ethbaal killed Phelles and seized the throne. In Chapter 21 we see Jehoram follows in Grandpa’s footsteps.
From her family background, Jezebel promoted Astarte and Baal worship in Israel and tried to kill all the prophets of God. Her daughter Athaliah tries to do the same to Judah. We are told that Athaliah is the granddaughter of Omri. Omri was a commander in the army of the ten tribes of Israel. When the king of Israel was killed by Zimri, also a commander in the army, Zimri became king. The people, however, wanted Omri to be king and so a civil war broke out that went on for several years. When Zimri died, Omri became king.
Omri made a treaty with Damascus and probably gave away the city of Ramoth-gilead in the deal and allowed a Syrian embassy into Samaria. He also was the one who arranged the marriage of his son Ahab to Jezebel in order to form a marriage alliance between Israel and Tyre and Sidon. God was not pleased with Omri and mentions him in Micah 6:16. In fact it would be smart to read all of Micah 6.
It is clear, the sins of the father have been passed down to the children and grandchildren. 1 Kings 16:25&26 makes it clear that not only did the family suffer but also the nation. God sent, among others, the prophet Micah to warn of the coming fall of Israel and later Judah because they followed the “wisdom” of the world based on the sins of the fathers.
Where do you get your wisdom for the decisions you make? Today with the media, Google, Facebook, endless channels on television, we are bombarded with the world’s wisdom. I believe the world’s wisdom is very hazardous to the spiritual health of a believer. The Bible makes it clear that Christians have an enemy who will clearly use deceit to destroy our faith and trip us up in our walk with our Lord.
Psalms 120 to 134 are known as the Songs of Ascents. These Psalms describe a process of growing in our walk with the Lord. The journey begins when the sojourner realizes he is surrounded by deceit and lies so he begins his journey to the House of the Lord.
In Psalm 121 he looks to the mountains and asks, where does his help come from? Does it come from the “high places” of idol worship, Kings palaces, authorities, or experts? He realizes that his help must come from the Lord. What was true for him is true for us today. We need to get our wisdom from our Lord who has given us the Word of God and the Holy Spirit.
In 1 Corinthians 1&2 Paul speaks of the wisdom of God that is available to us and compares it to the wisdom of the world. I believe it is important that we study the Word of God even if we have to limit our time on social media. Now that’s a scary thought!
As we study the Word of God we are hiding God’s Word in our Heart and giving the Holy Spirit the resources to draw from when a situation comes up where we need wisdom. We all have wisdom stored up that we draw from, but is it the wisdom of God or the wisdom of the world handed down to us from who knows where? Today’s study shows us just how bad things can get by following worldly wisdom that has been passed from one generation to another.
Make the Lord the source of your wisdom.
May God bless and guide you in your study.
Pastor Dave.