READING FOR NOVEMBER 6, 2025: 2 CHRONICLES 23, JAMES 3, PSALM 118:1-9 2 CHRONICLES 23 Does anything strike you as strange in verse 1? “Now in the seventh year, Jehoiada gathered his courage, and took captains of hundreds: Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Johanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, and they entered into a covenant with him.” The seventh year means the seventh year of the murderess Queen Athaliah’s reign in Judah. Jehoiada was a priest and the husband of the heroine Jehoshabeath who rescued the child Joash and hid him from Athaliah. Being married to such a woman of courage, it’s not surprising that by the seventh year this apparently godly man gathered up courage to address a situation where someone not part of the line of David had seized the throne contrary to the God’s covenant with David. Likely Jehoshabeath gently urged him on.
All this is understandable and admirable. The questionable part at first and second glance is the refence to Azariah the son of Jeroham as being one of the captains of who entered into a covenant with Jehoiada. We know that Azariah, the King of Judah who preceded the wicked Athaliah, was dead by now. His father was not Jeroham, though, but Jehoram. If no one else was not initially tricked by this coincidental similarity, this writer will feel more stupid than he normally does. Jesus rightly said in Matthew 5:18 that every stroke of the pen is important in God’s Word. Read carefully.
Jehoiada and his team then won over all the leaders of both Judah and Israel to the following cause: “Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as the Lord has spoken concerning the sons of David” (vs.3). Then he orchestrated a coup involving all the captains and the aforementioned leaders, placing them in strategic places around the Temple. At the opportune moment, they released Joash, the rightful heir, from hiding, and hailed him as their new King: “Long live the King” (vs. 11).
When Athaliah saw Joash wearing the crown and heard the trumpets and the people’s praise, she tore her clothes in distress. Ironically, she shouted “conspiracy” or “treason” (depending on the translation) even though she gained authority through the greatest possible act of ille- gality. Are the most devious today ever the loudest complainers about how everyone is unfair to them? Remember that Jesus, who was sinless, suffered the most unfair treatment of anyone in history yet remained silent (Mark 14:61). He did this because of His love for us.
As Athaliah had gained the throne, through execution, she lost it. Jehoiada rode this mo- mentum by tearing down all the idols (repentance) and reestablishing all of the practices of the law (obedience). Repentance and obedience always lead to joy and wellbeing: “So all of the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was at rest.” (vs. 21).
READING FOR NOVEMBER 6, 2025 CONTINUED: JAMES 3, PSALM 118:1-9 JAMES 3 James cautions the Jewish believers about too many of them becoming teachers. He says the reason is that teachers will be judged more strictly. Paul had a similar concern about teachers that he conveyed to Timothy: “Instruct certain people not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to useless speculation rather than advance the plan of God, which is by faith, so I urge you now. But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith. Some people have strayed from these things and have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions” (1 Tim. 1:3-7).
Those of us who teach need to be careful about solely giving our opinions or even affirming the opinions of others in the group. Of course, there will always be a range of interpretations that can be supported by the text, but we should not let comments stand that are clearly opposed to the what the Bible teaches: “All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
If we read Acts 15, we see that James was a leader who led with wisdom and diplomacy. He really practiced the teaching he puts forth here about choosing words carefully. This warning certainly extends today to social media. How easy it is to sever relations though an unkind word spoken or posted. This is true for the church, family, and business. James’s admonition to be slow to speak and quick to listen found in chapter 1 aligns with the ancient, yet timely, wisdom provided by Solomon: “When there are many words, wrongdoing is unavoidable, but one who restrains his lips is wise” (Prov. 10: 19). Note that our destructive words might also be indicative of inner impurity: “The evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart” (Luke 6:45).
PSALM 118:1-9 The Psalmist commands the reader to give thanks to God because of His quality of goodness. Then he tells three specific people groups to says these words: “His mercy endures forever.” The groups are Israel, the house of Aaron (the priests), and those who fear God. Obviously, an individual could belong to all three of these groups, but it was possible that person could be a God fearer without being Jewish. For example, in Acts 13:16 Paul said in Pisidian Antioch, “Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen.”
Thus, this command applies to us; however, this might not be a statement non-believers can make. They have not yet experienced God’s forgiveness for their sins and thus are still under God’s wrath: “The one who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36). The Psalmist makes these claims about God’s enduring mercy even though he has experienced distress, hatred from, and disappointment with other people. Thus, not only is God’s mercy not incompatible with tragic life circumstances, but it might be impossible to fully experience God’s forever-enduring mercy without first being in positions of personal helplessness. Think about it.
