Joel 2, Jonah 1, Amos 3, Micah 1-2

I know, I know. That's a lot to read, and not much of it is fun reading either. All of these prophets foretold of the Lord's judgment on the Israelites. I'm not an expert in prophecy; so I can't tell you if these prophecies have all been fulfilled already or if they are still a part of the last day judgments to come. So, here's how I'm going to blog these passages. I have chosen one verse from each passage that really jumped off the page, and I am going to write about each of those verses. If you find other verses you like better, I hope you will post a comment and let us know. We don't want to miss out on any of God's blessings from His Word.



Did you read all the chapters? Okay then, let's get started!



Joel 2:13-14--"Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing."



You and I typically do not mourn for our sin like the Israelites did. They would tear (rend) their clothes and put ashes on their heads or wear sackcloth (an itchy, uncomfortable garment) as an outward sign that they were sorry for their sins. Joel was telling them that the repentance needed to be of the heart, not merely an outward show for everyone to see. Frankly, you and I do not take our personal sins that seriously. We think God should have a forgive and forget attitude whether we get on our faces to ask forgiveness or not. We jump right to the idea of God being gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love, showing us pity, and blessing. What about the idea that God has every right to send calamity on our families because of the sinful choices we make every day? Who knows? He may have pity on us, but should He if we are not willing to beg for mercy in the first place? We do serve a merciful God, but we should never take His goodness for granted. Get on your knees before Jesus in humility because you love Him and because you want to serve Him with your life.



Jonah 1:14c--"for you, O LORD, have done as you pleased."



Did you catch that? It pleased God to send a storm and a big fish to swallow Jo-Jo-Jo-Jo-Jo-Jo-Jonah. (Sorry, I started singing the song I learned in Sunday School.) Why would it please God to send calamity on Jonah? Because Jonah was living in direct disobedience to the will of God. Doesn't God want to bless His children with good gifts? Absolutely, but does that mean He won't spank our hineys and put us in a three-day timeout? Uh . . . evidently not.



Amos 3:7--"Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets."

Cool! As God's servants, we should be hearing from God about his plan for mankind. If we aren't, then maybe we should check our connection. Is yours plagued with static like mine has been? Get yourself a journal and turn off your music and get alone with God. Ask Him to reveal His heart to you so you can share it with the world. Then when He gives you a word, no matter how difficult it may be to swallow, you go be obedient and spread that word to your fellow men. If we don't share, then why should God share with us? The purpose of a prophet was to get God's word to the people. The word was never for the prophet alone.

Micah 1:3-4--"Look! The LORD is coming from his dwelling place; he comes down and treads the high places of the earth. The mountains melt beneath him and the valleys split apart, like wax before the fire, like water rushing down a slope."

Now, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout! I want to serve the God who melts mountains and splits valleys! When God comes to rescue me from the mess I'm in, I don't want Him sitting in His rocking chair telling the angels to get me a band-aid. I want His Holy Presence coming from His dwelling place. Absolutely! However, I want Him coming after my enemies. I don't want God to come down from His throne because He aims to discipline my unrepentant heart. Think about this. When the principal walked into the classroom at your elementary school, did you want to be the bad kid he was after, or did you want to be the kid who had already fessed up to the teacher? I want to be the child of God who confesses sin immediately and gets back on the straight and narrow without having to be forced. Invite God to step into your life today, ladies. The things you fear will melt like wax before the fire, like water rushing down a slope.

Okay, I want to hear from you now. Did I pick your favorite verses, or did I miss a goodie?

2 Chronicles 24-26

Same song, second verse. 2 Chronicles 24 is a repeat of 2 Kings 12. I just want to point out a couple of verses that caught my attention.

Verse 10—“All the officials and all the people brought their contributions gladly, dropping them into the chest until it was full.” Do you bring your tithes and offerings to church gladly? Being able to give back to the LORD a portion of what He has blessed you with should be an important part of your worship. My husband and I always make sure our tithe check is the first one we write on payday. We want to offer God the firstfruits of our labor, not the leftovers. God pours out His richest blessings in our lives when we honor Him first. Will you thank God next time you write a check for a tenth of your income as an offering to Him? Or will you continue to grumble that the church only wants your money? Become an active participant in worship at your church and give gladly to God.

I was surprised at the contrast between Jehoiada and Joash in 2 Chronicles. The 2 Kings passage did not point out some of the details. For example, in 2 Chronicles 24:16, we are told that Jehoiada was buried with the kings because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple. In 24:15 we are told that Joash was buried, but not in the tombs of the kings. Jehoiada the priest was buried with the kings. Joash the king was not. This tells me that my position in life does not determine my potential to impact my world. Joash did not use his high position to bring about good. Jehoaida used his humble position to effect positive change. Will you and I allow God to use us in our homes and workplaces today? Will you “bloom where you are planted?”

2 Chronicles 24-26 tells us the story of three kings of Judah: Joash, Amaziah, and Uzziah. The Bible says all three of these kings “did what was right in the eyes of the LORD.” The Bible also tells us the names of the mothers of these three kings: Zibiah, Jehoaddin, and Jecoliah. I think it is totally cool that the three good kings of Judah all had moms who were worth mentioning. Usually the females were not listed in the genealogies. Behind every great world leader is a great mom. I wanna be that kind of mom!

2 Chronicles 25:2 tells us that Amaziah “did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly.” Are you and I serving Jesus wholeheartedly? I do not want to be known as a half-hearted Christian. I’m fairly certain that would be the type of person Jesus mentioned in Revelation 3:16. A half-hearted Christian makes Jesus sick to His stomach. Does my service in God’s kingdom make Him joyful, or does it make Him want to vomit?

2 Chronicles 25:5-12 happens to be an example of Amaziah doing the right thing, but only after a man of God confronted him. Amaziah counted his soldiers in Judah and came up with 300,000 men. He decided to hire 100,000 more soldiers from Israel. The man of God told Amaziah that he needed to send the Israelite troops home because the LORD was not with Israel. “God has the power to help or to overthrow.” (v. 8) I think we have broached this subject before. Verses like this mess with our postmodern theology. We think God is always going to be on our side to help us out of the battles we get ourselves into. It’s time for us to wake up and realize that when we face strong resistance, it is very possible that God sent the opposition to bring our disobedient hearts to a halt. Where are you facing hardship? Instead of blaming it all on the devil, take a second look to make sure you are hearing God’s voice on the issue.

Then Amaziah was worried about the 100 talents he had paid to hire the troops. “The man of God replied, “The LORD can give you much more than that.” (v. 9) Amen! Why do I worry about petty financial losses when I know for a fact that God can give me much more? Amaziah did the right thing and sent the Israelites home, and God helped Judah win the battle. Unfortunately, the disgruntled Israelites ransacked several towns on their way home. Amaziah then did the stupid thing by bowing down to the gods of Edom. “The anger of the LORD burned against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who said, ‘Why do you consult this people’s gods, which could not save their own people from your hand?’” (v. 15) Instead of listening to the godly prophet, Amaziah consulted his own advisers who told him to pick a fight with Israel. What a sad way to end his kingly reign, in direct disobedience to the Word of God.

2 Chronicles 26 is the story of King Uzziah. He became king when he was only 16, and he depended heavily on men like Zechariah and Isaiah to give him godly wisdom. This Zechariah was not the guy who wrote an Old Testament book. The author of Zechariah was born in Babylonian exile a couple hundred years later. Isaiah, however, mentions Uzziah in Isaiah 6:1—“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the LORD, seated on a throne, high and lifted up . . . .” 2 Chronicles 26:22 mentions the prophet Isaiah.

2 Chronicles 26:5 is a very telling verse, “As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success.” Let’s seek the LORD, ladies! Verse 16 is even more telling, “But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall.” Dear Jesus, keep me humble! Honestly, this subject has been a personal battle. In my younger days, I was overly self-confident and prideful. I pretty much thought I was God’s gift to mankind. Lately, however, the enemy has been filling my head with lies telling me that I have nothing important to offer and that I should sit down and shut up. Pray for me that I will listen to God’s voice instead.

Okay, we have waded our way through most of the kings of Israel and Judah. Next, we are going to hop, skip, and jump through the prophets. We will start with Joel, Jonah, Amos and Micah. If you need a copy of the reading plan we are following, go to the following link at biblegateway.com. Print it out and carry it in your Bible so you can read along with us. Thanks again for joining me on this journey!

2 Kings 11-12

2 Kings 11:1—“When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family.” Treacherous! It is really hard for me to write about women like Athaliah. In fact, if I were doing this chronological study by myself rather than on my public blog, I probably would have read this passage and then moved on without processing it too much. I don’t understand women like Athaliah who seek fame and success at the cost of their families. I cannot relate to the idea of a woman who would have her children and grandchildren killed so that she could ascend to the throne. You and I would never annihilate our families. Would we? Do we ever devastate our families with our harsh words? Do we ever slay our husbands or children with an evil stare? Do our nasty attitudes tear down the spiritual protection we should be providing for our families? God is reminding me that there is a little bit of Athaliah in each one of us. Let’s pray for God’s strength to allow the Holy Spirit to rule our lives instead.

Hurray for Jehosheba, the aunt of Joash! She took the risk to hide her nephew from the wrath of the queen mother. I was wondering how Athaliah didn’t find Joash. I guess she must not have gone to worship at the Lord’s temple too often. I also wonder if she even knew she had a grandson named Joash. Verse 3 says they hid him for six years, and verse 21 says Joash was seven years old when he began to reign. He was a newborn when Jehosheba took him into hiding. Wow! Can you imagine having a seven-year-old rule your country?

Hurray for Jehoiada the priest! He took the risk to bring Joash to the throne. If God told you to anoint a seven-year-old as king to overthrow his grandmother, would you be obedient?? And I always pictured priests as being meek and mild. Ha! Not Jehoiada. He was a warrior priest. Hurray for Jehoiada! He took the risk of being a mentor to Joash. “Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him.” (2 Kings 12:2) Who are you mentoring?

Joash decided to have the priests repair the temple. They collected money, but they didn’t do any repairs. Ha! That sounds like me. I like to save money, but I don’t like to spend it. Anyway, when Joash turned 30, he finally confronted Jehoiada and told him to quit hoarding and start putting the money to good use. So Jehoiada used the money to hire carpenters and builders. I thought 2 Kings 12:15 was really interesting—“They did not require an accounting from those to whom they gave the money to pay the workers, because they acted with complete honesty.” Wow! I wish we all acted with complete honesty today. Let’s make a pact to be people of our word.

The Scriptures do not tell us any other accomplishments of Joash except that he repaired the temple. 2 Chronicles 24 tells the rest of the story concerning the assassination of Joash. Joash turned against God’s law after his mentor Jehoiada passed away. That is so sad. Once again we have an example of a king who did not stay close to God as he grew older. I don’t want us to repeat that pattern in our lives. Let’s hold one another accountable to staying true to our faith in the Living God.