Deeper Commentary
2Ki 14:1 In the second year of Joash son of Joahaz king of
Israel began Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah to reign-
Amaziah's father Joash died at 47, so Joash would have been 22 when
Amaziah was born. He would have lived under the
Godly influence of Jehoiada for some time, and witnessed his father's
apostacy and gross ingratitude to Jehoiada shown by murdering his sons.
2Ki 14:2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned
twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Jehoaddin of
Jerusalem-
His mother, 'pleasing to Jehovah', was one of the wives chosen for
Joash by his Godly uncle Jehoiada.
2Ki 14:3 He did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, yet not like
David his father-
Chronicles says, "not with a perfect heart", Kings says "yet not like
David". David was far from perfect, but he had a heart wholly
['perfectly'] devoted to God.
He did according to all that Joash his father had done- Repeatedly, the New Testament speaks of converting others as a bringing forth of children. This means that our level and style of spirituality is likely to be replicated in those we convert. Thus Amaziah “did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord… according to all things as Joash his father had done” (2 Kings 14:3). What spirituality he had was according to that which his father had displayed.
2Ki 14:4 However the high places were not taken away. The people still
sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places-
"Taken away" is the same word as 'depart from' in :24. The way of
Jeroboam was not departed from, and so the high places were not departed
from. The suggestion is that they were associated with the calf worship.
2Ki 14:5 As soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, he killed his
servants who had slain the king his father-
This continues a theme, of the kings of Judah strengthening or
establishing themselves, often when they first became king; but then
having that human strength tested by God or removed. The same word is used
repeatedly (1 Chron. 11:10; 2 Chron. 11:11,17; 12:13; 13:21; 17:1; 23:1;
25:3,11; 26:8,15; 29:3; 32:5). The lesson of course was that it is God's
Angelic eyes who run to and fro in the land promised to Abraham, "to shew
Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is perfect toward him" (2
Chron. 16:9).
2Ki 14:6 But the children of the murderers he didn’t put to death; as
written in the book of the law of Moses, that Yahweh commanded, saying,
The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children
be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall die for his own sin-
Overall this man appears to have spiritually failed. But he as it were
grabs hold of one commandment and religiously obeys it. We see this kind
of thing all the time in 'religious' approaches to Christianity. But it is
the heart which God is looking at, and it was in this that Amaziah failed,
ultimately. Chronicles was written for the exiles, and perhaps they needed
reminding of this principle (as in Ez. 18:20) because of their wrong idea
that they were being unjustly punished for the sins of their fathers.
2Ki 14:7 He killed of Edom in the Valley of Salt ten thousand and took
Sela by war, and called its name Joktheel to this day-
Far more details are given in 2 Chron. 25:5-10. This was where David
had won a great victory (1 Chron. 18:12). Amaziah was being guided to
follow in David's footsteps. This, as noted on 2 Chron. 25:7, was another
baby step taken to try to reform him.
2Ki 14:8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son
of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the
face-
The soldiers he had hired were apparently mercenaries. They had
apparently been
paid, but not used in the battle. And so they had gotten offended and
sacked cities of Judah (2 Chron. 25:13). And Amaziah was demanding compensation for
this from the king of Israel. By so doing he demonstrated that his apparent willingness to lose
the money paid for them was not a decision taken from the heart. He was
still after compensation for his losses, rather than believing that God
could give him all riches (see on 2 Chron. 25:9).
2Ki 14:9 Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah saying,
The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon
saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife. Then a wild animal that was
in Lebanon passed by, and trampled down the thistle-
This is similar to the parable of the trees in Jud. 9:7-15, which also
talks of the land of Israel as "Lebanon" (Jud. 9:15). The king of Israel
presents himself and Amaziah as both living in the same land, and
considered himself to be the glorious cedar and Amaziah merely a thistle.
It was quite inappropriate, he felt, for Amaziah to provoke him over the
fact mercenaries from his country had ransacked towns in Judah over an
argument about money and payment. He is saying that it as inappropriate as
a poor man asking a wealthy man to give him his daughter to marry the poor
man's son. And he threatens to act not just as an elegant cedar, but to
morph into a wild beast who would trample down Amaziah. Perhaps Amaziah
had indeed provoked Joash by making a marriage proposal which he knew
Joash would turn down.
2Ki 14:10 You have indeed struck Edom, and your heart has lifted you up.
Enjoy the glory of it, and stay at home; for why should you meddle to your
harm, that you should fall, even you, and Judah with you?’-
The victory against
Edom was from God, but by accepting the vanquished gods of Edom, Amaziah
shows that he trusted in his own strength rather than that of Yahweh. So
often the victories God gives, be it passing an exam or military victory,
lead to pride and boasting.
2Ki 14:11 But Amaziah would not listen. So Jehoash king of Israel went up-
2 Chron. 25:20 says this was "of the Lord". There are a number of
other passages which mention how "it was of the Lord" that certain
attitudes were adopted by men, resulting in the sequence of events which
He desired (Dt. 2:39; Josh. 11:20; 1 Sam. 2:25; 1 Kings 12:15; 2 Chron.
10:15; 22:7; 25:20). It is tempting to read Jud. 14:4 in this context,
meaning that God somehow made Samson desire that woman in order to bring
about His purpose of freeing Israel from Philistine domination. The fact a
man does something "of the Lord" doesn't mean that he is guiltless. In the
same context of God's deliverance of Israel from the Philistines, men who
did things "of the Lord" were punished for what they did (Dt. 2:30; 1 Sam.
2:25; 2 Chron. 22:7; 25:20). God through His Spirit works to confirm men
in the path they wish to go. And this is the huge significance of the work
of the Holy Spirit in our lives today.
And he and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth Shemesh,
which belongs to Judah-
This was on the border of Judah and Dan, the frontier of Judah. The
pagan name, "house of the sun", had not been changed; and reflects Judah's
abiding penchant for idolatry.
2Ki 14:12 Judah was defeated by Israel; and they fled each man to his
tent-
This was not because Israel were more spiritual or faithful, but
because God has a special interest in judging pride. Victories of secular
people must be understood in this context. The giving of victory by God
(in whatever context) is multi factorial and is not simply a reflection of
His pleasure with the victor.
2Ki 14:13 Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of
Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and
broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner
gate, four hundred cubits-
This is s.w. Neh. 1:3; 4:7, and would have helped remind the exiles
how the walls of Jerusalem had come to be so broken down. It would seem by
the implication of Jer. 31:38; Zech. 14:10 that this gate was on the north
of Jerusalem. Depending how we define a cubit, this would have been
between 600 and 700 feet.
2Ki 14:14 He took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were
found in the house of Yahweh and in the treasures of the king’s house,
with hostages also, and returned to Samaria-
This faithful family who had cared for the ark had been entrusted
with caring for the gold and silver in the temple. But Joash had given
much of this to the Syrians previously.
2Ki 14:15 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his might,
and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, aren’t they written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?-
This is the common rubric found in the histories of the kings (1 Kings
15:23; 16:5,27; 22:45; 2 Kings 10:34; 13:8,12; 14:15,28; 20:20). "His
might that he showed" uses a word for "might" which has the sense of
victory / achievement. But the contrast is marked with the way that David
so often uses this word for "might / victory / achievement" in the context
of God's "might"; notably in 1 Chron. 29:11, which the Lord Jesus
places in our mouths as part of His model prayer: "Yours is the power
[s.w. "might"], and the glory and the majesty". The kings about whom the
phrase is used were those who trusted in their own works. It therefore
reads as a rather pathetic memorial; that this man's might / achievement
was noted down. But the unspoken further comment is elicited in our own
minds, if we are in tune with the spirit of David: "But the only real
achievement is the Lord's and not man's". All human victory and
achievement must be seen in this context. The same word is used in Jer.
9:23,24: "Don’t let the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the
mighty man glory in his might [s.w.]... but let him who glories glory in
this, that he has understanding, and knows Me, that I am Yahweh who
exercises loving kindness, justice, and righteousness, in the earth". The
glorification of human "might" is often condemned. "Their might [s.w.] is
not right" (Jer. 23:10; also s.w. Jer. 51:30; Ez. 32:29; Mic. 7:16 and
often).
2Ki 14:16 Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with
the kings of Israel; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place-
The description of death as sleeping with fathers is clear evidence
that death is seen as a sleep, unconsciousness, and not as the start of an
immortal soul going to heaven or 'hell'. Good and bad, David and Solomon,
are gathered together in death. The division between them will only
therefore come at the resurrection of the dead, and the granting of
immortality at the judgment seat of the Lord Jesus.
2Ki 14:17 Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of
Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years-
The implication may be that he was given ample opportunity to repent;
and we have noticed that in the lives of other kings.
2Ki 14:18 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, aren’t they written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?-
This may not necessarily be the same books of Chronicles which we have in
our Bible.
2Ki 14:19 They made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to
Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and killed him there-
Perhaps he was trying to flee to Egypt, ever representative of human
strength which fails. For Lachish was on the road there. Athaliah, Joash and Amaziah each died due to a conspiracy. Surely
Amaziah was intended to learn from the deaths of his predecessors, but the
great theme of Biblical history is that so few learn from it. And that is
the challenge to us. The planning of the conspiracy apparently took at
least 15 years (2 Chron. 25:25).
2Ki 14:20 They brought him on horses; and he was buried at Jerusalem with
his fathers in the city of David-
Horses were forbidden to the kings of Israel (Dt. 17:16) so this is an
appropriate end for an unfaithful man who trusted in human strength.
2Ki 14:21 All the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old,
and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah-
Called Uzziah in 2 Chron. 26:1. Those who conspired against Amaziah were apparently stopped by the
people from taking power. And they insisted upon the line of David
continuing, through Uzziah. Despite their general unspirituality. "Uzziah",
'strength of Jehovah', has a very similar meaning to the name of his father
Amaziah, 'power of Jehovah'. Yet Amaziah had not lived up to that (see on 2
Chron. 25:15. He may have named his son similarly in a hope that he would
succeed where he failed.
2Ki 14:22 He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king
slept with his fathers-
Amaziah his father had defeated Edom, and Eloth was in Edom. This
explains the comment that Uzziah did this after his father died. But in
doing so he was really living out the ghost of his father and fulfilling
parental expectation; for he repeated the works for Yahweh which his father
had done (2 Chron. 26:4). Those raised in believing families must ever probe the degree
to which their faith and works are possibly just living out parental
expectation.
2Ki 14:23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah,
Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria for
forty-one years-
This was the longest reign of an Israelite king. The kings of Israel
lived and reigned far shorter than those of Judah. And yet in the final
analysis, Ezekiel says that Judah sinned more than Israel. But their kings
had greater signs of external blessing, and perhaps overall they were
generally more righteous than their people. Whereas the kings of Israel
were as wicked as their people.
2Ki 14:24 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: he didn’t
depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made
Israel to sin-
See on :4. Israel had been commanded to "not depart" from the way of
Yahweh's commandments (Dt. 28:14; Josh. 1:7), but the frequent lament of
the historical records is that they did not depart from the sins of
Jeroboam. The Bible, especially in Proverbs, constantly reduces human
moral choice to that between two ways of life and being. We constantly
wish to argue that "it's not so simple" because there are grey areas. But
the 'grey area' argument is what leads us so often into sin, into
following the "way" of sin.
2Ki 14:25 He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to
the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel,
which He spoke by His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who
was of Gath Hepher-
Jeroboam was a wicked man, but God reversed Israel's fortunes through
him, by grace alone (:26). The entrance of Hamath generally means the
northern border of Israel (Num. 13:21; 34:8); the sea of the Arabah is the
Dead Sea. The Jonah of the book of Jonah was also the son of Amittai, so
we conclude this was the same prophet. Hosea and Amos also
prophesied at this time. This prophecy of restoration of territory was
fulfilled by grace alone (:26), and would have been an encouragement to
the exiles at the time of the restoration, who would have feared that the
exiles were generally so unspiritual that the restoration could not
happen. "Restored" is the usual word used for the "return" of the exiles.
Gath Hepher was near Nazareth in the tribe of Zebulon. According to Jewish
tradition, he was the son of the widow of Zarephath.
2Ki 14:26 For Yahweh saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very
bitter; for there was none shut up nor left at large, neither was there
any helper for Israel-
As noted on :25, the restoration of :25 was therefore an example of
God's fulfilment of His prophetic word by grace alone, rather than in
response to the righteousness of His people.
We must watch out for the tendency to think that because a man has dug
a hole and then fallen into it, well, that’s his problem. But we have all
done this, hopelessly so. We only have ourselves to blame. And yet God has
rushed to us in Christ. He was grieved for the affliction of Israel, even
though it was purely due to their own sin and wilful rebellion. If a man has fallen into his own hole, well he is still there and
needs help, however he got there.
2Ki 14:27 Yahweh didn’t say that He would blot out the name of Israel from
under the sky; but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash-
And this Jeroboam was a wicked man, although the appointed saviour (2
Kings 13:5). The idea may be that He did not say at that time that He
would blot out the name of Israel. Or perhaps the message is that for all
their sins, God did not blot out the name of Israel, for it continued, as
in a sense He never cast away His people (Rom. 11:1,2).
2Ki 14:28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and
his might, how he warred, and how he recovered for Israel Damascus and
Hamath, which had belonged to Judah, aren’t they written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel?-
See on :15. This may not be the same books of Chronicles which we
have in our Bibles. David had put garrisons in Damascus (2 Sam. 8:6) and
had made Hamath's king a tributary to him (2 Sam. 8:9-11). So we are
reading here of how Jeroboam restored to some extent the Davidic kingdom
and situation- but by grace alone (:26), seeing he was wicked. This was
all encouragement to the exiles, that God's word of restoration had come
true earlier, by grace alone, despite His people's weakness.
2Ki 14:29 Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel;
and Zechariah his son reigned in his place-
This was now the fourth generation from Jehu who were to reign on the
throne before being cut off (2 Kings 10:30).
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