1 In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, began Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, to reign. v.1 Amaziah reigned one year as co-regent with his father.

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 Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of Jehovah, yet not like David his father: he did according to all that Joash his father had done. v.3 his father was not a good pattern. Joash had two parts to his Reign… A good start and a bad end. His heart wasn’t right like David. We need to go to that which was from the beginning. David’s relationship was with the Lord directly not just through a priest like Joash.

4 Only, the high places were not removed: the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. v.4 Solomon’s sin of high places characterized the kings of Judah while jeroboam’s sin of alternate worship center characterized the Kings of Israel. High place sin is using the things of the world to Worship the Lord. Tends to idolatry.

5 And it came to pass when the kingdom was established in his hand, that he slew his servants who had smitten the king his father. v.5 this was to his credit. He did not let evil go unpunished in the sphere of his responsibility.

 

6 But the children of those that smote him he did not put to death; according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein Jehovah commanded saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin. v.6 also to his credit… He shows and understanding of the word of God and a willingness to obey it.

 

7 He smote of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand, and took Sela in the war, and called the name of it Joktheel to this day. v.7 For events preceding v.7 we would need to look at II Chron. 25:5-16. He acted initially without consulting the Lord and though he listened to the man of God – sent the men of Ephraim home – and won the battle, yet in v.7 God did not negate the consequences of his initial independency and we find the result in II Chron. 25:13.

 

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. v.8 refusing to submit to the government of God, he lashed out against Jehovah in setting up idols (II Chron. 25:14) and against the instrument, joash king of Israel. There was no chance God would let him win.

9 And Jehoash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thorn-bush that is in Lebanon sent to the cedar that is in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son as wife; and there passed by the wild beast that is in Lebanon, and trode down the thorn-bush. v.9 in his wounded pride, amaziah provokes joash, and meets with a pride greater than his own.

15 And the rest of the acts of Jehoash, what he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead. 17 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, fifteen years. 18 And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 19 And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish; and they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there. v.19 he lived the same way his father lived (v.3) and died the same way his father died (II Kings 12:20). This conspiracy was the final step in the government of God for his rebellion and idolatry. II Chron. 25:27 connects the conspiracy with him turning away from the Lord. Not that the people were Godly. Perhaps they reacted to his irrational decision to attack Israel.

 

20 And they brought him on horses, and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers, in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. v.21 He reigned 9 years beside his father until he was captured… Then 15 more until his father was killed. Then he reigned alone for 40 years until struck with Leprosy in 751 B.C. at which time Jotham became co-regent.

 

 

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. v.23 but he reigned co-regent with his father for 11 years beginning in 793 b.c. the 41 years counts from 793 b.c. That is a long reign for an evil king. it shows god’s grace in spite of sin.

24 And he did evil in the sight of Jehovah: he departed not from any of the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. v.24 His father named him after Jeroboam I.

25 He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath as far as the sea of the plain, according to the word of Jehovah the God of Israel, which he had spoken through his servant Jonah the prophet, the son of Amittai, who was of Gath-Hepher. v.25 this is a prophecy mentioned in scripture, but not a prophecy of scripture (2 Peter 1:20). Gath-hepher was a town in southern zebulon. it became part of galilee (matt. 4:15). So the pharisees were wrong, john 7:52.

26 For Jehovah saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter; and that there was not any shut up, nor any left, nor any helper for Israel. vv.26-27 shows the reason why the lord used jeroboam to save israel… he decided not to let israel go extinct, which they were in danger of.

27 And Jehovah had not said that he would blot out the name of Israel from under the heavens; and he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash. v.27 perhaps jeroboam is the “savior” of II Kings 13:5.

28 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he recovered for Israel that which had belonged to Judah in Damascus and in Hamath, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? v.28 Damascus and Hamath were important cities in syria originally controlled by solomon, now recovered. It shows the extent of the mercy shown to israel in that these strategic places were taken.