16:9 'the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth' is drawn upon by the prophet Zechariah 1:10 1:11 4:10 6:7 Who relates it to the activity of Yahweh in seeking the welfare of His people.

17:3-6 The blessings which flowed upon the kingdom of Judah are presented as a direct result of the faithfulness of Jehoshaphat.
17:8-9 This spiritual state was established and maintained by public reading of Scripture. Levites went to where the people were rather than requiring them to make the effort to leave their home towns to hear the word of the Lord.

16:1 Baasha was the third king of the separate kingdom of Israel, and founder of its second dynasty 1 Kings 15:1- 1 Kings 16:1- end He was the son of Ahijah of the tribe of Issachar. The city of Tirzah he made the capital of his kingdom, and there he was buried, after an eventful reign of twenty-four years 1 Kings 15:33 On account of his idolatries his family was exterminated, according to the word of the prophet Jehu 1 Kings 16:3,4,10-13

17:1 Jehoshaphat was the son and successor of Asa, king of Judah. After fortifying his kingdom against Israel he set himself to cleanse the land of idolatry 1 Kings 22:43 In the third year of his reign he sent out priests and Levites over the land to instruct the people in the law 2 Chronicles 17:7-9

16:12 Asa's failure in seeking to physicians is not an indication that we should not make use of the medical facilities of the day. Asa's 'physicians' used idolatry to provide the 'cure'. As should have known better. He had a choice. He could accept the illness or pray to God. The course he took was a terrible failure especially as he had instituted such a reform.

17:5 That Jehoshaphat had riches and honour' because he was faithful is rather like what God promised to Solomon because he had asked for wisdom (2 Chronicles 1:11-12)

16:77 The 'seer' is another name for prophet (1Sam 9:9) but here the record has reverted to the old name for some reason.

17:10 The Godly behaviour of Jehoshaphat brought peace because of a change in attitude of the surrounding nations. A fulfilment of the Proverb (16:7)

2Chron 16:9 records the prophet Hanani's words, that God's eyes run to and fro throughout the whole earth.  There are several similar expressions elsewhere in Scripture, but this one occurs verbatim in Zech 4:10. Zechariah prophecied at the time of the return from Babylon, and this is very possibly when the books of Chronicles were written. 

16:2 Asa shows us the fickleness of human nature.  He had changed from putting his trust in Yahweh to shutting Yahweh out of his decision making.  His earlier success, gained through humility, had been blinded by arrogance which led to failure.  We must always consult Yahweh in all our doings and let Him guide our paths (Prov 3:5,6). 

16:12 This verse is not telling us to refuse medical help when needed.  But, as with anything else, we must always discuss matters with Yahweh before acting.

16:14 There was a custom in the Near East to honor dead kings who were deemed worthy.  That was to light a memorial fire.  Asa was honored this way while, as we shall see later, Jehoram was not (2Chron 21:19).

16:1 There had been a steady stream of Levites and then other people moving from the north to the kingdom of Judah. 2Chron 11:13-14 Baasha was seeking to stem this flow.

17:2  ‘Ephraim’ formed part of the kingdom of Israel in the north so we see that the boundary between the two kingdoms was not fixed through the time of the divided monarchy.

16:7 We see a weakness in the character of Asa here, instead of relying on the Lord, he took the gold and the silver out of both the Lord's house and his own house, and was able to purchase the assistance of the king of Syria with it, instead of relying on the God of Israel. For this the prophet Hanani rebuked him, reminding him of the deliverance he had received from the army of the Ethiopians, and the fact that God is always present (V.9). This he could not handle, and wound up casting Hanani inti prison(V.10).

16:17  In relying on the king of Syria Asa lost his advantage. This seems to have been a slip in his otherwise good behaviour because God describes him as being ‘good’ 2Chron 14:2

17:3-5 Notice how the record makes the point that Jehoshaphat was blessed because he followed in the ways of righteousness. It might seem such a natural thing but this is what God said he would do. He would bless faithfulness and punish disobedience. That is what Deuteronomy 28 is all about. Some could have easily reasoned that Jehoshaphat’s benefits came from his own wisdom though. It is always possible to rationalise God’s involvement in our lives.

17:6 It is more common to read of the good kings of Judah that they did not take away the high places’ for example 2Chron 15:17

2Chron 16:1 - "Baasha" [(1201) means "to stink, wicked"].

2Chron 16:10 - "prison" [Heb. "mahpeketh" (4115) means "stocks, wrench, crooked posture, prison, house of stocks"] is where Asa put Hanani the seer and this is the first recorded ill treatment of a prophet; that Asa was afflicted in his feet was perhaps a reminder of the treatment metted out to Hanani (2Chron 16:12) and also the spiritual lesson that our walk should be unblemished.

2Chron 17:3-6,10-12 - Jehoshaphat's reign perhaps foreshadowed the kingdom Christ will establish on earth (Dan 2:44;Zech 14:9).

V.35 Does this mean the name of the city will be "Jehovah Sammah" (The LORD is there), or that the reality will be best expressed by this descriptive title. Zech 2:10,  Rev 21:3, Rev 22:3 ?

48:1-8 The listing of the tribes and their inheritance demonstrates that natural Israel will exist in the kingdom age. Along with the description of temple worship we are able to develop a picture of natural Israel with a system of worship in the millennium. This accords with nations going up to Jerusalem to keep the feast of tabernacles – Zech 14:16  and the law going forth from Jerusalem – Mic 4:2

48:11 Again the sons of Zadok are mentioned, and their portion. Marking the fact that the sons of Zadok are amongst the mortal population.

48:21 That the ‘residue’ is for the prince indicates, it seems to me, that there is a mortal prince. Jesus inherited the world. Psa 2:8 speaks of Jesus’ inheritance.

v8 tells us the size of the sanctuary and that it is centred on Jerusalem. If we assume the 25,000 x 25,000 portion extends as far as it can, namely to the dead sea shores, we get an interesting outcome. The square is shown here with Jerusalem in the middle:

http://provelo.co.uk/images/Eze48_jerusalem.jpg

If we then take this width and offset it for each of the tribal portions, we get the following image (see the dotted lines). You will notice that it fits almost exactly to the Northern and Southern borders: Tyre at the North and the Great Sea at the South.

http://provelo.co.uk/images/Eze48_tribes.jpg

So we can see once again that the Bible is accurate and authoritative. This city can actually be physically built. When we take the time to work out seemingly irrelevant details like this, we can see that everything God tells us fits down to the last detail. Ezekiel didn't have access to Google Maps to be able to make up this prophecy; He was given it by God who measures the earth from above.

48:8 Whilst ‘the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it’ is an actual description it speaks of a spiritual principle. God is at the centre of one’s life – or at least he should be.

John 17 These  words, which actually are a prayer, were spoken by Jesus after he had left the upper room John 14:31 and before he arrived in the Kedron valley John 18:1.
A major focus Jesus has in this prayer is that the disciples would be united John 17:11,21,22,23. His words take on a really powerful sense of urgency against the background of the strife that there had been in the upper room only a short while earlier in the evening. Luke 22:24.
Disunity is probably the biggest problem that we ever have to deal with in our ecclesial life. It crops up time and time again and saps at our strength. But it is the most important thing to get right about our relationship with our brethren and sisters. Ephesians 4:13

18:6 In saying that those who came to take Jesus ' went backwards' the writer, by the spirit, is quoting Psalm 27:2 which speaks of the way in which the wicked behave before the righteous.

17:17 It is most appropriate that the 'son of David' whilst praying here for the well being of the disciples - those who would make up the embryo of the 'house of David' - uses the words of David 'thy word is truth' (2 Samuel 7:28) from the narrative of the promise of the son who would have God as his father.

18:36 If only we could truly share Jesus' conviction that this world is not our home we would find life far easier. So often we compromise ourselves because we do not truly realise that we are strangers and pilgrims.

17:9, 11 'whom thou hast given me' quotes Isaiah 8:18 which is also, in a more extended way, quoted in Hebrews 2:13.

18:36 In saying 'my kingdom is not of this world' Jesus is only presenting what he has said earlier in John 8:23. If we had to defend our position as consciences objectors would our life up to that point be consistent with the position we claim?

17:12 The word 'perdition' is the same as the word translated 'waste' (Matthew 26:8) where Judas complained about the 'waste' of the ointment used in anointing Jesus. So it was Judas, and not the ointment, that was wasted. Judas was 'wasted' because his heart was not right. Just like the unbelieving children of Israel whose carcasses were wasted in the wilderness  (Lev 14:33)

18:2 We may wonder how Judas knew where to go from the upper room to find Jesus. We might think that Jesus told him that they would be going to Gethsemane but here the indication is that Judas worked it out for himself. 

18:5 I am he We  notice that John does not record the kissing episode with Judas, John shows that the kisses were unnecessary. What he shows is Jesus as the Prophet making himself known. In V.6 we see him as King of Kings and in V.7-8 as the sympathetic Highpriest, who lovingly provides for his own. As a result we have Jesus as Prophet, Priest, and King.

18:3,4 Jesus' self-control was remarkable considering that He knew in advance what was going to happen to Him.  He knew the scriptures pertaining to events surrounding Him.  For example, the confrontation of Judas with the band of men had been described in Isa 50:11.  It is a good thing that we do not know the future events concerning ourselves.  Unlike Jesus, we do not have the character to handle it. 

17:21 Isn’t it amazing! Jesus is telling us that unity amongst the believers will cause unbelievers to recognise that Jesus is the Messiah! We should remember this when we squabble about things

18:20 In saying that ‘in secret have I said nothing’ Jesus s continuing the way his Father worked – Isa 48:16. We might ask ourselves how often we do things in secret because we do not want people to know what we are doing.

17:3 The blessing that will come to those who ‘know’ God contrasts starkly with the end of those who do not know Him – 2Thess 1:8

18:18 The ‘saying’ was one which Jesus had spoken earlier that same evening –John 17:12

God (lesson 7 of 20 from "Outline of Basic Bible Teachings" by Wes Booker)

I. Is it important to know God? John 17:3

II. One God - Deut 6:4;Isa 45:5

III. Immortal and unchanging - 1Tim 6:15-16;Psa 90:2;James 1:17;Mal 3:6

IV. Omnipotent (all-powerful) - Rev 19:6 (KJV); Jer 10:10-13;Isa 44:6-8

V. Omniscient (all-knowing) - Isa 46:9-10;Jer 1:5;Acts 15:18 (KJV)

VI. Omnipresent (present everywhere) - Psa 139:7-12;Jer 23:23-24;2Chron 16:9

VII. Loving and merciful - Lam 3:22-23;Eze 33:11;2Pet 3:9;Mic 7:18-20

VIII. Greater than Christ (Christ always subordinate to God) - John 14:28;5:26-27,30;1Tim 2:5;1Cor 15:24-28

IX. Wrested scriptures on the trinity -- A. John 10:30  (read verses 28-36) both have "sheep" in their hands. In this way they are one.  B. John 1:1  C. John 6:33,35 was the manna manufactured in heaven and sent to the wilderness each day for 40 years? Or...?  D. John 14:9 Jesus and God have the same qualities and attributes.

The Lord Jesus Christ (lesson 18 0f 20 from "Outline of Basic Bible Teachings" by Wes Booker)

I. Is it important to understand everything we can about Jesus? John 17:3;Acts 4:8-12

II. His Nature - mortal, sinful - Heb 2:14-18;Heb 4:15;1John 4:2-3

III. His Character - sinless - 1Pet 2:21-25;2Cor 5:20-21;John 8:46

IV. His Sacrificial Death and Resurrection - Heb 5:7-9;9:24-28;1Cor 15:12-23;Matt 26:26-30

V. His Ascension and Present Work - Acts 1:9-11;1Tim 2:5;Heb 2:17-18;4:14-16

VI. His Second Coming - about 200 references in the New Testament alone - e.g. Luke 21:25-28;Matt 16:27;25:31-34;Rev 22:12,20

VII. His Kingship - Luke 1:31-35;John 18:33-37;Rev 11:15;19:11-16

18:29-30 The discussion between the chief priests and Pilate would indicate that there had already been some sort of discussion and agreement. Pilate’s response which one would think would be quite normal in a court of law seems to surprise the chief priest. Rather than lay down the charge they, in surprise, come out with an amazing comment. They are, in effect saying ‘if he wasn’t guilty we would not have brought him to your court to be tried to find out whether he was guilty or not.’