Comments for September 6

11 v.18 - This destruction of instruments of idol worship happens a number of times, but sadly, each time man has created more to destroy. There are certainly many lessons for us to learn if we will. Do we do any better? Are we destroying the idols and the 'high places' at which we worship our own desires?

The careful planning of Jehoiada the priest paid off. It would have been easy for him to reason that as Athaliah was on the throne and there was no obvious son to sit on the throne that there was nothing he could do about it. However, being provided with one of the king's sons he was willing to wait and plan for seven years before implementing his plan to remove Athaliah from the throne.
May we have the foresight and determination to plan to do the will of God even if it seems that our work will not come to fruition for many years.

ch.12 - A summary of some elements of the life of Jehoash is instructive.
2 Kings 12 / 2 Chronicles 24
2 Kings 12:1 Reigned 40 years - from 7 years old -. :2 Good all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
2 Chronicles 24:3 Jehoiada takes Jehoash two wives.
2 Chronicles 24:15 Jehoiada the priest dies 130 yrs old.
2 Chronicles 24:17-18 false worship.
2 Chronicles 24:19 so God sends prophets.
2 Chronicles 24:20 Including Jehoiada's son.
2 Chronicles 24:21 whom they stoned. Jehoash didn't remember the kindness of Jehoiada.
2 Kings 12:17 Hazael ( of Syria ) takes Gath and comes against Jerusalem. :18 Jehoash gives riches from temple to Hazael who departs.
2 Chronicles 24:24 Syrians debased Judah because Jehoash forsook the Lord.
2 Chronicles 24:25 Jehoash was diseased and was slain by his servants. He was buried in city of David, but not in 'sepulchres of the kings.'
2 Chronicles 24:27 Amaziah reigned in his stead.
Thus we can see that when the good influence of Jehoiada ceased so did Jehoash's goodness.

12 v.3 - Although Jehoash was described as a good king, this goodness did not extend to making the people good by removing their high places where they worshipped their idols. Hezekiah was the only one to do this (18:22), immediately to be reversed by his son (21:3). We are under a great responsibility to remove the high places, as it were, not just from our own lives, but that of the whole community of believers.

11:12 That 'the king's son' had been hidden in the temple for seven years speaks volumes. It tells us clearly that Athaliah had no time for the things of the temple. On the other hand it would appear that the men that Jehoiada (11:4) had prepared to protect the king's son had been aware of his presence in the temple and had been faithful to God in not betraying him to Athaliah.

12:2-3 Whilst the king 'did that which was right' the high places 'were not removed' so we conclude that the spirituality of the king was not reflected in the people. This was often the case in the time of the kings.

FAITHFUL PEOPLE
Jehosheba is the first of a number of faithful people in this chapter. She rescued Joash from Athaliah's murderous intent and hid him in the temple when Joash was only a baby. She took her life in her hands to preserve God's kingly line.
Jehoiada the Priest was another faithful man whose influence for good was very strong on Joash all the time that Jehoiada lived. He appears to have been Joash's chief adviser.
The Commanders of the Guards were faithful to Jehoiada as they set Joash up as king. "They did just as Jehoiada the priest ordered."
The People under the leadership of Jehoiada and Joash changed and became faithful to the LORD, tearing down the temple of Baal.
Zibiah, Joash's mother, it seems, had a good influence on her son.
The Workmen And Supervisors were faithful with the money they were given to use to repair the temple. "They did not require an accounting from those to whom they gave the money to pay the workers, because they acted with complete honesty."
And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
We too can be faithful in many different ways. Show your faithfulness in some way today.

11:14 That 'all the people of the land rejoice' when Jehoash was anointed king indicates that even though the people were not fully worshipping Yahweh they did not like Athaliah to be queen. It is a case of a people just waiting for sound guidance.

12:16 The way that the 'trespass money' was dealt with was according to the requirement of the Law of Moses (Leviticus 7:7, Numbers 18:9)

DISCHARGING OUR DUTY

It is a sad reflection on the priests, and even on the spiritual state of Judah as a whole, that they could not be bothered to repair the temple of the LORD. Even during the most God centered years of Joash, it seems that the priests and the people had not really turned to God

Joash had given the priests a duty. They were to collect the money brought into the temple and then to use that money to make repairs to the damage found in the temple. But nothing happened. Presumably money did come into the temple. The priests were employed by God and so they had both the time and resources to fulfil their duty - even so, nothing happened. In the end Joash had to find a new way of repairing the temple.

We may not be called upon to fund or repair a temple or church, but God has given us duties as Christians, and along with those duties he has given us the time and resources to be able to perform them. How are we going to use our time and resources? Will we fritter them away and waste them like the priests did? Or will we use them productively in the service of our God? As Paul says, "We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2 v 10) Let's work hard and do the good works he has prepared for us.

11:2 The way in which Jehosheba took and hid Joash may seem a natural thing to do but it was the means where by the line of David was preserved.

12:5-6 The counsel that the people were to work together in repairing the house of God was good. However, it seems, apathy set in and the work lay unfinished. How often do we start with good intentions and the help of others only for the work to fall by the wayside?

12:10 Jehoiada was the first of the sons of Aaron ever to be called "high priest" He was an outstanding character, combining the office of priest with superb statesmanship. His preparations for the coronation of Joash were worked out in fine detail.

We haven't read much of Judah for about 2 weeks. Asa reigned for 41 years (1Kin 15:10), and his son Jehoshaphat reigned 25 years (1Kin 22:42).  Both were Godly. Then came Joram (also known as Jehoram) for 8 yrs, but he married Ahab's daughter, and was evil (2Kin 8:17,18). Joram's son Ahaziah only reigned for one year, and was killed by Jehu (2Kin 8:26,2Kin 9:27).  This brings us to today's chapter, where Ahaziah's mother, called Athaliah, killed all the seed royal, and reigned for 7 yrs (2Kin 11:1-4). So Judah had 66 good years and 16 bad years. From today's chapter it's sad to note that there were "breaches" in the Temple (2Kin 12:5), which I presume had occurred during the 16 bad years. But good king Jehoash (or Joash) repaired it.
One further point: Just as we read of Israel yesterday, in today's chapter Judah too destroyed Baal (2Kin 11:17-19). But even more sadly, the worship of Baal returned to the South, for 2Kin 23:3-5tells of young king Josiah's destruction of Baal's vessels which were found in the Lord's house. He also killed the idolatrous priests and those "that burned incense to Baal". It should be noted, though, that chapter 23 is about 230 yrs later than chapter 11.

11:17 So we see Jehoiada was waiting for a man of David to be old enough to be king so that the kingdom could be re established in truth. He effected the change but did not seek to himself the status. He was, however, the mediator of the covenant between the king and the Lord. Doubtless he became a faithful counsellor to the king.

11:4 Jehoiada showed patience in waiting until Joash was 7 before arranging for him to be crowned king. Just because something is good and right it does not mean, necessarily, that it should be done immediately. In this case there was benefit in waiting.

ENCOURAGE AND INSTRUCT

11:2 Jehosheba must have been a Godly person given that she clearly risked her life in saving Joash at great risk to herself.

11:1 Athaliah means afflicted of the Lord.  She was indeed afflicted, having Ahab and Jezebel for parents, who were not the best role models.  Athaliah, particularly, emulated her mother. She had married Jehoram, the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. 

Just as her mother had introduced Baal worship to Israel, Athaliah introduced it to Judah.  Like her mother, Athaliah showed unrepentant viciousness in expressing her rage.  And, like her mother, she came to a violent end as justice was dispensed against her.

11:2,4 God never leaves Himself without a witness. These two faithful people – Jehosheba and Jehoiada – risked their lives. However God had promised that David would never want for a son to sit on his throne. These two were seeking to ensure that this was so.

11:3 The temple was the one safe place to hide Joash, because only the priests had access.

11:6 The Sur gate is called the gate of foundation in 2Chron 23:5.

11:8 The ranges (KJV) refers to the ranks of soldiers on guard.

11:16 Athaliah was killed by the Horse Gate, which was a gate in the wall of Jerusalem where the king’s horses passed by on their way to and from the stables (2Chron 23:15).

12:1 Jehoash  means  given of Jah. Jehoash is the same person as Joash, that we read about in Ch.11. Joash is just a contraction of the name Jehoash.

12:18-21 The peace that Jehoash secured from Hazael did not last long.  The following year, Hazael returned for more goods, but there was no more to be had.  Jehoash went up against Hazael and lost.  Later, a conspiracy against Jehoash took place in which he was murdered (See 2Chron 24:23).

It is sad that Jehoash trusted in riches to try and secure peace.  He feared Hazael more than he trusted Yahweh (Prov 29:25).

12:18 Jehoahash sought to ‘buy off’ the Syrians by desecrating things dedicated to God!

Joash as a Type of Christ, etc.

1. 2Kin 11:2 - Athaliah was the "sister" [Heb. "achoth" (269) means "sister, half-sister, relative or (figuratively) of intimate connection"] of "Jehosheba" (wife of the priest Jehoiada and Ahaziah's sister - 2Chron 22:11) who hid the baby Joash which reminds of Moses and Jesus being hid (Exo 1:15-22;2:1-10;Matt 2:13-20).

2. 2Kin 11:16 - the evil Athaliah was put to death where horses enter, reminds of her wicked mother Jezebel who was trampled by horses (2Kin 9:33). Blood was shed and sin and/or flase worship was put to death.

3. 2Kin 11:18;12:7,12,15 - the sinful temple of Baal was destroyed, then money that was usually the priest's went to faithfully restore the temple of the Lord by using wood and stone - perhaps the previous is an echo of Christ's betrayal for money which actually contributed to sacrifice and the building of the temple of Christ's resurrected body (John 2:19), wood of the cross, stone covered tomb (or Christ being the cornerstone Matt 21:42-45;Eph 2:20-22), and victory over sin. 

4. 2Kin 12:2-32Kin 11:5 - the young king ruled almost jointly with a priest who "instructed" [Heb. "yara" (3384) means "to flow as water, to teach", etc.], was almost an echo of Melchizedek or Christ - sin wasn't entirely eradicated. When Christ returns the enemies of sin and death won't be entirely eradicated till Christ has prepared the kingdom to be handed over to his Father (Rom 6:23;1Cor 15:17-26).

5. 2Kin 11:3 - six years ("6" perhaps suggests the number of man with his associated sinful nature).  2Kin 12:1 - forty years ("40" perhaps suggests a period of probation, trial and chastisement).  2Kin 11:4,17 - three "covenants" [Heb. "briyth" (1285) means "covenant, in the sense of cutting, made between passing pieces of flesh" - perhaps similar to sacrifice, circumcision]. 2Kin 11:5,7 - three companies ("3" perhaps suggests complete, divine perfection, resurrection). Perhaps the mentions of three remind us of Christ's burial and resurrection on the third day. 2Kin 11:4,21;12:1 - seven or seventh ("7" perhaps suggests spiritual perfection, God's seal or covenant number, to be full or satisfied, 7th millenial day of rest). 

See the thread immediately below for a slightly different approach that addresses some of the above.

Joash as a Type of Christ

Joash was saved from among the dead (2Kin 11:2), and thus typified the Lord Jesus Christ who was saved out of death. Joash was hidden in the temple of Yahweh until the seventh year (2Kin 11:4), thus, representing the destiny of the Lord who ascended to the heavenly temple of Yahweh, hidden from the site of man until the time decreed.

Athaliah destroyed the royal seed (2Kin 11:1) and during the absence of Joash, she drew the people from true worship (2Chron 21:11;24:7) just as the "children" of a symbolic Jezebel would later do the same along with persecuting true believers (Rev 2:20-23;17:4-6;18:23-24;Rev 5:9-10).

Joash emerged from his hiding place to be proclaimed king; so it will be with Jesus when he returns. Joash ruled with the assistance of Jehoiada the priest, so the throne of David was jointly occupied by a king and priest; and Christ will reign as a king-priest (Zech 6:13). During the reign of Joash, the priesthood was revived; it will again be revived under the Lord Jesus (Psa 110:1-7). At this time Athaliah was slain and the false worship overthrown; in like manner the harlot-system of Revelation 17-18 will be overthrown at Christ's return. Joash repaired the temple and established true worship throughout the land with Jerusalem finding peace; the same will be true of Christ's reign (Isa 2:2-4;Psa 72:1-20).

The above largely gleaned from: The Story of the Bible, by H.P. Mansfield, Vol.4,p.14.

12:17 There is an ironic contrast here with Jesus. Both set their face to go up to Jerusalem. We see this said of Jesus – Luke 9:51. However their objectives could not have been more different. Whereas Hazael wanted to destroy Jerusalem and its inhabitants Jesus’ desire was to save them.

11:4-11             The careful planning of Jehoiada was a pre requisite to overthrow the wicked rule of Athaliah. Simply removing her would have solved nothing. There had to be a credible king in place to fill the vacuum that her death would leave. The people needed someone to follow.

12:3       We have commented before about the “high places” not being removed. However it is worth returning to this picture to draw attention to our own behaviour.  There is the danger, in our service to God, to rid our lives of some things that are offensive to God but retain one or two which we enjoy and indulge in them occasionally. These things can be our “high places”.

Q: How was it that in six years the repairs of the temple still hadn't been carried out, even though the priest were being paid for the work? (12:4-6) Where had that money gone?

A: I don't think anything dishonest had happened to the money. Given what is said in these verses, I think the priests had honestly set about to fix the temple, just in the same way as we now might use free-will collections to finance a renovation or repair. They thought they would do the work themselves in order to make the best use of the money given to them. After all, not only did the job require labour, but it also required precious materials to be bought for the trimmers, bowls, trumpets etc (2Kin 12:13). Thus by saving on the cost of labour, they thought they would be able to put all the money into materials.

What happened next is typical. Each year passed and still the work hadn't been done. The Priests and Levites were struggling with trades they knew nothing about. They were out of their depth. Spiritual tasks suffered. The people were left with a bunch of amateur builders doing spiritual leadership work in their spare time. The verse written at the culmination of this is eye opening:

"And the priests agreed that they would neither receive more money from the people, nor repair the damages of the temple." (2Kin 12:8)

In other words, after years of kidding themselves, they were forced to admit defeat. Jehoash made them face up to the fact that, no matter how much money or time he gave them, it would still end up with the same results. Nothing.

What about us?

In the various activities we engage in, there is always a need to get things done. These might be repairs to the meeting room, a new website, building work or a new preaching leaflet. The temptation is always to do this work ourselves, but we need to ask ourselves "why?". Why is it that we think we can do a better job by omitting skilled tradesmen and women? How is it that we, amateurs, expect to be able to do the job of people who do this work day in and day out? Furthermore, what's our motivation for doing so?

The only reason why we choose to tackle projects ourselves is the same reason Jehoiada and the Priests gave. They wanted to save on labour. We think that by plastering that wall ourselves on a Saturday afternoon, we save £150 on a builder and pay only £25 for the plaster. Maybe we should ask ourselves why this equation seems so enticing to us. Is it really that we don't have the money, or because we love the money?

A more spiritual way of looking at it might be like so:

[Time lost + stress + effects of doing a bad job + loss of face] is greater than [£175]. We might look at it like this and pay for that plasterer. I find that a compelling enough argument for using tradesmen, but the following really nails it for me, and makes me feel quite uneasy. Jehoiada and the Priests were there for a reason, weren't they? They were tasked with the upkeep of the spiritual welfare of the people. What would happen if they downed their tools (Bibles, Hymnbooks, Priestly robes) and picked up tradesman's tools instead? Not only a neglect of the former duties, but far worse, a change in focus. When they became wrapped up in the repair work of the temple, that temple became a building site to them, not a place of worship. Their conversation together became about materials and money and tasks, about learning skills and most of all about hardships and frustrations. All of this occupied the minds of the ones whose minds the flock needed to be on Spiritual things.

The solution to the problem was simply to give up and pay the money to tradesmen instead, as we read in v10-12.

How about us? How do we weight up whether to do work ourselves or spend money on professionals? And have we thought what might be driving our decisions; money or the needs of the flock? And finally, has our focus perhaps strayed from where it once was?

12:19 We often read “the rest of the acts …”. We realise that even if we put together the kings and Chronicles accounts of a king’s life we do not have a comprehensive record of all their activities. The Biblical record provides with an inspired account of what God wants us to know about an individual.  

12:7    Whilst, on the one hand, Jehoash commanded the priest not to receive money from their “acquaintances” there was money collected. From this we might conclude that the priest had not been faithful in gathering the money. They had used it for their own purposes rather than the temple.

2 Kings 11

Notice in v3 that Athaliah reigned in the land for six years. What do you think she did during that time? Athaliah was the daughter of Omri, and the sister of Ahab. God says this of Omri:

"Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him"

and his son Ahab continued in his father's footsteps:

"Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him"

it would be reasonable to assume that Athaliah was just like her father and brother. The effect of the reign of the house of Omri was far reaching, for in Mic 6:16 we read:

"For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels"

So Omri was someone who created evil laws which went against the laws of God. It was these that Athaliah would have been bringing into Judah while she reigned over it.

WHAT ONE MAN CAN DO

It was a bold move, but Jehoiada took the risk.

Jehoiada was the high priest. He was there, appointed by God as the spiritual leader of Israel. Yet under the influence of the evil queen Athaliah, Jehoiada would have had very little influence on the people. The temple was in disrepair and many of the people had, under the influence of Athaliah, turned to Baal worship. She was queen. She held the ultimate authority. Her influence and authority left Jehoiada with only the formalities of his position as high priest, rather than the full spiritual leader he should have been.

But despite the setbacks, the lack of support from authority, the potential execution from Athaliah if he stepped out of line, Jehoiada was determined to get God's people back on track. Together with the city and temple guards he set up the young boy Joash as the new king, and as support quickly grew, he deposed and executed Athaliah.

Because of the actions of this one man, God's people had peace once more and their hearts turned toward the Lord their God.

If we want to do good, we too can have the same sort of influence as Jehoiada. Stand up for what is right, get together with others who believe the same things, and make a move to the glory of God.

11:4-21   Whilst Jehoash was the king clearly Jehoiada was the “power behind the throne”. This was perfectly acceptable because, actually, it was the priests who had been charged with instructing the people. The desire for a king came not from the Lord but from the people – 1Sam 8:5. Any faithful king would have looked to the priests for guidance.

2Kin 12:13-14            It would have been very easy and pleasing to the eye to make the vessels for the house that was being built. However those items would hardly be of any use until the house was finished. Hence they were not made. How often are we distracted by matters which are not fundamental when there are more important matters to address?

11:18   Under Ahab the people had simply served Baal. What was required was a leader who would set a good example. Once Jehu set about removing the Baal worshippers and images the people followed. We learn from this that we can easily be led astray by error but given faithful instruction we can equally serve God.

12:20   Joash was the Lord’s anointed. However his servants were willing to kill him. They, clearly, did not share King David’s respect for the Lord’s anointed for he would not kill Saul even though he was trying to kill him because God he was the Lord’s anointed – 1 Samuel 24:6

12:4 whilst there was a set tribute amount to be paid it was important that the one who gave that obligatory amount had a desire to give it. Serving God according to the commandment is not sufficient.  The service has got to be done willingly.

12:1 this is one of the few times during the time of the two kingdoms where it is possible to see the chronological relationship between the two kingdoms. For those of us who try to draw up charts showing the relationship between the two kingdoms this passage helps to provide a point of reference between the two kingdoms.

11:2-4 Despite the dangers from Athaliah Jehosheba hid Joash (Jehoash) - 12:1- for six years and even more startling Jehoiada publically supported Joash as king, seeking the assistance of the rulers to crown the child Joash. Here is a clear example of two people both patiently waiting and planning for the future. In this they stand as examples to us.

12:2  isn’t it sad that Jehoash fell away from true worship on the death of Jehoiada the priest. Doubtless he had been the faithful mentor for the king from childhood. But we see a man who, it seems, could not think for himself. He was too reliant of the instruction of others. Herein is a stark warning. We must form our own bible based opinions. Certainly instructed by faithful mentors but checking for ourselves what is true. As Paul encouraged the Thessalonians – 1Thess 5:21

2 Kings 12
INFLUENCE

Jehoash didn't have a father, and we don't know how much influence his mother had on him. But this is what we do know: "And Jehoash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all his days because Jehoiada the priest instructed him." (2Kin 12:2).

We don't have to be a parent to make a big impact on the life of a child. Jehoiada was a pries. We might be grandparents, aunties, uncles, Sunday School teachers, mentors, or just great at conversation. We might be the one person who can make a difference in the life of this young person. Sometime it may seem like we are not making inroads or that the job is too hard. But if Jehoiada had thought that and had given up, it would have been disaster, not only for Jehoash, but for all of Judah.

So let's do our ultimate best to direct the children and young people in our care toward the LORD. Who knows, we might be the person who helps them into the kingdom of God.

12:2  A good instructor is essential. However the one being instructed must learn the principles being taught rather than just to follow them as a matter of obedience.

Clearly the instruction had little long term effect on Jehoash. The reason simply was that he did not think for himself about the instruction he had received.

The lesson for us is clear. It is not good enough simply to listen to instruction and not develop our own understanding of the principles based on reflecting on what we have been taught,

v.6 - God sees fit to speak to several of the prophets in this way - offering them strength and comfort in their worries - encouraging them towards a braver and more courageous approach. We do well to realise that it is the same God that we worship and that he will support us in our preaching too. We do not go forward in our own strength (unless of course we choose to, and then we should expect to fail) but with the full armour of God. 2Kings1:15, Jer.1:8,17, Matt.10:28, Acts 4:13, Eph.6:19

v.9 roll of a book .. without Revelation 5:1
v.3 - 5 Israel's rebellious nature was the very reason why they were in captivity at this time and why the temple was going to be destroyed in only a few years time. But because Amos 3:7 'Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets'. God was sending Ezekiel to warn them - though he knew exactly how they would respond.

v.8 - Although this is a lead up to the next few verses where Ezekiel is required to eat the roll, the implication is clear that we must not only devour every word of the Lord but also we can surely draw the parallel with the bread which we break, which together with the Word, constitutes the manna which we have from above, revealed in the obedience to death of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2:3-5 That Ezekiel was sent to a rebellious nation - the nation of Israel - who were in captivity because of their sins is a powerful example of God's continuing love and long suffering. Having overthrown Judah for their sins God is now seeking their repentance in the land of their captivity so that He can show them mercy.

AFRAID

Are you ever afraid to preach the word? I am often afraid, and it takes a huge amount of courage to overcome my fear. What should I say? How should I say it? When should I start? What will they think? What will they do? Will they despise me? These are all questions that go through my mind as I prepare myself to tell others about God, or even just to warn them that they are on the wrong path. So reading Ezekiel gave me a lot of encouragement and strength to face up to this challenge next time.

God told Ezekiel to talk to his rebellious countrymen. It was not as if it was going to be easy. God said to him, "The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn." (v 4) That's worse than some of the people I deal with! And he said, "And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briars and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious." (v 6 - 7)

It can't be any worse for us. So let's take courage from Ezekiel and no longer be afraid, but be bold to speak out for the LORD our God.

2:6 It would appear that Ezekiel feared what would happen to him when he spoke God's word to those of the captivity - even though he was a priest of God! We see another indication in 3:9.

2:1 So, in the light of the links with Daniel 10 that we saw yesterday  we should not be surprised that Ezekiel, like Daniel (10:11) was told to stand upon his feet.

V.4 The words which Ezekiel spoke were to be proclaimed as the words of God Himself. So in v.7 he is told that "thou shalt speak my words unto them"  As in the case of Christ, so it was with Ezekiel. John 3:34

V.8 We have similar language used in both Jer 15:16, Rev 10:9-10 The idea is to possess himself fully of the message and digest it in the mind, not to actually eat it.. The message was to become part of Ezekiel. The same applies to each one of us today, the Word must become part of us, it must become our life's.

V.8 Yahweh decided that Ezekiel should be a prophet of physical demonstration to show His will.  He was presented with a scroll, and his first practical act was to eat it.  We shall see later more involved and arduous demonstrations that Ezekiel had to perform. 

Ezekiel was told that he must not be afraid of what the rebellious Jews said to him, he must preach to them. There’s a good lesson for us there, too.

2:10  The book ‘written within and without’ is the basis for Rev 5:1  This book, therefore, was sealed until he came who was able to open it. So Ezekiel saw a book but was unable to see the details.

V.3 Ezekiel was taken captive to Babylon in 597 BC and began his ministry about four years later, thirty-five years after Jeremiah began his.  Jeremiah's pronouncements had proven true so far.  But the Israelites were still a rebellious people.  

And so, they needed a prophet with them in captivity to remind them of Yahweh's continuing correction towards them.  Jerusalem would finally be destroyed in 586 BC, and part of Ezekiel's job was to educate and sensitise the people to this coming event. 

2:4 ‘impudent’ has the sense, in the Hebrew, of being ‘hard of face’ . That is they, instead of having fellowship with God (face to face), they opposed God face to face.

2:4 ‘impudent’ <07186> means ‘hard of face’ – see RV margin. Elsewhere it is translated ‘stiffnecked’ Deut 9:6

V.1 Ezekiel was called Son of man.  This parallels the description of Jesus throughout the gospel accounts (e.g. Mark 14:62). 

V.10 Ezekiel was shown a scroll that was written on both sides (unusual), containing woes.  This is matched by a similar scroll, written on both sides, also containing woes (Rev 5:1).  Only Jesus could open this scroll (Rev 5:5).  Look for other parallels that show Ezekiel as being a type of Christ.

2:7 Ezekiel’s responsibility was to be a faithful witness to what God said. It was not his responsibility to ensure that the people changed their allegiance. Likewise the same is true for us. We need not make the message more palatable or attractive so we can gain converts. Our obligation is to present the message as it is. It is the responsibility of the hearer to decide how to respond to it.

v 3 First Principles>Kingdom of God>Was overturned>History of fulfilment
Go to Deut 28:49 to see more details of the history of Israel and its overturning.

V.1 Ezekiel, the Son of man, was told to: stand upon thy feet.  Then he received a commission to witness against the Children of Israel.

Similarly, Jesus, the Son of man, told Paul to: stand upon thy feet, when He commissioned him to witness to the Gentiles (Acts 26:16-18).

If we've been following this second daily reading, having gone through Jeremiah and Lamentations over the last two months, we could be forgive for thinking: "here we go again!" In this chapter, a young man is once again commissioned to speak to Israel (2:3, Jer 1:7). God would once again protect that prophet from their schemes (2:6, Jer 1:8,18-19). And God would give him words to say (2:7, 3:4, Jer 1:7,9,17).

2:2 The way in which ‘the spirit entered’ into Ezekiel and he stood up is echoed in the national rebirth in Eze 37:10

2:10 The ‘lamentation morning and woe’ continues the message of punishment that Jeremiah had given to the people before they went in to captivity. Ezekiel continues the message because the captivity was not having any effect upon the spiritual perception of the nation.

2:8     Do we think that Ezekiel was a reluctant prophet? Is God warning the prophet against being like those who he was to speak against because he was likely to refuse to go and speak?

2:10  that the book contained “lamentations and mourning” as well as “woe” shows that despite the fact that God was going to bring judgement upon Judah that He did not relish what He was doing. God brought the judgements because of Israel’s sins. However it grieved Him to so do. Thus we see the mercy of God, even in the punishments.

1. Eze 2:3 - "Son of man", Ezekiel was a type of Christ and both were sent by God (Luke 9:58;Psa 80:17;John 3:17,34;17:18).

2. Eze 2:7-10 - eating the words of God (Eze 3:1-7,10-14;Rev 10:8-11).

2:5 Despite the rebellious nature of Israel eventually they would see the evidence that showed Ezekiel to be a prophet. A similar thing is said again in Eze 33:33

EQUIPPED

"He said to me, 'Son of Man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.' As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me."(Eze 2:1-2).

Ezekiel had fallen down on the ground at the appearance of the glory of God. His first instruction from God was a simple one, but like most of the instructions God gave Ezekiel later on, he had either no strength or lacked the willingness to follow it through. It seems a simple instruction: Stand up and listen. And whether Ezekiel felt he could not stand or was unwilling to stand in the presence of God, he was given all the strength he needed, to do what God wanted him to do.

Listen again: "As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me." When God gave Ezekiel instruction, he also equipped him with all that he needed to follow it through.

God will do the same for us when he asks us to do something to serve him, he will equip us with everything, the strength, resources and wisdom to do it. Let's always rely on God's strength in our lives. There is no better place to put our trust.

2:7     Ezekiel is speaking to captives in Babylon. They had been taken to Babylon because they refused to heed God’s word in the land of Israel. But we see that the chastening hand of God was still being disregarded.  Are we so self-willed that we fail to see God’s hand at work in our lives?

2:1    Ezekiel had seen the likeness of God’s glory – 1:28 and so he fell on his face. Now he called to stand up and begin his work.  This is rather like our baptism. We go into the waters of baptism recognizing the glory of God in providing forgiveness and come up out of the water new people wanting to do God’s will.

2:2      Continuing yesterday’s theme. God does not just reveal Himself in majesty. He now begins to communicate directly with His people. What a comfort to the faithful in Babylon.

2:8    It is all too easy to copy the majority. We see people around us and tend to imitate them. Ezekiel was warned not to follow such a way of living. The same is true of us also.

2:3  It appears that those in captivity still did not recognise that their captivity was a punishment from God despite all that Jeremiah had said to them prior to the captivity. But it is most encouraging that God, despite their stubbornness, is still reaching out to them.

2:3  So Ezekiel was not left in any doubt. He was to take on a difficult task what experience had taught would not achieve very much. The “experience” would have come from a reading of his bible which contained a history of Israel’s rebelliousness.

2:8 in saying “be not rebellious like that rebellious nation” God is both identifying the problem with the nation and encouraging Ezekiel to distance himself from their behaviour.

2:3 Being called by God to witness to Israel Ezekiel learns what he probably already understood. He learnt that those he would speak to rebelled against God’s word. Whilst we might think that those we might speak with are like this the message actually strikes close to home.

Our own nature, uninfluenced by the scriptures, is rebellious. Our first obligation is to witness God’s truths to ourselves. Subduing our own thinking as Paul described it - 1Cor 9:27

2:1 the chapter division between this and the previous chapter is not helpful. On seeing the glory of God Ezekiel fell on his face, hence he is now asked to stand up. To prostrate oneself before God is good. But that action must lead to activity on God’s behalf.

2:5  Ezekiel had the obligation of presenting God’s message. He was not charged with changing their minds. That was their responsibility. In like manner we might preach the gospel and our message be ignored. However in presenting the message our obligations are fulfilled however the audience responds.

9 v.8 - I wonder how much we dwell on these wonderful issues. It seems we have a tendency to dwell on the fear of the consequences of disobedience, to the exclusion, if we are not careful, of a contemplation of the greatness of the gift of the Almighty, and the gratitude we should have for this gift is perhaps thereby diminished. Paul does dwell on this quite a bit. ch.8:7, Phil.4:18, Eph.2:10, 2Tim.3:17

8 v.8   Paul is saying that he is not quoting a principles or teaching adduced by Jesus already. He is giving new inspired instruction 1 Corinthians 7:12 25 2 Corinthians 8:8 11:17
9 v.1 - 5 It seems that whilst the Corinthians had spoken enthusiastically about giving for the poor saints at Jerusalem Paul was anxious that the 'benefit' would not be available when required because they had not been 'laying up' each 'first day of the week' 1 Corinthians 16:2.
9 v.6 - 10 It is the spirit in which the 'bounty' is given that matters, not the amount. God can bless what is given. In reality God does not need our gifts to the work of the Truth. If we were not to respond to a need He will 'make enlargement from some other place' - see Esther 4:14.

ch.8 - Paul is concerned to establish the principle that a man should give as he can. In so doing he, by appealing to Exodus 16:18 in 8:15, shows that God is able to make up the shortages. In reality God does not need us to give anything. He can provide without our aid. However in allowing us to give we are associated with God in His provision. A wonderful provision. This is why 'God loveth a cheerful giver' (9:7)

9:11 'bountifulness' <572> is the same word which is translated 'liberality' (8:2) A consideration of all the uses of this word shows that the focus of the meaning is on singleness of mind rather than the quantity given.

8:10 We know that Paul had been collecting money for 'the poor saints at Jerusalem.' That the Corinthians had been ready 'a year ago' highlights the seriousness of the problem the Jerusalem ecclesia had. That is money was collected over a long period of time to relive their distress. Doubtless their financial distress only ceased with the destruction of the temple in AD 70 and the scattering of the believers.

9:7 'not grudgingly' speaks of an attitude of mind. It echoes the willing heart (1 Chronicles 29:6, 9,14,17) when people gave for the work of the temple. Of course the Corinthians were giving for the building of the temple - the ecclesia.

8:2 The 'liberality' 572  of the Macedonians was not that they gave money. But rather that their minds were focused on doing it. They were single minded. The word translated 'liberality' here is translated 'singleness elsewhere (Eph 6:5 , Col 3:22)

9:11 The word 'bountiful 2Cor 1:12 bountifulness(:11) and 'liberal' (:13) are the same word 572 which we saw in 2Cor 1:12. In fact of the seven occurrences of the word five of them are to be found in 2 Corinthians. |The full list is to be found in the comment for 2 Corinthians 1 for September 3rd 2004

9:15 Once again we have an English translation in which so much is lost. "unspeakable" The Greek is ANEKDIEGETOS (411)  It is inexpressible, or indescribable. When we consider our Heavenly Father's grace toward each one of us, it is beyond anything that we can express, or describe; not unlike Paul's words in 1Cor 2:9

8:12 Giving to the work of the Truth is as important today as Paul's collections were.  However, the attitude in our giving is of utmost importance.  The willingness to give rises above the amount to be given. 

9:7 Once the appropriate donation amount (for the individual) is decided upon, it should then be given with gladness.  Remember that Yahweh is monitoring our hearts.  The gift is of no importance to Him unless it is given with the right attitude (1Cor 13:3).

8:9 Jesus was ‘rich’ being heir of the world. His poverty that he ‘became’ was to become a servant Phil 2:7.

9:8 Lest the Corinthians – or ourselves for that matter – are anxious that our giving will impoverish ourselves Paul reminds us that God abundant grace will meet our needs.

GENEROUS
 
We were recently led in a discussion about giving at which the discussion leader drew a line across he width of the whiteboard. The line was to illustrate the measure with which we give. On the left hand side he wrote, "don't give." This was followed by "grudgingly", "when needed", "give" (in the centre), "enjoy giving", "seek opportunities to give", and, on the far right hand side, "give beyond our means."
 
There are many different groups and situations that ask or demand our money or time to be given, but no opportunity to give is more valuable than in the work or service of the Lord or of his people. So the question we ask is, How do we give to the Lord? Do we tend toward the grudging giver or do we give because that is what is expected of us or because we have to, and feel no emotion about it, or do we give and find pleasure in giving?
 
The Macedonian churches are a great example of generosity. We probably wouldn't have even asked them for a gift because they were poor and in the midst of extreme trials. But this is what we are told they did: "Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints." (2Cor 8:3-4) These people, though they were poor, gave willingly and beyond their ability, and were richly generous.
 
How generous are we? Let's be like the Macedonians and take pleasure in giving the gifts God gives, giving them back to him

8:16 When Titus went to Corinth he did not elicit the generosity that Paul had hoped for and that they had promised. Doubtless Titus was not really welcome when he went to Corinth. Now Paul explains that Titus had gone to Corinth because of his care for them – they doubtless thought he cared for Paul and the poor saints in Jerusalem and not for them.

9:6 This figure of sowing and reaping is very apt. In the natural order of things, the worker of the land has to take a portion of the good seed that he gathers at harvest and set it to one side for the time of sowing, at the correct time he must cast this good seed upon the ground, and literally leave it to die. It is by his faith that he goes through this exercise every year. The greater the sacrifice of the good seed, the greater the harvest. So it is with our spiritual sowing, the seed that we sow must die; that is to say, it is a matter of faith, there is not any expectation of any immediate return. Christ said "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone, but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" John 12:24 Those of the "world" look for an immediate return for their labours; while the follower of Christ shows his faith in the unfailing promises of God. 

8:6 So Titus had already been to Corinth to encourage them to be like the Macedonians. However it would appear that he had met with little success.

8:10-11 It might be thought that letting a year pass between the willingness being expressed and this call to make the offer shows a dilatory approach by Paul; Why didn’t he chase them up before, we might ask. However the point is not the money, it is the willingness. Paul was encouraging them to make the decision and give themselves. The wait, therefore, was not idleness on Paul’s part. Rather a willingness to wait for the Corinthians to put into practice what they had offered. It had to be their offering and not be made by coercion.

8:10 The event a year ago was Paul's recommendation, in his first epistle, to make provision for poor brethren (1Cor 16:2).

8:18,22 The brother (or brothers) is not identified anywhere.

9:9 Paul quotes from Psa 112:2.  This psalm is worth re-reading.  It profiles the attributes of a godly person, one aspect of whom is that of a cheerful, generous giver.

8:23 It would appear that Titus’ position was questioned by some in Corinth so Paul lays out quite clearly his position and status.

EXCEL

"But just as you excel in everything - in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us - see that you also excel in this grace of giving." (2Cor 8:7) Just as Paul described the Corinthians, we need to be well rounded Christians, excelling in every area of our Christina lives.

Excel in Faith. We need to be able to take God at his word and to believe what he says without question. Then we must live in that faith without looking back.

Excel in Speech. Our speech should stand out from the rest for two reasons: 1. Because we do not swear or use profanities; 2. Because our conversation points people toward God.

Excel in Knowledge. The knowledge of God and of his word is the area of knowledge we need to excel in. "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have." (1Pet 3:15)

Excel in Complete Earnestness. Always be enthusiastic, motivated and passionate in the way we live for God. People are earnest about all sorts of things - we need to be even more so for God.

Excel in Love. Love needs to be shown even in extreme circumstances. God loved us while we were still sinners. Let us show the same love to each other.

Excel in the Grace of Giving. All we have comes from God. There are no exceptions. Everything we have has been loaned to us to use for his glory in this life. Let us freely share what has been freely given.

9:2    Paul used the example of the Macedonians to the Corinthians – 8:1-3– now he reminds the brethren and sisters in Corinth that he had told the Macedonians about the Corinthian’s generous spirit – now, he says, I might be ‘ashamed’ – so Paul takes upon himself the shame of their inactivity.

2Cor 9:14

“… And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.”

This verse reads more accurately as: “And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God (bestowed upon) you” - E.W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech Used in the Bible.

 2Cor 9:6.

8:5     The selfless behaviour of the Macedonians reflects the selfless behaviour of the poor widow in 1Kin 17:10-15.

9:5      In saying that the gift should be of ‘bounty’ and not ‘covetousness’ Paul is reminding the brethren and sister in Corinth that they should not boast about how much they had given.

9:7     The whole attitude of the giver should reflect the wise man’s comment – Prov 19:17– where any ‘charity’ is seen as being a loan to God who will repay. 

"As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack." 2Cor 8:15

This is a quotation from Exodus where the people of Israel went to gather Manna every morning. The ones who were elderly or too young to gather the Manna still had their portion because others gathered more than they needed. The ones who gathered more gave to the ones who gathered less. I think we understand that principle, but how about this part of the quotation:

"He that had gathered much had nothing left over"

Have we ever thought about this? Why did he have nothing left over? Because when he had eaten enough, he gave the rest to others. Whatever was still left over was thrown away (see Exo 16:16-21), and whatever was left on the ground melted away. What's so special about that idea?

The difference today is that we gather for ourselves, eat what we need, and put the rest in the bank. That's where the process stops. The next step, the distribution to others, is left out because there is no compulsion to share. It was the fact that none of it could be saved that made the Israelites share it. So what do we think about our bank accounts? Do they stop us sharing what we have?

8:8      We all like rules. The Corinthians, probably, would have liked to have been commanded to give. That way they would not have had to exercise their consciences.  We can learn from this. No one else can dictate the level of our generosity. We have to decide for ourselves. This is because our giving in whatever way shows our association (fellowship) with that we are committing ourselves to.

9:1   In our day “ministering to the saints” is not some special responsibility that some might aspire to do. It is the responsibility of all believers. The “saints” are fellow believers. Nor should we be partial in the way we “minister” seeking out only those with whom we are comfortable. It is no sacrifice to help believers we like. But our personal feelings should not dictate our ministering. Need is the only valid criterion in our ministering.

8:7     “utterance” is speaking. So we see the Corinthians did more that give materially. They spoke also. Presumably about the needs of others in order to encourage more to give.

2Cor 8:9

“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”

“A more exact translation of the verse will make the meaning clear to you. Paul did not say ‘was rich.’ The verb is in the present participle ‘being.’ Correctly translated, the verse would read as follows: ‘Ye know the loving kindness of the Anointed Jesus, our Lord, that on your account, he impoverished himself, being rich, in order that he through his poverty might become rich.’ The question is, in what sense are believers enriched? Believers do not become rich except as regards what is in store, and as Jesus said to Smyrna ‘I know thy poverty (but thou art RICH)’ (Rev. ii. 9). Here are riches and poverty co-existing. This gives us a key to the sense in which Christ was richest. He was rich in being ‘the heir of all things’ –the coming King of Israel—the beloved of the Possessor of heaven and earth. Yet though rich in owning so high a rank and having such an exalted destiny before him, he stooped to poverty in every respect. Though King, he became servant of all—a man of sorrows, a friend of publicans and sinners, without where to lay his head. Though sinless we see him in the situation of a sinner, as regards nature and the common experience of man. The passage is really explained by those other words of Paul: ‘Though in the form of God and thought it not robbery to be equal with God, he made himself of no reputation but took upon himself the form of a servant.”

Robert Roberts, Christadelphian, 1890, p. 342

8:11-12         The principle which Paul lays out here has already been seen in the widow Jesus spoke of – Luke 21:2-4 – whose gift was small in real terms but in God’s eyes it was very large.

8:7         The word translated “utterance” could equally be translated “word”

9:13 The word translated “experiment” <1382> is elsewhere translated “proof” – Phil 2:12, 2Cor 13:3 which is easier to understand than the word “experiment

OVERFLOWING GRACE

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work." (2Cor 9:8).

Isn't this exciting! Not only does God give us grace - gifts that we don't deserve, but he lavishes us with his grace. He doesn't just give us "some grace." The word says "all grace." God is able to give us his best gifts. And it doesn't end there either. He gives us all his best gifts, but he makes them abound - there are plenty of them - much more than we need or deserve.

The result of God's lavish grace poured out on us in such abundance is that we have "all sufficiency in all things at all times." We will never be without the things we need. Of course, we might crave more, we might be greedy, but God will always supply everything we need for our life in Christ, and more. His grace overflows in us.

God's grace is too much for us to use all by ourselves. It is because of the overflowing of his grace that we need to share it with others. That's why we abound in every good work - so that we can share God's grace with others. So let us appreciate and share the grace of God today.

8:6,7,9 Paul expected the “grace” that had been extended to the Corinthians through the sacrifice of Jesus would generate in them a response. Whilst Paul is speaking about money for the saints in Jerusalem here we must see that our obligations extend far beyond giving money. The giving of money, in the case of the Corinthians, associated them with the suffering believers in Jerusalem. Likewise our commitment to give should encompass a feeling on our part that we are suffering with those to whom we are gracious in whatever way we show that.

8:15 Much has been said and written on exactly how those in the wilderness shared equally the manna. However the record both there and here is not, primarily, focussed on how the equality was achieved. Rather the focus was there and is here in 2 Corinthians is that the believers have a duty to share with their fellow believers. Having all things common – Acts 4:32 – is not an ideal that only applied to those in Jerusalem. It still applies today.

8:1-2  We tend to be well aware of what is happening in different communities of believers around the world. We should be aware that the same was true in the first century. In fact the apostle was inspired to teach the believers to look beyond their own circumstances and reflect on the circumstances of others even though they probably had never met them. This is one aspect of fellowship that we should develop. We should not be so insular that we only associate with those in our own neighbourhood.

9:1 Maybe the question of “ministering to the saints” was something that the Corinthians had raised like they had raised other things – 1Cor 7:1.   It seems that the Corinthians were already fulfilling that element of their service to God. So whilst Paul does write about the generous spirit required it is a general point rather than new instructions to the Corinthians.