| LESSONS FROM THE BATTLEFIELD |
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| than before. But 2 Chronicles concentrates on the good moments, when kings turned to God. King Jehoshaphat was a textbook example of the proper response. He called the entire nation together in a giant prayet meeting (20:4-28). When the time came for battle, he sent a choir in front of his army to sing praises to God. Judah's enemies all turned on each other and Jehoshaphat's armies marched home victorious. Hezekiah's Faith Perhaps the greatest single example of a king following his prophet's advice occurred during the reign of Hezekaih. The Bible reports the incident in three places: 2 Chronicles 32, 2 Kings 18-19, and Isaiah 36-37. At the time, Judah's situation looked hopeless. Mighty Assyria had taken 27 cities and villages in Judah and was now laying siege to Jerusalem. Hezekiah showed his true moreal strength by joining together with the prophet Isaiah to humble himself in prayer. God granted a miracle that drove off the Assyrian army. Second Chronicles stressed incidents like these as a lesson to its first readers, who had inherited a land in ruins. Looking back over their history, they could see what had gone wrong: the nation had forgotten to rely on God. To rebuild their nation they would have to relearn the simple faith that had brought them victory in the past. Life Questions: What does it mean to trust God completely today? |
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