King Rehoboam died after ruling over the Southern Kingdom of Judah for 17 years, and was replaced by his son, Abijah. Both were kings in David’s regal line, and members of the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
Like his father Rehoboam, who was chastised and reversed course after being invaded by Egypt, King Abijah encouraged Judah to betray God by worshiping other gods. He, too, returned to God after Judah was attacked by the Northern Kingdom, and the Lord responded by defeating them soundly. But Abijah’s reign was short, lasting only three years.
Within David’s line there were a handful of kings who did seek to follow after God and to honor Him with their actions. These good kings led the people of Judah to return to the Lord and the nation was again able to experience the blessings and peace of God. The first of these good kings was Abijah’s son, Asa, who honored the Lord and was kept safely on Judah’s throne for forty-one years.
11 And Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as David his father had done. 12 He put away the male cult prostitutes out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. 13 He also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother because she had made an abominable image for Asherah. And Asa cut down her image and burned it at the brook Kidron. 1 Kings 1511-13 (ESV)
During Asa’s long reign in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, a host of failed kings came and went in the Northern Kingdom. Scripture tells us that in God’s eyes, each one of these kings was worse than the one before. They often fell victim to some form of conspiracy, subterfuge or revenge as God permitted them to experience the full consequences of their ungodly choices and actions. The failed Northern kings of Israel during Asa’s reign included Jeroboam, Nadab (who was installed during Asa’s second year), Baasha (during Asa’s third year), Elah (Asa’s twenty-sixth year), Zimri (Asa’s twenty-seventh year), Omri (Asa’s thirty-first year) and Ahab (Asa’s thirty-eighth year).
The last of these kings, Ahab, was the worst of them all. He also interacted with two of the more famous people in the Bible: his evil wife, Jezebel, and his nemesis, the great prophet of God, Elijah. There will be more to say about these two individuals in future meditations.
It is doubtful that any of the Northern kings were able to experience anything like true joy in life, which largely comes from having a faith relationship with God. The Lord brings refreshment to the soul and healing to our bones, especially during times of hardship and trouble. These seven Northern kings rose and fell while Asa enjoyed a relatively stable throne in Judah.
Through Asa, God kept the regal line of David in place. The apostle Paul describes the fruit of this regal line, the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy through the birth, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, of the seed of David.
1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. Romans 1:1-3 (NKJV)
Many of the prophets that Paul refers to here lived during this era of Israel’s kings. We will look at some of these individuals who were called and used by God, and often found themselves rising far above the standards of the kings that God had sent them to advise.
These prophets ultimately pointed to Jesus, the final focus of the Davidic line. Reading from the gospel of Matthew about two of Jesus’ apostles:
45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” John 1:45 (NKJV)
These prophets saw Jesus coming through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but in their times they were only able to physically see His placeholders, the imperfect kings who were preserving the regal line. As Jesus later said of these prophets to his disciples:
16 But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. Matthew 13:17 (NKJV)
Reflection
By the grace of God, we are here to experience His gift of life today. By accepting God’s generous offer of mercy, forgiveness and charity of judgment, we are able to experience His serenity, peace, and joy in our lives.
Father God, we are able to see the presence of Christ all around us in the many blessings You give and in the power and presence of the Holy Spirit as we read Your word and worship You. Continue to build or rebuild healthy and full lives wherever there is brokenness, fear, despair, depression, or discouragement. Give us all hope for the new day as we turn to You, surrendering all of our burdens and failures into Your loving hands. Craft a masterpiece of our life as we seek to walk with You. We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Thought for the Day: When God was making the stars, He was thinking about you.
Daily Meditations from the Genealogy of Jesus 