Sermon Tone Analysis

(1-13)

In the first few verses what are a few details about Amaziah?

The general character of Amaziah: He did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, worshipped the true God, kept the temple service a going, and countenanced religion in his kingdom; but he did not do it with a perfect heart (v. 2), that is, he was not a man of serious piety or devotion himself, nor had he any zeal for the exercises of religion.

He was no enemy to it, but a cool and indifferent friend.

Such is the character of too many in this Laodicean age: they do that which is good, but not with the heart, not with a perfect heart.

What was unique about how he exacted justice?

Behind the Mosaic law that individuals should be responsible in capital offences for their own sins (cf.

Deut.

24:16; Jer.

31:29–31; Ezek.

18:1–20) was the principle that justice should always be limited (even in visiting the fathers’ sins on their descendants, God’s mercy to thousands far exceeds his judgment to the third and fourth generations; cf.

Exod.

20:5–6).

As in chapter 24, the influence of the teaching of individual responsibility in Ezekiel 18 is again evident.

Who does Amaziah first gather in preparing for war?

III.

An expedition of his against the Edomites, who, some time ago, had revolted from under the dominion of Judah, to which he attempted to reduce them.

Observe,

1.

The great preparation he made for this expedition.

(1.)

He mustered his own forces, and marshalled them (v.

5), and found Judah and Benjamin in all but 300,000 men that were fit for war, whereas, in Jehoshaphat’s time, fifty or sixty years before, they were four times as many.

Sin weakens a people, diminishes them, dispirits them, and lessens their number and figure.

In verse 6, who does he hire?

who comes to the king as a result of that decision and what is the message?

Amaziah may have been pressured to hire Israelite mercenaries (v. 6) because of the reduced number of conscripts.

According to an unnamed prophet (man of God), however, this is not the way to fight in the Lord’s name (vv.

7–9), for two reasons.

Firstly, the LORD is not with Israel (v.

7), who were still committed to idolatry (2 Kgs 13:11).

Secondly, Amaziah’s chief weapon must be trust in God (cf.

14:11; 20:20–23; 32:6–8, 20–21), for God has the power to help or to overthrow.

God’s power and help, which are a central theme in the ‘Yahweh war’ passages (2 Chr.

14:11; 20:6; 32:7), are especially given to weak and powerless people who have faith in God (14:11; 20:12; 32:8).

Indeed, as the cross shows supremely, God’s power shows up particularly well in human weakness (cf. 1 Cor.

1:25; 2 Cor.

12:9–10; 13:4).

The exact meaning of verse 8a is unclear.

Most EVV assume a hypothetical attack by making slight changes to MT (if you go and fight, NIV; ‘if you make these people your allies’, REB, NEB), but the actual Hebrew is ironic, ‘go by yourself and act; be strong in battle’ (NRSV).

What is Amaziah’s decision?

What are the consequences of that decision?

.

His obedience to the command of God, which is upon record to his honour.

He would rather lose his money, disoblige his allies, and dismiss a fourth part of his army just as they were going to take the field, than offend God: He separated the army of Ephraim, to go home again, v. 10.

And they went home in great anger, taking it as a great affront thus to be made fools of, and to be cashiered as men not fit to be employed, and being perhaps disappointed of the advantages they promised themselves in spoil and plunder by joining with Judah against Edom.

Men are apt to resent that which touches them in their profit or reputation, though it frees them from trouble.

5. His triumphs over the Edomites, v. 11, 12.

He left dead upon the spot, in the field of battle, 10,000 men; 10,000 more he took prisoners, and barbarously killed them all by throwing them down some steep and craggy precipice.

What provocation he had to exercise this cruelty towards them we are not told; but it was certainly very severe.

6.

The mischief which the disbanded soldiers of Israel did to the cities of Judah, either in their return or soon after, v. 13.

They were so enraged at being sent home that, if they might not go to share with Judah in the spoil of Edom, they would make a prey of Judah.

Several cities that lay upon the borders they plundered, killing 3000 men that made resistance.

But why should God suffer this to be done?

Was it not in obedience to him that they were sent home, and yet shall the country thus suffer by it?

Surely God’s way is in the sea!

Did not the prophet say that God was not with the children of Ephraim, and yet they are suffered to prevail against Judah?

Doubtless God intended hereby to chastise those cities of Judah for their idolatries, which were found most in those parts that lay next to Israel.

The men of Israel had corrupted them, and now they were made a plague to them.

Satan both tempts and torments.

(14-28)

What happens after Judah’s victory over the Edomites?

The revolt of Amaziah from the God of Israel to the gods of the Edomites.

Egregious folly!

Ahaz worshipped the gods of those that had conquered him, for which he had some little colour, ch.

28:23.

But to worship the gods of those whom he had conquered, who could not protect their own worshippers, was the greatest absurdity that could be.

What did he see in the gods of the children of Seir that could tempt him to set them up for his gods and bow himself down before them?

v. 14.

If he had cast the idols down from the rock and broken them to pieces, instead of the prisoners, he would have manifested more of the piety as well as more of the pity of an Israelite; but perhaps for that barbarous inhumanity he was given up to this ridiculous idolatry.

Who comes to the King and what is the interaction about?

Though Amaziah was simply following contemporary custom, his blatant idolatry made God angry (v.

15; cf.

Jas 4:4) and invoked the sanctions of the Davidic covenant (cf. 2 Chr.

7:19–22).

By God’s grace, however, a second anonymous prophet invites Amaziah to think again (vv.

15–16; cf.

vv.

7–8).

His message was that the Edomite deities had manifestly failed the basic test of any god, to save (‘deliver’, NRSV, RSV) their own people, in contrast to Amaziah’s own experience of Yahweh (vv.

8–10).

The prophet’s logic as well as his courage was incontrovertible.

In fact, an appeal to God’s saving power is a regular biblical answer to attempts to reduce him to the level of ther deities (cf. 1 Kgs 18:20–39; Isa.

41:21–29; Acts 4:12).

Two plays on words show how serious was Amaziah’s refusal to listen.

Though the prophet stopped because the king said Stop! (the Heb.

verb is repeated), the word of God continued to speak: God has determined to destroy you.

Further, determined is related to the words ‘counsellor’, counsel (v.

16), and consulted (v.

17).

Amaziah might reject the prophet’s counsel (v.

16) in favour of his own advisers (v.

17), but he could not avoid God’s counsel, as the following incident demonstrates.

What does Amaziah do to Joash the king of Israel?

1.

This part of the story (which was as fully related 2 Ki.

14:8, etc., as it is here)—embracing the foolish challenge which Amaziah sent to Joash (v.

17), his haughty scornful answer to it (v.

18), with the friendly advice he gave him to sit still and know when he was well off, (v.

19),—his wilfully persisting in his challenge (v.

20, 21), the defeat that was given him (v.

22), and the calamity he brought upon himself and his city thereby (v.

23, 24),—verifies two of Solomon’s proverbs:—(1.)

That a man’s pride will bring him low, Prov.

29:23.

It goes before his destruction; not only procures it meritoriously, but is often the immediate occasion of it.

He that exalteth himself shall be abased.

(2.)

That he that goes forth hastily to strive will probably not know what to do in the end thereof, when his neighbour has put him to shame, Prov.

25:8.

He that is fond of contention may have enough of it sooner than he thinks of.

2. But there are two passages in this story which we had not before in the Kings.

(1.)

That Amaziah took advice before he challenged the king of Israel, v. 17.

But of whom?

Not of the prophet—he was not made of the king’s counsel; but of his statesmen that would flatter him and bid him go up and prosper.

It is good to take advice, but then it must be of those that are fit to advise us.