In yesterday's study King Amaziah of Judah challenged King Jehoash of Israel to a fight. Men from Jehoash's kingdom---men of the tribe of Ephraim---have been making incursions into cities of Judah, attacking people and even killing people and looting their homes. This appears to be the motivation for Amaziah's desire to go to war with Israel and yesterday we discussed two possible reasons why Jehoash has done nothing to stop the Ephraimites.
When Jehoash received the message from Amaziah challenging him to a fight, he basically replied that he thinks Amaziah is getting too big for his britches. He said Amaziah was puffed up with pride because he successfully fought the Edomites but he warned Amaziah that he was now picking a fight with the wrong nation. He threatened Amaziah that the army of Israel will trample the army of Judah underfoot.
We talked about whether or not King Jehoash is actually being truthful about the size and skill of his army. We know that Israel's many battles with the Arameans severely reduced the size of Jehoash's fathers army and that Jehoash came to the throne with an incredibly small number of troops. We don't know the size of Jehoash's army at this time but I expressed doubts that he can really match or outnumber Ahaziah's 300,000 troops. However, Amaziah may not be fully aware of how many soldiers Jehoash does or does not have. Jehoash's claim to be able to beat the army of Judah may be a bluff because he does not want to go to war.
It is my opinion that the king of Judah has a larger army at this time than the king of Israel but it's not going to matter because the Lord is going to allow the king of Israel to have the victory in the upcoming battle. The reason for this is because, after Amaziah won his war against the Edomites, he brought home a number of the idolatrous images of the nation of Edom and began bowing to them and making offerings to them. The Lord is not going to fight on Amaziah's side because Amaziah is serving false gods and expecting them to help him defeat the Israelite army. In order to show Amaziah and the people of Judah that the gods of Edom do not exist and cannot help anyone, the Lord has to allow Amaziah to lose the battle.
When Amaziah receives King Jehoash's message of reply, he is not dissuaded from fighting against him. He goes ahead with preparing his troops for war, so Jehoash goes on the offensive and makes the first move. "Amaziah, however, would not listen, so Jehoash king of Israel attacked. He and King Amaziah of Judah faced each other at Beth Shemesh in Judah. Judah was routed by Israel, and every man fled to his home." (2 Kings 14:11-12) The author of 2 Chronicles makes it clear that the defeat of Amaziah's army is due to the idolatry into which Amaziah and many of the men have fallen. "God so worked that He might deliver them into the hands of Jehoash, because they sought the gods of Edom." (2 Chronicles 25:20) Jehoash himself is not living the way he should, spiritually speaking, but at least he has not forsaken the Lord for heathen gods. He is disobeying the Lord by worshiping at the golden calf sites in Israel (the golden calves set up by King Jeroboam to symbolize the Lord) but has not denied the name of the Lord in favor of pagan deities.
Amaziah and his men are fighting on their home turf, where they know the layout of the land and where they know the best places from which to launch an attack on the invaders, but they are unable to repel the Israelite army. When the battle begins going against them, Amaziah's men desert him and leave him unprotected. "Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh. Then Jehoash went to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate---a section of about four hundred cubits long. He took all the gold and silver and all the articles found in the temple of the Lord and in the treasuries of the royal palace. He also took hostages and returned to Samaria." (2 Kings 14:13-14, 2 Chronicles 25:23-24)
When we study the reign of Amaziah we will learn that he will live on for fifteen years past the death of King Jehoash. So what do the authors of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles mean when they say that King Jehoash took Amaziah hostage? It is thought by many scholars that Jehoash took Amaziah hostage only for the purpose of gaining easy admittance to Jerusalem. With Amaziah in his custody, no one was going to oppose Jehoash and his men with violence lest the king of Judah be caught in the crossfire. The only other known historical account of the battle between Amaziah and Jehoash is contained in the writings of the ancient historian Flavius Josephus who states that the Lord sent a great panic on the army of Judah, causing them to flee the battle, and that Jehoash was able to break through the wall of Jerusalem and drive his chariot through the opening without anyone doing anything to stop him. After looting the city and the temple, the king of Israel evidently let Amaziah go back to his palace. I imagine Jehoash doing this in an attitude of contempt, as if he considers Amaziah so weak and helpless that he represents no threat whatsoever to Israel. Upon taking his leave of the city, Jehoash allows Amaziah to go back to the palace to sit on the throne and wear the crown of Judah---impotently, in Jehoash's opinion, since the king who challenged him was unable to back up his threats.
In tomorrow's study we will take a look at a meeting between King Jehoash and the prophet Elisha. Then we will study the deaths of the king and the prophet before coming back to study the rest of the events described in the Bible regarding the reign of King Amaziah.
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