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1 AND 2 CHRONICLES: GAINING DIRECTION OUT OF THE AIMLESSNESS OF APOSTASY
Part V: Gaining Direction From God's Work In The Rest Of Judah's Dynasty, 2 Chronicles 13-36
Q. Learning God Expects Much Of Those Having Access To Great Firsthand Knowledge Of His Ways
(2 Chronicles 33:21-25 with 32:1-20 and 24:17-27)
  1. Introduction
    1. In Luke 12:48, Jesus taught that "unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required" in the context of a servant of God's accountability to perform his Lord's will.
    2. This lesson is dramatically illustrated in the brief discussion of wicked king Amon's life in 2 Chronicles 33:21-25 as seen in the wider Biblical context of the Chronicles (as follows):
  2. Learning God's Expects Much Of Those With Great Firsthand Knowledge Of His Ways.
    1. In the brief 2 Chronicles 33:21-25 passage about Judah's wicked king Amon, we note he did evil in God's sight as had his father, Manasseh: he set up carved images as had Manasseh and sinned more without humbling himself opposite what his father had done in repenting of his initial idolatry, 2 Chron. 33:21-23.
    2. Accordingly, Amon was judged by God in accord with the judgments of the Mosaic Covenant (Deuteronomy 28:15, 25) to be slain by his own servants in his own residence, 2 Chronicles 33:24.
    3. Of interest, we note that a former king, Joash was also killed by a conspiracy of his servants, 2 Chronicles 24:25. If we compare his life with that of Amon, we note a similar pattern and the similar lesson that God expects much of those who have access to great firsthand knowledge of His ways (as follows):
      1. Comparing Judah's king Amon with the past king Joash, we note both men had access to great firsthand knowledge of God's gracious deliverance of either themselves or a close relative (as follows):
        1. Joash had access to great firsthand knowledge of God's gracious deliverance of his own life and his establishment as king over Judah, 2 Chronicles 22:10-23:15: (1) Joash had been rescued as an infant from wicked queen Athaliah's purge of David's royal seed in 2 Chronicles 22:10-12. (2) He was reared and influenced by the godly high priest, Jehoiada, the husband of the woman, Jehoshabeath who had rescued him from Athaliah, 2 Chronicles 23:1-15 with 2 Chron icles 24:1-2. (3) Thus, all during the days that the high priest, Jehoiada lived to advise him, Joash would have been reminded of his deliverance, and heeded Jehoiada's instruction about heeding the Lord, 2 Chronicles 24:1-2.
        2. In the case of king Amon, he had access to great firsthand knowledge of God's gracious deliverance of his father, Manasseh after his father had been severely judged for sin followed by his repentance, 2 Chron icles 33:1-20: (1) Amon's father, king Manasseh had led Judah into great sin, and initially refused to heed God's warnings to repent, 2 Chronicles 33:9-10. (2) The Lord had severely judged Manasseh, letting him be captured by the Assyrians, have his nostrils pierced with a hook and be led in dishonor into captivity in Babylon, 2 Chronicles 33:11. (3) In this trial, Manasseh had repented and called unto the Lord for deliverance, and God had graciously heard and restored him to his throne in Judah, 2 Chronicles 33:12-13. (4) Armed with this firsthand insight into God's greatness and abundant grace (2 Chronicles 33:13b), Manasseh had cleansed Judah of its idols and directed its people to serve the Lord God of Israel, something Amon would have known very well, 33:15-16.
      2. However, Joash refused to value God's gracious deliverance of which he had access to ample insight, and did great evil, so God judged him to die in a conspiracy by his own servants, 2 Chron. 24:17-24:
        1. Joash actually put to death the son of the high priest, Jehoiada whose wife had saved his life as an infant, and which high priest had raised and set Joash on Judah's throne as king, 2 Chron. 24:17-22.
        2. Accordingly Joash was judged to die by the hands of his own residence servants, 2 Chron. 24:23-24.
      3. Similarly, Amon did not heed his access to great firsthand insight of God's gracious deliverance testified in his father's life, so he like Joash was judged of God to die by his own servants, 33:21-24.
Lesson: For failing to heed their access to great firsthand knowledge of God's ways, both Judah's king Joash and later king Amon were judged by God to die infamously by conspiracies of their own servants.

Application: (1) May we recall that the GREATER FIRSTHAND ACCESS we have into KNOWING God's ways, the MORE He holds us ACCOUNTABLE to HEED Him IN His ways! (2) If God has then GIVEN us great firsthand access to certain truth, may we REVERE Him and HEED that truth to our UTMOST ability and motivation that we gain His blessing and not His severe discipline, Luke 12:48!