II Chronicles 28, Ahaz (and Israel and Assyria)

The kings of Judah (descendants of David), after Solomon, have been 

• Rehoboam, 
• Abijah, 
• Asa, 
• Jehoshaphat, 
• Jehoram, 
• Ahaziah, 
• Joash, 
• Amaziah (then Athaliah),
• Uzziah,
• Jotham, and now
• Ahaz.

The date is about 740 BC. Assyria is growing in the east and in as few more years (722 BC), Assyria will conquer the northern kingdom and carry off the people of the ten northern tribes.

2 Chronicles 28:1-4, Ahaz

Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD. He walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and also made cast idols for worshiping the Baals. He burned sacrifices in the Valley of Ben Hinnom and sacrificed his sons in the fire, following the detestable ways of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites. He offered sacrifices and burned incense at the high places, on the hilltops and under every spreading tree.

 

Ahaz turns back to the common Canaanite religions. He is compared, unfavorably, to David, and then his massive idolatry (including sacrificing his sons!) is described.

2 Chronicles 27:1 has Jotham dying at the age 41. Payne, in his commentary, carefully coordinates the  years of ascension of kings of Judah with kings of Israel and, when possible, links these to external events. In doing this, Payne has Ahaz assuming a coregency with Jotham when Jotham is 33 (in 743 BC), which would mean that since Ahaz was 20 when he became king, his father was 13 at his birth.  Fathering a child at age 13 is certainly possible in the ANE patriarchal culture but unusual. I've tended to ignore these coregency arguments and will see about looking at this more carefully in the next cycle of this blog. (I hope to update this material every three years.)

2 Chronicles 28:5-8, Losses to Aram-Damascus

Therefore the LORD his God handed him over to the king of Aram. The Arameans defeated him and took many of his people as prisoners and brought them to Damascus. He was also given into the hands of the king of Israel, who inflicted heavy casualties on him. In one day Pekah son of Remaliah killed a hundred and twenty thousand soldiers in Judah--because Judah had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers. 

Zicri, an Ephraimite warrior, killed Maaseiah the king's son, Azrikam the officer in charge of the palace, and Elkanah, second to the king. The Israelites took captive from their kinsmen two hundred thousand wives, sons and daughters. They also took a great deal of plunder, which they carried back to Samaria.
 

Aram-Damascus (with king Rezin) invades Judah and takes many prisoners. And then Israel (with king Pekah) also invades, all because of Judah's deeply embedded idolatry. The son of Ahaz is killed and the region plundered. Included in this capture of two hundred elephs of residents of Judah, including wives and children of these leaders.

2 Chronicles 28:9-11, Prophet advocate for prisoners

But a prophet of the LORD named Oded was there, and he went out to meet the army when it returned to Samaria. He said to them, "Because the LORD, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand. But you have slaughtered them in a rage that reaches to heaven. And now you intend to make the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem your slaves. But aren't you also guilty of sins against the LORD your God?

Now listen to me! Send back your fellow countrymen you have taken as prisoners, for the LORD's fierce anger rests on you."

A prophet, Oded, becomes an advocate for the prisoners and tells the soldiers that they won a victory only because YHWH was angry with the idolatry of Judah. But by capturing these prisoners (who would become slaves in Israel/Samaria/Ephraim), the soldiers have now, themselves, incurred YHWH's wrath.

2 Chronicles 28:12-14, Giving up prisoners and plunder

Then some of the leaders in Ephraim--Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berekiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai--confronted those who were arriving from the war. "You must not bring those prisoners here," they said, "or we will be guilty before the LORD. Do you intend to add to our sin and guilt? For our guilt is already great, and his fierce anger rests on Israel."

So the soldiers gave up the prisoners and plunder in the presence of the officials and all the assembly.

So confronted, the soldiers agree to return the captives.

2 Chronicles 28:15, Clothed and fed and returned

The men designated by name took the prisoners, and from the plunder they clothed all who were naked. They provided them with clothes and sandals, food and drink, and healing balm. All those who were weak they put on donkeys. So they took them back to their fellow countrymen at Jericho, the City of Palms, and returned to Samaria.
 

In capturing the many families from Judah, and plundering them, they had also taken their clothes. So in returning the people home, they clothe them, given them food and drink, and medicine for their wounds. The weak are put on donkeys and all are returned to Jericho, just east of Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 28:16-21, Bribe to Assyria

At that time King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help. The Edomites had again come and attacked Judah and carried away prisoners, while the Philistines had raided towns in the foothills and in the Negev of Judah. They captured and occupied Beth Shemesh, Aijalon and Gederoth, as well as Soco, Timnah and Gimzo, with their surrounding villages.
 

The LORD had humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had promoted wickedness in Judah and had been most unfaithful to the LORD. Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came to him, but he gave him trouble instead of help.

Ahaz took some of the things from the temple of the LORD and from the royal palace and from the princes and presented them to the king of Assyria, but that did not help him.
 

Isaiah prophesizes at this time (Isaiah 7-12) that YHWH will bring in Assyria to punish Aram-Damascus and Israel. Ahaz is not to fear. But Ahaz does not listen and has no desire, he says, "to test the Lord." And so Ahaz bows down to Assyria in an attempt to save his kingdom.

2 Chronicles 28:22-25, Sacrifices to Damascus idols

In his time of trouble King Ahaz became even more unfaithful to the LORD. He offered sacrifices to the gods of Damascus, who had defeated him; for he thought, "Since the gods of the kings of Aram have helped them, I will sacrifice to them so they will help me." But they were his downfall and the downfall of all Israel.

Ahaz gathered together the furnishings from the temple of God and took them away. He shut the doors of the LORD's temple and set up altars at every street corner in Jerusalem. In every town in Judah he built high places to burn sacrifices to other gods and provoked the LORD, the God of his fathers, to anger.

In trouble, Ahaz doubles down on his idolatry. He reasons that since he has been defeated by Aram-Damascus, then surely their gods are the ones to worship.

As Ahaz's life draws to an end, Hoshea in the northern kingdom assasinates King Pekah and shortly afterwards Shalmaneser of Assyria conquers the northern kingdom, puts Hoshea in chains and deports the people of the ten northern tribes (2 Kings 17.)

2 Chronicles 28:26-27, Not buried in the tomb of kings

The other events of his reign and all his ways, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

Ahaz rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of Jerusalem, but he was not placed in the tombs of the kings of Israel. And Hezekiah his son succeeded him as king.

The "book of the kings" has been lost. Ahaz is buried, but not in the kings tombs, an honor reserved for those "good" kings, king who were faithful to God.

Hezekiah will be a good king, worth four chapters of the Chronicler's attention.