Clean Transcript

Things That Go Together

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

• In the sixth and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah and built Ramah, to the intent that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king's house, and sent to Ben-Hadad, king of Syria, that dwelt in Damascus, saying, There is a league between me and thee, as there was between my father and thy father. Behold, I have sent thee silver and gold. Go, break thy league with Baasha, king of Israel, that he may depart from me. And Ben-Hadad hearkened to King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel.

  #1 | 0:13 to 0:55 | cleaned

• And they smote Ijon and Dan and Abel-maim and all the store cities of Naphtali. And it came to pass when Baasha heard it, that he left off building of Ramah and let his work cease. Then Asa the king took all Judah and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof wherewith Baasha was building; and he built therewith Geba and Mizpah. So it must have been a mighty big project. And at that time, Hanani the seer came to Asa, king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied upon the king of Syria, and not relied on the Lord thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand.

  #2 | 0:56 to 1:34 | cleaned

• Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge host, and with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered them into thine hand. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly. Therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.

  #3 | 1:35 to 1:58 | cleaned

• Then Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in a prison house. For he was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time. We're talking about things that go together. And I pointed out earlier today that there are some things that go together naturally. We tend to think of the old song and also the old saying that love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage. And certainly love would not be anything unless there was a way to express it. And likewise, a carriage would be absolutely useless without a horse or at least without a motor as well. But there are things that do indeed go together. Someone has pointed out that peanut butter and jelly always go together.

  #4 | 1:58 to 2:45 | cleaned

• It's always been a staple food for most children and a lot of adults, believe it or not. But there are things that go together and some think that chocolate and peanut butter are just the apex of everything. In fact, one of Alice's favorite candies years ago, and I guess still is, was those Reese cups, you know, peanut butter and chocolate together. We had some friends that came from Hawaii and visited over there, brought her a shirt that smelled like chocolate. And yeah, and just give me the chocolate and nobody gets hurt. But anyhow, there are things that basically go together. Interestingly, we've always noticed that especially when it comes to clothing: shirts, ties, trousers, shoes, that kind of thing. And when our girls were small, I'd hear Alice say to them, "You're not going to wear that outfit; that does not match." And the interesting thing is, when we got older, some of the grandkids would look at Alice and say, "Granny, you're not going to wear that, are you? That doesn't match."

  #5 | 2:46 to 4:01 | cleaned

• So the kids got more meticulous and the older we got, the less we really cared whether it matched or not. You know, one of my favorite stories, though, is about we were out west traveling and my sunglasses broke. And Tripp and Lacey, our two youngest grandchildren, were with us. And so I stopped at a dollar store. I ran in, bought a pair of sunglasses, paid for them, ran out, got in the car and started driving off. And Lacey looked at me and said, "Papa, you're not going to wear those glasses, are you?"

  #6 | 4:02 to 4:40 | cleaned

• I said, "Well, yes, I am. I bought them. They're mine. I'm going to wear them." "But Papa, you can't wear those outside of the car." "Why?" "Well, Papa, those are ladies' sunglasses." I said, "No, they're not. They were on the men's turnstile of sunglasses. I picked them off the men's rack. Those are men's sunglasses." "Papa, look at the arms. There's little tiny diamond sequins all up and down their arms."

  #7 | 4:40 to 5:10 | cleaned

• So I wore them to the next store where I could stop and get another pair. So obviously even my grandkids knew that a man was not supposed to wear that which belonged to a woman. So I had to get another pair of sunglasses for work or what do you wear down the road. When you look at 2 Chronicles chapter 16 verses 1 through 10, we see things that go together.

  #8 | 5:13 to 5:36 | cleaned

• But the problem is oftentimes we do not think about these things that go together because we really are not biblically conscious or we're just simply unperceptive when it comes to reading the scripture. But these things I'm going to be sharing with you today go together like hand in glove. They just simply fit together and one inevitably leads to the other.

  #9 | 5:37 to 6:03 | cleaned

• Now, this involves King Asa. King Asa basically was what you and I would call a good man, a godly man, and also a very gracious man. In fact, the Bible has a lot of good things to say about Asa. So if you will turn back in your Bibles to 2 Chronicles chapter 14, and let's read the first six verses, and I want you to note, if you would, what even God said concerning Asa. Notice 2 Chronicles 14, beginning there with verse one. "And Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Asa his son reigned in his stead."

  #10 | 6:03 to 6:39 | cleaned

• "In his days the land was quiet ten years. And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. For he took away the altars of the strange gods and the high places, and broke down the images, and cut down the groves, and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. And he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the images, and the kingdom was quiet before him. And he built cities in Judah, for the land had rest. For he had no war in those years, because the Lord had given him rest." Now obviously Asa initially was a very good and godly king.

  #11 | 6:40 to 7:25 | cleaned

• He not only destroyed idolatry out of the land, he sought to bring the people back not only to biblical law, but also to biblical worship as well. God honored Asa when you look at verse 2 because the scripture says, "And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord." Moreover the Bible tells us that the Lord God had given him rest and kept him from wars. Well, what did Asa do during that time of rest? We'll look in verse 7. "Therefore he said unto Judah, Let us build these cities and make about them walls and towers and gates and bars, while the land is yet before us. Because we have sought the Lord our God, we have sought him and he's given us rest on every side. So they built and prospered." So during this time of rest he's building cities and he's fortifying the cities. He's making towers and gates and bars. So he's using his time wisely. Moreover, Asa also had what you and I would call a very large army.

  #12 | 7:25 to 8:29 | cleaned

• If you look in verse eight, "And Asa had an army of men that bear targets and spears out of Judah, three hundred thousand; and out of Benjamin that bear shields and drew bows two hundred and fourscore thousand; and all these were mighty men of valor." So we had five hundred and eighty thousand soldiers. Now, that's a very large army. I don't even think our army is that large today at one time, but you're talking over a half a million men that he has just simply as an army at this particular time. And obviously he needed those because if you look in verse 9, Zerah the Ethiopian came against him with over a million men. The Bible says, "And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with a host of a thousand thousand, that's a million, and three hundred chariots, and came into Mareshah." Now, let me just mention the fact, three hundred chariots. The chariots in those

  #13 | 8:30 to 9:31 | cleaned

• days were the heavy weaponry. It was a modern-day tank-like weapon. In fact, a lot of those chariot wheels would have knives and sharp things coming out the side and edge, and so they would drive through soldiers and just cut them down, basically. Moreover, the chariots had archers and they could shoot very well. So here was an enemy that came against Asa with a million men and three hundred chariots. So obviously, Asa is now outnumbered two to one. And moreover, these chariots now are going to be used against him. So you're going to have to ask yourself this question. If Asa is a good and godly man, and he's faced with these great odds being outnumbered and outgunned, what would he do? Well, here's what he did.

  #14 | 9:31 to 10:27 | cleaned

• Look, if you would, please, in verse 10. "Then Asa went out against him, and they set the battle in array at the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. And Asa cried unto the Lord his God and said, Lord, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many or with them that have no power. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O Lord, thou art our God, let not man prevail against thee. So the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar, and the Ethiopians were overthrown, they could not recover themselves."

  #15 | 10:28 to 11:14 | cleaned

• "For they were destroyed before the Lord and before his host, and they carried away very much spoil. And they smote all the cities round about Gerar, for the fear of the Lord came upon them, and they spoiled all the cities, for there was exceeding much spoil in them. They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to Jerusalem." So here God has granted Asa a tremendous victory and a great deliverance, and they came away with all of this abundance of spoil that they had gotten. So undoubtedly at this particular time Asa and Judah would be what you and I would call a very happy and a blessed people. Now, let me just show you how much Asa did in trying to restore God's honor and God's worship. If you look in 2 Chronicles chapter 15 beginning there with verse 7, because here the prophet of God comes to Asa and he says this: "And be strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded." And when Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin and out of the

  #16 | 11:14 to 12:37 | cleaned

• cities which he had taken from Mount Ephraim, that is in the northern kingdom, and renewed the altar of the Lord, that was before the porch of the Lord. And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin and the strangers with him out of Ephraim and Manasseh and out of Simeon. For they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. So he now has tried to establish again the true worship of God. And even these people in the northern kingdom see, know and understand that God is with Asa. And so now they're leaving the northern kingdom and they're coming down to Asa in order that they might worship the Lord and do that which is right and holy. Now, let me show you how thoroughly and completely Asa wanted to restore biblical worship. Notice if you would in verse 12 of 2 Chronicles chapter 15. Notice verse 12: "And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul; that whosoever

  #17 | 12:37 to 13:47 | cleaned

• would not seek the Lord God of Israel should be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. And they swear unto the Lord with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets. And all Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart, and sought him with their whole desire. And he was found of them, and the Lord gave them rest round about." Now watch.

  #18 | 13:47 to 14:13 | cleaned

• "And also concerning Maacah, the mother of Asa the king, he removed her from being queen. Because she had made an idol in a grove, and Asa cut down her idol and stamped it and burned it in the brook Kidron." Notice if you would, here's a man that now has entered into a covenant with himself and with his people that they are going to worship the Lord and anyone who does not worship the Lord is to be put to death. Does it matter if they're a man or woman, great or small? Moreover, to show you how absolutely serious he was, he removed his own mother from being queen because she had made an idol. And he took that idol and he cut it up and stamped it and took care of just totally, absolutely destroyed it. So Asa was not playing favorites in this particular time. He was actually serious. When we remember Asa, we remember him for being what you and I would call good, godly and gracious. But the truth of the matter is this, Asa, like everyone else, was a sinner.

  #19 | 14:13 to 15:26 | cleaned

• And Asa was a man. You have to remember the middle verse of the Bible. In fact, I will give you the verse before as well. Psalm 118 and verse eight, the Bible says, "It's better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man." And the next verse says this, "It's better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes." So God says, you can't trust in man. You can't trust in government. You can't trust in rulers. It's wiser to just simply trust in God.

  #20 | 15:27 to 16:03 | cleaned

• The best of men are sinners. The best of men fail. The best of men will let you down. The best of men are weak and vacillating. So what do I mean? Let me show you. Look in 2 Chronicles 16, which we just read. I want to just review and then get to a certain passage and point it out. So notice if you would please in chapter 16 in verse 1, Baasha the king of Israel has come out against Judah and against Asa. And what did Asa do? He turns around and he gets silver and gold out of the temple, gets silver and gold out of his own treasuries, and he goes to Ben-Hadad the king of Syria and says, "There's a league between us, just like there was a league between my father and your father. And what I want you to do now that I've given you all this money is you break your league with Baasha and you go and attack Israel and you get him off my back." And that is exactly what Ben-Hadad did.

  #21 | 16:03 to 17:14 | cleaned

• Now just consider, he's got all the money, all the silver and all the gold out of Judah and Jerusalem, and now he's going to attack Israel and he's going to steal and take whatever he can take at that particular point as well. Now I want you to note if you would please, he came in verse 4 and he smote Israel to the extent that Baasha left off building. And then Asa went and took all of that material and he built evidently two cities, Geba and Mizpah. Now, here's what I want you to see. Look in verse 7. "At that time, Hanani the seer, that is the prophet, the preacher, came to Asa, king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria and not relied on the Lord thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand." Now, let me just stop and point this out. God had delivered the Ethiopians into Asa's hand. The prophet is saying, had you done that which was right, I would have delivered the Syrians into your hand as well. You could have had the spoil of the Syrians, just like you have the spoil of the

  #22 | 17:14 to 18:34 | cleaned

• Ethiopians. Now, look, if you would, please. He says in verse eight, "Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge host with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered them into thine hand. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong on behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." Look what he says to the king. "Herein thou hast done foolishly. Therefore, from henceforth thou shalt have wars."

  #23 | 18:34 to 19:08 | cleaned

• So let me just kind of put this in plain everyday English for you. Here's what Hanani said to King Asa. "You're a fool. You did something very, very stupid, very, very foolish. You have trusted in the arm of the flesh." Here is Asa's first sin in this passage: he is relying upon the arm of the flesh. He's no longer relying upon God for his sovereign protection. He's relying upon Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria, to break his league with Baasha and attack Baasha because he paid him to do that.

  #24 | 19:08 to 20:02 | cleaned

• You know what the Bible says in the book of Jeremiah, chapter 17, verses five and six? "Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm." He goes on to say, "He shall be like the heath in the desert." He's gonna be like a tree that never gets watered. He's gonna suffer. Cursed be the man that trusteth in the flesh and maketh flesh his arm.

  #25 | 20:04 to 20:31 | cleaned

• And that is exactly what Asa was doing. He was no longer relying upon the Lord like he did when the Ethiopians attacked him. Now he's relying upon Ben-Hadad. Here's a second sin. If you'll go back to verse two in 2 Chronicles 16, look at this. "Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the Lord, and out of the king's house, and sent to Ben-Hadad, king of Syria, that dwelt in Damascus." What?

  #26 | 20:32 to 21:04 | cleaned

• Let me ask you a question. To whom did the treasures in the house of the Lord belong? To the Lord. Not to Asa. Now, if Asa wanted to spend his own money, that'd be one thing. But what Asa did, he went in the house of the Lord, stole that which belonged to God, added what he had, and sent it to Ben-Hadad. In other words, he took God's money to bribe a heathen in order that the heathen might violate his agreement with Baasha and enter into a new agreement with him. I'm just simply pointing out the fact here Asa is doing something that's absolutely, totally contrary to what we've read so far concerning him.

  #27 | 21:05 to 21:55 | cleaned

• Thirdly, let me point out, he is now rebuked for his sins by Hanani, the preacher, the prophet. Look at verse 8. He asked him, "Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge host with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered them into thine hand." Then he tells him, "The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in

  #28 | 21:56 to 22:30 | cleaned

• behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." In other words, God would have done much more for you if you remained true. "Herein thou hast done foolishly. Therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars." Now watch. "Then Asa was wroth with the seer; he was angry, he was in a rage. And Asa was wroth with the seer and put him in a prison house, for he was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time." Now, in light of all of the other sins that I've just mentioned concerning Asa, this is, I believe, his greatest sin. He refused to listen to God. He refused to listen to the preacher who is proclaiming the word of God.

  #29 | 22:30 to 23:29 | cleaned

• Ah, let me show you. I want you to hold 2 Chronicles 16, but turn right over to 2 Chronicles chapter 36. 2 Chronicles 36. And let's begin reading there with verse 11. 2 Chronicles 36 verse 11 here. We're reading about Zedekiah. Maybe Zedekiah learned from Asa. Maybe Asa learned from Zedekiah. Zedekiah was certainly after Asa, but notice if you would what the Bible says. 2 Chronicles 36 verse 11: "Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the

  #30 | 23:30 to 24:10 | cleaned

• Lord his God." Now watch, "and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord." What? In other words, Zedekiah's attitude was, "I don't care what God says. I don't care what you say. I'll do what I want to do." And he humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet who was speaking from the word of the Lord. And now Hanani the seer comes along, and the word seer is just another word for a prophet, a preacher. So Hanani comes along and he confronts Asa and rebukes Asa, and Asa refuses to humble himself. He refuses to acknowledge his sins. He refuses to confess his sins. He refuses to repent, and he takes Hanani and throws him into prison.

  #31 | 24:10 to 25:03 | cleaned

• And the Bible says he also oppressed some of the people at the same time. So here's what has happened. The deceitfulness of the human heart has deceived Asa. His sin has hardened his heart. Now, the Bible says that he put the prophet in a prison house. If you look up the word prison, it actually is the word stocks. He put him in the stockhouse. Now undoubtedly, the stockhouse was a prison.

  #32 | 25:03 to 25:43 | cleaned

• Sometimes it was a dungeon. But the word here implies torture. A stockhouse or a stock at that time was a twisting instrument. It was an instrument of torture. It was a stock by which the body was contorted and forced into an unnatural and twisted position. Sometimes the hands were even tied down to the ankle. So you couldn't stand up. You couldn't sit down. You couldn't do anything, and sometimes they would twist your body around as well. So they not only put Hanani in the prison house, they placed him in the stocks. They were torturing him. Notice if you would verse 10 again. And the Bible said, "And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time." Now the Hebrew word for oppressed here actually means to crush, and to crush with violence. So, it could be that there

  #33 | 25:43 to 26:45 | cleaned

• were some individuals that were taking up for Hanani. It could be that there were some who were protesting what the king was doing. I don't know. It could also refer to unjust exactions and taxation. But whatever he did, he oppressed the people, he crushed them, and he crushed them with violence.

  #34 | 26:45 to 27:05 | cleaned

• Now, the conduct of Asa at this point is seemingly completely contradictory to his previous conduct and the previous testimony that was given to him. So we have to ask this question. What happened? Why did this happen? I'm pointing out things that go together. Here is one thing that goes together always. Rebellion and tyranny. Rebellion is always the foundation of tyranny. Rejection of God, rejection of God's Word, rejection of the preaching and teaching of God's Word always leads to tyranny. You remember our Lord in Luke chapter 18 was talking about prayer and he said in verse 2, "There was a judge in a certain city who feared not God nor regarded man." So anytime a ruler does not fear God, he will have no regard for man. So here's Asa, who is now in a rebellious stage.

  #35 | 27:05 to 28:28 | cleaned

• And he's at that stage where he no longer fears God, and he throws the prophet of God in the stockhouse and he begins to oppress the people at the same time. Now it is impossible to have liberty and freedom apart from God and his law. May I remind you of 2 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 17, because the Bible says, "Now the Lord is that Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." But the opposite is also true: where the Spirit of the Lord is not, there is tyranny. You can only have liberty. You can only have freedom when you have God and his law and his word.

  #36 | 28:30 to 29:13 | cleaned

• Now, let me show you something. We're still dealing with Asa. I want you to go back to 2 Chronicles, chapter 15. Okay, I want you to watch this. You have to ask yourself this question. What would be the results of rulers turning away from God? Let me ask it another way. What are the results when you do not have the true God? What are the results when you do not have the Word of God? What are the results when you do not have anyone who will teach and preach and explain the Word of God? Well, here's our answer. Let's begin reading in 2 Chronicles chapter 15 and verse 1: "And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded. And he went out to meet Asa and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you while you be with him. And if you seek him, he will be found of you.

  #37 | 29:14 to 30:20 | cleaned

• But if you forsake him, he will forsake you." Now look what he's about to tell you. He's going to tell you what it was like in the land without God. You have to remember, there were kings who turned away from God. Here's what he says. "Now, for a long season, Israel hath been without the true God." Whoa, whoa, stop. I thought Israel was the nation that had the true God, not the Philistines, not the Egyptians, not the Hittites and the Jebusites and the Hivites. No, no, it was Israel. But now he says, "For a long season, Israel has been without the true God." How can they be without the true God? And the answer is because they were without a teaching priest and without law. They did not know God's law. They did not have anyone to teach and explain and apply it. And when you are without a teaching preacher, when you are without God's Word, you are basically without God. What are the results? Now watch. "But when they in their trouble did turn to the Lord God of Israel and sought of him, he was found of them." Wonderful. But in those times—what times? Go back to verse 3, the times when they were without the true God, without a teaching priest, and without the law—in those times

  #38 | 30:21 to 31:39 | cleaned

• "there was no peace to him that went out nor to him that came in, but great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the countries. And nation was destroyed of nation, and city of city, for God did vex them with all adversity." Note, if you would, what he said in those times. Without the true God, without a teaching priest, without the law, there was nothing but vexation. There was no peace. And there were wars, nation against nation and city against city. Notice if you would in verse 6, "And nation was destroyed of nation, and city of city, for God did vex them with all adversity." In other words, the reality is divine vexation. The wars, the exploitations, the exactions, the theft, the loss of liberty, the loss of freedom, all stem from a rejection of God and a refusal to hear His Word and the preaching and teaching of His Word. So mark this down. Whenever you have a city, whenever you have a nation, whenever you have a country that is without the word of God and without the preaching and teaching of the word of God, they are without the one true and the living God.

  #39 | 31:40 to 33:09 | cleaned

• Asa's tyranny stemmed from the fact that he rejected the word of God. He rejected the prophet of God. Rebellion always leads to tyranny. It is hand in glove. You cannot have one without the other. Asa was all right until he rebelled. And when he rebelled, he began to tyrannize his people.

  #40 | 33:10 to 33:41 | cleaned

• Now, I want to show you this. This is a principle that is enunciated over and over in the scripture. In 2 Chronicles chapter 22, we're not going to take time to read it, but I will tell you about it. There was a grandmother by the name of Athaliah. Her son Ahaziah was king and he died. And then Athaliah did a very un-grandmotherly thing. The Bible says she arose and destroyed all the seed of the house royal, except one, Joash. She murdered all of her grandchildren. And the Bible tells us she murdered them just so that she could be queen and then she could reign in the land. And if it had not been for Joash's aunt, who happened to have been the wife of Jehoiada the priest, she'd have gotten Joash as well. But she stole Joash. She rescued Joash. She took him out and hid him in the temple. And Athaliah, evidently there's so many grandchildren, she didn't know that she had missed one. So Jehoiada the priest now is the man who is raising Joash and teaching Joash. Okay, he's the man that basically saved his life. Now look if you would in

  #41 | 33:42 to 35:17 | cleaned

• 2 Chronicles 24 and let's begin reading there with verse 1. "Joash was seven years old when he began to reign." So Jehoiada now has trained him and taught him. Seven years old. I'm not going to go into the whole story, but they took him in the temple. They crowned him. And notice if you would, his mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba. "And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. And Jehoiada took for him two wives, and he begat sons and daughters. And it came to pass after this that Joash was minded to repair the house of the Lord." So note, if you would, verse 2, this is very significant. "And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest." So as long as Jehoiada was alive, Joash did that which was right. And Jehoiada took him two wives, the Bible says.

  #42 | 35:17 to 36:24 | cleaned

• And the Bible tells us that Jehoiada was ordered later on by even Joash to clean the temple and to rebuild and do that. It was through Joash that the order was given that the temple should be cleansed and all the trash taken out, all the idols taken out. And Joash basically was what you and I would call a man who was wanting to do that which was right.

  #43 | 36:24 to 36:49 | cleaned

• I mean, goodness, it looks as that. Now, the question you're going to have to ask is this. What happened after Jehoiada died? The Bible says he did that which was right all the days of Jehoiada the priest. Well, let's look. Let's look in 2 Chronicles, chapter 24, beginning there at verse 17. Jehoiada has died. Watch carefully.

  #44 | 36:51 to 37:18 | cleaned

• "Now after the death of Jehoiada came the princes of Judah and made obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened unto them." Now note, they came and did obeisance to the king. It's not just that they bowed down to him. They talked with him. They counseled him. They advised him. And he took their advice and he followed them. Watch, here's what happened. "And they," that would be the king and the princes, "and they left the house of the Lord God of their fathers and served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass. And yet he sent prophets to them," that is God sent prophets to them, "to bring them again to the Lord, and they testified against them, but none would give ear." This is amazing.

  #45 | 37:19 to 38:12 | cleaned

• So here is Joash. He's raised right. He's raised in the temple. He's taught right. He cleans the house of God. He does that which is seemingly good and right. And now when Jehoiada the priest dies, here come the princes and they talk him into idolatry. God sent preachers. He wouldn't hear. The princes wouldn't hear.

  #46 | 38:13 to 38:38 | cleaned

• Now, look, if you would please, at verse 20. "The Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people and said unto them," so this is a priest, this is the son of Jehoiada. Notice if you would what he said: "Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the Lord, that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, he hath also forsaken you." So here's Zechariah saying, "You're in trouble, boys. You have forsaken God. Now God has forsaken you. You're going to reap exactly that which you have sown. You're going to find there's going to be great vexations upon you." Now look if you would please at verse 21. Zechariah's preaching. Now verse 21: "And they conspired against him," they, that is the king and the princes, "and they conspired against him and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the Lord." So here is the king who was raised by Jehoiada, Zechariah's father. That father had done everything for him. Zechariah and Joash were raised like brothers together, and now Joash gives commandment to have Zechariah murdered in the court of the house of the Lord. How

  #47 | 38:39 to 40:11 | cleaned

• could that happen? May I remind you that they rebelled against God. They refused to hear his word. God sent prophets. They would not listen. And let me tell you something. It was not just that Joash had Zechariah murdered. He murdered all of Jehoiada's sons. Look in verse 25. You read about the death of Joash and the Bible said, "For when they were departed from him, for they left him in great diseases, his own servants conspired against him," watch, "for the blood of the sons of

  #48 | 40:11 to 40:57 | cleaned

• Jehoiada the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died. And they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchres of the kings." Note, if you would, they conspired and slew him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada. So he murdered the priests. He murdered the sons of the men who actually raised him. Wow. How could such happen?

  #49 | 40:57 to 41:29 | cleaned

• Well, go back to verse 18. "And they left the house of the Lord God of their fathers, served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass. Yet he," that is God, "sent prophets to them to bring them again to the Lord, and they testified against them, but they would not hear." You want to know what goes together? Rebellion and tyranny. You want to know what goes together? Refusing to bow to God's word and tyranny. You cannot have liberty and you cannot have freedom apart from God and his law. It's impossible. Now, when we talk about rebellion and tyranny, one precedes the other. And it always leads to the other. Whenever you have rulers, whenever you have governments that refuse to bow to God and humble themselves before him at his word, inevitably you will have tyranny.

  #50 | 41:31 to 42:50 | cleaned

• Now, let me make some applications. And I want to try to tie this together for you. I've tried to emphasize in this message that there are certain things that go together, and I've emphasized that rebellion and tyranny go together. In fact, rebellion and tyranny are the peanut butter and jelly of governments. And just like in a real peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a little goes a long way. So in rebellion, a little of it goes a long way, and it's gonna always end up in tyranny. Now I want to read to you a quote. In fact, I'm gonna give you two quotes. Both of these quotes are by James Madison, who's known

  #51 | 42:50 to 43:34 | cleaned

• as the father of the constitution of the United States. And the reason he's called the father is because he was secretary at the constitutional convention. And listen to what he said concerning the alarm that we should take at rulers who are rebellious. He said, "It is proper to take alarm at the first experiment on our liberties. We hold this prudent jealousy to be the first duty of citizens and one of the noblest characteristics of the late revolution.

  #52 | 43:35 to 44:12 | cleaned

• The free men of America did not wait till usurped power had strengthened itself by exercise and entangled the question in precedents. They saw all the consequences in the principle and they avoided the consequences by denying the principle." So what is he saying? He's saying the American colonists did not wait until George III had a stranglehold on them. They were alarmed at the very first instance on just taxation. Taxation without representation. And they denied the consequences by dealing with the principle. Do you realize that one of the problems in this country is we don't know the principles of the word of God? We don't know the principles of the constitution. I've said earlier that the constitution is not going to save us.

  #53 | 44:13 to 45:20 | cleaned

• But have you ever stopped to think about this? If our government did follow the constitution, we wouldn't have near the problems that we have today. Unhappily many today believe that the peanut butter and jelly of government is found in socialism. And they're willing to denigrate and deny and denounce liberty and freedom just so they can have what they call their free lunch and their free meal. And they're willing to destroy everyone else and the liberty and freedom of everyone else just so they can get what they want. Government is not God. Government is not going to save us. The Constitution is not going to save us.

  #54 | 45:22 to 46:09 | cleaned

• James Madison again said this. Listen carefully. "We have staked the whole future of American civilization not upon the power of government. Far from it. We have staked the future upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God." What did he say? Government's not going to save us. And if you think that government is going to save you, you're mistaken. He said, "We have staked the future of this country on our ability to submit to God and be ruled by God and obey God."

  #55 | 46:09 to 46:55 | cleaned

• That is the source of true liberty and freedom. Here's another thing that we've got to learn in this. Do you realize even the most godly men are men? Sinners. The most godly men will fail. And the most godly men will let you down. The most godly man in the world today is nothing more than a weak sinner without God. That's it. And when we trust in men and we think if we can just get certain men elected, that will take care of our problems, we're mistaken. It will not. Here's a third application.

  #56 | 46:57 to 47:54 | cleaned

• I want to point out again and emphasize this. I've been talking about things which go together. And I've really emphasized the fact that rebellion and tyranny go together. One always leads to the other. But there's something else that goes together. Obedience and freedom. You're not going to have freedom without obedience. In Galatians 5 and verse 1, the apostle Paul said, "Stand fast, therefore, in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free. Real liberty, real freedom is found in Jesus Christ. That's why in John 8 and verse 36, the Bible said, "If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed." There is no freedom apart from Jesus Christ. There is no freedom apart from the Word of God. There is no freedom apart from obedience. It's only disobedience and rebellion that always brings tyranny.

  #57 | 47:56 to 49:04 | cleaned

• Now, I think you could put two and two together. You want to know why we're in such a mess in this country? And that's the answer: because we've rebelled against God. We refuse to hear his word. We refuse to hear his preachers. We refuse to confess our sins. We refuse to repent. You remember that passage in 2 Chronicles 15? "And God did vex them." Whenever there's rebellion and sin unconfessed and unrepentant of, there's always divine vexations. God's judgment always follows rebellion, disobedience, and tyranny. If we want liberty, if we want freedom, we must learn to submit and obey. Because true liberty is found in Jesus Christ. Father, we bow to thee this day. We thank you for your word. We thank you for your truth. And we thank you, Father, that you have indeed sent men to proclaim thy word and declare that which you demand of each of us. Help us, Father, to be obedient. Help us to acknowledge our sins, to confess them, to repent of them, to turn from them, to embrace thee and thy truth and thy word.

  #58 | 49:05 to 50:58 | cleaned

• Give us grace, we pray, Father. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, in whose name we ask these things. Amen.

  #59 | 50:59 to 51:07 | cleaned

• so

  #60 | 51:37 to 51:38 | cleaned

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T13:06:10Z