NOT SUCH A GOOD FINISH
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Opening Prayer
Father, thank you for the many things you have given me today to enjoy. As I walk through it, help me to appreciate your goodness to me and to share it with others.
Read 2 CHRONICLES 16
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
2 Chronicles
2 Chronicles 16
1 In the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah.
2 Asa then took the silver and gold out of the treasuries of the LORD’s temple and of his own palace and sent it to Ben-Hadad king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus.
3 “Let there be a treaty between me and you,” he said, “as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me.”
4 Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim and all the store cities of Naphtali.
5 When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and abandoned his work.
6 Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah.
7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand.
8 Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand.
9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”
10 Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people.
11 The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians.
13 Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his ancestors.
14 They buried him in the tomb that he had cut out for himself in the City of David. They laid him on a bier covered with spices and various blended perfumes, and they made a huge fire in his honor.
Reflect
‘Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.’1
One can’t help but be saddened by this chapter. For most of his reign, Asa had done a great job and been a great example. Up to now, ‘Asa’s heart was fully committed to the Lord all his life.’2 And then… it seems that eventually power got to him. He began to believe in the all-knowing, always-right king he saw mirrored back to him in the people’s eyes! Despite having experienced God’s help in defeating enemies, his trust had moved from God to himself, his own diplomatic skills, and his powerful pagan allies. Another prophet, Hanani, warned him that he had strayed from trusting God and that the consequences of his actions would be severe for himself and his country.
The lovely, godly Asa that we have seen so far is unrecognizable; he refused to take any responsibility, responded angrily to Hanani, and brutally to the people. Even when faced with serious illness, he didn’t turn to God, a really sad end to a good life. Interestingly, although 1 Kings 15 speaks of Asa’s illness, it ignores his later failures. His good record stands.
In these days, we have all seen people with a hugely positive record fall at later hurdles. The chronicler warns that even the best leaders can fall away from trust in God and begin to trust in their own wisdom—or even in the rightness of their own spirituality. Maybe sometimes it is because their followers also assume that this great leader must be right and fail to pray that God will keep their leader close to him. I know I need to repent of criticizing Christians, famous in ministry or media, and failing to acknowledge my own lack of prayer for them.
Apply
Who are your Christian leaders? Might there be new things you can pray for them?
Closing prayer
Help me, Lord, to remember that anyone who has done well in your service is still vulnerable. Help us all to stand firm to the end.
1 Eph 6:10, 11 2 2 Chr 15:17.
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