Preached Sunday, April 3, 2011
from
2 Chronicles 27:1-9
Theme: Jotham became mighty “because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.”
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
We continue our study this morning of the lives of the Kings of Judah by turning to the story of King Jotham. His story stands out among the stories of the kings that we’ve studied so far in that the Bible doesn’t report anything negative about his life. In fact, it reports one very positive point about him.
His story—a relatively short one—is told to us in 2 Chronicles 27:
Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok. And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah had done (although he did not enter the temple of the LORD). But still the people acted corruptly. He built the Upper Gate of the house of the LORD, and he built extensively on the wall of Ophel. Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers. He also fought with the king of the Ammonites and defeated them. And the people of Ammon gave him in that year one hundred talents of silver, ten thousand kors of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. The people of Ammon paid this to him in the second and third years also. So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.
Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. So Jotham rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Then Ahaz his son reigned in his place (2 Chronicles 27:1-9).
There’s nothing told to us, in the biblical record of Jotham’s story, of any of the regrettable “negatives” we find in the stories of the other kings. No great act of disobedience. No period of rebellion. No foolish display of arrogance or pride. And I want to particularly call your attention to that very important “positive” that’s described about him. It’s found in verse six; and it’s the thing that the Bible tells us was the cause of this good king’s greatness. We’re told, “So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.”
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I’d like to share with you a little story of how I tried to apply those words to my life the other night. (That happens when you’re called upon preach a passage like this. The Holy Spirit reminds you that you should also do a little work obeying it yourself before you dare to stand up and speak about it to others.)
I was driving around the other evening and running a few personal errands. And as I drove, I had some time to think and pray about a situation I may soon have to deal with. It’s a problem that was not my own directly, but one that, because it involves other people I love, may require my involvement in a relational way. It’s one of those situations that are tied up to some rather strong emotions; and that, quite frankly, has the potential of very easily degenerating into personal attacks and gossip.
And so, as I drove along with this passage fresh on my mind, I asked the Lord to help me see how I could apply it and “prepare my ways before Him” in advance—long before I had to be involved in this potential situation. I didn’t want to rely on my own wisdom in this situation; but instead, wanted very much to rely on His wisdom. I didn’t want to get involved in it any further than He would want me to be; and I didn’t want to do in it anything other than what He wanted done. And I also wanted to be very careful to protect the dignity of the people involved; and to think and speak of them in a way that would be pleasing to Him.
You don’t always think of these kinds of things in the heat of the moment. And so, driving along, I did some thinking about the relevant things that I’ve already learned from God’s word about this matter. I reflected on how the people involved—even those with whose actions I may or may not agree—were nevertheless my brethren in Christ. They love my Lord sincerely; and are as committed to His word as I hope to be. They are not my enemies in the Lord; but are on the same side of His cause as I am. And so, I purposed in my heart beforehand that—should the situation arise—I would not say anything bad about them or attack them, but would rather affirm my love for them and treat them as my brethren. And because I’m far from perfect, and have the potential of failure myself, I prayed that I would humbly depend on Him to keep me true to these things I’m purposing to do—should the situation arise.
And there’s something else. As I drove around wrestling these things in my mind, it occurred to me what a wonderful thing it is that I live my life before God under the limitation of “time”. God is not constrained by the limitations of time, as I am. He lives in one eternal “now”; but I operate under the limitation of successive moments, and hours, and weeks, and months. I can’t experience future things “now”; but must wait until they come “then” in their appointed time. And I found myself thanking God for that; because it meant that, when I anticipate a future event that’ will requires something of me, I have the gracious gift of the time to think about it, evaluate what God wants me to do in it, and prepare for it so that my actions and purposes have a chance to be well-established—well in advance—in accordance with His revealed will.
Now; I’d never want to give the impression that I have any of this ‘mastered’ in any respect. I often fail; and often need often to apologize to God for having stepped-out of what I knew He would have want me to do. But even then, by His grace, I have “time” to stop, re-evaluate, correct my thinking, and re-establish myself in the set purpose of doing what God wants. And I believe that gives us just a tiny example of what verse six tells us was the cause of King Jotham’s greatness. As a regular pattern of life, he had grown to take advantage of God’s gift of “time”; and to—deliberately, consciously, intentionally—prepare his ways before the Lord his God.
All of this has made that simple statement in verse six—that “Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God “—a very important and practical one to me. I call it the ‘Jotham’ principle. And I believe, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, that if we embrace it as our own, it could prove to be one of the most transformational principles of our lives.
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Let’s take the statement of that principle apart into its constituent parts and examine them individually. There are four distinct parts to it: (1) the subject—”he” (that is, Jotham); (2) the action—”prepared”; (3) the object—”his ways”; and the context—”before the LORD his God”.
And let’s begin by considering that second part: the action—that he “prepared” his ways. The English Standard Version translates it “ordered”—that is, Jotham “ordered” his ways. The verb itself, in the original language, can mean to “prepare” something in the sense of making it ready; or it can mean to “establish” something so as to fix it in place. The New International Version has it that he walked “steadfastly”.
And there’s two practical dynamics suggested by this word. First it suggests the idea of a personal preparation of one’s actions that’s intentional, thought-out and arranged in advance. It suggests that, with respect to his life before the Lord, the actions that Jotham took, and the courses of life that he walked, were not accidental and ‘come-as-they-may’; but, instead, were intentionally planned, and carefully set in order before the time came that they were required of him. And second, it suggests that the convictions that drove those actions were solidly established and permanently fixed into his heart in such a committed manner that he could not be shaken from them by changing circumstances or by the unfaithfulness of others.
And consider the third constituent part of that principle: the object upon which the action of preparation was made—that is, Jotham’s “ways”. The Hebrew word that’s translated “way” can refer to a literal road, or path, or journey. But here, it’s used as a figure for Jotham’s personal course of action in life. In another passage—with respect to another king—we’re told that God commended King Jehoshaphat in spite of his failures because he “prepared” his “heart to seek God” (2 Chronicles 19:3). But here, the matter is taken out of the realm of the heart alone and brought into the realm of living action—of actual practice. Jotham prepared his “ways”.
And note, additionally, how specifically this is stated. We’re not told that Jotham merely prepared his “way” in a vague, general sense. Rather, the plural form of the word is used; so that we’re told that he prepared his “ways”. It was his habit of life to prepare action after action—carefully planning out in advance what should be done, and staying true to his convictions—in all the various and specific areas of life.
Now; Jotham’s careful preparation of his ways wasn’t done from out of the resources of his own wisdom. Nor did he look around to the values of the culture around him in order to establish his ways. As the fourth constituent part tells us, there was a context to the preparation of his actions—that is, it was done “before the LORD his God”. Literally, he carefully prepared his ways “before the face” of Yahweh—the covenant keeping God of Israel; who truly is God, and more than able to preserve and protect those who stay true to Him.
That this was done “before the Lord his God” means that Jotham kept no secrets from the God who sees and knows all things. He sought to live in full view of the God before whom he must give an account. But it also emphasizes that he didn’t depend on human wisdom or insight in ordering his steps as he should. Jotham—as a king of Judah—would have been well-taught in the Scriptures; and he would have sought to prepare his way in keeping with the revealed commands and instructions of God.
And I’ve saved that first constituent part for last. It’s the one that would be most easy to miss; and yet it’s a part of the principle that is vital. The subject of the action was Jotham himself—that “he” took the initiative to prepare his ways before the Lord his God. No one else did it for him. He himself took the responsibility to make this his own principle for living.
And this was not meant for King Jotham alone, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. He lived in the very way that the apostle Paul described in Ephesians 5:8-16—which, when we read carefully, has all four constituent parts in place:
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says:
“Awake, you who sleep,
Arise from the dead,
And Christ will give you light.”
See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:8-17).
It’s not up to someone else to do this for us. We must see to it that we ourselves so walk. We’re to be circumspect—carefully looking around with respect to where we place our feet. We’re to be prepared to “redeem the time” that we have, and buy-up the opportunities when they come. We’re not to do so as fools; but be wise—carefully searching the Scriptures in reverent love and submission to the Lord, and understanding what His revealed will is in each situation.
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Now; that was the ‘secret’, if you will, of Jotham’s might. We’re told specifically that there’s a cause-and-effect relationship between the way he was made “mighty” and the way he lived. Verse six says, “So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.” So; let’s go back now and look at some of the details of his life in this passage and see how this was so.
In verses 1-2, we’re told
Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok. And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah had done (although he did not enter the temple of the LORD).
Do you recall why it was that Jotham became king in the place of his father Uzziah? Uzziah was a good king that—as the Scriptures tell us—the Lord “marvelously helped till he became strong”; but “when he was strong his heart was lifted up” in pride “to his destruction” (2 Chronicles 26:15-16). In his pride, King Uzziah dared to walk into the temple of the Lord—where only the priests were permitted by God to go; and he arrogantly offered up incense before the holy altar of incense—which only the priests were permitted by God to do. And as a result, Uzziah was struck with leprosy and died in miserable seclusion from the throne.
His son Jotham, however, took a different course. It must have been that Jotham had carefully watched what had happened to his father, and had prepared his ways before the Lord accordingly. As God increased his might, he faithfully “did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah had done”; but “he did not enter the temple of the LORD”.
One reason that “preparing our ways before the Lord” benefits us is that it teaches us to learn faithfully from the errors of others, and to not make the same mistakes they made. It teaches us too look ahead carefully to the ways God wants us to go, so that we don’t stumble into the pitfalls of unfaithfulness that others fall into.
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We’re told that, in spite of Jotham’s faithfulness, “still the people acted corruptly” (v. 2b). An indication of the nature of their corruption is given to us back in 2 Kings 15—in a parallel account of Jotham’s life. There, we’re told that “the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places” (2 Kings 15:35). And that, by the way, was exactly what Jotham’s son also did. We’re told that, after Jotham was gone, his son Ahaz “walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made molded images for the Baals. He burned incense in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and burned his children in the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel. And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree” (2 Chronicles 28:2-4).
The people of Judah—and even their future king—yielded to the influences of the culture around them. They engaged in the horribly sinful practices of the kings of the northern kingdom and of the nations that had been cast out of the land. But there’s no indication whatsoever that Jotham did so. In spite of the great social and political pressures around him toward wickedness and idolatry, he remained faithful to the Lord and walked in a manner that pleased Him all the way to the end.
And so, another way that “preparing our ways before the Lord” benefits us is that it helps us to establish our convictions and commitments to the Lord in such a way that we will not be shaken from them—no matter what the pressures around us may be. We no longer act like “children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting” (Ephesians 4:14).
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Jotham’s might was also displayed in the things that the Lord accomplished through him. We’re told, “He built the Upper Gate of the house of the LORD, and he built extensively on the wall of Ophel” (v. 3). These were fortifications that he made to the temple. It’s an interesting display of his priorities that the first thing that he accomplished was to reinforce the house of God!
But he also reinforced the surrounding territory of the city of Jerusalem. We’re told, “Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers” (v. 4). This would have, most likely, been an expansion of the fortifications that were begun by his father Uzziah; who, we’re told “built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress of the wall; then he fortified them. Also he built towers in the desert. He dug many wells, for he had much livestock, both in the lowlands and in the plains; he also had farmers and vinedressers in the mountains and in Carmel . . .” (26:9-10). God enabled Jotham to protect and expand on the good works of his father for his people.
We’re also told that God gave him victory over those who would have spoiled these great gains. We’re told, “He also fought with the king of the Ammonites and defeated them. And the people of Ammon gave him in that year one hundred talents of silver, ten thousand kors of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. The people of Ammon paid this to him in the second and third years also” (v. 5).
And so, still one more way that “preparing our ways before the Lord” benefits us is that He guides us and blesses us in our ways—because we yield those “ways” to His will. As Psalm 37:23 says, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way.”
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Now; the closing words of Jotham’s life read as follows:
Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. So Jotham rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Then Ahaz his son reigned in his place (2 Chronicles 27:7-9).
But there’s one more way that Jotham was preserved as a mighty man before God—and it’s because of something that is mentioned in the parallel story of his life from 2 Kings 15. There, we’re told this about the closing period of Jotham’s life:
In those days the LORD began to send Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah (2 Kings 15:37).
God was sending the King of Israel and the King of Syria to put pressure on Judah because of the corruptness of the people. King Rezin and King Pekah would be great troublers of his son Ahaz during the time of his reign. What’s more, it would be during the reign of his son Ahaz that the northern kingdom of Israel would be destroyed and scattered by the dreaded Assyrians. The times ahead were going to be extremely tumultuous and difficult.
But Jotham was spared all the punishment God was about to bring upon the wicked. And that’s yet one more benefit of preparing our ways before the Lord. As it says in Psalm 34:4, “I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”
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I truly believe that the ‘Jotham’ principle is one of the most important spiritual principles we can apply to our lives. And, dear brothers and sisters, we can begin right now. You and I can make the choice today—thanks to the gracious gift of time that God gives us—to learn of God’s will for our lives. We can study His word and learn of His instructions. And then, we can commit ourselves to “prepare our ways before” Him.
Doing so made Jotham mighty. May God make us mighty as we follow Jotham’s good example.