Over the past year I have been reading and re-reading the same two chapters of the bible, 2 Chronicles 22-23. It is so interesting and the more I read it, the more I notice the smaller details and just feel encouraged by it. I keep reading it because I am just in awe of God’s goodness and faithfulness. 

In Chapter 22 we learn about 22 year old Ahaziah being named the youngest King of Judah to reign. Ahaziah was encouraged by his mother, Athaliah, to follow the house of Ahab and act wickedly (the house of Ahab is a temple built to worship the idol Baal). Of course this was displeasing to God and He brought judgment on the house of Ahab which ultimately led to the death of Ahaziah.

When Athaliah found out that her son was dead she became furious. She went on a rampage and went to destroy the entire royal family of the house of Judah by killing all of Ahaziah’s sons. Jehosheba, sister of Ahaziah, went and stole Joash, son of Ahaziah, and hid him away for six years. During those six years Athaliah reigned as queen.

After reading through that quick summary of Chapter 22 you are probably wondering how this is encouraging but everything changes in Chapter 23.

During the seventh year, the hidden son was crowned and reigned as the new King of Judah, reestablishing the Davidic line in Judah. Athaliah was put to death and the people and king made a covenant that they would be the Lord’s people and follow after God. 

This was a very quick overview and a lot of details were missed so I would highly recommend that everyone go and read this.

There are a few things that I want us to take away from these two chapters

3 Encouraging Things We Can Take Away From These Chapters

God is always in control, even when it doesn’t look like it 

Athaliah represented wickedness and evil and she reigned for six years. I can only imagine how the people of God felt witnessing the destruction taking place and wondering where God was during all of this. But even though it didn’t seem like it, God had a view of the bigger picture and knew how the story would end. He knew the reign of Athaliah was only temporary and that His glory would ultimately reign. 

Just an added detail to not glance over: Athaliah reigned for six years, six represents imperfection. In the seventh year we see God take his power back, seven represents perfection. God’s perfect will will always be done and we can have faith in that.

God Preserves In The Hiding

Athaliah wanted to destroy the entire Royal line from the house of Judah. The son of Ahaziah being hidden for six years is a reflection of God’s goodness. Had the son come out too early, the entire line would have been ruined. God was preserving his people in keeping Joash hidden for those six years. 

God’s Goodness Will Always Overcome Evil

I can assume that it was difficult to believe that God would come through for his people during this time. But at the right time, God’s goodness overcame evil. God promised us in Genesis 3:15 that there would be a war between the devils offspring and God’s,  but God’s people would ultimately come out on top. We know that if God said it, it’s final. So we can remain hopeful that God’s goodness will always be victorious over evil. 

Genesis 3:15 “And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Throughout the bible we can see that God is faithful to keep his promise. There are times when it seems that evil is winning but God’s goodness will always prevail.