Good kings and evil kings—both were seen throughout the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Depending on who was king, the people would either be led to worship the one true God or led the opposite direction toward idolatry and wickedness.
King Asa sought to do what was good in the eyes of the Lord and removed the places of idol worship. He commanded the people of Judah to worship and obey God. But once Asa died, Ahaziah became king and led the people to once again turn to idolatry. When he died, his mother Athalia made herself queen by force. She ruled as queen for six years and did evil in God’s sight.
The priest Jehoiada planned to overthrow the evil queen. His men captured her and made one of Athalia’s young sons, Joash, king. Following Jehoiada’s lead, Joash tore down the temple of Baal and restored worship in the temple to God alone.
After Joash came King Hezekiah. He also sought to do what was right in the sight of the Lord. After cleaning out the temple so the people could worship, Hezekiah invited Judah and Israel to celebrate the feast of the Passover. Afterward, everyone went back to their towns and destroyed their places of worship to false gods.
When the king of Assyria came to attack Judah, King Hezekiah prayed to God, and Judah was saved. God sent an angel to destroy the Assyrian army.
The last good king of Judah was Josiah. King Josiah was only eight years old when he came into power, but he also did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Under his rule, the people renewed their covenant with God and remained faithful to Him.
The good kings of Judah led the people to worship the one true God. The Lord raised up kings who would lead Judah to turn away from idolatry and keep His commands. Judah would serve God under the rule of the good kings but returned to their sinful ways after the good kings died. Yet, despite the people’s inconsistent worship of the Lord, God proved faithful to preserve His people. The line of Judah would one day give rise to the King of kings, who would make the way for people to worship God in spirit and truth.
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