2 Chronicles 27:1-28:15 (October 17, 2025)

Jotham Reigns in Judah

27:1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok. 2 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord according to all that his father Uzziah had done, except he did not enter the temple of the Lord. But the people still followed corrupt practices. 3 He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord and did much building on the wall of Ophel. 4 Moreover, he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and forts and towers on the wooded hills. 5 He fought with the king of the Ammonites and prevailed against them. And the Ammonites gave him that year 100 talents[a] of silver, and 10,000 cors[b] of wheat and 10,000 of barley. The Ammonites paid him the same amount in the second and the third years. 6 So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before the Lord his God. 7 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. 8 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. 9 And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

Footnotes

2 Chronicles 27:5 A talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms

2 Chronicles 27:5 A cor was about 6 bushels or 220 liters

Ahaz Reigns in Judah

28:1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David had done, 2 but he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. He even made metal images for the Baals, 3 and he made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering,[a] according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

Judah Defeated

5 Therefore the Lord his God gave him into the hand of the king of Syria, who defeated him and took captive a great number of his people and brought them to Damascus. He was also given into the hand of the king of Israel, who struck him with great force. 6 For Pekah the son of Remaliah killed 120,000 from Judah in one day, all of them men of valor, because they had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. 7 And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son and Azrikam the commander of the palace and Elkanah the next in authority to the king.

8 The men of Israel took captive 200,000 of their relatives, women, sons, and daughters. They also took much spoil from them and brought the spoil to Samaria. 9 But a prophet of the Lord was there, whose name was Oded, and he went out to meet the army that came to Samaria and said to them, “Behold, because the Lord, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand, but you have killed them in a rage that has reached up to heaven. 10 And now you intend to subjugate the people of Judah and Jerusalem, male and female, as your slaves. Have you not sins of your own against the Lord your God? 11 Now hear me, and send back the captives from your relatives whom you have taken, for the fierce wrath of the Lord is upon you.”

12 Certain chiefs also of the men of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who were coming from the war 13 and said to them, “You shall not bring the captives in here, for you propose to bring upon us guilt against the Lord in addition to our present sins and guilt. For our guilt is already great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel.” 14 So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the assembly. 15 And the men who have been mentioned by name rose and took the captives, and with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. They clothed them, gave them sandals, provided them with food and drink, and anointed them, and carrying all the feeble among them on donkeys, they brought them to their kinsfolk at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria.

From Faithful Strength to Faithless Collapse: Jotham and Ahaz

Summary

Jotham, the son of Uzziah, became king at twenty-five and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. The Chronicler writes,

Jotham learned from his father’s failure. He honored the holiness of God’s temple and strengthened Judah both spiritually and militarily. “He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord” (27:3) — a symbolic act restoring proper worship. The land prospered, and “Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before the Lord his God.” (27:6)

However, the people “still followed corrupt practices” (27:2). Though the king was faithful, the nation’s heart remained divided. Jotham’s reign closed peacefully, but that faithfulness was not passed on to his son.

Ahaz succeeded him, and the tone of the narrative immediately darkens.

Ahaz burned sacrifices to foreign gods, desecrated the temple, and even burned his own sons as offerings in the Valley of Hinnom. Under his rule, Judah’s strength collapsed. The Lord gave him into the hands of Syria and the Northern Kingdom of Israel; 120,000 were killed in a single day, and many were taken captive.

In a surprising twist of mercy, when Israel brought the captives to Samaria, a prophet of the Lord named Oded intervened, warning them:

The leaders of Ephraim obeyed. The captives were clothed, fed, anointed, and escorted back to Jericho (28:15). Amid Ahaz’s rebellion, God’s compassion still broke through.

Who Is God?

God is the covenant Lord who exalts the humble and disciplines the proud.

In Jotham, we see that divine blessing flows through ordered obedience — “he ordered his ways before the Lord his God” (27:6). God delights in faith that honors His holiness without presumption.

In Ahaz, we see the opposite. The Lord withdraws protection from those who despise His worship. Yet even in judgment, His mercy endures. Through Oded’s word, He revealed that His covenant compassion still reaches the suffering, even those whose misery was caused by their own sin.

God’s holiness and mercy stand side by side. He hates idolatry, yet He loves His people enough to send prophets, even to their enemies, to restore the broken.

What Is Our Guilt?

We share both generations’ failures.

Like Jotham’s people, we often admire faithfulness in others while keeping our own idols. We may live under godly leadership yet resist reform in our hearts. Religious stability without repentance breeds quiet rebellion.

Like Ahaz, we sometimes exchange faith for pragmatism. When life presses hard, we turn to “metal images” of our own making, such as financial stability, relationships, reputation, or control. These modern Baals promise safety but enslave the soul.

Our guilt deepens when we silence conscience and reject prophetic warning. Ahaz had clear examples before him, such as Uzziah’s pride and Jotham’s reverence. However, Ahaz chose the path of defiance. Spiritual decline is never sudden. It begins when we stop “ordering our ways before the Lord.”

How Does Grace Shine?

Grace shines first in the restraint of God. Despite Judah’s rebellion, God preserved the Davidic line. The lamp of His promise did not go out.

Grace shines again in Oded’s intervention. He was a prophet to the enemy who demonstrated God’s heart for mercy. The captives were restored not because Judah deserved it, but because God’s covenant mercy could not be quenched.

Ultimately, grace shines in Christ, the greater Son of David. He is the true King who “ordered His ways before the Lord” perfectly and bore the judgment of every Ahaz-like heart. At the cross, the innocent One suffered the curse of the faithless, so that rebels might be restored as sons and daughters.

Through Him, the faith of Jotham and the mercy shown in Samaria meet. Holiness is satisfied, and compassion is extended. In Christ, God does not simply reverse defeat. He redeems it.

Prayer

O Lord,

You are holy and merciful,

lifting up those who walk humbly and bringing low the proud.

Forgive us for following outward forms of faith while our hearts stray to idols.

Keep us from the folly of Ahaz, who trusted in the world’s strength instead of Yours.

Thank You for Jesus Christ, the faithful Son of David,

who obeyed where kings failed and brought mercy to captives like us.

Teach us to order our ways before You,

that our strength may serve Your glory alone.

In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.