The text for today draws a parallel between Judah and Israel. Israel is in confusion, as her leader, King Pekah is evil. Judah is faring better as King Azariah was generally a good king who believed in God and was eager to please Him.
God helped Azariah in wars against the Philistines, and other enemies of Judah. His fame spread to Egypt and he was very powerful. As happens with humans though, power went to his head and he became greedy for more. Morals and clean convictions got lost in the shuffle; his world fell apart.
King Azahiah’s story seems backwards to me. Generally we struggle to be good, we often live a portion of our life without knowing God or following Him. The things of the world over-shadow us and we are drawn to follow the crowd. Then, something happens and we change, our life takes a new direction; there is new meaning and purpose for our existence. But this story has King Azahiah as a good king who believed in God. It was later that he was drawn into worldly ways; he desired to gain more control and power.
This story teaches me that I must always be on my guard; I must always be looking up to God for my needs and desires to be fulfilled. I cannot take my eyes off the prize, the goal of eternal life.
To read the text for today click here.
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