Sunday School Lesson 8: Faith and Encouragement, 2 Chronicles 20:13:20, January 21, 2024.
Key Text: Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper (2 Chronicles 20:20).
The return of Jews from their seventy years of Babylon captivity could be described as bitter because their poverty brought hurtful memories about what was forfeited by God’s judgment on their sins and sweet because they were back in the land God had given Abraham seventeen centuries earlier. The return from Babylon was intended to remind the Jews of God’s promise of a spiritual heritage and to encourage them to be faithful to God. When the Jews returned to Jerusalem, there was no Hebrew king, but rather a Persian governor. The Jews no longer dominated the region, but rather were on the defensive. Nevertheless, the Levitical line was still intact, so that temple worship could continue in the hopes that God’s presence would one day return. Jahaziel, one of the Levites, watched the armies of Ammon and Moab (distant relatives of Israel) attack the forces of King Jehoshaphat of the Southern Kingdom of Judah in their attempt to dispossess Judah from her God-given land vs 10-11. Jahaziel raised the spirit of Judah by informing them that they could not possibly lose in battle because the Lord was with them v 14. So, Jehosphaphat stood and led his people, Judah, in prayer to God in the face of an attack by the enemy.
God’s response through Jabaziel, “The battle is not yours, but God’s” v 15 was the assurance Judah needed. As Jehoshaphat responded appropriately to “Set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord” v17 bowing and worshiping the Lord, certain ones of the Kohathites and Korahites stood to praise Him. Judah approached the battle with the king’s reminder to “Believe in the Lord your God” v 20. So great was their trust that the choir marched in front of the army, singing psalms, “the beauty of holiness, in holy attire and in honor of the Lord’s holiness” (Psalm 27:4).
God caused confusion among the enemy, who mistakenly turned upon themselves and slaughtered one another. The destruction was complete before Jehoshaphat and his army ever met the enemy v. 24. So, they went back just as they had gone out–with music. AMEN!
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