Today as we continue our conversation through the book of 2 Kings, we come to chapters 11 and 12. We will also be looking at a parallel text in 2 Chronicles 24. 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles cross over the same period of time, with 2 Kings covering the final years of Israel and Judah through the exile, and 2 Chronicles covering Solomon through the exile. The stories are different, but the books are not at odds with one another. They just are taking the same moment in history and grabbing two important, but different themes to focus on. In these chapters, 2 Kings focuses on how Judah preserved the line of David on the throne, while 2 Chronicles focuses on what happens when people forget their personal and cultural history and abandon the Lord.
So much has happened in the first 12 chapters of 2 Kings. Here’s a brief summary:
2 Kings 1 • Ahaziah dies after seeking Baal-zebub instead of the Lord.
2 Kings 2 • Elijah is taken to heaven; Elisha succeeds him.
2 Kings 3 • God gives victory over Moab through Elisha.
2 Kings 4 • Elisha performs miracles for widows, families, and the needy.
2 Kings 5 • Naaman is healed; Gehazi becomes greedy.
2 Kings 6 • God protects Elisha and blinds the Aramean army.
2 Kings 7 • Samaria is delivered from famine.
2 Kings 8 • Hazael becomes king of Aram; Judah’s kings decline.
2 Kings 9 • Jehu is anointed king and destroys Joram and Jezebel.
2 Kings 10 • Jehu wipes out Ahab’s house and Baal worship but keeps Israel’s idols.
2 Kings 11 • Joash is rescued and crowned; Athaliah is overthrown.
2 Kings 12 • Joash repairs the temple, but Judah remains vulnerable.
The idea that we have been repeatedly bringing up as we process our way through the text has been How will I persist? Life is relentlessly pleading for persistence, and as we’ve moved through the narrative, we’ve seen these questions come up that we need to be also asking ourselves:
Will I persist in looking to God for help?
Will I persist in being discipled?
Will I persist in seeking God’s help early?
Will I persist in seeking partnership with what God is doing in my world?
Will I persist in seeking God when I feel like an outsider?
Will I persist in being in community in order to navigate my fears in a healthy way?
Will I persist in keeping things together without compromising?
And now today:
Will I persist in remembering what is so important to remember?
How will I persist in remembering? Will I remember God’s provision, my history of faith, the experience of God’s love and His peace that surpasses understanding, and hope in the midst of chaos and failure? Or will I remember the pain of falling short, the fear of not being in control, the anxiety from not knowing what will happen, the struggle in failure, and the shame of having issues?
Today, to bring us to a shared starting point and to build some foundations for where we are going today, we have a survey! It’s not intended to diagnose or fix, but to help us talk in a deeper and more focused way together. This survey is about how good you are at remembering and at forgetting.
On this survey there are two sections. I want to score yourself in the top part from 0-7 on how good you are at remembering, and in the lower part on how good you are at forgetting.
Once that is done, share your observations with the people around you.
What stands out to you as you look at your answers?
Let me tell you right where we are going today. In 2 Kings 11 we see some family chaos:
When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family. But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes, who were about to be murdered. She put him and his nurse in a bedroom to hide him from Athaliah; so he was not killed. He remained hidden with his nurse at the temple of the Lord for six years while Athaliah ruled the land. (2 Kings 11:1-3)
When Ahaziah was killed (2 Kings 9), his mother Athaliah seized the opportunity to take power for herself. To secure her rule, she attempted to eliminate all potential rivals from the royal family. A baby in line for the throne, Joash, was secretly hidden by his aunt at the temple, where he was protected by the high priest Jehoiada.
For six years, Athaliah ruled while Joash was hidden and grew in the temple under Jehoiada’s protection and supervision. Then Joash was anointed king at the age of seven.
Jehoiada brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him; he presented him with a copy of the covenant and proclaimed him king. They anointed him, and the people clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!” (2 Kings 11:12)
Athaliah called this treason, which could have threatened the boy’s life, but the chief priest Jehoiada protected Joash and Athaliah was killed. Joash became king, securing David’s line on the throne, and he ruled Judah for 40 years.
But it all started with a caring aunt and a generous and kind chief priest who took Joash as family and preserved his life. And today in 2 Chronicles we will come to a moment where this foundational moment of personal history was forgotten.
And today I want us to focus on what things it is important for us to not forget, and how that remembering turns us more toward Christ. So here are more conversations jumping off from the survey we did.
What does it take for you to remember things that are so easily forgotten?
What makes something healthy to forget?
How does a person, in a healthy way, move on from things that are so difficult to forget?
Remembering can be difficult. Forgetting can be difficult. It can seem like we can’t remember the things we want to remember, and we can’t forget the things we want to forget. The thing that seems to really stand out is that the process of either remembering or forgetting pleads for intentionality and persistence.
There is a theme in Scripture of intentionality about remembering. One example is Noah, in Genesis 8. After the flood, when he was finally on dry ground again, he built an altar and made a sacrifice.
So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives. All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds—everything that moves on land—came out of the ark, one kind after another. Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.” (Genesis 8:18-21)
It was a physical act to commemorate, to remember, to emphasize. It was a particular place that could be revisited.
Another one is Abraham. In Genesis, God made a covenant with Abraham that was later passed on to Isaac. Then things got complicated with Jacob and Esau and Jaocb fled his home. When later he was finally and fearfully returning home, one night he had a dream:
He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (Genesis 28:12-15)
Immediately when he woke up, he made the rock he was using for a pillow into a pillar of remembrance.
Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz. (Genesis 28:18-19)
A third example of intentionally remembering is Samuel. Israel suffered a major defeat by the Philistines, and the Ark of the Covenant was captured. This was a national disaster because the people had treated the Ark like a lucky charm rather than walking faithfully with God. The Philistines did eventually return the Ark after experiencing God’s judgment, but the people still were not faithful to God. Samuel called the nation to repent. The people responded by removing their idols, fasting, and confessing their sins. While Israel was gathered at Mizpah in repentance, the Philistines saw an opportunity and marched against them. Samuel offered a sacrifice and cried out to the Lord. As the Philistines approached, “the LORD thundered with a mighty sound that day against the Philistines and threw them into confusion.” The Philistines were routed, and Israel won a decisive victory.
Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.” (1 Samuel 7:12)
Let’s process for a moment:
How do physical acts, celebrations, photos, memorials, statues, etc., help a person or group not forget important things?
In Luke 22, Jesus has an interaction with Peter as they are celebrating Passover prior to Jesus’ crucifixion.
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.” (Luke 22:31-34)
Think about the weight of that moment. Think about how it would call you to action, bringing focus and certainty. Think about how it would keep you on your toes!
The story continues. Jesus was arrested and taken away, and Peter didn’t remember, for a while.
Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.” But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said. A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” “Man, I am not!” Peter replied. About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. (Luke 22:54-62)
What is the range of things that can make remembering important things difficult? Is there one that is extraordinarily disruptive to your remembering?
Let’s go back to Joash. Ahaziah the king of Judah died and his mother Athaliah seized the throne and killed everyone in line for the throne, except Joash, who was hidden in the temple and cared for by the chief priest Jehoiada until he was anointed to be king 6 years later.
We pick up the story in 2 Chronicles 24. Jehoiada the chief priest has died. The officials of Judah came to visit the king, who listened to them and let them influence him—and the kingdom—to return to worshiping Asherah poles and idols.
After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. They abandoned the temple of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God’s anger came on Judah and Jerusalem. Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen. (2 Chronicles 24:17-19)
One man who was led by the Spirit to come and warn Joash was Zechariah. Zechariah was the son of Jehoiada, the high priest who had cared for Joash as a boy. So Zechariah would have been almost like a brother to Joash. He came with warnings as not only a prophet and a priest, but also as a brother: Why have you turned from God? Why do you disobey? Forsaking God won’t work out well for you. Turn back! But Joash didn’t remember.
But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple. King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, “May the Lord see this and call you to account.” (2 Chronicles 24:21-22)
There’s more to the story, and there were consequences for Joash—not immediately, but they did come. But at this moment, Joash was surrounded by people who not only didn’t help him remember—they apparently actively helped him forget.
Let’s process for a moment:
What are some keys to being a friend or family member that actively helps people remember important things?
How could that be helpful to you? How could that be helpful to your loved ones?
Today we are going to end by verbalizing what we actively need to be remembering. In Hebrew, the word zakar (”remember”) means much more than simply recalling information. It means to bring something to mind in a way that shapes your actions and loyalty. For example, we see how God’s “remembering” leads to action. In Genesis 8:1, “God remembered Noah… and God made a wind blow.” He doesn’t forget Noah; He acts to rescue him. In Genesis 19:29, God “remembered Abraham” and rescued Lot. And in Exodus 2:24–25, God “remembered His covenant” and began delivering Israel.
Remembering is not just a “bring to mind” thing. It leads to action. So what do you need to be remembering? Here are some possible things to be actively and persistently remembering:
Remember who God is
Remember what God has done
Remember God’s covenant promises
Remember God’s commands
Remember God’s grace
Remember Jesus Christ crucified and risen
Remember the Holy Spirit’s presence
Remember your identity in Christ
Remember the cost of redemption
Remember God’s faithfulness in your life
Remember faithful examples
Remember the church, the body of Christ
Remember God’s discipline is love
Remember the hope of resurrection and eternity
What do you need to be actively remembering?
What is a healthy response to that thing as you remember?
Take it Deeper Questions
Read 2 Chronicles 24:15-22.
How did Joash’s life change before and after Johoiada’s death?
Who are the people, moments, or experiences that have shaped your faith journey? How do you intentionally remember their influence?
What are some truths about God, His faithfulness, or His provision that are easy to forget during difficult seasons?
Why is it easy to forget?
Looking back, what is something that you may have forgotten about, but need to be reminded of?
How does remembering change the way you think, feel, or live this week?
Bible Reading Plan
Genesis 28 • Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
Romans 8 • Life in the Spirit / No Condemnation
1 Samuel 7 • Samuel and Ebenezer
Philippians 1 • Joy in the Gospel While in Chains
Hebrews 12 • Run with Endurance
Luke 22 • The Last Supper and Betrayal Begins
2 Peter 1 • Growing in Christlike Character