"He walked in the way of the kings of Israel," as the house of Ahab had done, for Ahab's daughter was his wife, and he did evil in the Lord's sight (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 21:6).

"Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he began to reign," and "his mother was his counselor in doing wickedly" (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 22:2–3).

If you have been keeping track of the kings, you will remember that Ahab was one of the most wicked kings of Israel, in part because of his marriage to Jezebel. So how did a wicked king's daughter come to marry Jehoram, a prince of Judah?

Jehoram's father, Jehoshaphat, decided he could heal the long-standing division between Judah and Israel. He made an alliance with Ahab, even giving his crown prince in marriage to Ahab's daughter. The trouble was that Ahab continued in his wickedness, and Jehoshaphat ignored the prophetic warning against the alliance (cf. 2 Chronicles 19:2).

As a result, Jehoram was drawn into evil, killing his own brothers and turning from the Lord. In the same way, when Ahaziah succeeded Jehoram as king of Judah, he also did evil, influenced by his mother Athaliah, who came from the house of Ahab.

So we have two examples of how a marriage alliance with an ungodly house corrupted a king and endangered a nation, and how a godly king's alliance with a wicked one brought trouble on the generations after him. Family lineage matters, not because of ethnic considerations but because of moral influence. Godly households tend to raise godly children; ungodly households tend to raise ungodly children.

Singles, be careful whom you choose for a spouse. Parents, be mindful of who influences and trains your children. And all of us should be careful whom we choose as close friends. It is often easier for the ungodly to pull down the godly than for the godly to lift up the ungodly. Do not be "unequally yoked" (cf. 2 Corinthians 6:14–16). While we are to be witnesses for Christ to those who do not know Him, we must not be so entangled that we are shaped by them.

If we do not learn from the lessons of biblical history, we are likely to repeat their mistakes.

AI-Expanded Reflection

The Chronicler tells this story as a case study in the cost of alliances. Jehoshaphat was one of Judah's better kings — he sent teachers with the Book of the Law throughout Judah (17:7–9; see #2243) — yet he repeatedly allied himself with the house of Ahab, and each time a prophet rebuked him: "Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord?" (19:2). The marriage he arranged for his son brought Athaliah into the royal family, and she later murdered the royal heirs and seized the throne (22:10). The line of David survived only because the infant Joash was hidden in the temple by his aunt and the priest Jehoiada (22:11–12).

That detail is worth holding alongside the comment's warning. The consequences of the alliance were severe, but God preserved the promise to David through the courage of two people. On choosing a spouse and close companions, Scripture's counsel is consistent: "Do not be deceived: 'Bad company ruins good morals'" (1 Corinthians 15:33), and marry "only in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 7:39). At the same time, Scripture gives examples running the other way — Ruth, Rahab, and the household of Cornelius — and reminds believers that Jesus was known as a friend of sinners (Luke 7:34) without being shaped by them.

Jehoram walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, "for Ahab's daughter was his wife," and he did evil in the sight of the Lord (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 21:6). His son Ahaziah was twenty-two when he became king and reigned one year in Jerusalem; his mother was Athaliah, the granddaughter of Omri. He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, "for his mother was his counselor in doing wickedly," and the house of Ahab were his counselors after his father's death, to his undoing (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 22:2–4).

The influence of an ungodly wife was stronger than the influence of a godly father. This ungodly wife then became an ungodly mother who influenced her child to do evil. We are speaking of Athaliah, the wife of Jehoram, daughter of King Ahab and granddaughter of King Omri, both very wicked kings of Israel. Remember too that Ahab had married Jezebel, who brought Baal worship into Israel. Athaliah was a product of that household, and so was her wickedness.

It is not without reason that wives and mothers are repeatedly mentioned in the chronicles of the kings of Israel and Judah. Even a cursory study reveals how influential they were on their husbands' and children's character, whether for good or for ill. Scripture records the damage done by Jezebel in Israel and by Athaliah in Judah, and it records that Solomon's foreign wives turned his heart away from wholly following the Lord (cf. 1 Kings 11:4).

Brothers, recognize the powerful influence of those closest to you — for good or for evil. If God has blessed you with a godly wife, mother, and mother-in-law, praise the Lord!

Therefore I encourage you to do this. While you may not be able to influence your mother and mother-in-law much, you can at least pray for them. But you can influence your household by fulfilling your spiritual responsibility to your wife, which is to love her as Christ loved the church and to nourish her in God's Word, just as the Lord commanded (cf. Ephesians 5:25–28).

Wives, you also have a strong influence. I pray that God may grant you grace to submit to your husbands in everything as to the Lord (cf. Ephesians 5:22–24), to resist the Edenic pull toward usurping your husband's authority, and to pursue purity and reverence for God. I would encourage you not to invest your time in outward adornment, as our present culture dictates, but to cultivate your inner beauty — the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight (a paraphrase of 1 Peter 3:3–4).

Also, pursue faith, love, and holiness with propriety (cf. 1 Timothy 2:15). As you do these things, you become the kind of spiritual partner to your husband that God designed you to be, and a godly example to your children.

AI-Expanded Reflection

The Chronicler does emphasize the role of queen mothers — the phrase "his mother's name was" recurs for nearly every king of Judah — and Athaliah's influence is real. But the same reading contains a direct counterexample that the comment passes over. When Athaliah seized the throne and destroyed the royal family, it was Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram and wife of the priest Jehoiada, who hid the infant Joash in the Temple for six years (2 Chronicles 22:10–12). The Davidic line — and with it the messianic promise — survived because of one woman's courage against another woman's wickedness. The text's interest is in the character of individuals, not in the tendencies of a sex.

The text also names men as counselors: 22:4 says the house of Ahab were Ahaziah's counselors after his father died, and it was Jehoram's father, Jehoshaphat, who arranged the marriage alliance with Ahab's house in the first place (2 Chronicles 18:1). And Jehoram's first recorded act as king — killing all six of his brothers (21:4) — was his own.

Regarding the broader examples in the original: Genesis 6:1–4 ("the sons of God" and "the daughters of man") has been read as Sethites marrying Cainites, as angelic beings, and as royal tyrants; the reading that blames the daughters of Cain for corrupting the line of Seth is one interpretation among several. Job's wife, for her part, had just buried the same ten children Job had; her bitter words are recorded, but so is the fact that she shared his loss. And Scripture offers many examples of formative godly women — Hannah, Abigail, Lois and Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5), Priscilla, and the women at the empty tomb.

On the exhortations to husbands and wives: Christians hold a range of understandings of Ephesians 5 and Genesis 3:16. Complementarians read the passages much as the comment does; egalitarians note Ephesians 5:21's call to mutual submission and read Genesis 3:16 as describing the fallen distortion of the relationship rather than prescribing its ideal. These are good-faith disagreements among believers who share a high view of Scripture.

Joash did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight throughout the lifetime of Jehoiada the priest. (2 Chronicles 24:2 NLT)

But after Jehoiada’s death, the leaders of Judah came and bowed before King Joash and persuaded him to listen to their advice. They decided to abandon the Temple of the LORD, the God of their ancestors, and they worshiped Asherah poles and idols instead! Because of this sin, divine anger fell on Judah and Jerusalem. (2 Chronicles 24:17, 18 NLT)

We are told that while Jehoiada the priest was living, Joash listened to him. But after Jehoiada died, Joash listened to the ungodly leaders of Judah. How is it that the king that took such initiative to repair the Temple of the LORD would now so quickly abandon it? The impression one gets is that Joash rarely thought for himself, nor exercised any real authority, but relied on his advisers, whether Jehoiada the priest or the leaders of Judah. Thus, we read in the parallel account in 2 Kings that Joash only pursued what pleased the LORD because Jehoiada the priest directed him to do so.

All his life Joash did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. (2 Kings 12:2 NLT)

Even when he tried to take initiative with respect to repairing the Temple of the LORD, no one listened to him, and he had to get Jehoiada's help to get things moving forward (2 Chronicles 24:4–6). And so when Jehoiada died, the most significant influence upon King Joash was the leaders of Judah, who led him to abandon the LORD and pursue idols.

What do I learn from this? Many leaders make much ado about themselves and try to get people to follow them. So then, as long as the leader is good and leads them in a right way, those that they influence will also pursue the right way. However, when they are gone, then the people become aimless and lost until a new leader directs them. And if the new leader is evil or leads the people in a wrong way, the people still follow, because they have never learned to think for themselves, only to follow.

Those of you that consider me any kind of a leader know that I've never encouraged anyone to follow me or even to follow my words, but I have always directed you to read and learn God's Word for yourselves and follow Him. For what good is it if you listen to me and follow me one moment and then, when someone more charismatic and more persuasive comes, you follow them? But if you learn the Word of God for yourselves, then you can evaluate everyone by that standard. Then you will not be moved by the strength of one personality over another but rather by God's truth. This is how Paul resolved the division and quarreling over personalities in the Corinthian church:

Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, "Do not go beyond what is written." Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other. (1 Corinthians 4:6 NIV)

Both Paul and Apollos, as any other leader, were to be evaluated by the Word of God. Paul wisely pointed to God's Word and to Christ rather than to the strength of his leadership or the persuasiveness of his words. This is why he also wrote,

Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1 NASB)

Paul never says "Follow me." Although some translations use the word "follow," it is a poor English rendering of a word that is more appropriately translated, as here in the NASB, "be imitators." Regardless of the translation, the context makes clear that Paul is not pointing to himself but to Christ, and that the Corinthian believers should follow Paul's example only as they see him following Christ.

This is what I encourage every Christian leader to do. Don't set up a cult of personality around yourselves. This happens when you try to use your position of authority to silence any perspective that does not coincide with your own. It is the Lord we follow. And it is His Word alone that commands such loyalty. But when any leader defines his church or organization based on his own personal beliefs, rather than on Christ and the Word of God, then the church or organization can easily devolve into a cult of personality.

Friends, I would encourage you to take Paul's instruction to heart, and as God provides you the opportunity for leadership and influence, may you always communicate this attitude: "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ," or perhaps more appropriately, "Be imitators of me, only as I also am of Christ."

AI-Expanded Reflection

Joash's reversal after Jehoiada's death exposes the difference between borrowed religious habits and settled allegiance. The priest had protected his life, guided his reign, and helped organize the temple's repair. Those benefits make the subsequent abandonment particularly grave. Yet Chronicles does not portray Joash merely as a passive victim of persuasive advisers. He authorizes the killing of Jehoiada's son Zechariah when the prophet confronts the nation's apostasy (2 Chronicles 24:20–22). The king becomes accountable for a chosen response to truth, even if dependency on influential people helps explain the path there.

The leadership lesson is therefore both institutional and personal. A ministry may produce orderly behavior without cultivating people who can recognize why that behavior is faithful. If every difficult question is settled by a leader's charisma, departure or succession can expose how little judgment the community has developed. Teaching Scripture should include demonstrating how an interpretation arises from the text, inviting sincere questions, and acknowledging uncertainty. Such practices make authority accountable to something beyond the officeholder's preferences.

Paul's command to imitate him supplies a constructive alternative. The Greek term in 1 Corinthians 11:1 indeed concerns imitation, but “follow my example” can convey that meaning accurately in English. The problem is not the English word “follow” by itself. Paul also gives direct apostolic instructions and expects them to be received; he is not proposing that Christian life be free of authoritative teaching. His example is qualified by its conformity to Christ, and the surrounding argument concerns relinquishing personal advantage for others' salvation (1 Corinthians 10:31–33). Imitation is thus directed toward recognizable Christlike conduct, not fascination with Paul's personality.

The original's concluding “only as” makes an interpretive safeguard explicit, but should remain identified as an explanatory restatement rather than an exact translation. A congregation can practice that safeguard without becoming habitually suspicious. It can honor faithful teachers, compare instruction with Scripture, correct errors fairly, and train additional leaders rather than concentrating every decision in one person. Individual members share responsibility: reading privately is valuable, but isolated confidence can be as unaccountable as a personality cult. The aim is mature discernment within a community whose mutual encouragement and correction continue when a gifted leader is no longer present.

Every previous king of Judah, upon death, is described as resting with his ancestors and being buried in the City of David (cf. 2 Chronicles 9:30–31; 12:16; 14:1; 16:13–14; 21:1). Even Asa, who rejected the Lord in his later years, was still buried honorably in remembrance of the good he'd done earlier. But when we reach Jehoram, Scripture instead says he passed away to no one's regret, buried in the City of David, but not among the tombs reserved for kings (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 21:20) — his own people didn't even light a funeral fire in his honor, as they had for his predecessors (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 21:19). It's genuinely sad reading of Jehoram's death and burial this way. How does someone live such an evil life that not a single person mourns them?

Yet because of the covenant the LORD had made with David, He wasn't willing to destroy David's house entirely, having promised to maintain a lamp for him and his descendants forever (a paraphrase of 2 Chronicles 21:7). Even though Jehoram himself had forsaken the LORD, his ancestors' God (2 Chronicles 21:10), the LORD still preserved a descendant, unwilling to forsake His own promise to David.

This makes me question how I react when someone "forsakes" me. The command to love my neighbor tends to disappear the moment I feel genuinely wronged. That's exactly why God's love is so much greater than any love I could offer someone else. Even though we're instructed to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37), the truth remains that God's love for us far exceeds any love we could ever give back to Him.

AI-Expanded Reflection

The contrast this comment traces — Jehoram forsaking God completely, yet God still preserving his family line anyway — is worth naming as a genuinely striking demonstration of covenant faithfulness operating independently of the specific individual's own worthiness. God's commitment here isn't to Jehoram personally, who by every measure this passage records had earned nothing but judgment; it's to a promise made generations earlier to David, which continues to hold regardless of how badly any individual descendant fails to live up to it. That distinction — a covenant's durability resting on the one who made the promise rather than the merit of each person who benefits from it — is precisely the theological foundation this comment's own closing reflection on grace ultimately depends on.

Another sad, tragic story in Israel's history appears in today's reading. Much political turmoil was followed by Joash's reformation under the godly priest Jehoiada's guidance, and the nation seemed to be moving in the right direction. But Jehoiada's death left Israel vulnerable to foreign influence within the king's own court, and Israel and her king backslid into wickedness once again. How we begin our spiritual journey certainly matters — but this shows how much more important it is to finish it well. That's exactly why Scripture keeps emphasizing perseverance, faithfulness, endurance, and patience. When Paul describes love in 1 Corinthians 13, the very first quality he names is patience. Let's continue persevering in our walk with Christ — whether or not we feel like it, whether we're in a good mood or not, whether we're prosperous or not, whether the world around us is as it should be or not, whether God works in our lives the way we want or not, whether His care and love are visible to our eyes or not. Have a great day today!

AI-Expanded Reflection

Jehoiada's death marking such a decisive turning point is worth noting for what it reveals about Joash's own faith, since it suggests his earlier reformation may have depended more on a trusted mentor's influence than on convictions Joash had genuinely made his own. That's a useful, sobering question for anyone whose own faith rests significantly on a particular pastor, mentor, or spiritual community — the real test of whether faith has become personally owned, rather than simply borrowed from someone else's presence, often only becomes visible once that steadying influence is removed.