Good King, Bad King

Every age in history has had its good and bad leaders.  In Old Testament times when God's people were asking if they could have a king, like the other nations, God hesitated because these were his people, the people he loved, so who could lead them better than God himself.  They begged and complained to God on this issue to the point that God let them have their way.  They wanted, even demanded a king, so God gave them a king.  Please read the first sentence of this paragraph again and keep it in mind. 

An interesting study is to look at the leaders, the kings which were the rulers in those days.  Some of them were men of God and ruled accordingly, but some were more interested in being powerful and following their own priorities rather than the ways of God. 

In one instance, there was a man named Jehoshaphat, that ruled over Judah.  He was thirty-five years old when he became king and ruled for twenty-five years.  2 Chronicles 20:32 describes him as a man who  "did what was right in the eyes of the Lord."   Notice the Bible did not say he was perfect, and yes there were some wrong decisions made my Jehoshaphat.  Regardless, we remember him primarily as a good king because he strived to lead according to the ways of God. 

When Jehoshaphat died, his eldest son, Jehoram , became king.  There were seven sons in that family, all blessed with expensive gifts and lots of gold and silver.  But Jehoram was given the kingdom because he was Jehoshaphat's first born. 

2 Chronicles 21 gives the story, "When Jehoram established himself firmly over his father’s kingdom, he put all his brothers to the sword along with some of the officials of Israel. ⁵ Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. ⁶ He followed the ways of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for he married a daughter of Ahab. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord." 

There is the contrast. One good leader and one bad leader.  One king is remembered as a man who served God, and the other was a king who killed his brothers and some of the princes of Israel.  Jehoram had not walked in the ways of his father.   God says his leadership has caused the people of Jerusalem to prostitute themselves.   

The continuing part of the story contains the Bible's descriptive warning of what is going to happen to Jehoram because of his evil ways (some consequences will not be discussed here.)  The leadership of Jehoram had been so bad, there was nothing good to be reported.  He ruled for eight years, and the Bibles says, "he died, to no one's regret." 

 

There were other good kings I could have described, and other bad kings, too. The point of this story which has been "lifted" from the Bible is to show you the same contrasts exist today.  There is wisdom in that life which follows the precepts of a Heavenly Father, and hopelessness in the life which chooses to reject the ways of the Lord.  How sad, when those in positions of authority choose to rule without regard of God's will.  The sadness applies to us as well, when we choose the things of the world, instead of walking in God's way. 

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