“What’s the Scoop on…….Athaliah and Jehosheba?”

The two women that Pastor Grace chose to teach about were unknown to all of us, their stories buried in the accounts of the kings of Judea and Israel found in 2 Chronicles and 2 Kings. The contrast in the legacy that these women left taught us some important lessons.

Before I begin, I want to warn you that the family relationship between these two women is complicated. Pastor Grace gave us a copy of their family tree which greatly helped. For the purposes of this post I am going to focus on what was most relevant to the lesson she taught.

First we will look at Athaliah.  She was the daughter of Queen Jezebel of Israel, a woman notorious for her depravity. (At this time in history, Israel and Judah stood divided.) Athaliah married King Jehoram, a king of Judea.  Jehoram continued the evil practices of his fathers, eventually dying in disgrace.  After Jehoram died his son Ahaziah was crowned king. He followed the evil practices of his family before him, encouraged to do so by his mother Athaliah.  After reigning only a year, he too died.  At this point Athaliah, his mother, saw a great opportunity to seize power.  She commanded that all of Ahaziah’s heirs (her own grandchildren!!) be put to death, securing her place on the throne on Judah. Her quest for power eventually resulted in her own brutal death.

Now let’s look at Jehosheba.  She was the daughter of King Jehoram (husband of the evil Athalaih, her step-mother).  Her family tree is not much different than her half-brother’s, Ahaziah.  Despite the legacy of evil in her life, Jehosheba married Jehoida, the high priest of the Lord.  As Athaliah carried out her evil plan to destroy the royal heirs, Jehosheba is able to rescue one child, her nephew, from death.  She combined her faith in the Lord with action. This child, Joash, is taken and hidden in the temple of the Lord for seven years. At eight years old Joash became king of Judah, following in the ways of the Lord.  Probably due to the influence of both Jehosheba and Jehoida in his early years as king, Joash instituted religious reforms in Judah.

Pastor Grace made some important points in comparing these two women and the legacy they left behind.  We can apply these lessons to our own lives.

Your family heritage does not dictate who you will become.  

Both Athalaih and Jehosheba shared a family heritage and probably grew up in similar cultural surrounds but the paths of their lives couldn’t have been more different. Athalaih choose the path of darkness.  This didn’t have to be the case.  Jehosheba’s choices resulted in a much different path.  Jehosheba purposely choose to align herself with God.  This choice did not come without cost.  She risked her own life to save Joash. 

The same is true for us.  Pastor Grace pointed out that many of us come from backgrounds that were far less than ideal.  We may have had many influences in our lives that were ungodly.  This can’t be an excuse for continuing to live in darkness.  We will have to stand before God on our own and answer for our own choices. “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3).

Who you surround yourself with will influence who you become.

The man Jehosheba  married was a follower of the Lord God. And not just a follower but a man committed to the ways of the Lord.  Reading 2 Kings 11 and 12, you can see what a mighty man of God  Jehoida was.  As he followed the Lord, so did she.  As Pastor Grace pointed out, “bad company corrupts good morals”.  We need to be very careful of who we spend most of our time with.  God calls us to be lights in this world but those closest to us should be people who are wholly seeking after God. We will become who we hang out with.

God has called us for a purpose.

God had a very specific job for Jehosheba.  Pastor Grace pointed out that He has specific plans for us as well.  She reminded us that Satan will try to steal the purpose that God may have for us, often by undermining our confidence. We have to recognize his lies for what they are.  No one has the power to take away what God has ordained. 

Athaliah and Jehosheba were women whose fates were shaped by the choices they made.  One stopped at nothing to gain what she desired.  The other choose to follow God and live a life of faith. Thank you Jesus that we have the power to make the right choice!!

“Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it” Luke 9:23-24.