Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary

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Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708)

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S E C O N D   K I N G S

CHAP. XII.

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This chapter gives us the history of the reign of Joash, which does not

answer to that glorious beginning of it which we had an account of in

the foregoing chapter; he was not so illustrious at forty years old as

he was at seven, yet his reign is to be reckoned one of the better

sort, and appears much worse in Chronicles

(2 Chron. xxiv.)

than it does here, for there we find the blood of one of God’s prophets

laid at his door; here we are only told,

I. That he did well while Jehoiada lived,

ver. 1-3.

II. That he was careful and active to repair the temple,

ver. 4-16.

III. That after a mean compact with Hazael

(ver. 17, 18)

he died ingloriously,

ver. 19-21.

The Reign of Joash, King of Judah.	B. C. 878.

     

1 In the seventh year of Jehu Jehoash began to reign; and forty

years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Zibiah

of Beer-sheba.

  2 And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the

LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him.

  3 But the high places were not taken away: the people still

sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.

     

The general account here given of Joash is,

1. That he reigned forty years. As he began his reign when he was very

young, he might, in the course of nature, have continued much longer,

for he was cut off when he was but forty-seven years old,

v. 1.

2. That he did that which was right as long as Jehoiada lived to

instruct him,

v. 2.

Many young men have come too soon to an estate–have had wealth, and

power, and liberty, before they knew how to use them–and it has been

of bad consequence to them; but against this danger Joash was well

guarded by having such a good director as Jehoiada was, so wise, and

experienced, and faithful to him, and by having so much wisdom as to

hearken to him and be directed by him, even when he was grown up. Note,

It is a great mercy to young people, and especially to young princes,

and all young men of consequence, to be under good direction, and to

have those about them that will instruct them to do that which is

right in the sight of the Lord; and they then do wisely and well

for themselves when they are willing to be counselled and ruled by

such. A child left to himself brings his mother to shame, but a

child left to such a tuition may bring himself to honour and comfort.

3. That the high places were not taken away,
v. 3.

Up and down the country they had altars both for sacrifice and incense,

to the honour of the God of Israel only, but in competition with, and

at least in tacit contempt of, his altar at Jerusalem. These private

altars, perhaps, had been more used in the late bad reigns than

formerly, because it was not safe to go up to Jerusalem, nor was the

temple-service performed as it should have been; and, it may be,

Jehoiada connived at them, because some well-meaning people were glad

of them when they could not have better, and he hoped that the

reforming of the temple, and putting things into a good posture there,

would by degrees draw people from their high places and they would

dwindle of themselves; or perhaps neither the king nor the priest had

zeal enough to carry on their reformation so far, nor courage and

strength enough to encounter such an inveterate usage.

The Repairing of the Temple.	B. C. 853.

     

4 And Jehoash said to the priests, All the money of the

dedicated things that is brought into the house of the LORD,

even the money of every one that passeth the account, the

money that every man is set at, and all the money that cometh

into any man’s heart to bring into the house of the LORD,

  5 Let the priests take it to them, every man of his

acquaintance: and let them repair the breaches of the house,

wheresoever any breach shall be found.

  6 But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king

Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house.

  7 Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and the

other priests, and said unto them, Why repair ye not the

breaches of the house? now therefore receive no more money of

your acquaintance, but deliver it for the breaches of the house.

  8 And the priests consented to receive no more money of the

people, neither to repair the breaches of the house.

  9 But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the

lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one

cometh into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the

door put therein all the money that was brought into the house

of the LORD.

  10 And it was so, when they saw that there was much money

in the chest, that the king’s scribe and the high priest came up,

and they put up in bags, and told the money that was found in the

house of the LORD.

  11 And they gave the money, being told, into the hands of them

that did the work, that had the oversight of the house of the

LORD: and they laid it out to the carpenters and builders, that

wrought upon the house of the LORD,

  12 And to masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and

hewed stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD, and

for all that was laid out for the house to repair it.

  13 Howbeit there were not made for the house of the LORD bowls

of silver, snuffers, basons, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or

vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house

of the LORD:

  14 But they gave that to the workmen, and repaired therewith

the house of the LORD.

  15 Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand

they delivered the money to be bestowed on workmen: for they

dealt faithfully.

  16 The trespass money and sin money was not brought into the

house of the LORD: it was the priests’.

     

We have here an account of the repairing of the temple in the reign of

Joash.

     

I. It seems, the temple had gone out of repair. Though Solomon built it

very strong, of the best materials and in the best manner, yet in time

it went to decay, and there were breaches found in it

(v. 5),

in the roofs, or walls, or floors, the ceiling, or wainscoting, or

windows, or the partitions of the courts. Even temples themselves are

the worse for the wearing; but the heavenly temple will never wax old.

Yet it was not only the teeth of time that made these breaches, the

sons of Athaliah had broken up the house of God

(2 Chron. xxiv. 7),

and, out of enmity to the service of the temple, had damaged the

buildings of it, and the priests had not taken care to repair the

breaches in time, so that they went worse and worse. Unworthy were

those husbandmen to have this valuable vineyard let out to them upon

such easy terms who could not afford to keep the winepress in due and

tenantable repair,

Matt. xxi. 33.

Justly did their great Lord sue them for this permissive waste, and by

his judgments recover locum vastatum–for dilapidations (as the

law speaks), when this neglected temple was laid even with the

ground.

     

II. The king himself was (as it should seem) the first and forwardest

man that took care for the repair of it. We do not find that the

priests complained of it or that Jehoiada himself was active in it, but

the king was zealous in the matter,

1. Because he was king, and God expects and requires from those who

have power that they use it for the maintenance and support of

religion, the redress of grievances, and reparation of decays, for the

exciting and engaging of ministers to do their part and people theirs.

2. Because the temple had been both his nursery and his sanctuary when

he was a child, in a grateful remembrance of which he now appeared

zealous for the honour of it. Those who have experienced the comfort

and benefit of religious assemblies will make the reproach of them

their burden

(Zeph. iii. 18),

the support of them their care, and the prosperity of them their chief

joy.

     

III. The priests were ordered to collect money for these repairs, and

to take care that the work was done. The king had the affairs of his

kingdom to mind, and could not himself inspect this affair, but he

employed the priests to manage it, the fittest persons, and most

likely, one would think, to be hearty in it.

1. He gave them orders for the levying of the money of the dedicated

things. They must not stay till it was paid in, but they must call for

it where they knew it was due, in their respective districts, as

redemption-money (by virtue of the law,

Lev. xxvii. 2, 3),

or as a free-will offering,

v. 4.

This they were to gather every man of his acquaintance, and it was

supposed that there was no man but had acquaintance with some or other

of the priests. Note, We should take the opportunity that God gives us

of exciting those we have a particular acquaintance with to that which

is good.

2. He gave them orders for laying out the money they had levied in

repairing the breaches of the house,
v. 5.

     

IV. This method did not answer the intention,

v. 6.

Little money was raised. Either the priests were careless, and did not

call on the people to pay in their dues, or the people had so little

confidence in the priests’ management that they were backward to pay

money into their hands; if they were distrusted without cause, it was

the people’s shame; if with, it was more theirs. But what money was

raised was not applied to the proper use: The breaches of the house

were not repaired; the priests thought it might serve as well as it

had done, and therefore put off repairing from time to time. Church

work is usually slow work, but it is a pity that churchmen, of all men,

should be slow at it. Perhaps what little money they raised they

thought it necessary to use for the maintenance of the priests, which

must needs fall much short when ten tribes had wholly revolted and the

other two were wretchedly corrupted.

     

V. Another method was therefore taken. The king had his heart much set

upon having the breaches of the house repaired,
v. 7.

His apostasy, at last, gives us cause to question whether he had as

good an affection for the service of the temple as he had for the

structure. Many have been zealous for building and beautifying

churches, and for other forms of godliness, who yet have been strangers

to the power of it. However, we commend his zeal, and blame him not for

reproving even his tutor Jehoiada himself when he saw him remiss; and

so convincing was his reproof that the priests owned themselves

unworthy to be any longer employed, and consented to the taking of some

other measures, and the giving up of the money they had received into

other hands,

v. 8.

It was honestly done, when they found they had not spirit to do it

themselves, not to hinder other people from doing it. Another course

was taken,

     

1. For raising money,

v. 9, 10.

The money was not paid into private hands, but put into a public chest,

and then people brought it in readily and in great abundance, not only

their dues, but their free-will offerings for so good a work. The high

priest and the secretary of state counted the money out of the chest,

and laid it by in specie for the use to which it was

appropriated. When public distributions are made faithfully public

contributions will be made cheerfully. The money that was given,

(1.) Was dropped into the chest through a hole in the lid, past recall,

to intimate that what has been once resigned to God must never be

resumed. Every man, as he purposeth in his heart, so let him

give.

(2.) The chest was put on the right hand as they went in, which, some

think, is alluded to in that rule of charity which our Saviour gives,

Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth. But, while

they were getting all they could for the repair of the temple, they did

not break in upon that which was the stated maintenance of the priests,

v. 16.

The trespass-money and the sin-money (which were given to them by that

law,

Lev. v. 15, 16)

were reserved to them. Let not the servants of the temple be starved

under colour of repairing the breaches of it.

     

2. For laying out the money that was raised.

     

(1.) They did not put it into the hands of the priests, who were not

versed in affairs of this nature, having other work to mind, but

into the hands of those that did the work, or at least had

the oversight of it,
v. 11.

Those were fittest to be entrusted with this business whose employment

lay that way. Tractant fabrilia fabri—Every artist has his

trade assigned; but let not those who are called to war the holy

warfare entangle themselves in the affairs of this life. Those that

were thus entrusted did the business,

[1.] Carefully, purchasing materials and paying workmen,

v. 12.

Business is done with expedition when those are employed in it that

understand it and know which way to go about it.

[2.] Faithfully; such a reputation they got for honesty that there was

no occasion to examine their bills or audit their accounts. Let all

that are entrusted with public money, or public work, learn hence to

deal faithfully, as those that know God will reckon with them, whether

men do or no. Those that think it is no sin to cheat the government,

cheat the country, or cheat the church, will be of another mind when

God shall set their sins in order before them.

     

(2.) They did not lay it out in ornaments for the temple, in vessels of

gold or silver, but in necessary repairs first

(v. 13),

whence we may learn, in all our expenses to give that the preference

which is most needful, and, in dealing for the public, to deal as we

would for ourselves. After the repairs were finished we find the

overplus turned into plate for the service of the temple,

2 Chron. xxiv. 14.

Death of Joash, King of Judah.	B. C. 840.

     

17 Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath,

and took it: and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem.

  18 And Jehoash king of Judah took all the hallowed things that

Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of

Judah, had dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the

gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the LORD,

and in the king’s house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria:

and he went away from Jerusalem.

  19 And the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did,

are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings

of Judah?

  20 And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew

Joash in the house of Millo, which goeth down to Silla.

  21 For Jozachar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of

Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him

with his fathers in the city of David: and Amaziah his son

reigned in his stead.

     

When Joash had revolted from God and become both an idolater and a

persecutor the hand of the Lord went out against him, and his last

state was worse than his first.

     

I. His wealth and honour became an easy prey to his neighbours. Hazael,

when he had chastised Israel

(ch. x. 32),

threatened Judah and Jerusalem likewise, took Gath, a strong city

(v. 17),

and thence intended to march with his forces against Jerusalem, the

royal city, the holy city, but whose defence, on account of its

sinfulness, had departed. Joash had neither spirit nor strength to make

head against him, but gave him all the hallowed things, and all the

gold that was found both in his exchequer and in the treasures of the

temple

(v. 18),

to bribe him to march another way. If it were lawful to do this for the

public safety, better part with the gold of the temple than expose the

temple itself; yet,

1. If he had not forsaken God, and forfeited his protection, his

affairs would not have been brought to this extremity, but he might

have forced Hazael to retire.

2. He diminished himself, and made himself very mean, lost the honour

of a prince and a soldier, and of an Israelite too, in alienating the

dedicated things.

3. He impoverished himself and his kingdom. And,

4. He tempted Hazael to come again, when he could carry home so rich a

booty without striking a stroke. And it had this effect, for the next

year the host of Syria came up against Jerusalem, destroyed the prince,

and plundered the city,

2 Chron. xxiv. 23, 24.

     

II. His life became an easy prey to his own servants. They conspired

against him and slew him

(v. 20, 21),

not aiming at his kingdom, for they opposed not his son’s succeeding

him, but to be avenged on him for some crime he had committed; and we

are told in Chronicles that his murdering the prophet, Jehoiada’s son,

was the provocation. In this, how unrighteous soever they were

(vengeance was not theirs, nor did it belong to them to repay), God was

righteous; and this was not the only time that he let even kings know

that it was at their peril if they touched his anointed and did his

prophets any harm, and that, when he comes to make inquisition for

blood, the blood of prophets will run the account very high. Thus fell

Joash, who began in the spirit and ended in the flesh. God usually sets

marks of his displeasure upon apostates, even in this life; for they,

of all sinners, do most reproach the Lord.

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