The Bible is replete with accounts of people becoming champions and heroes for God! …until they failed God with disastrous ends. Examples include:

Moses

“Thus Yehowah used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend.”

When God’s people complained because they didn’t have enough water, God instructed Moses to gather his people, and in front of them “speak to the rock” and water would be provided. Moses disobeyed God, spoke to the people instead of the rock, and then hit the rock. God considered his actions disrespectful and punished Moses severely. As revered and respected as Moses was and still is, he strained his extraordinary, long-term relationship with God by this seemingly slight deviation from God’s commandment — sealing his fate.

The Kingdom

“Then you [Moses] shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says Yehowah, ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn.’ So I said to you, ‘Let My son go that he may serve Me’; but you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn.”

God’ kingdom of Israel, under king David,  was an extraordinary people. But after King Solomon, the kingdom of Israel, with its 12 tribes, was split in two with 10 tribes retaining the name “Israel” — the Northern Kingdom. The kings of this Israel never honored their covenant with God. The people didn’t have Bibles of their own (most are thought to have been illiterate anyway), so they had to rely on the kings and priests to lead them in keeping the covenant with God. So as the kings of Israel dishonored God, so did the people of Israel. [Map of Tribes]  [Kings of Israel and Judah]

The other two tribes were Judah and Benjamin — the Southern Kingdom. Along with some people who defected from the other 10 tribes, they became known as the kingdom of Judah. Judah had sole possession of Jerusalem and thus the temple and priests in their territory. They had the only means through which the people of God could honor their covenant with God. Yet the kings and priests of Judah did not consistently honor their covenant with God either. Subsequently, the people of Judah did not consistently honor their covenant with God.

Some kings were much worse than others were, but few of them “did what was right in the sight of God” for their entire reign. Some of those who did better, still “sacrificed on the high places” — behavior strictly prohibited by their agreement with God. They mixed pagan traditions with some of God’s instructions.

For their disloyalty and disobedience, God eventually had Israel utterly decimated and dispersed into the kingdoms that had been their enemies. Judah, likewise was utterly defeated and taken off to Babylon.

Josiah

“Before him [Josiah] there was no king like him who turned to Yehowah with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him.”

One of my favorite people, described in the Bible, is King Josiah. This young king of Judah assumed his reign after a long period of Judah dishonoring God. He reformed the kingdom, and after the book of the covenant was found he enacted radical reforms to rid the kingdom of all pagan influences.  He finally destroyed all of the high places and slaughtered those who perpetuated those practices. Sadly, Josiah decided, without consulting God, to go to battle where he died.

We should never take it upon ourselves to do dangerous things without consulting with God. We should always conduct ourselves according to our covenant with God — without even the slightest deviation. But, we need to understand our obligations under the covenant before we can fulfill them.

end part 9