[[2 Chron-24]] Prev: [[Prophecies in 2 Chron-23]] | Next: [[Prophecies in 2 Chron-25]] --- ### The Spirit of God came on Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood above the people, and said to them, 'God says, "Why do you disobey Yahweh's commandments, so that you can't prosper? Because you have forsaken Yahweh, he has also forsaken you."' *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: Zechariah the priest delivers a divine warning that because the people and King Joash have abandoned God for idols, God will withdraw His protection and they will fail to prosper. *Historical context*: Theological commentators note this as a specific application of the 'Measure for Measure' (Lex Talionis) principle where the spiritual state of the nation directly dictated their military and political success under the Davidic covenant. *Related to*: ### For the army of the Syrians came with a small company of men; and Yahweh delivered a very great army into their hand, because they had forsaken Yahweh, the God of their fathers. So they executed judgment on Joash. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: The Syrian army, despite being significantly smaller, successfully invaded Judah and defeated Joash's much larger force, fulfilling the prophecy of God forsaking them. *Historical context*: Historically identified as the invasion by Hazael of Damascus (Aram). The account in [[2 Kings-12#v17|2 Kings 12:17]]-18 notes that Joash attempted to bribe Hazael to withdraw, but 2 Chronicles emphasizes the military defeat as a divine judgment for religious apostasy. *Related to*: Zechariah's prophecy in v20: 'Because you have forsaken Yahweh, he has also forsaken you.' ### Thus Joash the king didn't remember the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but killed his son. When he died, he said, 'May Yahweh look at it, and repay it.' *Type*: prophecy *Summary*: While being martyred, Zechariah calls for divine retribution and repayment for his unjust execution, which functions as a prophetic imprecation. *Historical context*: Scholars often compare this to the 'blood of Abel' crying out. In Jewish tradition and early Christian literature (notably [[Matt-23#v35|Matthew 23:35]]), this Zechariah is remembered as the quintessential martyr whose blood required historical repayment. *Related to*: ### his own servants conspired against him for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed, and he died. They buried him in David's city, but they didn't bury him in the tombs of the kings. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: Joash is assassinated in his own bed by his officials as direct retaliation for the murder of Zechariah, fulfilling Zechariah's dying request for repayment. *Historical context*: The conspirators are identified as Zabad and Jehozabad. Their motive is explicitly recorded as being the 'blood of the sons of Jehoiada.' The denial of a royal burial was a significant historical mark of divine and social rejection, completing the repayment requested by the prophet. *Related to*: Zechariah's dying words in v22: 'May Yahweh look at it, and repay it.' --- #ai_prophecy