Traitors Within

2 Chronicles 24:26 Those who conspired against him were Zabad, son of Shimeath an Ammonite woman, and Jehozabad, son of Shimrith a Moabite woman.

It has been interesting to see the level of political betrayal that has happened in the last few years. And there is no shame involved in stabbing your boss in the back, all to make a few bucks on a book, for a few moments in the spotlight. This level of betrayal has never been so public a display in the past.

There have always been those willing to ‘do what has to be done’ in order to forward their own agenda. There have always been those who would break the law in order to get what they wanted. This isn’t limited to politics, although political figures seem to perfect the art!

One of the realities of many terrorists is that they play the long game. They are willing to stay silent for years in order to advance their agenda. They stay in their ‘sleeper cell’ and await the right moment.

And this isn’t a new phenomenon. Our text contains just such a longterm team, planted in close proximity to their leader. They waited for just the right moment to show their true colors.

The two mothers were of foreign birth. They were from enemies of Israel. They are mentioned here because they were so close and yet seemingly undetected. They were able to play the part well enough to be able to pull off the murder of the king.

These women’s background is mentioned specifically in the text. There must be a reason for this. The Biblical authors don’t include details that aren’t important to the storyline. So who are these two people groups?

We find from Deuteronomy 23:3 ^“No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation.” That is because when Israel was exiting Egypt, these nations didn’t bother to offer or provide the most basic of human kindness to Israel. They demonstrated their character by not allowing free passage through their territory.

So when these two mothers raised their sons, they passed along their cultural values. They waited generations to wage war against Judah, even if the war only entailed killing the king.

You see, Judah had compromised their fidelity with the LORD. Depending on who was in charge, the people would either be wholehearted in their devotion to the LORD, or they would pick up their idol worship again. Even their king, Joash, was only held true to the faith by an elder who served as priest during the beginning years of his reign.

This faithful priest had great influence on him, but not enough to change his heart. You see, even the best leaders, doing their best to lead, can only lead as far as the people allow. The leader is unable to change the heart.

And that is the hope that continues to ring out throughout the Old Testament. We need a changed heart. We need the LORD’s intervention in order for us to live righteous in Christ Jesus. All our efforts fail. Only His grace can hold us to the course.