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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Friday, 19 December 2025:
2 Chronicles 27:1 — Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok.
Jotham’s reign begins quietly, without scandal or spectacle. His lineage is named, grounding his leadership in continuity and accountability. Scripture often highlights a king’s mother to remind us that leadership formation is personal before it is public. Character is shaped long before authority is exercised. Jotham steps into power already formed, not improvising his values after promotion.
2 Chronicles 27:2 — And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord according to all that his father Uzziah had done, except he did not enter the temple of the Lord. But the people still followed corrupt practices.
This verse holds faithfulness and restraint in careful tension. Jotham learns from both the strength and the failure of his father. Uzziah’s obedience brought blessing, but his pride in entering the temple led to his downfall. Jotham does not repeat that sin. He walks humbly, honors God’s boundaries, and governs with reverence rather than presumption. Yet this same verse exposes a sobering reality: righteous leadership does not automatically produce righteous people. Jotham is faithful, but the culture remains corrupt. Obedience does not guarantee immediate visible results, but it remains the true measure of success before God.
The brevity of 2 Chronicles 27 is striking, especially given that Jotham is one of the few kings who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord,” and that he stands in the lineage of Christ (Matthew 1:9). He ordered his ways before God, completed significant building projects, and prevailed in battle by God’s grace. Why, then, so little commentary? The answer appears in 2 Kings 15:35: “Nevertheless, the high places were not removed. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places.” Jotham lived faithfully and achieved much, but he did not confront the spiritual compromises shaping the hearts of the people.
Jotham’s reign reveals a danger that remains relevant for every generation: personal righteousness paired with restrained influence. He used his authority to build security and stability, yet idolatry and corruption were allowed to persist. He did not leverage his position to call the nation back to wholehearted covenant faithfulness. God calls His people to holiness, and He calls them to diligence in their work, but He also calls them to influence, to serve as ambassadors of reconciliation, entrusted with both the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Faithfulness that stops short of courageous witness leaves culture unchanged.
This tension is illustrated powerfully in the life of Lot. Scripture calls him a righteous man, distressed by the wickedness of Sodom, yet he lacked moral authority within the city. Though he sat in the gate as a leader, his convictions carried no weight. His warnings were dismissed, his family was deeply corrupted, and he had to be physically removed to escape judgment. Lot was vexed, but not valiant. He was shaped more by his environment than he shaped it. His story stands as a warning that grief over sin without courageous action can still result in tragic loss.
God does not call His people to withdraw into quiet self-protection, nor does He call them to be meddlesome or self-righteous. He calls them to live faithfully, love boldly, work diligently, and shine visibly. This means setting examples that confront darkness with light, not merely lamenting its presence. It means refusing to normalize corruption, even when resistance is uncomfortable or costly. Wherever God places His people, whether in homes, churches, workplaces, or communities, they are called to steward that influence for His glory.
Jotham was a good man, but his legacy reminds us that goodness alone is not the goal. God desires obedience that bears fruit beyond the self, faith that shapes others, and courage that refuses to leave the high places standing. The call remains the same: do not hide the light, do not bury the talent, and do not accept corrupt practices as inevitable. Faithfulness before God must be matched with faithfulness toward the mission He has given His people, so that future generations inherit more than stability, they inherit truth.
– Matthew 5:13-16 — “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
– Micah 5:7, 8 — Then the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which delay not for a man nor wait for the children of man. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which, when it goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.
– Isaiah 58:5-14 — Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in. “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
2 Chronicles 27:3 — He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord and did much building on the wall of Ophel.
Jotham strengthens what protects worship. He does not innovate theology; he reinforces foundations. His leadership is constructive, not performative. He invests in infrastructure that guards access to God rather than drawing attention to himself. Faithful leaders often do work that is necessary but unspectacular, strengthening gates and walls so others can safely draw near to the Lord.
2 Chronicles 27:4 — Moreover, he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and forts and towers on the wooded hills.
Jotham plans for resilience. Forts and towers speak of vigilance and stewardship, not paranoia. He prepares the nation to withstand pressure without abandoning dependence on God. Wisdom plans ahead while trust remains fixed upward. Preparation is not a lack of faith; it is faith expressed through responsibility.
2 Chronicles 27:5 — He fought with the king of the Ammonites and prevailed against them. And the Ammonites gave him that year 100 talents of silver, and 10,000 cors of wheat, and 10,000 of barley. The Ammonites paid him the same amount in the second and the third years.
Victory here is steady, not dramatic. Provision flows consistently, not miraculously. God often blesses obedience through sustained fruit rather than sudden breakthrough. Jotham’s reign shows that faithfulness can produce long-term stability rather than short-term excitement. Daily provision is no less divine than dramatic rescue.
2 Chronicles 27:6 — So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before the Lord his God.
This is the theological center of the chapter. Jotham’s strength is traced directly to ordered obedience. His life is aligned, not chaotic. He does not merely believe in God; he arranges his conduct before Him. Spiritual strength flows from submission, not ambition. Might is a byproduct of alignment with God’s authority.
Is your life ordered around Jesus? Have you built your house on the firm foundation, the solid rock of Jesus? Is Jesus the Cornerstone of your life? Jotham stuck out among the list of kings because he chose to order his life before the Lord his God. Will you be remembered that way?
2 Chronicles 27:7 — Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
Scripture does not linger on Jotham’s accomplishments, because the point has already been made. Faithful leadership does not need exhaustive documentation to be meaningful, and what is most worthy of commentary is spiritual impact, how well leaders lead people back to faithfulness to God. Leaders know the way, go the way, and show the way – Jesus is the Way. Real leaders lead others to Jesus.
2 Chronicles 27:8 — He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
The repetition underscores the simplicity of his reign. No intrigue, no collapse, no moral spiral. Just steady faithfulness across time. Endurance matters. Many begin well; fewer finish well without spectacle.
2 Chronicles 27:9 — And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
Jotham’s legacy is tragically understated by what follows. His son Ahaz will undo much of what Jotham preserved. This reminds us that even faithful leaders cannot transfer obedience automatically. Each generation must choose. Jotham’s responsibility was faithfulness, not outcomes beyond his stewardship.
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 19 December 2025: Order your ways before the Lord today. Strength does not come from visibility, applause, or control, but from quiet alignment with God’s will in daily decisions. Build gates, reinforce foundations, and remain faithful even when culture does not follow.
Pray: “Lord, teach me to order my ways before You. Guard me from pride, haste, and the need to be seen. Help me build what protects faith, strengthen what supports obedience, and remain steady even when results are slow. Form in me a quiet strength that comes from walking humbly with You, for Your glory and for the good of those who follow. Amen.”
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