The Perfect Priest and King (2 Chronicles 24:2)
And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
—2 Chronicles 24:2
This is a really interesting picture. The king, Joash, did what was right in the eyes of the Lord during the days of Jehoiada the priest. But when you read the rest of the story, as soon as the priest died, Jehoiada, the king, Joash, turned away. And you see in 2 Chronicles 24:2 here the need among God’s people for both a priest, who is glorifying God, and a king, who is glorifying God. A priest who is obeying the Word of God, and a king who is obeying the Word of God. And the prosperity that brings among God’s people in the Old Testament when both priests and kings are glorifying God. And this is a picture that really helps set the stage for the coming of Jesus in the New Testament.
2 Chronicles 24:2 points us to Jesus as our perfect priest and king.
What we celebrate at Christmas is the reality that Jesus is both the perfect Priest and the perfect King. Jesus is the perfect Priest, greater than any great high priest, because he had no sin in his life to offer any sacrifice for. He is the perfect Intercessor between sinful women and men and a holy God. Jesus stands as our Great High Priest whose blood covers over our sin.
He is the perfect Priest, and he’s the perfect King. He rules with justice and righteousness. He reigns perfectly with holiness. Oh, this is one of those places in the Old Testament that just increases our appetite as we’re reading through the Old Testament for a perfect priest and a perfect king to come. And the good news we celebrate when we get to the New Testament, the good news we celebrate at Christmas, is that this Priest, this King, has come.
2 Chronicles 24:2 teaches us to trust Jesus as our perfect priest and king.
And so, we praise him. Jesus, there is none like you. You are the one whom all of history before you was waiting for. The one whom all of history, since you came, is looking back toward, and the one whom all of your people who have put their faith in you are looking forward to seeing face to face. We praise you, Jesus, as the perfect High Priest. The one who has paid the price for our sins, who’s offered the full and final sacrifice necessary to cover over all our sins, to forgive us of all our sins. Jesus, we praise you for the cross. We praise you for your death, for our sins, for your resurrection from the grave, for tearing the curtain of the temple so that we could right now have access to God through you, our Intercessor.
We praise you as the perfect Priest, and we praise you as the perfect King, as the King we are so glad is ruling our lives. The King we are so glad is ruling all of creation. Your justice is perfect. Your righteousness is perfect. All your ways are perfect. We trust in you, our King. Lord, we trust in you, O King. We trust in you, King Jesus. We love you, King Jesus. There is no king like you, and we cannot wait for you to come back. We can’t wait for you, our perfect Priest-King, to come back for us, to see your face. Come, King Jesus. Come quickly, we pray.
A Prayer for the Chenoua People
And until that day, help us to faithfully proclaim you as King, to tell the nations that you are King, to tell the Chenoua people of Algeria that you are King, to tell 7000 other unreached people groups today that you are the King. God, help us to faithfully, Jesus help us to faithfully proclaim you as the perfect Priest-King to Algeria and all nations and anticipation of your coming, starting with our neighbors right around us today. We love and praise you, King Jesus. And I pray all these things in your name, according to 2 Chronicles 24:2. Amen.
