5, 6). He caused the altars and places of idolatry to be destroyed, and the knowledge ,,f t.bc Lord to be diffused throughout the kingdom, and the places of ecclesiastical and j11,licial authority to be well filled (2 Chron. xvii. 9). But how different was his son I Or.e of the first acts of his government was to put to death his six brothers, and several of the leading men of the empire. It is here said that" he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab." He regulated his conduct by the infamous " house of Ahab," and not by the religious house of his father. He was in truth a mur- derer, an idolater, and a persecutor. But whilst piety is not necessarily hereditary-not necessarily, because children are moral agents-what then? Are parents to do nothing to impart all that is good in their character to their children? Undoubtedly, no I '].'hey are commanded to" train up a child in the way it should go" when it is young. And ,vhere their power is rightly employed, there is, if not invariable, yet general, success. Where the children of godly parents turn out to be profligate and corrupt, as a rule some defect may be found in the parental conduct. How often eminent ministers of the gospel, and in the main good men, are guilty of neglecting, to a greater or less extent, the parental oversight and religious training of their children! Even in the life of Jehoshaphat we detect at least two parental defects. 1. In permitting his son to form unholy aJ,liances. This good man, Jehoshaphat, formed a league with Ahab against Syria., contrary t,o the counsel of Micaiah (2 Chron. xviii.). For this the Prophet Jehu censured him severely. In consequence of this alliance his son married the daughter of this infamous Ahab, and the matrimonial connection with such a woman, idolatrous, corrupt, and the daughter of Jezebel, had, no doubt, a powerful influence in dete1io- rating bis moral cbnracter. 2. In granting his son too great an indulgence. He raised him to the throne during his own lifetime. He took him into royal partnership too soon, and thus supplied him with abundant means to foster bis vanity and ambition, Ah, me! bow many parents ruin their children for ever by over-indulgence! II. THAT IMMORAL KINGS ABE NATIONAL CURSES, What evils this man brought upon bis countr_l' ! It is said that "in bis days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves. So Joram went over to Zair, and all the chariots with him : and be rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots: and the people :fled into their tents," etc. Through him the kingdom of J udab lost Edom, which "revolted" and became the determined enemy of Judah ever afterwards (Ps. cx.xxvii. 7). Libnah, too, "revolted at the same time." This was a city in the south-western part of Judah assigned to the priests, and a city of refuge. But these re\"Olts are but specimens of the tremendous evils that this immoral man brought upon the kingdom. It has always been so, Wicked kings, in all ages, have been the greatest curses that have afflicted the human race. 1 God said to Israel of old, "I gave thee a king in mine anger" (Hos. xiii. 11). .And the gift, on the whole, it mw;t be confessed, has been a curse to mankind; and that because few· men who have attained the position have been divinely royal in intellect, in heart, in thoughts, in aims, in sympathies. What does Heaven say of wicked kings? "As a roaring lion, and a raging bear; so is a wicked ruler over the poor people." When will the world have true kings?-sucb a king as is described in the !:Sook of Proverbs, as one "that sittetb in tbe throne of judgment,'' and who "scatteretb away all evil with bis eyes"? He is one who sees justice done. He does not rule for the interest of a class, but for the good of all. His laws a.re equitable. Partialities and predilections which govern plebeian souls have no sway over him, " He's a king, A trne right king, that dare do aught eave wrong, Ft:are nothing mortal but to be uujuet; Who is not blown up with the flattering puffs Of spongr sycophants; who stands unmoved, Dt:spite the jostliug of opinion." m. THAT DEA'l'H IS NO llEBPECTER OF PERSONS. 1. Death does not respect a man's position, lwwever l,i,gh. "Aud Jehoram slept with his fathers, and was buried." Jeboram was a king, yet deitb struck him down, and be "was buried with his fathers." Palaces a.re as a.cccssible to death as paupers' huts. Attempted resistance in the former, 1 See' New Book of Kings,' by Davidi;on, M.A. (Reeves and Co., Fleet Street). Olt. vttr. 1-29.J THE SECOND BOO:K OF THE KINGS. 183
howover skilfully organized, wonld be as futile u in the latter. Death cares nothing for kings; crowns, diademfl, sceptres, courtiers, and pompous pageantries are only as dust in his icy glance. 2. Death does not respect a man's character, however vile. Jehornm was e. bad man, and utterly unfit to die; but. death waits not for moral pre- paration. When we remember whe.t evils wickerl men, especially wicked kings, work in the world, death must b3 regarded as a beneficent messenger. The psalmist saw mercy in the destruction of despots, He "overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea: for hie mercy cndureth for ever." "To him which smote great kings, and slow famous kings: for his mercy endureth for ever" (Ps. cxxxvi.). There is mercy for the race in their destruction. When such demons in human flesh are cut down, the world breathes more freely, a. load is rolled from its heart, obstacles a.re swept from its path of progress. ·when the Pharaohs are overwhelmed, the human Israel can march on to promised lands. C,1NCLUSION. Parents, cultivate personal religion, a.nd endeavour with all earnest- ness to transmit it to your children. Kings, sr,ek to understand and to embody the ideal of true kingship, be royal in moral character. All, stand in readiness for the approach of dea.th.-D. T.