Verse 31

But Joash said to all those who confronted him,“Must you fight Baal’s battles? Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his cause will die by morning! If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles! After all, it was his altar that was pulled down.”

Referenced Verses

  • Exod 23:2 : 2 “You must not follow a crowd in doing evil things; in a lawsuit you must not offer testimony that agrees with a crowd so as to pervert justice,
  • Num 14:6 : 6 And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, two of those who had investigated the land, tore their garments.
  • Deut 13:5-9 : 5 As for that prophet or dreamer, he must be executed because he encouraged rebellion against the LORD your God who brought you from the land of Egypt, redeeming you from that place of slavery, and because he has tried to entice you from the way the LORD your God has commanded you to go. In this way you must purge out evil from within. 6 False Prophets in the Family Suppose your own full brother, your son, your daughter, your beloved wife, or your closest friend should seduce you secretly and encourage you to go and serve other gods that neither you nor your ancestors have previously known, 7 the gods of the surrounding people(whether near you or far from you, from one end of the earth to the other). 8 You must not give in to him or even listen to him; do not feel sympathy for him or spare him or cover up for him. 9 Instead, you must kill him without fail! Your own hand must be the first to strike him, and then the hands of the whole community. 10 You must stone him to death because he tried to entice you away from the LORD your God, who delivered you from the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. 11 Thus all Israel will hear and be afraid; no longer will they continue to do evil like this among you. 12 Punishment of Community Idolatry Suppose you should hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you as a place to live, that 13 some evil people have departed from among you to entice the inhabitants of their cities, saying,“Let’s go and serve other gods”(whom you have not known before). 14 You must investigate thoroughly and inquire carefully. If it is indeed true that such a disgraceful thing is being done among you, 15 you must by all means slaughter the inhabitants of that city with the sword; annihilate with the sword everyone in it, as well as the livestock. 16 You must gather all of its plunder into the middle of the plaza and burn the city and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. It will be an abandoned ruin forever– it must never be rebuilt again. 17 You must not take for yourself anything that has been placed under judgment. Then the LORD will relent from his intense anger, show you compassion, have mercy on you, and multiply you as he promised your ancestors. 18 Thus you must obey the LORD your God, keeping all his commandments that I am giving you today and doing what is right before him.
  • Deut 17:2-7 : 2 Suppose a man or woman is discovered among you– in one of your villages that the LORD your God is giving you– who sins before the Lord your God and breaks his covenant 3 by serving other gods and worshiping them– the sun, moon, or any other heavenly bodies which I have not permitted you to worship. 4 When it is reported to you and you hear about it, you must investigate carefully. If it is indeed true that such a disgraceful thing is being done in Israel, 5 you must bring to your city gates that man or woman who has done this wicked thing– that very man or woman– and you must stone that person to death. 6 At the testimony of two or three witnesses they must be executed. They cannot be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. 7 The witnesses must be first to begin the execution, and then all the people are to join in afterward. In this way you will purge evil from among you.
  • 1 Kgs 18:27 : 27 At noon Elijah mocked them,“Yell louder! After all, he is a god; he may be deep in thought, or perhaps he stepped out for a moment or has taken a trip. Perhaps he is sleeping and needs to be awakened.”
  • 1 Kgs 18:29 : 29 Throughout the afternoon they were in an ecstatic frenzy, but there was no sound, no answer, and no response.
  • 1 Kgs 18:40 : 40 Elijah told them,“Seize the prophets of Baal! Don’t let even one of them escape!” So they seized them, and Elijah led them down to the Kishon Valley and executed them there.
  • Ps 115:4-7 : 4 Their idols are made of silver and gold– they are man-made. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see, 6 ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell, 7 hands, but cannot touch, feet, but cannot walk. They cannot even clear their throats.
  • Isa 41:23 : 23 Predict how future events will turn out, so we might know you are gods. Yes, do something good or bad, so we might be frightened and in awe.
  • Isa 46:1 : 1 The Lord Carries His People Bel kneels down, Nebo bends low. Their images weigh down animals and beasts. Your heavy images are burdensome to tired animals.
  • Isa 46:7 : 7 They put it on their shoulder and carry it; they put it in its place and it just stands there; it does not move from its place. Even when someone cries out to it, it does not reply; it does not deliver him from his distress.
  • Jer 10:5 : 5 Such idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They cannot talk. They must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them because they cannot hurt you. And they do not have any power to help you.”
  • Jer 10:11 : 11 You people of Israel should tell those nations this:‘These gods did not make heaven and earth. They will disappear from the earth and from under the heavens.’
  • 1 Cor 8:4 : 4 With regard then to eating food sacrificed to idols, we know that“an idol in this world is nothing,” and that“there is no God but one.”
  • Eph 5:11 : 11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.