What counts in this life?

The books of 1 and 2 Kings is a series of biographies of the kings of Israel and Judah. What is immediately striking is the disparity between what the world thinks is important and what God thinks is important.

King Amaziah by Rembrandt (1635)

King Azariah is a prime example of this. His reign lasted an astonishing 52 years. He presided over a massive economic boom and military expansion, bringing about a "golden age" for the southern kingdom of Judah. His rule significantly altered the geopolitics of the ancient Near East.

But none of this is mentioned in his brief biography in 2 Kings 15:1-7. What we know of his reign comes from other historical sources. Instead, the biblical account of King Azariah is a mixed record of halfhearted faithfulness to God and his tolerance of idolatry. A total of two verses. That's it. His long reign is assessed through an exclusively spiritual lens.

What counts as significant in the world's eyes matters not in God's eyes. And what matters to God is often despised and overlooked in the world's accounting. In any normal historical work, the long reign of King Azariah would garner significant attention, and yet in the Word of God, his reign is reduced to almost a footnote.

This is a stark lesson in what ultimately counts in life. Do not live for the applause of man which is passing away. But live for the approbation of God, which will last forever in the New Heaven and New Earth.

"What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." — James 4:14