The Chest of Joash. 2 Chronicles 24:1-11 Joash was only seven years old when he ascended the throne of Judah, and he had a long reign of forty years. It’s obvious that a child of seven can’t rule a nation, so the high priest Jehoiada was his tutor and mentor. The godly people in Judah must have rejoiced that an obedient descendant of David was on the throne. What they didn’t know was that Joash’s faith was shallow, and that he obeyed God only to please Jehoiada. Joash was an excellent follower but not a good leader. When Jehoiada died, Joash went his own way and disobeyed the Lord. The Bible doesn’t tell us how long Joash waited for Jehoiada to act, but when he was thirty years old and had reigned for twenty-three years, the king decided to act on his own. He called in Jehoiada and cautiously rebuked the priests for not doing the job. He also told the high priest that the throne would now direct the building program. Jehoiada prepared a large offering box, placed it in the temple by an entrance near the altar, and encouraged the people to bring their offerings for the repair of the temple. Of course, there were temple guards that kept their eye on the box. When the people found out that the project was now under royal supervision and in the hands of the laity, this encouraged them to give even more. They knew that every gift they brought and placed in the box would go directly into the building project and not be diverted into other ministries, so they gave generously. Dr. Oswald Smith used to say, “The light that shines the farthest will shine the brightest at home.” Blessed are the balanced! The chest of Joash would help maintain the repairs on the House of God.