Hidden at God’s House – Stepping in the Light

“But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah. But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons that were slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Ahaziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not. And he was with them hid in the house of God six years: and Athaliah reigned over the land.” II Chronicles 22:10-12

Athaliah’s husband Jehoram and their son Ahaziah had both been kings of Judah, but in a short period of time, both of them had died. You would think that Athaliah would have been overwhelmed with grief after losing her husband and her son, but what she did next was astounding. She ordered that all of her grandsons be killed and declared herself to be the queen of Judah. In the chaos of the moment, her one-year-old grandson, Joash, was stolen away and hidden inside the house of God. For six years, there was a royal secret protected within the walls of the temple. The fact that they could hide Joash at the temple is an indicator of Athaliah’s spiritual condition. Athaliah was so wicked that there was really no danger that she would go to the temple of the Lord and find Joash. Athaliah was one of the most evil people who ever lived, but her sinfulness was not just in the horrible acts she committed against her grandchildren. She allowed herself to become so wicked because she first neglected God and His house.

Morning: II Chronicles 21-22

Evening: John 14

About This Site

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105

If you were to find yourself walking down a path in the dark of night with only an old-fashioned lantern to light the way, you wouldn’t be able to see very far ahead. You would be able to see just enough of the pathway to know which direction to take your next step and enough of the ground to choose the best place for your feet. When it comes to our daily lives, God’s Word is a lot like that lantern. It will not show us the whole path at once, but it is exactly what we need to help us decide how to take the next step.

The Bible is our source of spiritual light, and if we consistently seek God’s direction as we read from its pages, we will always have enough light for our next step along the pathway of life. It is then that we are, in the words of an old gospel song, “stepping in the light.”

The goal of this devotional guide is to encourage you to spend time in the Word of God each day. Reading the passages listed at the bottom of the page will take you all the way through the Bible in one year. The devotional thought for each day is taken from a text within that day’s reading, so even that small daily portion of reading will take you on a journey through God’s Word. It is my prayer that this guide would help you to walk closer to the Lord and that you will find yourself taking each step in the light of His Word.