HAGGAI in the CONTEXT of IMMANUEL, “God With Us” WOW, Spring 2021 LEADER’S GUIDE AND ADDED INFO FOR HELP IN GUIDING SMALL GROUP/PARTICIPANT WORK WEEK #3 KEY VERSE: Isaiah 6:3 ...”Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory!” Pray as you begin your study at home or in your small group (over the phone or other “virtual” gathering with a few or even just one WOW sister during these weird days Covid). HELPFUL HINT for LEADER: This week’s passages is a study in contrasts between King Uzziah and the prophet Isaiah. A contrast between the king of Judah who, like his father and grandfather before him, started off well, served God’s people well and then failed near the end of their lives and Isaiah who was surprised by God’s calling in the middle of a pretentious, a wealthy and self-righteous kingdom who outlasts kings and enemies and finishes well in God’s eye. Keep this contrast in mind and help your small group focus on these two men juxtaposed before God and help accountable for their faith and work. IDEA for an “ice-breaker” to begin the study while some may still be trickling in is to ask the group, to think about a time they felt “overwhelmed” in a service of worship with both a sense of unworthiness in the presence of God’s love and, at the same time, a sense of joy for the Savior and salvation. As them to recall, if possible, the Scripture or singing or......what that led you to this unexpected experience. ________________________________________________________________________________ LEADER NOTES FOR OBSERVATION OF THE TEXT: (see participants guide for working through passage) The “OBSERVATION” of this text is pretty easy---but keep an ear and eye out for when participants don’t stick to “O” and want to hurry to “I” and “A”. Just stick to “what does the text say and how does the text say it”! Week #3, 2 Chronicles 26:1, 15—21a and Isaiah 6:1—8 OBSERVATION of what the passage says and how the passage says it (details, repetitions, conjunctions…) 2 Chronicles 26:1 and 15--20 1. Note the name and age of a new King for which country in the first verse of the chapter. How does verse 15 describe this King and his accomplishments? LEADER NOTES: If needed, remind participants that “Judah” is the southern kingdom, following the Davidic line of God’s covenant. In addition to what the study guide includes read through 26:2—15 and make note of all the things Uzziah accomplished during his reign (792—740 BC). He was a powerful, good, accomplished leader and was extremely popular. The list you make will be impressive and good to share with your group. The reading for the group, after verse 1, skips to verse 15 as a fine summary of the positive things about Uzziah. BUT... 2. Discuss verses 16—20, including both the attitudes and actions of the characters giving great attention to details in this passage concerning Uzziah’s “downfall”. LEADER NOTES: BUT...indeed! At the height of his reign, Uzziah, began to think too much of himself and his accomplishments. He must have felt entitled to do whatever it was he wanted to do. Acknowledge with the group how this event is so strange to our understanding of being faithful to God and his word. It must be acknowledged that what Uzziah desired was not a “bad thing” in and of itself—he wanted a new experience of God, but his sin lay in the fact, he wanted to manufacture this experience based on his sense of entitlement and disregard of God’s word. Uzziah was a king and not a descendant of Aaron, not a priest. He rebelled against the limits God had placed for him and all others who were not male descendants of Aaron in God’s word. 2 Chronicles 26:21 and Isaiah 6:1—8 3. Contrast and compare the situation described in 26:21 with the passage in Isaiah. Look for “opposites” like the pride that led to Uzziah’s downfall and Isaiah’s first reaction to the surprising vision he had. LEADER NOTES: Linger on the sad state of Uzziah’s final years, with special attention given to his banishment from the temple as unclean. Jotham, Uzziah’s son, becomes a co-regent at this time, serving on behalf of the king while he lived and died in utter seclusion. Read 2 Chronicles 27:2 to see an insightful summary of Jotham’s reign, “—only he did not invade the temple of the Lord”. I bet not!! Wow, lesson learned. (see Leviticus 13:46 and Numbers 5:1-3 for the law concerning leprosy/unclean skin diseases) Isaiah had the experience, by God’s initiative and grace, what Uzziah tried to manufacture as he thought he somehow deserved to act “above the law” of God. Make sure to note the sequence of Isaiah’s vision in his calling and commissioning to be a prophet of the LORD. I am going to deal with this more in the teaching. INTERPRETATION—working to understand the passage in its own context, “there and then” means the reign of King Uzziah of Judah (792—740 BC). The first years of Uzziah’s reign began when his father, Amaziah was captured in battle by King Joash of Israel who also ransacked Jerusalem and pillaged the temple of gold and silver items. Amaziah was captured and kept in Samaria for more than a decade, during which time his son Uzziah took the throne. 2 Chronicles 26:1 and 15--20 4. In terms of Uzziah’s 52 years as King of Judah, how does the text summarize the genesis of his downfall? (v.16) LEADER NOTES: Uzziah’s sin was not a sin of “youth”—he would have been in his late 30’s to mid-40’s when this happened. Note Uzziah’s anger in being caught in verse 19—this betrays an arrogant defensiveness that is clearly like that of Cain’s anger when God confronts him (see Genesis 4:5-7). Help your group take note of Uzziah’s change of attitude in verse 20 after an unclean skin disease breaks out on his forehead. To his credit, (too little, too late) Uzziah was “eager to leave”, recognized it was the LORD who afflicted him. This hint of repentance is not seen anywhere in the story of Cain in Genesis. 5. What was wrong with Uzziah’s behavior that was “unfaithful to the LORD his God” (v.16)? LEADER NOTES: Uzziah was a king from the tribe of Judah and he decided on his own to invade the place that only the Aaronic priests could go: behind the curtain, into the Holy Place where the alter of incense was before the Holy of Holies in which the Ark of the Covenant was kept. This prohibition was mandated in the Mosaic Law (see Exodus 30:1-10 and Numbers 16:40. 2 Chronicles 26:21 and Isaiah 6:1—8 6. From the description of Uzziah’s last years of life (v.21), how was this the opposite of what Uzziah hoped to gain through his presumptive behavior in the temple? LEADER NOTES: Now, the first verse of Isaiah 6 is crucial to help your group see the contrast between this immensely popular and beloved king (“in the year King Uzziah died” (740 BC) was sad, very sad just the reminder was sad—It’s like short-hand for “on 9-11”, a day when everything was awful and well- remembered for generations and the unbidden, unexpected vision of God that Isaiah had while in the temple. 7. Summarize how Isaiah’s experience in the temple contrasts with the Uzziah story. LEADER NOTES: Uzziah tried to “peek behind the curtain” to see something that he’d never seen before—the altar of incense, the inner curtain—and if he hadn’t been caught, he probably would have peeked behind the curtain of the Holy of Holies to see the Ark itself. Isaiah Another contrast with Uzziah is what we know about them from the text. We know a lot about Uzziah’s life as a descendant of David, as well as his accomplishments, but we know next to nothing about Isaiah except that he is the “son of Amoz” and he worked as a prophet through the reign of four kings of Judah (Isaiah 1:1). That’s it and we have no idea who “Amoz” is! APPLICATION: your response as a disciple of Jesus in the “here and now” of your life, congregation, community, and world. 2 Chronicles 26:1, 15—21 and Isaiah 6:1—8 8. What is one “take-away” from these passages that you will do, or not do, work on more, confess, or understand better and both a warning and an encouragement for your own life of discipleship? LEADER NOTES: You may have women in your group who are young and at the start of their adult lives, or women who are in the middle of the “most productive years” with children and/or career or women who are retired or just older, “empty nesters”. Listen carefully to their responses to this question—each of them need to consider the importance of faithfulness and the sin of pride to “finish well” in God’s eyes..