Who is your mentor in faith? (2 Chron 26.5)

He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.

Who are your tutors or mentors? A person or persons who guide you, advise you, and hold you accountable? Perhaps we think we don’t need mentors once we become adults. King Uzziah’s example would tell us otherwise. He reigned as king for 52 years, and was a faithful and successful king under his mentor and teacher, Zechariah. When Zechariah died, Uzziah’s kingship fell apart.

Background

After the events of the last chapter, King Joash, severely wounded, is killed by how own soldiers because he had executed his own mentor, a priest named Zechariah (a different person from Uzziah’s mentor—“Zechariah” was a common name).

His son, Amaziah, becomes king and, like his father, started well but had a bad ending. He used northern mercenaries to fight his battles and allowed the worship of other gods. Eventually, this unfaithfulness and reckless resulted in an invasion by the north and damage to Jerusalem. He was captured and held in the north for ten years. There are no prayers recorded during the story of his reign.

In his absence, his son Uzziah was made regent at age 16, and was co-regent when his father returned. Fifteen years later, when his father was executed, he became king. The story of his reign begins quite well, and he is a faithful king. It is here, at the beginning, where we encounter the prayer above. He sought God, and God blessed him for it. But note the reason—because Zechariah taught the king how to follow and revere God.

Meaning

“Seeking God” and “the fear of God” refer to following God’s ways, but they also mean seeking after him in prayer. The writer of Chronicles often used the word translated “seek” to mean personal devotion. This king (who had ruled since he was 16) showed wisdom by his willingness to humble himself and take instruction from a mentor.