By the beginning of the fifth chapter in the First Book of Maccabees, Judas Maccabeus and his brothers have made great strides. They have roundly defeated and pushed back the Gentile armies. They have rededicated the Jerusalem Temple and reinstated the proper worship of God in Jerusalem. They have made a name for themselves, or rather they have allowed God to make a name for them, among Israelites and Gentiles alike. Now the brothers are setting out on offensive campaigns to defeat more enemies and rescue persecuted Jews.
Before he sets out on his new ventures, Judas appoints Joseph, son of Zechariah, and Azariah to stay in Jerusalem, lead the people, and guard the city. He tells these two specifically that they are not to go out and fight the Gentiles. They don't have enough men, and it is not their place.
Joseph and Azariah, however, don't listen. They want to go out and make a name for themselves, too. They want to do brave deeds and earn glory just like Judas and his brothers. But this is not God's will for them, and they fail miserably.
Joseph and Azariah take an Israelite army and set out to defeat some Gentiles, but they run into quite a problem when the Gentiles defeat them instead and chase them all the way back to Judea. Two thousand Israelites die in the process, and only by the grace and protection of God do the Gentiles stop at the border of Judea and not come crashing in and reconquer Jerusalem.
We might wonder what Judas says to Joseph and Azariah when he returns after another successful mission and discovers what they have done in their pride and disobedience. In any case, we can learn from the lesson of Joseph and Azariah not to go beyond the orders and tasks that God in His wisdom and through His representatives has given to us. When we set out on our own in disobedience, we might just meet with disaster.
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