Can I
pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com.
In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
** Writer’s
Note: Today I am currently overseas for a few weeks. I will try to post as well
as I can but there may be a break in The Christian Walk if I end up without
Internet access. If that happens, I will resume upon my return in early August.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Hezekiah was twenty-five
years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years.
His mother’s name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. He did what was right in
the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done.
In the first month of the
first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the temple of the Lord and
repaired them. He brought in the priests and the Levites, assembled them in the
square on the east side and said:
“Listen to me, Levites!
Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the temple of the Lord, the God of
your ancestors. Remove all defilement from the sanctuary. Our parents were
unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They
turned their faces away from the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs
on him. They also shut the doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did
not burn incense or present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of
Israel. Therefore, the anger of the Lord has fallen on Judah and Jerusalem; he
has made them an object of dread and horror and scorn, as you can see with your
own eyes. This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and
daughters and our wives are in captivity. Now I intend to make a covenant with
the Lord, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us.
My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before
him and serve him, to minister before him and to burn incense.”
Then these Levites set to
work:
from the Kohathites, Mahath
son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah;
from the Merarites, Kish son
of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel;
from the Gershonites, Joah
son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah;
from the descendants of
Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeiel;
from the descendants of
Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah;
from the descendants of
Heman, Jehiel and Shimei;
from the descendants of
Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.
When they had assembled
their fellow Levites and consecrated themselves, they went in to purify the
temple of the Lord, as the king had ordered, following the word of the Lord.
The priests went into the sanctuary of the Lord to purify it. They brought out
to the courtyard of the Lord’s temple everything unclean that they found in the
temple of the Lord. The Levites took it and carried it out to the Kidron
Valley. They began the consecration on the first day of the first month, and by
the eighth day of the month they reached the portico of the Lord. For eight
more days, they consecrated the temple of the Lord itself, finishing on the
sixteenth day of the first month.
Then they went in to King Hezekiah
and reported:
“We have purified the
entire temple of the Lord, the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils,
and the table for setting out the consecrated bread, with all its articles. We
have prepared and consecrated all the articles that King Ahaz removed in his
unfaithfulness while he was king. They are now in front of the Lord’s altar.”
Early the next morning King
Hezekiah gathered the city officials together and went up to the temple of the
Lord. They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven male lambs and seven male
goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary and for Judah. The
king commanded the priests, the descendants of Aaron, to offer these on the
altar of the Lord. So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests took the
blood and splashed it against the altar; next they slaughtered the rams and
splashed their blood against the altar; then they slaughtered the lambs and
splashed their blood against the altar. The goats for the sin offering were
brought before the king and the assembly, and they laid their hands on them.
The priests then slaughtered the goats and presented their blood on the altar
for a sin offering to atone for all Israel, because the king had ordered the
burnt offering and the sin offering for all Israel.
He stationed the Levites in
the temple of the Lord with cymbals, harps and lyres in the way prescribed by
David and Gad the king’s seer and Nathan the prophet; this was commanded by the
Lord through his prophets. So the Levites stood ready with David’s instruments,
and the priests with their trumpets.
Hezekiah gave the order to
sacrifice the burnt offering on the altar. As the offering began, singing to
the Lord began also, accompanied by trumpets and the instruments of David king
of Israel. The whole assembly bowed in worship, while the musicians played and
the trumpets sounded. All this continued until the sacrifice of the burnt
offering was completed.
When the offerings were
finished, the king and everyone present with him knelt down and worshiped.
King Hezekiah and his
officials ordered the Levites to praise the Lord with the words of David and of
Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness and bowed down and
worshiped.
Then Hezekiah said, “You
have now dedicated yourselves to the Lord. Come and bring sacrifices and thank
offerings to the temple of the Lord.” So the assembly brought sacrifices and
thank offerings, and all whose hearts were willing brought burnt offerings.
The number of burnt
offerings the assembly brought was seventy bulls, a hundred rams and two
hundred male lambs—all of them for burnt offerings to the Lord. The animals
consecrated as sacrifices amounted to six hundred bulls and three thousand
sheep and goats. The priests, however, were too few to skin all the burnt offerings;
so their relatives the Levites helped them until the task was finished and
until other priests had been consecrated, for the Levites had been more
conscientious in consecrating themselves than the priests had been. There were
burnt offerings in abundance, together with the fat of the fellowship offerings
and the drink offerings that accompanied the burnt offerings.
So the service of the
temple of the Lord was reestablished. Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced at
what God had brought about for his people, because it was done so quickly.
2 Chronicles 29
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to
God.
Judah was a spiritual mess.
The prior king Ahaz had led it into apostasy, institutionalizing the worship of
false gods throughout the kingdom. Scripture tells us he did the following:
- Offered sacrifices to the
gods of Damascus.
- Gathered together the
furnishings from the temple of God and cut them in pieces.
- Shut the doors of the
Lord’s temple and set up altars at every street corner in Jerusalem.
- Built high places in
every town in Judah to burn sacrifices to other gods.
All and all, Ahaz was
totally unfaithful to God and aroused His anger on all of Judah. This was the
scene that Hezekiah entered as he assumed the throne from his sinful father.
It had to seem
overwhelming. How does one go about fixing established sinful worship practices
and returning God’s chosen land and people to His good favor?
As we will see, it was all
about getting back to spiritual basics and that began with a return to purity.
This was the first step
taken by King Hezekiah who wasted no time reopening and repairing the doors of
the Lord’s temple. It was time to restore the Lord’s divine place of worship to
its rightful esteem. In order to do so, the temple had to be consecrated and
this was the responsibility of the Levites and priests who Hezekiah assembled
in the square and gave the following orders to:
“Listen to me, Levites! Consecrate yourselves now and
consecrate the temple of the Lord, the God of your ancestors. Remove all
defilement from the sanctuary. Our parents were unfaithful; they did evil in
the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from
the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs on him. They also shut the
doors of the portico and put out the lamps. They did not burn incense or
present any burnt offerings at the sanctuary to the God of Israel. Therefore,
the anger of the Lord has fallen on Judah and Jerusalem; he has made them an
object of dread and horror and scorn, as you can see with your own eyes. This
is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and daughters and
our wives are in captivity. Now I intend to make a covenant with the Lord, the
God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us. My sons, do not
be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before him and serve
him, to minister before him and to burn incense.”
The Lord’s holy house had
been defiled and needed cleansed from the evil unfaithfulness of their elders
who had turned their backs on God, forsaking Him and His temple. This is what
had brought God’s anger and wrath on Judah and Jerusalem. Now, it was time to
take a stand for the Lord and restore the divine order of things with the
Levites and priests leading the way.
And so they got to work. We
read where they first consecrated themselves before purifying the temple by
following the Lord’s word as Hezekiah had commanded. They brought out to the
courtyard of the Lord’s temple everything unclean that they found, carrying it
out to the Kidron Valley where they began the consecration on the first day of
the first month, and by the eighth day of the month they reached the portico of
the Lord. Then for eight more days, they consecrated the temple of the Lord
itself, finishing on the sixteenth day of the first month.
Their work was completed as
they made the following report to King Hezekiah:
“We have purified the entire temple of the Lord, the
altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the table for setting out
the consecrated bread, with all its articles. We have prepared and consecrated
all the articles that King Ahaz removed in his unfaithfulness while he was king.
They are now in front of the Lord’s altar.”
The temple was now ready
for the proper worship of God once again.
Scripture tells us that early
the next morning, King Hezekiah gathered the city officials together and went
up to the temple of the Lord, bringing along seven bulls, seven rams, seven
male lambs and seven male goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the
sanctuary and for Judah. Hezekiah then commanded the priests, the descendants
of Aaron, to offer the sacrifices on the altar of the Lord which they did.
Next, Hezekiah stationed
the Levites in the temple of the Lord with cymbals, harps and lyres in the way
prescribed by David and Gad the king’s seer and Nathan the prophet as was
commanded by the Lord through his prophets. So the Levites stood ready with
David’s instruments, and the priests with their trumpets. This preceded the
sacrificing of the burnt offering.
Hezekiah then gave the
order to sacrifice the burnt offering on the altar and as the offering began,
singing to the Lord began also, accompanied by trumpets and the instruments of
David king of Israel. We read where the whole assembly bowed in worship, while
the musicians played and the trumpets sounded. All this continued until the
sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed. And when the offerings were
finished, the king and everyone present with him knelt down and worshiped.
Note how order was being
restored as the people once again formally worshiped the Lord God Almighty in
accordance with the Lord’s commandments. This was what needed to happen after
purity was restored.
Back to our scripture where
King Hezekiah and his officials ordered the Levites to praise the Lord with the
words of David and of Asaph the seer and the people responded gladly with songs
of praise, bowing down and worshiping God. This led to the people’s time to
bring their own sacrifices.
And so King Hezekiah gave
the following guidance to his people:
“You have now dedicated yourselves to the Lord. Come and
bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the temple of the Lord.”
In response to the king’s
command, the assembly brought an abundance of sacrifices, thank offerings,
fellowship offerings, drink offerings, and burnt offerings to dedicate to the
Lord. The number of burnt offerings the assembly brought was seventy bulls, a
hundred rams and two hundred male lambs. The animals consecrated as sacrifices
amounted to six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep and goats.
And with all this, the service
of the temple of the Lord was reestablished and Hezekiah and all the people
rejoiced at what God had brought about for His people.
Friends, what we have read
and studied was a purifying of a people and a worship place, followed by a
recommitment and rededication to worshiping God properly as He prescribed.
So what does this mean for
us as the people of God today?
When it comes to ensuring
we are in the right place with God, it tells us everything we need to know.
Because when we have fallen into sinfulness, separating ourselves from a God
who hates and despises sin, then there are necessary steps we need to take to
get back right with Him.
The first step, as it was
with the temple and those Levites and priests who would cleanse it, is all
about purity. Before we can even start to return to God’s favor, we need to
cleanse ourselves from our sinful behavior, repenting of our sins before God
and committing ourselves to change. That change consists of exchanging
transgression for righteousness, evil for good, indiscretion for holiness.
Once we have done this, we
must return to God in sincere, dedicated, heartfelt worship, a worship that
focuses completely on what God has done and what He is to us as our Maker,
Redeemer, and Friend. We should exercise humility in our worship but temper it
with even measures of thanksgiving as we consider God’s great mercy, grace, and
love. All and all, we are to rejoice in the Lord always and seek to lift His
name up on high, glorifying and magnifying Him with all that we do.
Have you strayed from God
and made sin your ally today?
If so, then it’s time for a
change and a return to purity.
My prayer is that you will
make that step today.
God is ready to receive
you.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment