2 CHRONICLES LESSON 29
We will begin this lesson in II Chronicles 29:1 "Hezekiah began
to reign [when he was] five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine
and twenty years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name [was] Abijah, the
daughter of Zechariah."
We must understand that Hezekiah had to have some Godly influence
in his life. His mother, Abijah, or Abi, was the daughter of
Zechariah, who I personally believe, was of the priesthood. Many times
a child's mother and grandfather will have great influence upon him.
Their influence made him a man who did right in the sight of the LORD.
II Chronicles 29:2 "And he did [that which was] right in the
sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done."
It is interesting, to me, that most of the kings who did right
were judged according to the standard that David had set. We know that
David was not perfect, but he loved God with a pure heart. He was a
number of generations down from David.
II Chronicles 29:3 "He in the first year of his reign, in the
first month, opened the doors of the house of the LORD, and repaired
them."
He lost no time in opening the doors of the temple, which his
wicked father, Ahaz, had closed. It appears, that he repaired much
that had been damaged in Ahaz's reign.
II Chronicles 29:4 "And he brought in the priests and the
Levites, and gathered them together into the east street,"
II Chronicles 29:5 "And said unto them, Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify
now yourselves, and sanctify the house of the LORD God of your
fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the holy [place]."
The Levites and the priests were ordered to cleanse themselves,
and then, the temple from the abominations his father, Ahaz, had
established during his reign. As I said earlier, someone is guiding
Hezekiah. His grandfather would have been knowledgable of just what
they would need to do to make the temple acceptable unto the LORD.
II Chronicles 29:6 "For our fathers have trespassed, and done
[that which was] evil in the eyes of the LORD our God, and have
forsaken him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of
the LORD, and turned [their] backs."
Hezekiah had done a very good thing, by admitting the sins of his
father, and others who allowed him to bring abominations into the
temple. They had turned their backs on God. Somehow, Hezekiah wanted
the forgiveness of the LORD to be greater than His wrath for their
sins. Hezekiah was willing to do whatever had to be done to get back
in right standing with God.
II Chronicles 29:7 "Also they have shut up the doors of the
porch, and put out the lamps, and have not burned incense nor offered
burnt offerings in the holy [place] unto the God of Israel."
This is a very small list of the things the priests had not done.
The burning of the incense was to be a perpetual burning. The burnt
offerings for their sins were not done either. In fact, the neglect of
all of these things, would be like closing the churches of our day.
II Chronicles 29:8 "Wherefore the wrath of the LORD was upon
Judah and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to trouble, to
astonishment, and to hissing, as ye see with your eyes."
Hezekiah {Ezekias} realized the reason for the wrath of the LORD
upon Judah and Jerusalem. The LORD had not left them. They had left
the LORD. His wrath upon the people was after they had turned away
from Him. They were ridiculed by the nations around them, because
their power was gone. They never did have any power of their own. The
power they had before, was the power of God within their ranks.
II Chronicles 29:9 "For, lo, our fathers have fallen by the
sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives [are] in captivity
for this."
We studied about this very thing in the previous lesson. 120,000
fighting men died in one battle. We, also, read how 200,000 wives and
children were taken captive. It is as if Hezekiah is saying to this
people, "How much more has to happen, before you realize why this has
happened?"
II Chronicles 29:10 "Now [it is] in mine heart to make a covenant
with the LORD God of Israel, that his fierce wrath may turn away from
us."
Hezekiah was not only trying to live a Godly life, but he was
aware that was the only thing that would turn the fierce wrath of God
away, as well. Hezekiah really wanted to renew a covenant that God
made with David many years before.
II Chronicles 29:11 My sons, be not now negligent: for the LORD
hath chosen you to stand before him, to serve him, and that ye should
minister unto him, and burn incense.
The priests and high priest had been negligent in their duties
before. Hezekiah wanted the worship in the temple restored to its
original greatness. Negligence is a sin. It is usually a sin of
omission, rather than commission. This had to be the priests spoken to
here, because they were the only ones allowed to burn incense in the
temple.
II Chronicles 29:12 "Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of
Amasai, and Joel the son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohathites:
and of the sons of Merari, Kish the son of Abdi, and Azariah the son
of Jehalelel: and of the Gershonites; Joah the son of Zimmah, and Eden
the son of Joah:"
The Koathites were the priests and the high priest. The Merarites
and the Gershonites were of the tribe of Levi, also. They ministered
to the LORD in capacities, other than the priesthood. They were
musicians, singers, keepers of the temple, and all the other things
that had to be done to conduct the services, except acting as priests.
II Chronicles 29:13 "And of the sons of Elizaphan; Shimri, and
Jeiel: and of the sons of Asaph; Zechariah, and Mattaniah:"
Elizaphan was the head of the Kohathites, of the priestly
family.
II Chronicles 29:14 "And of the sons of Heman; Jehiel, and
Shimei: and of the sons of Jeduthun; Shemaiah, and Uzziel."
Asaph, from verse 13 above, was the leader of the singers and
musicians, who are mentioned in this verse.
II Chronicles 29:15 "And they gathered their brethren, and
sanctified themselves, and came, according to the commandment of the
king, by the words of the LORD, to cleanse the house of the LORD."
It is such a shame that the king had to call their nation to
repentance and to return to the LORD. The high priest and the priests
act as if they had no power at all to change things. They were coming
back to the temple, because it was the commandment of the king. They
were more obedient to their king, than they were to their LORD. This
may be trying to say that the words of the LORD came to Hezekiah. I
believe this actually is speaking of it being in accordance with God's
law.
II Chronicles 29:16 "And the priests went into the inner part of
the house of the LORD, to cleanse [it], and brought out all the
uncleanness that they found in the temple of the LORD into the court
of the house of the LORD. And the Levites took [it], to carry [it] out
abroad into the brook Kidron."
Notice, that only the priests went into the inner part, or the
temple proper. It appears, there was a court which joined, and that wa
s where they carried the unclean things. The other Levites, not the
priests, carried these things from the court to the Kidron valley to
destroy them. The brook of Kidron was east of the temple.
II Chronicles 29:17 "Now they began on the first [day] of the
first month to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month came they
to the porch of the LORD: so they sanctified the house of the LORD in
eight days; and in the sixteenth day of the first month they made an
end."
We are not told exactly what all of the cleansing pertained to,
but we do know that the priests and the temple were sanctified. The
priests, at their original call, had to sit at the door of the temple
7 days in preparation for ministering. I assume all of that had been
previously done, and this was a cleansing of another nature. We do
know that the temple, itself, and all of the furniture, and utensils
had to be cleansed, also. It is interesting that the cleansing pretty
well coincided with the Passover, which was on the 14th day of Nisan.
II Chronicles 29:18 "Then they went in to Hezekiah the king, and
said, We have cleansed all the house of the LORD, and the altar of
burnt offering, with all the vessels thereof, and the shewbread table,
with all the vessels thereof." II Chronicles 29:19 "Moreover all the
vessels, which king Ahaz in his reign did cast away in his
transgression, have we prepared and sanctified, and, behold, they
[are] before the altar of the LORD."
As soon as everything had been sanctified for the service in the
temple, the priests came and reported to Hezekiah that everything was
ready for services.
II Chronicles 29:20 "Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and
gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the
LORD."
The rulers, here, and the princes in other Scriptures, speak of
those in authority under Hezekiah. He wanted this to be an act of all
of Judah. The princes represented the people.
II Chronicles 29:21 "And they brought seven bullocks, and seven
rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats, for a sin offering for the
kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the
priests the sons of Aaron to offer [them] on the altar of the LORD."
The number 7 means spiritual completeness. Each of the types of
animals offered had that number to represent the completeness of the
act. These were, most probably, burnt offerings and sin offerings.
II Chronicles 29:22 "So they killed the bullocks, and the priests
received the blood, and sprinkled [it] on the altar: likewise, when
they had killed the rams, they sprinkled the blood upon the altar:
they killed also the lambs, and they sprinkled the blood upon the
altar."
This sprinkling of the blood was for the sanctifying of the
temple, everything in it, the king, and all of Judah. This sprinkling
of blood only symbolized the great work that the blood of the Lord
Jesus Christ did for all believers at Calvary. His blood cleansed us
from all unrighteousness. His blood brought eternal redemption to all
who will accept Him as their Saviour.
II Chronicles 29:23 "And they brought forth the he goats [for]
the sin offering before the king and the congregation; and they laid
their hands upon them:"
The laying of the hands upon the head of the goats symbolized the
transfer of the sin from the king, and all of Judah, to the head of
the goat. The goats would be killed, because the penalty for sin is
death.
II Chronicles 29:24 "And the priests killed them, and they made
reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement
for all Israel: for the king commanded [that] the burnt offering and
the sin offering [should be made] for all Israel."
We must assume that Hezekiah means all 12 tribes of Israel, when
he made the burnt and the sin offerings. These sacrifices were to set
all of Israel back into right standing with the LORD. They were
primarily for the king and all Judah, but the words, all Israel cannot
be denied either.
II Chronicles 29:25 "And he set the Levites in the house of the
LORD with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the
commandment of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the
prophet: for [so was] the commandment of the LORD by his prophets."
We see that Hezekiah was trying to keep this as nearly exact as
he could. David had commanded that musicians and singers be in the
temple. Hezekiah was doing this as nearly as David had planned, and as
the prophets told him it should be.
II Chronicles 29:26 "And the Levites stood with the instruments
of David, and the priests with the trumpets."
This is very much like a choir in a church accompanied by music.
It was to be a feast. This was a time of great celebration.
II Chronicles 29:27 "And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt
offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song
of the LORD began [also] with the trumpets, and with the instruments
[ordained] by David king of Israel."
This was a time of joy and thanksgiving. This was a time of
celebration. The blowing of the trumpet was an announcement of the
offering being made. In the burnt offering, everything was burnt. In
the sin offering, the fat was burned.
II Chronicles 29:28 "And all the congregation worshipped, and the
singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: [and] all [this continued]
until the burnt offering was finished."
This was a time of restoration of true worship in Judah. Everyone
participated. The singing was like praise and worship. The trumpets
proclaimed their victory over sin in their lives.
II Chronicles 29:29 "And when they had made an end of offering,
the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves, and
worshipped."
This is speaking of a tremendous prayer service. They bowed, and
prayed, and praised the LORD God.
II Chronicles 29:30 "Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes
commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the LORD with the words of
David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and
they bowed their heads and worshipped."
This is speaking of singing the Psalms of David. Asaph was the
leader of the music. This is saying, they had a prayer and praise
service.
II Chronicles 29:31 "Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have
consecrated yourselves unto the LORD, come near and bring sacrifices
and thank offerings into the house of the LORD. And the congregation
brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a
free heart burnt offerings."
The offerings, made before, had been brought by Hezekiah. Now,
the congregation must bring their own offerings to the LORD. This
would be thank offerings they brought along with freewill offerings.
The burnt offerings would be brought by those who felt they needed to.
II Chronicles 29:32 "And the number of the burnt offerings, which
the congregation brought, was threescore and ten bullocks, an hundred
rams, [and] two hundred lambs: all these [were] for a burnt offering
to the LORD."
This seems like a lot when we think of 70 bullocks and 100 rams,
and 200 lambs, but this was a large group of people, brought the
offerings.
II Chronicles 29:33 "And the consecrated things [were] six
hundred oxen and three thousand sheep."
Consecrated things, here, is speaking of the thank offerings.
600 oxen and 3,000 sheep were a large volume of animals to deal with.
II Chronicles 29:34 "But the priests were too few, so that they
could not flay all the burnt offerings: wherefore their brethren the
Levites did help them, till the work was ended, and until the [other]
priests had sanctified themselves: for the Levites [were] more upright
in heart to sanctify themselves than the priests."
The Levites were not all priests, but they had been sanctified
for other services. The priests, who were sanctified, had to use help
from the other sanctified Levites. Not all of the priests had been
cleansed for work in the temple yet.
II Chronicles 29:35 "And also the burnt offerings [were] in
abundance, with the fat of the peace offerings, and the drink
offerings for [every] burnt offering. So the service of the house of
the LORD was set in order." II Chronicles 29:36 "And Hezekiah
rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for
the thing was [done] suddenly."
Drink offerings were given with burnt offerings. This took 16
days. Hezekiah wanted his reign as king to be with God's approval.
2 Chronicles 29 Questions
1. How old was Hezekiah, when he began to reign?
2. How long did he reign?
3. What was his mother's name?
4. Who was his mother's father?
5. What was another name Abijah was called?
6. Quote 2 Chronicles chapter 29 verse 2.
7. When did Hezekiah open the doors of the temple and repair them?
8. What did he call the priests and the Levites together to tell
them?
9. What did Hezekiah admit the authorities in Judah had done?
10. Who should have burned the incense?
11. What could their neglect be compared to in our society?
12. What was another name for Hezekiah?
13. What was Hezekiah referring to in verse 9?
14. In verse 10, we find that Hezekiah wanted to renew a __________
with God.
15. In verse 11, what is Hezekiah warning the priests not to be?
16. Who did the Koathites represent?
17. Who were Levites, who were not of the priesthood?
18. Who was the leader of the singers?
19. The brethren gathered and ____________ themselves.
20. Who went into the temple proper, and brought out the unclean
things?
21. What was done with the unclean things?
22. What day did they begin to sanctify?
23. How long did it take to sanctify the house of the LORD?
24. What did the priest do, when the Temple was ready?
25. Who did Hezekiah take with him to the house of the LORD?
26. What does the number "7" mean?
27. What did the priests do with the blood from the sacrificial
animals?
28. What did the laying of the hands on the heads of the goats
symbolize?
29. Who was the reconciliation with the blood made for?
30. When the burnt offering began, what accompanied it?
31. After the congregation had consecrated themselves to the LORD,
what did he tell them to do?
32. Who helped the priests flay the burnt offerings?
33. How many days were needed to prepare for all of this?
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