Hezekiah was an excellent King
January 14, 2023
Commentary
Hezekiah was an excellent King although he had a very vicious father. Praise the Lord that the Proverb like father, like son is not always true. In the first month of the first year of his reign he opened the doors of the temple. In this chapter there is a vivid summary in which the fickle multitude are brought into a new fellowship with God as Hezekiah assigned the Levites to their places in the temple (vv. 25-26). First, there is an offering for sins, for the people who were defiled and needed cleansing. Following their offerings the song of the Lord began (v. 27). Everyone worshiped the Lord and this continued until the last animal was sacrificed (v. 28).
The people bowed down and joyfully sang praises to the Lord (vv. 29-30). Hezekiah told the crowd that they are once again acceptable to the Lord (v. 31). The temple was once again used for worshiping the Lord (vv. 32-35). The burnt offering meant consecration of life and the giving up of self. At the very moment the flame of the burnt offering leaped heavenward there was a burst of music that echoed through the courts. It thrilled them to the very fiber of their beings. Those who were depressed took heart and those who had been fearful were encouraged (v. 36).
Application
If my heart has been open before the Lord and I have gotten everything right with Him I will have a desire to dedicate everything to Him and others around me will be encouraged and want to also.
2 Chronicles 29:25– 36 (NET)
25 Hezekiah stationed the Levites in the Lord’s temple with cymbals and stringed instruments just as David, Gad the king’s prophet, and Nathan the prophet had ordered. (The Lord had actually given these orders through his prophets.) 26 The Levites had David’s musical instruments and the priests had trumpets. 27 Hezekiah ordered the burnt sacrifice to be offered on the altar. As they began to offer the sacrifice, they also began to sing to the Lord, accompanied by the trumpets and the musical instruments of King David of Israel. 28 The entire assembly worshiped, as the singers sang and the trumpeters played. They continued until the burnt sacrifice was completed.
29 When the sacrifices were completed, the king and all who were with him bowed down and worshiped. 30 King Hezekiah and the officials told the Levites to praise the Lord, using the psalms of David and Asaph the prophet. So they joyfully offered praise and bowed down and worshiped. 31 Hezekiah said, “Now you have consecrated yourselves to the Lord. Come and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the Lord’s temple.” So the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and whoever desired to do so brought burnt sacrifices.
32 The assembly brought a total of 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs as burnt sacrifices to the Lord, 33 and 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep were consecrated. 34 But there were not enough priests to skin all the animals, so their brothers, the Levites, helped them until the work was finished and the priests could consecrate themselves. (The Levites had been more conscientious about consecrating themselves than the priests.) 35 There was a large number of burnt sacrifices, as well as fat from the peace offerings and drink offerings that accompanied the burnt sacrifices. So the service of the Lord’s temple was reinstituted. 36 Hezekiah and all the people were happy about what God had done for them, for it had been done quickly.