seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Chronicles 29:1 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. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Davidhad done.
3 In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the temple of the Lord and repaired them. 4 He brought in the priests and the Levites, assembled them in the square on the east side 5 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. 6 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. 7 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.8 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. 9 This is why our fathers have fallen by the sword and why our sons and daughters and our wives are in captivity. 10 Now I intend to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger will turn away from us. 11 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.”
12 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;
13 from the descendants of Elizaphan,
Shimri and Jeiel;
from the descendants of Asaph,
Zechariah and Mattaniah;
14 from the descendants of Heman,
Jehiel and Shimei;
from the descendants of Jeduthun,
Shemaiah and Uzziel.
I found this commentary at enduringword.com.
He reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: Hezekiah was one of the better kings of Judah, and thus had a long and mostly blessed reign. No doubt his mother Abijah was a godly and important influence on his life.
“His mother was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah, probably the person mentioned by the Prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 8:2) as a ‘faithful witness.’ This possible friendship of his mother for the prophet, combined with the certainty that up to this time he had been under the influence of Isaiah’s ministry, may account for Hezekiah’s action on coming to the throne.” (Morgan)
Sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the LORD God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place: Tragically, the condition of both the Levites and the temple was so bad that they seemed incapable of reforming themselves without this push from King Hezekiah.
They have also shut up the doors of the vestibule, put out the lamps, and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings: This happened in the days of Ahaz, the father of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 28:24). Hezekiah knew that it was time to open up the temple again, both to clean it out and so that it could operate as intended.
Therefore the wrath of the LORD fell upon Judah and Jerusalem: In a remarkable way, Hezekiah recognized that the calamities that had come to Judah came because of their disobedience. It takes a wise and godly person to admit this, and to act appropriately.
“He made no attempt to blame on God the calamities which had overtaken the nation.” (Morgan)
I was having a problem deciding how to snatch this smart move by Abijah and her son Hezekiah and relay it in modern terms. They both realized that the Temple was a mess.... after all it took two weeks to clean it up. The priests were a mess.... they had to get completely reset. Abijah was the daughter of Zechariah and a friend of the prophet Isaiah. Her son, Hezekiah, was a good man because Adijah and Zechariah displayed the love of God for him. They were his example. He saw with his own two eyes that the Temple, the priests, Jerusalem, and Judah needed a thorough housecleaning. Good mom..... good granddad.
Lately I've heard, and seen, headlines from both the catholic and protestant churches. Neither temple is clean. I am reminded that in the Book of Revelation.... only one church in seven got a good review. That review wasn't all that terrific... glowing in comparison but if I compare a diamond to a lump of coal... the lump of coal is still a lump of coal.... just because it's in the same comparison.... doesn't make it good.
Abijah, Zechariah, Isaiah, and Hezekiah were working for God... cleaning up the crap left from years of neglect and abuse.... reminds me of people who accepted Christ as young adults... and then fell into the world.... believing horrible things because they are wrapped up in a pretty bow and fed regularly through social media and warped priests, preachers, and politicians..... and how the Word can still pull me up out of the World, dust me off so my light shines and then puts me back in the World to shine for God.
How's your light? Need a dust off? God'll be glad to help with that.
