Category: <span>Commentary</span>

Knowing the Chronicler’s agenda with Judah’s kings, one suspects he would not ignore Josiah and the reforms enjoyed under his leadership. Josiah had a tender heart toward the things of God and it showed in his devotion to the book of the law of Moses, the temple, and the Passover celebration. In 2 Chronicles 34, the author recorded that even while he was a youthful king, Josiah began to seek the Lord (2 Chron 34:3). His early pursuit of God had a domino effect upon all of Judah. He removed the high places of idol worship that had been constructed throughout Judah, crushing the idols and scattering their dust over the graves of those who had defiled themselves through idolatry (2 Chron 34:4-6). Having destroyed that which had polluted the land, Josiah initiated a plan for restoring the temple to the glory it had before his grandfather Manasseh had defiled it (2 Chron 34:8). As it turned out, in the midst of temple restoration, “Hilkiah the priest found the book of the law of the LORD written by the hand of Moses” (2 Chron 34:14). When the law was read to Josiah, the king tore his clothes in repentance (2 Chron 34:19), reflecting the humility described in Psalm 80. Josiah gathered the elders of Judah and entered into a covenant with the Lord to heed His word and worship Him alone (2 Chron 34:29-33).

The reforms Josiah undertook in 2 Chronicles 34 set the stage for the king’s leadership of the Passover celebration described in 2 Chronicles 35. Under the direction of the priests and the Levites, and in accordance with the law of Moses (2 Chron 35:12), the inhabitants of Judah observed a Passover unlike any celebration that had come before. The Chronicler wrote, “None of the kings of Israel ever observed a Passover like the one that Josiah observed with the priests, the Levites, all Judah, the Israelites who were present in Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem” (2 Chron 35:18). Although Josiah fell in pride before Pharaoh Neco (2 Chron 35:20-24), that the prophet Jeremiah composed a lament in the king’s honor (Jer 22:10-12) shows that Josiah was no ordinary ruler (2 Chron 35:25).

King Josiah was a man who embodied everything the Chronicler wished for his audience to embrace, especially his great reverence for the temple and the ceremonial activities of Israelite worship. The temple theme in 1 and 2 Chronicles provides a frame of reference for understanding the storyline of Scripture. Because of the significance of the temple in the development of the history of Judaism, the apostles could readily employ it as a metaphor for their audiences. But for them the temple was not constructed on a specific piece of property, restored by adding bricks and mortar. Paul, for example, wrote that the temple of God was founded upon Jesus Christ, composed of both Jews and Gentiles. Their union in Christ and loving service by the Holy Spirit brought just as much honor to God as all the reforms of King Josiah’s day. To the Ephesians Paul wrote:

When Christ came, He proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. The whole building is being fitted together in Him and is growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit (Eph 2:17-22).

In these chapters of 2 Chronicles, the author recorded the final years of Hezekiah and the full reigns of Manasseh and Amon, whose collective stories are also found in 2 Kings 18-21. Not surprisingly, the Chronicler gave an expanded account of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 29-32), whose faithfulness would have been influential in the lives of his audience. Not breaking from his schema for evaluating Judah’s kings, the Chronicler was primarily concerned with how each leader ruled in relation to the temple and faithful Israelite religion. His goal was to edify the returned exiles and their descendants.

In 2 Chronicles 29-31, the author described Hezekiah’s devotion to the temple and the cult. Hezekiah’s greatest season of success may have come when Sennacherib, king of Assyria, invaded Judah (2 Chronicles 32). Hezekiah prepared the city of David and its people for battle (2 Chron 32:4-8). Hezekiah told the people of Jerusalem, “Don’t be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria…he has only human strength, but we have the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles” (2 Chron 32:7, 8). When Sennacherib taunted Hezekiah’s reliance on the Lord, the king further entrusted himself to God (2 Chron 32:9-20). Judah’s king met with Isaiah the prophet and together they cried out to God for deliverance. The Lord “sent an angel who annihilated every brave warrior, leader, and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria” (2 Chron 32:21). Sennacherib returned to the temple of his god and his own children killed him (2 Chron 32:21).

Like Uzziah before him (2 Chronicles 26), Hezekiah could not handle the success of grace: “Hezekiah didn’t respond according to the benefit that had come to him. So there was wrath upon him, upon Judah, and upon Jerusalem” (2 Chron 32:25; contra Ps 116:12-14). Despite repentance and a delay in corrective discipline, Hezekiah lacked discernment and showed the Babylonian envoy all the treasures of his palace.

Hezekiah’s son, Manasseh, was of a different spirit than his father. Manasseh “did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, imitating the detestable practices of the nations that the LORD had dispossessed before the Israelites” (2 Chron 33:2). Manasseh built idolatrous altars in the Lord’s temple, profaning the place where God had told David and Solomon that He would dwell (2 Chron 33:4-7). When the king of Assyria came against Manasseh, he repented and restored the temple (2 Chron 33:15-16). Despite Manasseh’s later in life conversion, his son Amon walked in the steps of his father’s former life, and “he did not humble himself before the LORD like his father Manasseh humbled himself” (2 Chron 33:23).

Though Israel would enjoy one last revival during the reign of Kings Josiah (2 Chronicles 34-35), Manasseh’s rule marked the beginning of the end of life in the Promised Land for Judah. The Chronicler commented that when Manasseh set up a carved image in the temple of the Lord, Manasseh “caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to stray so that they did worse evil than the nations the LORD had destroyed before the Israelites” (2 Chron 33:9). During the reign of Manasseh, the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants were fractured and there began a change in the locus of God’s redemptive work. This is the drama of the storyline of Scripture. No longer would God’s attention be especially upon a specific people in a specific land but all peoples in His Son—and God demanded behavior appropriate for a relationship with Him. The author of Hebrews wrote:

If that first covenant had been faultless, no opportunity would have been sought for a second one. But finding fault with His people, He says:

“Look, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day I took them by their hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. Because they did not continue in My covenant, I disregarded them,” says the Lord. “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” says the Lord, “I will put My laws into their minds, and I will write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they will be My people” (Heb 8:7-10, quoting Jer 31:31-33).

In 2 Chronicles 28-31, King Ahaz provided a dark background for the brightness of King Hezekiah. In accord with 2 Chronicles more broadly, the Chronicler here noted that each king’s level of affiliation with the temple was a gauge of his overall leadership.

In parallel with the previous royal introductions, in 2 Chronicles 28 the author set out the general evaluation of Ahaz: “He did not do what was right in the LORD’s sight like his forefather David, for he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel” (2 Chron 28:1-2). The Lord justly responded to Ahaz’s rebellion, handing the king and Judah over to their enemies, namely, Aram, Israel, Edom, the Philistines, and the Assyrians (2 Chron 28:3-27; Isaiah 7). The Lord allowed each to dominate Judah because of Ahaz’s unfaithfulness (2 Chron 28:19-21). Ahaz sacrificed to the gods of those who had defeated him (leading the entire nation into apostasy) and plundered the Lord’s temple in the process (2 Chron 28:22-25).

What is the message for the Chronicler’s audience? No matter what success the Persians enjoy from their gods, Israel must remain devoted to the Lord alone. While it would not be difficult for one to excel Ahaz’s level of loyalty, Hezekiah went far beyond the faithfulness of his father. Of Hezekiah the Chronicler said, “He did what was right in the LORD’s sight just as his ancestor David had done” (2 Chron 29:2). Not without precedent, the Chronicler immediately evaluated Hezekiah in relation to a temple-centered reign: “In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the LORD’s temple and repaired them” (2 Chron 29:3). Hezekiah commanded the Levites to consecrate themselves and remove the detestable things from the holy place (2 Chron 29:5). In Hezekiah’s mind, the demise of Judah’s military and political strength was the direct consequence of unfaithfulness to the Lord (2 Chron 29:6; Ps 94:1-7). Hezekiah led Judah to renew temple worship, including sin offerings, burnt offerings, and musical worship—all under the administration of the Levites (2 Chron 29:12-35). Hezekiah led Israel to observe the Passover, sending couriers to exhort the people, saying, “Serve the LORD your God so that He may turn His fierce wrath away from you, for when you return to the LORD, your brothers and your sons will receive mercy in the presence of their captors and will return to this land” (2 Chron 30:8b-9a). After the seven-day observation of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, which normally followed the Passover (Exodus 12), “the whole congregation decided to observe seven more days, so they observed seven days with joy” (2 Chron 30:23). Hezekiah’s spiritual devotion prompted great repentance among the people and the king reconstituted worship practices at the temple (2 Chron 31:1-4; Ps 92:12-14). Hezekiah “was diligent in every deed that he began in the service of God’s temple, in the law and in the commandment, in order to seek his God, and he prospered” (2 Chron 31:21).

But the Chronicler went on to note that Hezekiah’s reforms were temporary. The Lord removed Israel from the Promised Land because in the days following Hezekiah, they were unfaithful to Him just as they had been in the days before Hezekiah. Though the Chronicler described with high praise Hezekiah’s temple reforms and Passover celebration, these temple-centered practices were not finally effective in dealing with Israel’s sin problem. In the storyline of Scripture, Jesus took up the Passover celebration and reshaped it in light of His death and resurrection. Jesus’ death would finally and completely satisfy God’s wrath against the sin of His people and secure them residence in Heaven. Just before Jesus was arrested, He ate the Passover with His disciples. He told them to eat of the bread that now represented His body and to drink of the cup that represented His blood (Matt 26:28//Mark 14:24//Luke 22:20).

These chapters of 2 Chronicles are another example of the esteem the Chronicler placed upon the institution of the temple. He wanted his audience to have the highest of affections for the place where God had promised to meet His people. He recorded how Joash restored the Lord’s temple (2 Chronicles 24). Joash, like his mentor Jehoiada, had an affinity for the temple. Joash commanded the Levites to “go out to the cities of Judah and collect money from all Israel to repair the temple of your God as needed year by year, and do it quickly” (2 Chron 24:5). In time, enough funds were collected for the workers and they restored the temple (2 Chron 24:13). Yet these reforms, like so many in the Old Testament, were temporary. After Jehoida passed, Joash listened to the elders of Judah who enticed him. Together, “they abandoned the temple of the LORD God of their ancestors and served the Asherah poles and the idols” (2 Chron 24:18). Joash even executed Jehoiada’s son, Zechariah, in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple (2 Chron 24:21).

The author noted that King Amaziah’s pride allowed the temple to be plundered (2 Chronicles 25). He introduced Amaziah by stating, “he did what was right in the LORD’s sight but not completely” (2 Chron 25:2). While Amaziah was initially sensitive to the word of the prophet who warned him to forsake his alliance with Israelite troops, even at his own expense, he later worshipped the idols of Edom, a nation he had just defeated. The prophet said to Amaziah, “Why have you sought a people’s god that could not deliver their own people from your hand?” (2 Chron 25:15; contra the theme of Psalm 121). Amaziah later attacked Israel and Israel’s King Jehoash captured him and plundered the temple (2 Chron 25:23-24).

In 2 Chronicles 26, the author recounted how Uzziah forsook the ordained procedures of the temple. Uzziah “sought God throughout the lifetime of Zechariah, the teacher of the fear of God. During the time that he sought the LORD, God gave him success” (2 Chron 26:5). But when Uzziah became strong, “he grew arrogant and it led to his own destruction. He acted unfaithfully against the LORD his God by going into the LORD’s sanctuary to burn incense on the incense altar” (2 Chron 26:15-16). Uzziah overstepped the boundaries of temple protocol, and discovered that he was not above the law. Ironically, he spent the remainder of his life in quarantine and could not go into the temple (2 Chron 26:21).

Jotham’s faithfulness in respect to the temple (2 Chronicles 27) served as a model for the Chronicler’s audience. Uzziah’s son “did what was right in the LORD’s sight as his father…except that he didn’t enter the LORD’s sanctuary” (2 Chron 27:2). He built the Upper Gate of the temple and “strengthened himself because he did not waver in obeying the LORD his God” (2 Chron 27:6; in accord with the exhortation of Psalm 125).

Jesus demonstrated His supremacy in the storyline of Scripture by applying Old Testament passages to the situation of His day. Jesus saw in Joash’s execution of Zechariah (2 Chron 24:20-22) the same attitude that resided in the hearts of His opponents. Jesus placed at the feet of His opponents the responsibility for the murders of all the prophets of Israel, from Cain’s murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah (Luke 11:47-51//Matt 23:29-35). How could those in Jesus’ hearing be guilty of the likes of the murder of Zechariah—who was killed hundreds of years earlier? This was so not only because Jesus pronounced it but also because Jesus was the final prophet of Israel. In murdering Jesus—God’s own Son—the Jewish leadership committed the final, cumulative, comprehensive act of rebellion against God.

The Chronicler catalogued the kings of Judah so that his audience would walk in covenant faithfulness, as exemplified during the best days of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 20). When some of the Transjordan nations allied themselves against Judah, King Jehoshaphat led the people to seek the Lord for His deliverance (2 Chron 20:3-4). Although Judah’s king had fortified the cities and amassed military might (2 Chron 17:12-19), he knew that his true hope was in God. He was finite, but none could stand against his God.

When he prayed, Jehoshaphat’s logic was based upon principles of justice and mercy. Since Israel had obeyed God and shown mercy to the Moabites during their Transjordan conquest (Numbers 20-21), God should now look upon His people with favor and wipe out not only Moab, but Israel’s other Transjordanian enemies as well. And He did, accomplishing the kind of victory that was celebrated in Psalm 118. After Israel plundered the camp of her enemies (2 Chron 20:20-28), the people returned to celebrate their victory “with harps, lyres, and trumpets” in the temple (2 Chron 20:27; Psalm 134). Yet Jehoshaphat again made an alliance with an evil Israelite king, this time with Ahaziah. The Lord sent a prophet to rebuke Jehoshaphat (2 Chron 20:35-37), just as He had after Jehoshaphat made an alliance with Ahab (2 Chron 18:1-19:3).

Jehoram’s and Ahaziah’s rebellious behavior (2 Chronicles 21-22) provided the Chronicler with examples he wanted his audience to avoid. In comparison with 2 Kings 8-9, the Chronicler expanded the account of these two kings of Judah, but he gave them the same indictment found there. Jehoram and Ahaziah walked according to the behavior of the kings of Israel. Jehoram “died to no one’s regret” (2 Chron 21:20), and the Lord sent Jehu to execute justice on Ahaziah (2 Chron 22:7-9). What is the message for the Chronicler’s audience? Unfaithfulness leads to destruction.

Conversely, Jehoiada’s devotion to the temple and cult (2 Chronicles 23) provided an example the Chronicler wanted his audience to follow. When Athaliah, King Ahaziah’s mother, saw that her son was dead, she elevated herself to the throne by killing all the royal heirs. She was unaware that Jehoida the priest hid Joash, one of Ahaziah’s sons, in the temple. In time, “Jehoida summoned his courage” (2 Chron 23:1). He entered into a covenant with Judah’s leaders to make Joash king. When Athaliah protested, Jehoida had her put to death—but not in the Lord’s temple (2 Chron 23:14-15). That was the location of Jehoida’s reforms. He “made a covenant between himself, the king, and the people that they would be the LORD’s people” (2 Chron 23:16).

In the storyline of Scripture, the Psalms describe Israel’s history and theology. In the New Testament, Psalms 102 and 118 provide a basis for understanding God’s revelation in Christ.

(1) The author of Hebrews cited Ps 102:25-26 in Heb 1:10-12 to describe Jesus’ role in creation and His eternality. In Psalm 102, the psalmist juxtaposed his affliction with God’s greatness. Since the creation displays God’s unchangeable might, the psalmist cried out to God for relief from his temporary distress. To advance his argument that Jesus is superior to angels, the author of Hebrews employed Ps 102:25-26 in Heb 1:10-12. He portrayed Jesus as the Agent of creation, the Lord who established the heavens and the earth as the works of His hands. Hebrews’ presentation of Jesus distinguished Jesus from angels—transient as flames of fire (Heb 1:7; Ps 104:4).

(2) Jesus and Peter used Ps 118:22-23 to illustrate Jesus as One who was rejected but also chosen. Psalm 118 is a joyous hymn of thanksgiving for victory, perhaps something similar to what was on the hearts of Judah after the Lord delivered them from Moabites and Ammonites. The psalmist’s phrase, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This came from the LORD; it is wonderful in our eyes,” referred to the victories the Lord provided Israel despite its relatively weak status in comparison with the surrounding nations. In the Parable of the Vineyard Owner (Matt 21:33-43//Mark 12:1-11//Luke 20:9-18), Jesus used the reversal-of-fortunes imagery in Ps 118:22-23 to describe His own ministry. Psalm 118:22-23 was a favorite passage of Peter. Once before the elders and the high priest (Acts 4:11) and also in his first epistle (1 Pet 2:4, 7), Peter proposed that ultimately the cornerstone of Ps 118:22-23 was Jesus.

(3) The Gospel writers noted that the crowds welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem in the last week of His life shouted phrases of Ps 118:25-26. The psalmist cried out, “LORD, save us! LORD, please grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.” The crowds lauded Jesus with the psalmist’s words, proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah even though they did not understand that God would deliver His people through Jesus’ death and resurrection (Matt 21:9//Mark 11:9-10//Luke 13:35//John 12:13).

(4) In Heb 13:6, the author of Hebrews quoted Ps 118:6 to encourage his audience that God would meet their financial needs. The psalmist was confident that the Lord was with him and that no human force could ultimately harm him. The author of Hebrews saw in Ps 118:6 a promise for his audience. Since the Lord would provide for their financial needs, he hoped that his audience would be content with their provisions and fear no human foe (Heb 13:5-6).

In these chapters of 2 Chronicles, the author recounted the history of the people of God so as to persuade his audience to be faithful and receive God’s blessing. The Chronicler’s audience did not need a simple review of the period of the kings of Israel and Judah. Rather, they needed a theological vision of God’s faithfulness that would inspire them to devoted covenant living in their situation. Although subject to Persia, they were not without a faithful God. Thus, the Chronicler provided additional information about kings like Jehoshaphat so that his audience would follow in the faithfulness of their ancestors and receive God’s blessing.

The Chronicler introduced Judah’s King Jehoshaphat with a word of commendation: “Now the LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the former ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals but sought the God of his father and walked by His commands, not according to the practices of Israel. So the LORD established the kingdom in his hand” (2 Chron 17:3-4). For the Chronicler, Jehoshaphat’s educational plan was worth special attention. Judah’s king had sent officials and Levites throughout Judah to teach, “having the book of the LORD’s instruction with them” (2 Chron 17:9). Like David, Jehoshaphat was a man of military success, placing brave men throughout Judah and fortifying the cities (2 Chron 17:12-19). It is thus surprising that after the king “strengthened himself against Israel” (2 Chron 17:1), he would nonchalantly make an alliance with Israel’s King Ahab through marriage. In time, Judah’s godly king found himself going so far as to say to Israel’s evil King Ahab, “I am as you are, my people as your people; we will be with you in the battle [against Ramoth-gilead]” (2 Chron 18:3b).

Though Jehoshaphat went on to insist that Ahab inquire of the Lord before they assemble the troops in alliance for battle, he should have demanded to hear from the prophet of the Lord before he ever pledged the nation’s support for Ahab. While King Ahab disguised himself and Jehoshaphat went into battle wearing his royal garb, the Aramean soldiers turned away from Judah’s king and fatally wounded Ahab, “without taking special aim” (2 Chron 18:33). The Chronicler’s account of the battle reinforced for his audience that their military strength was to be sought in the Lord.

At the beginning of 2 Chronicles 19, the author recorded that Jehu the prophet (not to be confused with Israel’s King Jehu, 2 Kings 9) confronted Jehoshaphat for entering into covenant with Israel’s ungodly King Ahab. Nonetheless, on the whole, the Chronicler found in Jehoshaphat behavior that would be commendable for his audience. The king had led the people to seek the Lord. He established judges throughout the cities of Judah and in Jerusalem, exhorting them to render verdicts without partiality (2 Chron 19:4-10).

The manner in which Jehoshaphat urged these judges to rule (i.e., without favoritism) has significance for the way God judges humanity in Christ. In the development of the storyline of Scripture, many who descended from Israel and Judah thought themselves exempt from judgment—because they had the law of Moses, the very words of instruction Jehoshaphat commanded the Levites to teach in Judah (2 Chron 17:7-11). Sadly, they used the law as a means of self-vindication before God and condemnation of other nations. Having the law, they broke it. This was not God’s will for Israel, as Paul described in his letter to the Romans. Paul wrote that God judges both Jews and Gentiles impartially based upon faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ. “Is God for Jews only?” Paul asked, “Is He not also for Gentiles?” “Yes, for Gentiles too,” Paul continued, “since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith” (Rom 3:29-30).

To inspire his downcast audience, the Chronicler recounted the days Judah enjoyed under men like King Asa, including their military success and spiritual devotion. The Chronicler elevated Asa as an example for his audience. He noted, “Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the LORD his God…He told the people of Judah to seek the LORD God of their ancestors and to carry out the instructions and the command” (2 Chron 14:2, 4). King Asa, reigning over the settled land of Judah, said to the people, “Let’s build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, with doors and bars. The land is still ours because we sought the LORD our God. We sought Him and He gave us rest on every side” (2 Chron 14:7). While this rest was temporarily interrupted by the Ethiopian invasion, Asa prayed in faith that Lord would not allow His devout ones to be routed by a foreign power (2 Chron 14:8-15; themes permeating Psalms 123 and 129). What is the point? The returned exiles and their descendants should make haste to seek the Lord in hopes that they too could regain control of their land.

This was the goal of the author also in 2 Chronicles 15. When the Spirit of God came on Azariah, he prophesied to the king, saying, “For many years Israel has been without the true God, without a teaching priest and without law, but when they turned to the LORD God of Israel in their distress and sought Him, He was found by them” (2 Chron 15:3-4). Could not the Chronicler’s audience identify? He hoped so, and the bulk of 2 Chronicles 15 was written as a stimulus for the Chronicler’s audience to respond like Asa. The king removed idolatry from the cities and renewed the altar of the Lord in the temple (2 Chron 15:8). Because of Judah’s faithfulness, “The LORD gave them rest on every side” (2 Chron 15:15).

In order to warn his audience of the dangers of not trusting in the Lord in times of danger, the author recounted in 2 Chronicles 16 Asa’s failure to rely upon the Lord. When Israel’s King Baasha came against Judah, Asa made a treaty with the king of Aram. Judah was saved, but Asa was censured. Hanani confronted the king, “Were not the Cushites and Libyans a vast army with very many chariots and horsemen? When you depended on the LORD, He handed them over to you. For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to show Himself strong for those whose hearts are completely His” (2 Chron 16:8-9). Asa’s heart was hardened. He put Hanani in prison and when he became ill he did not seek the Lord for healing (2 Chron 16:10-12).

While the Chronicler noted, “There was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign” (2 Chron 15:19), the next three years were dominated by strife in Judah. The cumulative arrogance of Solomon, Jeroboam, and Rehobaom—together with the rampant idolatry Israel committed in the Promised Land—led to war after war before and after the reign of Asa. Besides the civil wars of the divided kingdom, Israel and Judah had to endure attacks from Syria, Assyria, Egypt, and the Babylonians. From the latter days of Solomon’s reign onward, Israel would never again dwell in Canaan in freedom and peace. While Joshua recognized in his day that the Lord had given His people rest from their enemies (Josh 21:43-44), the land did not remain at rest. In the Old Testament, the concept of spiritual rest was inseparable from the absence of war. As God’s redemptive plan progresses into the New Testament, spiritual rest is inseparable from reliance upon Jesus Christ.

(1) In Matt 11:28-29, Jesus said, “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for yourselves.”

(2) Jesus’ statement is why the author of Hebrews could so boldly challenge his readers to seek spiritual rest in covenant faithfulness to Christ. After detailing the unfaithfulness of the wilderness generation, he said, “Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience” (Heb 4:11).

The Chronicler developed a theological vision for the returned exiles and their descendants. He thus called his audience to remember the faithfulness and might of their God from Adam to the Golden Age of Israel under David and Solomon, faithfulness that was displayed by the grandeur of the temple. But inevitably the Chronicler had to take up the matter of Israel’s demise. He did this by focusing on the southern kingdom of Judah and mentioning the north only as necessary. Since Judah had been more faithful to the covenant, outlasting Israel in the land by roughly 150 years, the Chronicler gave his attention to the house of David.

The author of 1 Kings gave little attention to the reign of Rehoboam (1 Kgs 12:1-24; 14:21-31). But the Chronicler recorded additional information—scenes that would call his readers to faithfulness even though they, like those under the leadership of Rehoboam, felt disadvantaged. In 2 Chronicles 10, the author described Rehoboam’s rejection of the elders’ advice for how he should reign as king. When Jeroboam heard Rehoboam’s response, he and many others headed north. Rehoboam reigned only over those Israelites yet living in Judah. But God’s sovereignty and Rehoboam’s early irresponsibility were not at odds. Because of Solomon’s unfaithfulness, the Lord had promised his servant, Jeroboam, ten tribes of Israel, with the injunction, “After that, if you obey all I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and My commandments as My servant David did, I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give you Israel” (1 Kgs 11:38).

Yet, Jeroboam rejected the word of the Lord. Jeroboam set a pattern of idolatry and syncretism, which would eventually lead to the exile. In this way, Rehoboam was part of the sub-plot of the divided kingdom and, on the whole, more faithful than Jeroboam. When Rehoboam submitted to the word of the Lord, the Lord blessed him and the nation (2 Chronicles 11-12). After Rehoboam was rejected by the people, he faithfully responded to the word of the Lord through Shemaiah, “You are not to march up and fight against your brothers. Each of you must return home, for this incident has come from Me” (2 Chron 11:4). The Chronicler recorded that Rehoboam fortified the cities of Judah and made cultic activity a priority—allowing the Levites of Israel to return to Judah and serve in the temple (2 Chron 11:17). Here again is the emphasis of the Chronicler: even for those with a troubled past, devotion to temple practices pleases God. Even after Rehoboam’s season of unfaithfulness, and subsequent subjection to Shishak, Rehoboam was devoted to the temple, making bronze shields to replace those which had been plundered (2 Chron 12:10-12)

In 2 Chronicles 13, the author called his readers’ attention to the temple even when he was explaining the reign of Rehoboam’s son, Abijah. Abijah confronted Jeroboam for making a mockery of Israel’s cult. Jeroboam had enticed the people to worship golden calves, and—after driving out the Levites—allowed the priesthood to be purchased (2 Chron 13:8-9). Israel’s worship was no different than the pagan nations around them, but in Judah things were different. When King Abijah was ready to attack the north, he declared, “Look, God and His priests are with us at our head. The trumpets are ready to sound the charge against you. Israelites do not fight against the LORD God of your ancestors, for you will not succeed” (2 Chron 13:10, 12).

While the Chronicler gave Rehoboam a more favorable evaluation than he received from the author of 1 Kings, Rehoboam’s reign was far from fulfilling God’s desires of covenant faithfulness. Rehoboam carried the family line of David, but the Lord’s promise to David— “When your time comes to be with your fathers, I will raise up after you your descendant, who is one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He will build a house for My name, and I will establish his throne forever” (1 Chron 17:11-12; 2 Chron 7:18)—would have to wait for another. Scripture’s storyline traces to Jesus God’s promise of one sitting on David’s throne. Matthew wrote, “Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah…and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah” (Matt 1:7, 16).

The Chronicler was an inspirational writer. He used the history of Israel during the Golden Age of David and Solomon to inspire his audience to adopt a theological vision similar to that of their ancestors. In 2 Chronicles 8-9 the author expounded this theme one final time, going to great lengths to show Solomon’s wealth and wisdom.

The Chronicler’s concern for the temple began as early as 1 Chronicles 17. In 2 Chronicles 8-9, he concluded the account of the temple by describing the worship activities Solomon initiated there. Solomon deployed the divisions of the Levites according to the stipulations David had established for them (2 Chron 8:14). And thus, “all of Solomon’s work was carried out from the day the foundation was laid, for the LORD’s temple until it was finished. So the LORD’s temple was completed” (2 Chron 8:16). These words may have caused a bit of grief in the heart of the Chronicler’s audience. Their temple was petite in comparison to Solomon’s edifice (Ezra 3:10-13; Hag 2:1-5). Nonetheless, the Chronicler established a theological vision for his audience. God had not changed; the people should seek Him in the temple of their day.

As the author set forth in the first eight chapters of 2 Chronicles, Solomon employed his wealth and wisdom in the construction of the temple. The Chronicler detailed these by first noting that Solomon’s wisdom impressed foreign dignitaries like the queen of Sheba who would come to investigate reports of Solomon’s greatness (2 Chron 9:1-12). Solomon was impressive. The queen remarked, “The report I heard in my own country about your words and about your wisdom is true. But I didn’t believe their reports until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, I was not even told half of your great wisdom!” (2 Chron 9:5-6). And Solomon’s wealth provided a tangible expression of his wisdom (2 Chron 9:13-28). Concerning his wealth and wisdom, the Chronicler wrote, “King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the world in riches and wisdom. All the kings of the world wanted an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart (2 Chron 9:22-23).

The Chronicler had little more to say concerning the great King Solomon. A detailed account of Solomon’s weakness for foreign women, which led to his demise (1 Kings 11)would have darkened the vision he wished to impress in the mind of his deflated audience. They had experienced the Lord’s punitive discipline for the idolatry, not only of Solomon but of generations who followed him. In the near term, the author was looking to inspire his fellow Israelites toward faithfulness in the land, devotion to their temple, and cultic observance. The Chronicler thought of salvation in these terms (Deuteronomy 28-30).

Moses prophesied that after the exile, when the people would cry out for deliverance, the Lord would bring the people back to the land and cause them to prosper more than their fathers. Even more, Moses proposed that at that time, “The LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and all your soul, so that you will live” (Deut 30:6). The Chronicler never mentioned this; it was for a time after him. Later in the storyline of Scripture, God sent forth His Son (Gal 4:4), the One greater than even Solomon. Jesus chastised those who demanded a sign from Him, stating that the Queen of Sheba—who came from a great distance to hear Solomon’s wisdom—would rise up and judge those who refused to accept His teaching (Matt 12:42//Luke 11:31). All those circumcised in heart, by the Spirit (Rom 2:29), heed the words of Jesus.

The Chronicler looked back over the history of God’s people and magnified the Lord’s faithfulness. He wanted to encourage his fellow Hebrews in their quest to remain distinct and holy, even though they were presently subject to the Persian empire. The Chronicler’s account provides a unique opportunity to synthesize one of the most dominant themes from Genesis to the Revelation: God’s jealous desire for His people to have fellowship with Him.

Solomon’s prayer in 2 Chronicles 6 mirrored 1 Kings 8. Solomon recounted God’s promise that a descendant of David would reside on the throne of Israel forever (2 Chron 6:14-17; 1 Chron 17:10-14; 2 Sam 7:13-16). Solomon was so dependent upon the Lord’s promise to David that it formed the closing petition of his prayer, “LORD God, do not reject Your anointed one; remember the loyalty of Your servant David” (2 Chron 6:42).

Solomon asked the Lord to hear prayers offered toward the temple (2 Chron 6:18-39; Psalm 48). After the king asked, “Will God indeed live on earth with man? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You, much less this temple I have built” (2 Chron 6:18), he went on to request that the eyes of the Lord, “watch over this temple day and night, toward the place where You said You would put Your name” (2 Chron 6:20). Thus, in Solomon’s inaugural supplication for the Lord’s attention to the temple, the king catalogued a variety of situations that might prompt Israel to pray. He asked the Lord to hear their prayers for forgiveness of sin, retribution and restoration in personal matters (2 Chron 6:21-23), deliverance when defeated in battle (2 Chron 6:24-25, 34-39), and relief during seasons of famine or pestilence (2 Chron 6:26-31). Solomon even asked the Lord to hear the prayers foreigners offered when they looked toward the temple (2 Chron 6:32-33).

In the Chronicler’s account of the temple dedication, the Lord replied to Solomon in a dream (1 Chronicles 7). Here the Chronicler went beyond what is recorded in 1 Kings 9. Both accounts of the temple dedication state that the Lord acknowledged Solomon’s temple as the place where the Lord would congregate with His people in a special way (2 Chron 7:12-18; 1 Kgs 9:3) and warned the king that failure to fulfill the covenant standards would bring consequences (2 Chron 7:19-22; 1 Kgs 9:6-9). But the Chronicler stated the consequences of disobedience more explicitly, including the declaration of the Lord: “I will uproot Israel from the soil that I gave them” (2 Chron 7:20). Nonetheless, the Chronicler’s account of the Lord’s response to Solomon included the word of divine grace and forgiveness for the penitent who would seek His face (2 Chron 7:13-15; Deut 11:13-15).

The Chronicler continued that because of the idolatry of Solomon and his descendants, the Lord raised up the Babylonians to destroy the temple and remove Israel from the Promised Land. From Genesis 3 onward, the storyline of Scripture can be understood as God’s pursuit of His people to have fellowship with Him. Solomon’s temple, in all its prescribed glory, was only a temporary place of communion in the history of redemption. God’s jealous desire for His people to have fellowship with Him and His Son, Jesus Christ, is foundational to understanding the book of Revelation. In Solomon’s temple, the most holy place, the inner sanctuary of the temple, was cube-shaped, measuring thirty feet in length, width, and height, housing the ark of the Lord’s covenant—the very object of His presence among Israel (2 Chron 3:8-9). John’s vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 was also cube-shaped, resembling the most holy place of Solomon’s temple. According to John, the New Jerusalem is where God’s people will enjoy fellowship with God and Jesus forever. Concerning the city, he wrote, “I did not see a sanctuary in it, because the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its sanctuary. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because God’s glory illuminates it, and its’ lamp is the Lamb” (Rev 21:22-23).