2 CHRONICLES 30 (NOTES OF A READING)
2 CHRONICLES 30 (NOTES OF A READING)
Ques Would you say a word as to the song of Jehovah when the burnt-offering began? The worshippers are secured, and the offerings seem outstanding at the end of the previous chapter.
CAC It seems clear that the house being cleansed, and the sin-offering and the burnt-offering having been presented for all Israel, there was nothing to hinder the celebration of God’s praise, so that the service of the house was set in order in every part of it.
Rem And in type the worshippers are secured, the people all secured as worshippers as well as the service and offerings secured. “The Father seeks such as his worshippers” (John 4: 23).
Ques I wondered why the song of Jehovah was connected with the burnt-offering and the latter part of the chapter is principally connected with the burnt-offering. Is the burnt-offering connected with a willing people, the expression of a people who really understand what is for God’s own pleasure?
CAC Yes, that is what I thought. If the sin-offering speaks of the removal of what is displeasing to God, the burnt-offering brings in the additional thought of what is pleasing to God, so that in connection with the burnt-offering we get what is spoken of as the excess. The thing is established officially, or perhaps a better word is, ministerially. That is, the sin-offering and burnt-offering are presented by the direction of the king, and the song of Jehovah begins and continues as long as the burnt-offering is continued; and then it would seem the people took their cue from that, the door was opened for a willing people to bring their offerings. They had apprehended what it set forth, and they came forward to participate in that character of offering.
Rem It says the priests were too few.
CAC I think what marks these chapters is that while there is so much that is precious and delightful to God, yet there is a falling short of the full mind of God in how He would be served. So this chapter is peculiarly suited to a day like this when there is such a universal falling short of what is pleasurable to God. It is a very searching exercise for “the Levites were more upright in heart to hallow themselves than the priests” (chapter 29: 34). I think perhaps there is more faithfulness in levitical service than in priestly service now. I think it marks the time. How many are really earnest and faithful in priestly service Godward?
Rem The Father seeking worshippers seems to underlie the whole service of Christ.
CAC Yes, I am sure that is so. We do not see any great amount of fitness to minister to the service of God and it is brought forth as a reproof, the priests are behind. It marks these two chapters that there is a falling short of what is for God’s heart. The Levites being upright are promoted; I think God always promotes an upright man.
Rem As to the burnt-offering, it says, “Christ loved us, and delivered himself up for us, an offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour” (Ephesians 5: 2).
CAC Yes, that is the fulness of it. Ephesians is the fulness of everything, it is the will of God in its completeness. You cannot add anything to Ephesians.
Rem So it is there, glory to God in the assembly.. With the saints together it is in view of taking up service:
in the full height.
CAC Typically we see the house of God and its service in its completeness in chapter 29, so there is a very suitable centre for the service of God’s people. Although there is a deficiency on the part of the priests, there is a gathering centre for all Israel.
Rem There is deficiency abroad.
CAC Still, they had risen over the brink. When you get what is in God’s heart, you cannot shut it up; it goes out to all saints. It is only secured in one spot, if you could think of such a thing as the holiness of God’s house and His service secured in one spot only; it is available for all saints. If something that is suitable to God is secured, it necessarily becomes a rallying-point for all saints, and all ought to say, ‘We want to be there, where God’s mind is answered to’. It raises the question as to whether we have hallowed ourselves and are ready to take up this service.
Rem The strangers had part in the rejoicing (verse 25).
CAC God took pains always to show there was room in His heart for the stranger.
Rem All recovery is the sovereign work of God.
CAC Yes, and that is the greatest comfort, for if God is moving there is stability and continuance with it; it is not going to break down.
Ques What difference is there between “the consecrated things” (chapter 29: 33) and the burnt-offerings?
CAC I suppose it is just the difference between worship and fellowship. The burnt-offering would be the worship side of things; they are spoken of as whole burnt-offerings, they all go up to God. The consecrated offerings would extend to the peace-offerings, in which the people participated, which answered to fellowship, which we enjoy at the present time. Of course, God has His portion in the peace-offering, it is not left out,
because if the saints are enjoying Christ, God has His portion. The drink-offering is to bring in divine joy. It is poured out in the holy place, speaking of what ministers to the joy of God, in which God’s people have their part.
Rem The range of offerings raises a question as to how far we have reached in our souls in this system of service, whether we have reached worship. It says, “The service of the house of Jehovah was set in order” (verse 35).
Ques Do we need to value rightly each feature of this service, whether Godward or on the line of fellowship which enters into the loaf and the cup?
CAC Yes.
Ques Why is there reference to the thing being done suddenly?
CAC I suppose it would be evidence that it was the work of God, not a thing that had been hurriedly planned and contrived and carried through; and when God works things are done quickly. It was carried through quickly.
Rem They came out of Egypt in haste.
CAC You see there was a ministry of the assembly and of Christ’s death, and it laid hold of saints everywhere.
Ques Is it a question of condition?
CAC I think the question is raised as to whether we value the passover. I was thinking of it in connection with the divine thought that God would have a people entirely delivered from the world.
Rem If the conditions are present God will respond suddenly.
CAC Yes, what is so humbling is there is so much slowness of movement on our part. We find while they were doing what was right in chapter 29, they were tardy in doing it, so that they had not things in order in time to do it. It was the sixteenth day of the month before the cleansing of the house (chapter 29: 17), it was too late. They should have started earlier. The fourteenth day of the month was the appointed day for the passover so they were all behind. They did not keep it until the second month.
Ques What is it for us if we miss it, or are too late?
CAC We see there is an unreadiness, not a sufficient number of priests, and the people not gathered at Jerusalem, all was too late. Instead of the appointed time, they had to take advantage of God’s provision in abnormal times, a provision of grace.
Rem Everything seems to be abnormal all the way through, and yet God carries things through.
CAC Yes, and He bears with things in patient grace, with things that do not come up to the standard before Him. If He would not have anything but the very best, He would not have much now.
Ques What do the bearers of the letters represent?
CAC There was the desire on the part of the king that all Israel should take up their relations with God. We should carry the invitation to others who are in bondage.
Ques It would apply to ourselves?
CAC Yes, I think so. The setting is that the house is cleansed and the service set in order so there is a suitable centre for the people to gather together to keep the passover. That is the connection in which it starts.
Rem With reference to Numbers 9 it is a serious matter when what was intended as an opportunity for the Jew had to be taken up by all. It was never supposed that all Israel would wait.
CAC No, it shows the sad state of Israel and Judah that what was due to God had not been kept for a long time, many years had elapsed without the passover being held.
Ques Why does it bring in “from Beer-sheba even to Dan”? It is a very wide sphere.
CAC Yes, it is the whole of Israel. Though ten tribes had been carried up to Assyria the message is sent from Dan to Beer-sheba, and the opportunity afforded for all to hold the passover to Jehovah.
Ques Is there anything to correspond with the collective thought of the passover? We have often connected it with the individual.
CAC In Scripture it is clearly an assembly matter, is it not?
Rem “Let us celebrate the feast” (1 Corinthians 5: 8).
CAC Yes, and in Exodus 12. 1 think the Lord expects us to be able to perceive that He has brought the passover thought into His supper. I think the apostles quite understood when the Lord instituted the Supper that He was transferring the memorial thought from the passover to the Supper.
Ques Are all to keep the passover though not necessarily together?
CAC Yes surely, we keep the feast all the week. The passover reminded Israel that God had His own brought out of Egypt that they might be hallowed sons for His service. The passover had that in memorial on every occasion that it was held. Now the Lord’s death has that in mind. It is to be continually referred to, as to how the Lord brought His people out of Egypt, not merely as delivered from judgment, but that they might serve Him as hallowed sons. I think it is the greatest feast because it is the basis of all the feasts. It is God’s basis for His people to come out of the world for His pleasure. We do not want to fail of the passover. The death of Christ is the way He has gone out of the world, and He has left it to be the way for us out of the world.
Rem So Leviticus follows Exodus. Exodus is “brought out”, and Leviticus is “serving Him as brought out”.
Ques While the Supper is distinct from the passover, is it right to have certain thoughts as to the passover at the beginning of the Supper?
CAC We want to get the divine thought of it. The Lord had great desire to eat the passover with His disciples before He suffered. What was there in His heart that made it so precious to Him? Surely not just the saving by the blood. God had a way of bringing His elect people out of the world in the virtue and value of the death of Christ, and we do not want to lose that in connection with the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the cup; we want to have a very definite thought as to how God has secured us for His pleasure and it is to be a memorial to all generations. It is those that have come out of the world by the death of Christ, to be risen with Christ, and who appreciate His manifestation of Himself, that alone can serve Him in the assembly. God brought His people out of Egypt, “my firstborn” (Exodus 4: 22), He said, to serve Him, stamping on the affections of the saints for all time that they were brought out of the world to minister to His pleasure. Now the Lord brings the memorial into a new setting. The memorial is of a Person who went out of the world by death and made a way for us out of it.