Readings for today: 2 Chronicles 35-36, Psalms 80
The Old Testament ends with a significant plot twist. For those who may not be aware, 2 Chronicles is the last book of the Hebrew Bible. In the traditional Jewish ordering of the books, it comes last because it summarizes so much of what has gone before. So as we come to the end of our Old Testament journey this year, we run across an important reflection. Listen to how God summarizes what has happened to Israel and why…
“All the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied their unfaithful deeds, imitating all the detestable practices of the nations, and they defiled the Lord’s temple that he had consecrated in Jerusalem. But the Lord, the God of their ancestors sent word against them by the hand of his messengers, sending them time and time again, for he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept ridiculing God’s messengers, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets, until the Lord’s wrath was so stirred up against his people that there was no remedy. So he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their fit young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary. He had no pity on young men or young women, elderly or aged; he handed them all over to him. He took everything to Babylon — all the articles of God’s temple, large and small, the treasures of the Lord’s temple, and the treasures of the king and his officials. Then the Chaldeans burned God’s temple. They tore down Jerusalem’s wall, burned all its palaces, and destroyed all its valuable articles. He deported those who escaped from the sword to Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the rise of the Persian kingdom. This fulfilled the word of the Lord through Jeremiah, and the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation until seventy years were fulfilled.” (2 Chronicles 36:14-21 CSB)
God is patient with us but He will not be mocked forever. God perseveres with His saints but He will not tolerate sin. Time and time again, God sent His messengers to call His people to repentance only to have them mistreated, rejected, despised, even beaten and killed at times. As the sin of the nation increased, God’s righteous anger increased as well. God had set Israel apart to be a light to the nations. This was their mission. This is why they existed. But like Adam and Eve before them, they rejected God’s plan for their lives and went their own way. They created their own gods and set up idols just like the nations around them. They defiled the Temple and corrupted their worship. As a result, God issues a decree of judgment. It is swift and terrible. He sends the Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem and the Temple and carry the people off into exile. Essentially, He reclaims the Promised Land for Himself. He gives it rest for seventy years. He sanctifies it and sets it apart for His own use until He was ready to bring His people back home.
It’s a devastating indictment. One we would do well to heed ourselves today. Especially the church in the West which is so corrupted by sin and abuse and a lust for political power and social relevance. The church in the West does not do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. Instead, we reject God’s law. We refuse to walk in God’s love. We worship according to our own preferences and expect God to help us achieve our plans for our lives. We do not submit to Him in humility. We do not sacrifice for Him. We do not seek to advance His Kingdom on the earth. I know I am speaking in generalities and I know there are clear exceptions but, by and large, all the data bears these conclusions out. We are foolish to think we will escape God’s judgment. He will not be mocked. He will not tolerate sin. He will eventually act to bring about His righteousness among His chosen people.
Thankfully, judgment doesn’t have the last word in the Old Testament. There is a postscript to the story. A note of hope to sustain God’s people in the midst of their despair and heartbreak. “In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah, the Lord roused the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia to issue a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom and also to put it in writing: This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: The Lord, the God of the heavens, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build him a temple at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord his God be with him.”(2 Chronicles 36:22-23 CSB)
Readings for tomorrow: Matthew 1-2, Psalms 81