Today in God’s Word

Today in God's Word—February 2023

East Tallassee Church of Christ

February 15, 2 Chronicles 5

Then all the work that Solomon did for the house of the LORD was finished. And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had dedicated, and stored, the silver, the gold, and all the vessels in the treasuries of the house of God. - 2 Chronicles 5:1

A dying father's instructions to his son carry a lot of weight. I know what I'm talking about. When my father was dying of lung cancer in late 1989, he told me to take care of my mother when he was gone. On that bitter cold December day, I promised him that I would do that, as he lay dying at old Carraway Methodist Medical Center in Birmingham. A couple of days later, Dad was gone. And I kept that promise for over thirty years, until Mom passed away in 2020.

David gave Solomon a lot of instructions not included here in 2 Chronicles. But we know from 1 Kings that he gave Solomon a list of some men he needed to watch, some scores he needed to settle, and some people who needed to die. Solomon honored those death bed orders from his father. He also did something his father told him to do that the Chronicler did include — he ordered him to build the temple that David had dreamed of building but was not allowed to do.

Solomon doubtless had a great sense of accomplishment when the long building project was finished. It's always good to finish a task, especially when you've invested a lot of time, effort and money in it. If you add to that the fact that he was able to do what his father had dreamed of doing and told him to do, it made completing the temple even more satisfying.

The priests brought the ark to the temple in a procession much like the one David had led when the ark came to Jerusalem. They also brought the tent of meeting where the ark had been for years, and the remaining original vessels from the tabernacle. By this time, the ark contained only the two tablets of stone on

which God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. The pot of gold with manna and Aaron's staff that budded, bloomed and bore almonds overnight had disappeared out of the ark sometime during its long history.

A great company of priests were in the procession and went into the holy place with the ark. After the priests had placed the ark under the outstretched wings of the giant cherubim in the Most Holy Place, they all came out, leaving the long poles used to carry the ark in place and visible outside the Most Holy Place for years. When Ezra (if he was the Chronicler) wrote that the poles were there "to this day," it could not mean that he could still see them in his time. That detail must have come from a historical document about the setup of the temple. That temple and all that was in it was gone by Ezra's time, destroyed and looted by the Babylonians when Jerusalem fell.

The temple was supposed to replace the previous tents that served as sanctuaries for the ark. God graciously allowed the cloud of his glory to appear in the temple as it had done at the tabernacle. Even though God did not order the temple, he was willing to use it.

Why did God put the cloud presence of his spirit there? It was surely not because Israel had been so faithful and loyal to the Lord. They had not. As in so many other situations, God continued to work in and through Israel because of his promises to Abraham and David. His plan to bring Messiah into the world as a descendant of Abraham continued despite their rebellion and idolatry.

We should be as eager to do what God has commanded as Solomon was to do this thing the Lord never told anybody to do. Israel is not alone in their failure to faithfully obey God. We should be grateful that God is merciful. He knows us and knows the intentions of our heart. Just as Solomon and Israel offered so many sacrifices and such boisterous praise to God, surely we should overflow with gratitude and

praise to God for all the blessings we enjoy in Christ. The tabernacle (and some things about the temple) were only figures of what God has now done for us in Christ. The giant bloody altar and the thousands of animals that were sacrificed there only typified the reality of Christ’s sacrifice of himself for us.

Solomon's temple was an architectural wonder of the ancient world. Let's never lose our sense of wonder at what God did for us on the cross of Christ. Let’s stand in reverent awe of such a display of God’s love and grace.

Copyright © 2023 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.