(18) "Then they went in to Hezekiah the king within the palace, and said, We have cleansed all the house of Jehovah, and the altar of burnt-offering, with all the vessels thereof, and the table of showbread, with all the vessels thereof. (19) Moreover all the vessels, which King Ahaz in his reign did cast away when he trespassed, have we prepared and sanctified; and, behold, they are before the altar of Jehovah.
(20) "Then Hezekiah the king arose early, and gathered the princes of the city, and went up to the house of Jehovah. (21) And they brought seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven he-goats, for a sin-offering for the kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah. And he commanded the priests the sons of Aaron to offer them on the altar of Jehovah. (22) So they killed the bullocks, and the priests received the blood, and sprinkled it on the altar; and they killed the rams, and sprinkled the blood upon the altar; they killed also the lambs, and sprinkled the blood upon the altar. (23) And they brought near the he-goats for the sin-offering before the king and the assembly; and they laid their hands upon them: (24) and the priests killed them, and they made a sin-offering with their blood upon the altar, to make atonement for all Israel; for the king commanded that the burnt-offering and the sin-offering should be made for all Israel.
(25) "And he set the Levites in the house of Jehovah with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the prophet; for the commandment was of Jehovah by His prophets. (26) And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. (27) And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt-offering upon the altar. And when the burnt-offering began, the song of Jehovah began also, and the trumpets, together with the instruments of David king of Israel. (28) And all the assembly worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued until the burnt-offering was finished.
(29) "And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. (30) Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praises unto Jehovah with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped.
(31) "Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto Jehovah; come near and bring sacrifices and thank-offerings into the house of Jehovah. And the assembly brought in sacrifices and thank-offerings; and as many as were of a willing heart brought burnt-offerings."
Golden Text.—"Them that honor Me I will honor." 1 Sam. 2:30.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
(1) When the priests had finished the work which King Hezekiah had given them, what report did they make? Verse 18. Note 1. (2) What had they done with the vessels that King Ahaz had thrown aside? Verse 19. Note 2. (3) After hearing this report, what did the king do? Verse 20. (4) What animals were brought for sacrifice as a sin-offering? Who were commanded to offer them? Verse 21. Note 3. (5) As these animals were slain, what was done with the blood? Verse 22. (6) As the animals were brought forth to be slain, what did the priests first do? Verse 23. Note 4. (7) What was done with the blood of the slain animals? For how many was atonement made? Verse 24. Note 5. (8) What disposition did the king make of the Levites in this service? According to whose former commandment was this done? Verse 25; 1 Chron. 16:4-6; 2 Chron. 23:1-6. (9) What positions did the Levites and priests then take? Verse 26. (10) What command did the king then give? What ceremony accompanied the burning of the offering? Verse 27. (11) How extended was the worship on this occasion? Verse 28. (12) And when the offering was ended, what further service was observed? Verse 29. (13) With whose words did they sing praises? With what spirit did they sing and worship? Verse 30. (14) What further orders did the king give? How did the people respond? Verse 31. Note 6.
NOTES.
1. Hezekiah came to the throne of Judah at the age of twenty-five years. He was the son of a bad father (Ahaz), and his grandfather Jotham was also a bad man. So the fact that he could begin a good reign at that age, after having been reared amid such corrupt surroundings, is evidence that one need not be bad because his environment is bad. But his mother seems to have been a pious woman. Her name was Abijah, shortened to Abi in 2 Kings 18:2. Her piety is indicated by the name she gave to her son—Hezekiah, strength of God. In the first year of his reign he restored the priests to their proper positions, and ordered that repairs be made in the house of the Lord. With the finishing of this work our lesson begins.
3. The sin-offering.—The ritual of the sin-offering is found in Leviticus 4. It was a symbol designed to teach the deadly nature of sin. "The wages of sin is death." Rom. 6:23. It also taught the need of confession and renunciation of sin. "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." Prov. 28:13. Our real sin-offering is Christ. 1 John 1:5-9; 2:1-5.
4. The laying of the priests' hands on the heads of the victims was in token of the confession of the sins of the whole people, as the blood was a symbol of the forfeited life of the sinner, as demanded by the law. The fact that Christ shed His blood in behalf of all the world, indicates the continual force of the law, and its penalty.
5. Hezekiah did not forget that the people of Israel, as also of his own kingdom of Judah, were the recognized people of God; he also knew that they very much needed the same atonement that was made for Judah. The truly consecrated person will not confine his good offices—his prayers and sacrifices—to the benefit of himself and those immediately connected with him. The Lord of glory gave Himself for the sins of the whole world. The atonement was made for all, but, like the antitypical atonement of Christ, it only availed for those who complied with the conditions—humility before God and the confession of sin.
6. The king set the example in giving a portion of his substance for the support of the priests and the temple service, and then appealed to the people to do the same. So they were encouraged by the example of their ruler, and brought an abundance of their first-fruits. It is pertinent to this lesson to note the conclusion of the matter, as a logical outcome of the effort to restore the worship of Jehovah. The record of a great Passover is given in the next chapter, in which all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, were invited to partake.
