In this chapter, Hezekiah recognizes the importance of Passover, and he invited and encouraged all the people of Israel and Judah to recommit themselves to the celebration of Passover. The chapter begins, “King Hezekiah now sent word to all Israel and Judah, and he wrote letters of invitation to Ephraim and Manasseh. He asked everyone to come to the Temple of the Lord at Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover of the Lord, the God of Israel. The king, his officials, and all the community of Jerusalem decided to celebrate Passover in midspring. Passover was normally celebrated one month earlier, in early spring, but not enough priests could be purified by that time, and the people had not yet assembled at Jerusalem. This plan for keeping the Passover seemed right to the king and all the people. So they sent a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba in the south to Dan in the north, inviting everyone to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover of the Lord, the God of Israel. The people had not been celebrating it in great numbers as prescribed in the law.
At the king’s command, messengers were sent throughout Israel and Judah. They carried letters which said:
“O people of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (Jacob), so that he will return to the few of us who have survived the conquest of the Assyrian kings. Do not be like your ancestors and relatives who abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and became an object of derision, as you yourselves can see. Do not be stubborn, as they were, but submit yourselves to the Lord. Come to his Temple which he has set apart as holy forever. Worship the Lord your God so that his fierce anger will turn away from you. For if you return to the Lord, your relatives and your children will be treated mercifully by their captors, and they will be able to return to this land. For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful. If you return to him, he will not continue to turn his face from you.” (Yes! Thank you, Lord!)
Celebration of Passover
The messengers went from town to town throughout Ephraim and Manasseh and as far as the territory of Zebulun. But most of the people just laughed at the messengers and made fun of them. However, some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem. At the same time, God’s hand was on the people in the land of Judah, giving them a strong desire to unite in obeying the orders of the king and his officials, who were following the word of the Lord. (Yes!) And so a huge crowd assembled at Jerusalem in midspring to celebrate Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. They set to work and removed the pagan altars from Jerusalem. They took away all the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley. (2 Chronicles 30:1-14)
On that particular day in midspring, the priests and Levites followed the regulations outlined in the law of Moses; they slaughtered many Passover lambs, and they sprinkled the blood on the altar. “Since many of the people there had not purified themselves, the Levites had to slaughter their Passover lambs for them, to set them apart for the Lord." (2 Chronicles 30:17) (Every time I read something like this, it takes me back to the question…was the Lord actually eating??? There were some festivals when the people were fasting and were not allowed to eat, but they had cooked all of this food. Why would they waste all of that food? If they couldn’t eat it, who or what was? Check out our lessons in Numbers 28 and 29; I had a lot of questions in that book.)
The chapter ends with the people of Israel celebrating the Festival of Unleavened Bread for two full weeks because it was such a joyous occasion. Normally, the festival is celebrated for 7 days. According to the text, Jerusalem had not seen a celebration like this one since the days of Solomon.
Lord, thank you for your Word today! Help us recommit ourselves to you. Your love is greater than any other love. Let us not take it for granted and love you back completely.. We love you!
May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
….AND MAY WE ALL PRACTICE THIS WITH ONE ANOTHER.
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