May 7, 2021: Day 62 – II Chronicles 29

What a change you can experience from one king to the next.  I do not mean in administrations, but I guess that applies as well, but I do mean in kings as Hezekiah not only did what was right in the sight of the Lord, but he does so just as David had done.  That is a big deal.  In the very first year of his reign, in the very first month, his number one priority was to get the temple back in working order.  It had been used by Ahaz as a place for offerings to foreign divinities and things were just a mess in there.  It had to be reconsecrated.  Where does he get his motivation to do this in the name of the Lord?

Look at who his grandfather was.  Look at vs.1, we read that his mom is Abijah who was the daughter of Zechariah.  Remember Zechariah?  He was one of the prophets and we find a book of the Bible called after him.  So his mom is probably the one who gives him the marching orders on what he needed to do first, which was put the house of the Lord back in order.  

He is not satisfied with just cleaning up the temple a little bit.  He demands that the people of God make a new covenant with God just so that his fierce anger would turn away from them.  We read in vs.35 and following that the service of the house of the Lord was restored.  As a result of that restoration the people and Hezekiah rejoiced because of what God had done for them.  Then it leaves us with this little morsel: for the thing had come about suddenly.

We find in Scripture and in life that things can come about suddenly.  Normally when something happens suddenly it is something immensely negative.  But here we see a sudden transition to the people and the leader turning to God in a way that was genuine and long lasting.  Well, at least lasting as long as this leader is in place.