2 Chronicles 30

2 Chronicles 30

2 Chronicles 30:1 Then Hezekiah sent word throughout all Israel and Judah, and he also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh to come to Yahveh’s house in Jerusalem to observe the Passover of Yahveh, the God of Israel.

2 Chronicles 30:2 For the king and his captains and the entire congregation in Jerusalem decided to observe the Passover of Yahveh in the second month,

2 Chronicles 30:3 because they were not able to observe it at the appropriate time. Not enough of the priests had consecrated themselves, and the people hadn’t been gathered in Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 30:4 The proposal pleased the king and the congregation,

2 Chronicles 30:5 so they affirmed the proposal and spread the message throughout all Israel, from Beer-sheba to Dan, to come to observe the Passover of Yahveh, the God of Israel, in Jerusalem, for they hadn’t observed it often, as prescribed.

2 Chronicles 30:6 So the couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the hand of the king and his captains, and according to the king’s command, saying, “Israelites, return to Yahveh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel so that he may return to those of you who remain, who have escaped the grasp of the kings of Assyria.

2 Chronicles 30:7 Don’t be like your fathers and your brothers who were unfaithful to Yahveh, the God of their ancestors, so that he made them an object of horror as you yourselves see.

2 Chronicles 30:8 Don’t become obstinate now like your fathers did. Give your allegiance to Yahveh and come to his sanctuary that he has consecrated permanently. Work for Yahveh your God so that he may turn his burning anger away from you,

2 Chronicles 30:9 for when you return to Yahveh, your brothers and your sons will receive mercy in the presence of their captors and will return to this land. For Yahveh your God is gracious and merciful; he will not turn his face away from you if you return to him.”

2 Chronicles 30:10 The couriers traveled from city to city in the land of Ephraim and Manasseh as far as Zebulun, but the inhabitants laughed at them and mocked them.

2 Chronicles 30:11 Some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun certainly humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 30:12 Also, the power of God was at work in Judah, giving them one heart to carry out the command of the king and his captains by the word of Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 30:13 a vast congregation of people was gathered in Jerusalem to observe the Festival of Matzah in the second month.

2 Chronicles 30:14 They proceeded to remove the altars in Jerusalem, including the incense altars, and throw them into the Kidron Valley.

2 Chronicles 30:15 They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and Levites were ashamed, and they consecrated themselves and brought ascending offerings to Yahveh’s house.

2 Chronicles 30:16 They stood at their prescribed posts, according to the judgment of the instruction of Moses, the man of God. The priests splattered the blood received from the Levites,

2 Chronicles 30:17 for there were many in the congregation who had not consecrated themselves, and so the Levites were in charge of slaughtering the Passover lambs for every impure person to consecrate the lambs to Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 30:18 A large number of the people- many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun- were ritually unclean, yet they had consumed the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah had interceded for them, saying, “May the good Lord atone

2 Chronicles 30:19 whoever sets his whole heart on seeking God, Yahveh, the God of his ancestors, even though not according to the purification rules of the sanctuary.”

2 Chronicles 30:20 So Yahveh heard Hezekiah and healed the people.

2 Chronicles 30:21 The Israelites who were present in Jerusalem observed the Festival of Matzah seven days with great joy, and the Levites and the priests praised Yahveh day after day with loud instruments.

2 Chronicles 30:22 Then Hezekiah encouraged the hearts of all the Levites who performed skilfully before Yahveh. They consumed at the appointed festival for seven days, making sacrifices for healthy relationships and giving thanks to Yahveh, the God of their ancestors.

2 Chronicles 30:23 The whole congregation decided to observe seven more days, so they observed seven days with joy,

2 Chronicles 30:24 for King Hezekiah of Judah contributed one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep for the congregation. Also, the captains contributed one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep for the congregation, and many priests consecrated themselves.

2 Chronicles 30:25 Then the whole congregation of Judah with the priests and Levites, the entire congregation that came from Israel, the foreign guests who came from the land of Israel, and those who were living in Judah, rejoiced.

2 Chronicles 30:26 There was great rejoicing in Jerusalem, for nothing like this was known since the days of Solomon, son of David, the king of Israel.

2 Chronicles 30:27 Then the priests and the Levites stood to empower the people, and God heard them, and their prayer came into his sacred dwelling place in the sky.

links:

God’s mercy and the death-state
grace again
skipping steps

The 2 Chronicles shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Chronicles 29

2 Chronicles 29

2 Chronicles 29:1 Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah, daughter of Zechariah.

2 Chronicles 29:2 He did what was right in Yahveh’s sight just as his ancestor David had done.

2 Chronicles 29:3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of Yahveh’s house and strengthened them.

2 Chronicles 29:4 Then he brought in the priests and Levites and gathered them in the eastern public square.

2 Chronicles 29:5 He said to them, “Hear me, Levites. Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the house of Yahveh, the God of your ancestors. Remove everything impure from the sacred place.

2 Chronicles 29:6 For our fathers were unfaithful and did what is evil in the sight of Yahveh our God. They abandoned him, turned their faces away from Yahveh’s dwelling place, and turned their backs on him.

2 Chronicles 29:7 They also closed the doors of the portico, extinguished the lamps, did not burn incense, and did not offer ascending offerings in the sacred place of the God of Israel.

2 Chronicles 29:8 Therefore, the wrath of Yahveh was on Judah and Jerusalem, and he made them an object of terror, horror, and mockery, as you see with your own eyes.

2 Chronicles 29:9 Notice, our fathers fell by the sword, and our sons, our daughters, and our wives are in captivity because of this.

2 Chronicles 29:10 It is in my heart now to establish a covenant with Yahveh, the God of Israel, so that his burning anger may turn away from us.

2 Chronicles 29:11 My sons, don’t be negligent now, for Yahveh has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him, and to be his ministers and burners of incense.”

2 Chronicles 29:12 Then the Levites stood up: Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah from the Kohathites; Kish son of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel from the Merarites; Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah from the Gershonites;

2 Chronicles 29:13 Shimri and Jeuel from the Elizaphanites; Zechariah and Mattaniah from the Asaphites;

2 Chronicles 29:14 Jehiel and Shimei from the Hemanites; Shemaiah and Uzziel from the Jeduthunites.

2 Chronicles 29:15 They gathered their brothers together, consecrated themselves, and went according to the king’s command, following Yahveh’s words, to cleanse Yahveh’s house.

2 Chronicles 29:16 The priests went to the entrance of Yahveh’s house to cleanse it. They took all the unclean things they found in Yahveh’s sanctuary to the courtyard of Yahveh’s house. Then the Levites received them and brought them outside to the Kidron Valley.

2 Chronicles 29:17 They began the consecration on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the month, they came to the portico of Yahveh’s house. They consecrated Yahveh’s house for eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month, they finished.

2 Chronicles 29:18 Then they went inside to King Hezekiah and said, “We have cleansed the whole house of Yahveh, the altar of ascending offering and all its utensils, and the table for the rows of the Bread of the Presence and all its utensils.

2 Chronicles 29:19 We have set up and consecrated all the utensils that King Ahaz rejected during his reign when he became unfaithful. Notice, they are in the face of the altar of Yahveh.”

2 Chronicles 29:20 King Hezekiah got up early, gathered the city captains, and went to Yahveh’s house.

2 Chronicles 29:21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats as sin offerings for the kingdom, the sanctuary, and Judah. Then he told the descendants of Aaron, the priests, to offer them on the altar of Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 29:22 So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests received the blood and splattered it on the altar. They killed the rams and splattered the blood on the altar. They slaughtered the lambs and splattered the blood on the altar.

2 Chronicles 29:23 Then they brought the goats for the sin offering right into the presence of the king and the congregation, who laid their hands on them.

2 Chronicles 29:24 The priests slaughtered the goats and put their blood on the altar for a failure offering, to atone[1] for all Israel, for the king said that the ascending offering and the failure offering were for all Israel.

2 Chronicles 29:25 Hezekiah stationed the Levites in Yahveh’s house with cymbals, harps, and lyres according to the command of David, Gad the king’s seer, and the prophet Nathan. For the command was from Yahveh through his prophets.

2 Chronicles 29:26 The Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets.

2 Chronicles 29:27 Then Hezekiah ordered that the ascending offering be offered on the altar. When the ascending offerings began, the song of Yahveh and the trumpets began, accompanied by the instruments of King David of Israel.

2 Chronicles 29:28 The whole congregation worshiped, sang the song, and blew the trumpets—all this continued until the ascending offering was completed.

2 Chronicles 29:29 When the burnt offerings were completed, the king and all those present with him bowed down and worshiped.

2 Chronicles 29:30 Then King Hezekiah and the captains told the Levites to praise Yahveh in the words of David and the seer Asaph. So, they sang praises with rejoicing, knelt low, and worshiped.

2 Chronicles 29:31 Hezekiah concluded, “Now you are consecrated to Yahveh. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to Yahveh’s house.” So, the congregation brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all those with willing hearts brought ascending offerings.

2 Chronicles 29:32 The number of ascending offerings the congregation brought was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for an ascending offering to Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 29:33 Six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep and goats were consecrated.

2 Chronicles 29:34 However, since there were not enough priests, they weren’t able to skin all the ascending offerings, so their Levite brothers strengthened them until the work was finished and until the priests consecrated themselves. The Levites were more conscientious about consecrating themselves than the priests.

2 Chronicles 29:35 Furthermore, the ascending offerings were abundant, along with the fat of the sacrifices for healthy relationships and with the drink offerings for the ascending offerings. So the service of Yahveh’s house was established.

2 Chronicles 29:36 Then Hezekiah and all the people enjoyed how God had prepared the people, for it had come about suddenly.

[1] כָּפַר = atone, absolve. 2 Chronicles 29:24; 30:18.

links:

a change in worship
where reform begins

The 2 Chronicles shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Chronicles 28

2 Chronicles 28

2 Chronicles 28:1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was right in Yahveh’s sight like his ancestor David,

2 Chronicles 28:2 for he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and made cast images of the Baals.

2 Chronicles 28:3 He burned incense in Ben Hinnom Valley and consumed his children with fire, imitating the repulsive[1] practices of the nations Yahveh had dispossessed before the Israelites.

2 Chronicles 28:4 He sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.

2 Chronicles 28:5 So Yahveh, his God, handed Ahaz over to the king of Aram. He attacked him and took many captives to Damascus. Ahaz was also handed over to the king of Israel, who struck him with great force:

2 Chronicles 28:6 Pekah son of Remaliah killed one hundred twenty thousand in Judah in one day– all powerful men– because they had abandoned Yahveh God of their ancestors.

2 Chronicles 28:7 An Ephraimite warrior named Zichri killed the king’s son Maaseiah, Azrikam governor of the house, and Elkanah, who was second to the king.

2 Chronicles 28:8 Then the Israelites took two hundred thousand captives from their brothers – women, sons, and daughters. They also captured a great deal of plunder from them and brought it to Samaria.

2 Chronicles 28:9 A prophet of Yahveh named Oded was there. He went out to meet the army that came to Samaria and said to them, “Notice, Yahveh, God of your ancestors, handed them over to you because of his wrath against Judah, but you slaughtered them in a rage that has reached the sky.

2 Chronicles 28:10 Now you plan to reduce the people of Judah and Jerusalem, male and female, to slavery. Do you not also need reparation before Yahveh your God?

2 Chronicles 28:11 Listen to me and return the captives you took from your brothers, for Yahveh’s burning anger is on you.”

2 Chronicles 28:12 So some men who were leaders of the Ephraimites—Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berechiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai—stood in opposition to those coming from the army.

2 Chronicles 28:13 They said to them, “You must not bring the captives here, for you plan to bring the need for reparation on us from Yahveh to add to our sins and our need for reparation. For we have much need for reparation, and burning anger is on Israel.”

2 Chronicles 28:14 The army left the captives and the plunder in the presence of the captains and the congregation.

2 Chronicles 28:15 Then the men who were designated by name strengthened the captives and provided clothes for their naked ones from the plunder. They clothed them, gave them sandals, consumables, and drink, dressed their wounds, and provided donkeys for all the feeble. The Israelites brought them to Jericho, the City of Palms, among their brothers. Then they returned to Samaria.

2 Chronicles 28:16 At that time, King Ahaz asked the king of Assyria for help.

2 Chronicles 28:17 The Edomites came again, struck Judah, and took captives.

2 Chronicles 28:18 The Philistines also raided the cities of the Judean foothills and the Negev of Judah. They captured and occupied Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, and Gederoth, as well as Soco, Timnah, and Gimzo with their surrounding villages.

2 Chronicles 28:19 For Yahveh humbled Judah because of King Ahaz of Judah, who threw off restraint in Judah and was unfaithful to Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 28:20 Then King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria came against Ahaz, oppressing him and not strengthening him.

2 Chronicles 28:21 Although Ahaz plundered Yahveh’s house and the house of the king and the captains and gave the plunder to the king of Assyria, it did not help him.

2 Chronicles 28:22 At the time of his distress, King Ahaz himself added more unfaithfulness to Yahveh.

2 Chronicles 28:23 He sacrificed to the gods of Damascus, which had struck him; he said, “Since the gods of the kings of Aram are helping them, I will sacrifice to them so that they will help me.” But they were the downfall of him and all Israel.

2 Chronicles 28:24 Then Ahaz gathered up the utensils of God’s house, cut them into pieces, shut the doors of Yahveh’s house, and made himself altars on every street corner in Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 28:25 He made high places in every city of Judah to offer incense to other gods, angering Yahveh, the God of his ancestors.

2 Chronicles 28:26 Notice that the rest of his deeds and all his ways, from beginning to end, are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.

2 Chronicles 28:27 Ahaz lied down with his fathers and was buried in Jerusalem, but they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. His son, Hezekiah, became king in his place.

[1] תּוֹעֵבָה = repulsive. 2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:2; 34:33; 36:8, 14.

links:

enough is enough
even more unfaithful
yet more faithless

The 2 Chronicles shelf in Jeff’s library

THE LAST DAYS

THE LAST DAYS

2 Timothy 3:1–9 NASB

¹But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. ²For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, ⁴treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ⁵holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. ⁶For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, ⁷always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. ⁸Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. ⁹But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.

Introduction

Every generation of Christians has asked the same question: Are we living in the last days? Paul’s answer is simple: Yes. The last days are not a distant, apocalyptic era. They began with the resurrection of Jesus and will continue until His return. Timothy was living in them. We are living in them. And Paul wants Timothy — and us — to understand what makes these days “difficult.”

The difficulty does not come from wars, earthquakes, or political turmoil. Paul does not mention any of those things. The difficulty comes from people — from the moral collapse of society and the spiritual corruption of false teachers. The danger is not merely outside the church but inside it. And Paul writes with urgency because Timothy must be prepared to stand firm when others fall away.

This passage is not meant to frighten us. It is meant to steady us. It is meant to give us discernment, courage, and clarity in a world that is drifting from God.

I. The Reality of the Times (v. 1)

Paul begins with a sober statement:
“In the last days difficult times will come.”

The word “difficult” means dangerous, fierce, or violent — the same word used to describe the demoniac in the Gospels. Paul is saying that the last days will be spiritually chaotic and morally unstable.

But notice what he does not say. He does not say, “Difficult times might come.” He does not say, “Difficult times will come someday.” He says, “Difficult times will come,” and the implication is that Timothy is already facing them.

The last days are not a calendar prediction. They are a spiritual condition — a world increasingly resistant to God, increasingly hostile to truth, and increasingly enslaved to self.

Paul wants Timothy to understand the times so he can minister faithfully in them.

II. The Character of the Culture (vv. 2–5)

Paul now gives one of the most devastating descriptions of human behavior in all of Scripture. It begins and ends with the word love — but the wrong kind of love.

A. Lovers of self (v. 2)

This is the root of all the other sins. When self becomes god, everything else collapses. Self‑love replaces God‑love, and the world becomes disordered.

B. Lovers of money (v. 2)

Greed replaces gratitude. Possessions replace people. The heart becomes a marketplace instead of a sanctuary.

C. Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God (v. 4)

Pleasure is not evil, but when it becomes ultimate, it becomes idolatry. A society that worships pleasure will always drift from God.

Between these three “loves,” Paul lists a cascade of relational and moral breakdowns: arrogance, disobedience, unholiness, slander, brutality, treachery, and lack of self‑control. It is a portrait of a world unhinged from God.

But the most dangerous trait is found in verse 5:

D. A form of godliness without power (v. 5)

This is not atheism. This is religion without transformation.
It is the appearance of spirituality without the reality of the Spirit.

This is the most frightening line in the passage because it describes people who look religious, talk religious, and act religious — but deny the power of the gospel to change the heart.

Paul tells Timothy: “Avoid such people.”
Not because he is unloving, but because their influence is deadly.

III. The Corruption of False Teachers (vv. 6–8)

Paul now moves from the culture at large to the specific danger of false teachers.

A. They prey on the vulnerable (v. 6)

Paul says they “creep into households.”
They do not come boldly. They slip in quietly.
They target the weak, the wounded, and the unstable.

False teaching is not merely wrong — it is predatory.

B. They produce perpetual learners who never arrive (v. 7)

“Always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

This is the tragedy of our age.
Information everywhere.
Truth nowhere.
People drowning in data but starving for wisdom.

False teachers create people who are fascinated by spiritual ideas but resistant to spiritual obedience.

C. They resist the truth like Jannes and Jambres (v. 8)

These were the magicians who opposed Moses in Pharaoh’s court.
They mimicked God’s power with counterfeit signs.
They looked impressive, but they were corrupt.

Paul says false teachers are the same:

They oppose the truth.
Their minds are corrupted.
Their faith is counterfeit.

The danger is not that they are outside the church.
The danger is that they are inside it.

IV. The End of Their Progress (v. 9)

Paul ends with a word of hope:
“They will not make further progress.”

False teaching may spread for a time.
Deception may gain influence for a season.
But God will expose it.

Just as Jannes and Jambres were eventually revealed as frauds, so also false teachers will be unmasked. Their folly will become obvious. Their influence will be limited. Their end is certain.

This is not a call to panic.
It is a call to confidence.
God will vindicate His truth.

V. The Message for Today

Paul’s words to Timothy are God’s words to us.

Expect difficult times — but do not fear them

The church has always thrived in difficult days.
God is not surprised by the times we live in.

Guard your heart from the culture’s loves

Self.
Money.
Pleasure.
These are the idols of the age — and they are subtle.

Beware of powerless religion

A form of godliness without power is more dangerous than open unbelief.
We need the Spirit’s transforming work, not religious performance.

Stand firm in the truth

The Word of God is the antidote to deception.
The gospel is the anchor in a drifting world.

Conclusion

Paul paints a dark picture — but he does it to shine a bright light.
The world may be unstable, but God is not.
False teachers may deceive, but God will expose them.
Difficult times may come, but God equips His people to stand.

The church does not survive by blending in with the world.
The church survives by clinging to the truth, resisting deception, and trusting the God who will bring all things to light.

So, we pray:

Lord, keep us faithful in difficult days.
Guard our hearts from the loves of this age.
Give us discernment to recognize deception.
Fill us with the power of true godliness.
And make us steadfast in Your truth until the day Christ returns.

2 Chronicles 27

2 Chronicles 27

2 Chronicles 27:1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah, daughter of Zadok.

2 Chronicles 27:2 He did what was right in Yahveh’s sight just as his father Uzziah had done. In addition, he didn’t enter Yahveh’s sanctuary, but the people still behaved corruptly.

2 Chronicles 27:3 Jotham built the Upper Gate of Yahveh’s house, and he built extensively on the wall of Ophel.

2 Chronicles 27:4 He also built cities in Judah’s hill country and fortresses and towers in the forests.

2 Chronicles 27:5 He waged war against the king of the Ammonites. He outstrengthened the Ammonites, and that year they gave him 7,500 pounds of silver, 50,000 bushels of wheat, and 50,000 bushels of barley. They paid him the same in the second and third years.

2 Chronicles 27:6 So Jotham strengthened his position because he did not waver in obeying Yahveh his God.

2 Chronicles 27:7 Notice, the rest of Jotham’s reign, including all his wars and ways, are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

2 Chronicles 27:8 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 27:9 Jotham lied down with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. His son, Ahaz, became king in his place.

links:

in his shadow
the shadow

The 2 Chronicles shelf in Jeff’s library