2 Chronicles 30 — When the People Had Forgotten

There are chapters in the Bible that make you stop and think. Second Chronicles 30 is one of them.

Reading this chapter, I couldn't help but think about our own time. It is difficult to look around and not wonder how far many have drifted from the Scriptures. Yet, just as in Hezekiah's day, there are still people who have not forgotten. There are still those who are willing to hear, respond, and carry on.

But let's look at what was happening in Judah and Israel.

A neglected Passover

Hezekiah had become king, and he wanted to bring the people back to the LORD. One of the first things he did was make arrangements to keep the Passover.

Think about that for a moment. The Passover was not some minor observance. It was a reminder of how God had delivered Israel from Egypt. It was part of their history and their identity as a people.

Yet here they were, needing to be called back to something God had already given them.

Hezekiah sent letters throughout Israel and Judah, inviting the people to come to Jerusalem and keep the Passover unto the LORD.

The invitation was not limited to Judah. He wanted the people of Israel to return also.

The message was simple:

“Turn again unto the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel...” (2 Chronicles 30:6).

Some mocked, but others humbled themselves

What happened next is especially telling.

The messengers went from city to city, but the response was not what everyone might have hoped.

Verse 10 tells us:

“...they laughed them to scorn, and mocked them.”

There were people who wanted nothing to do with the invitation. Perhaps they had become so accustomed to their ways that the thought of returning to the LORD seemed foolish.

But the chapter does not end there.

Verse 11 gives us another picture:

“Nevertheless divers of Asher and Manasseh and of Zebulun humbled themselves, and came to Jerusalem.”

There were still some who listened.

I find that word nevertheless worth stopping over. Some laughed, nevertheless some humbled themselves. Some rejected the invitation, nevertheless others came.

It reminds us that even when it appears that people have turned away, we should not assume everyone has.

A heart prepared to seek the LORD

The people gathered in Jerusalem, and the Passover was kept.

But there was another problem. Many of those who came had not properly purified themselves according to the requirements of the law.

Hezekiah did not ignore the matter. He prayed for them:

“The good LORD pardon every one” (2 Chronicles 30:18).

Then he gave the reason for his prayer. These were people who had prepared their hearts to seek God, even though they had not been cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.

And the Scripture says:

“And the LORD hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.” (2 Chronicles 30:20).

What a remarkable moment.

The people had come with shortcomings, but they had come with hearts prepared to seek the LORD. Hezekiah prayed, and the LORD heard him.

We should not overlook that.

There was still joy in Jerusalem

Verse 26 tells us:

“So there was great joy in Jerusalem: for since the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there was not the like in Jerusalem.”

Think about how much time had passed. Think about the generations who had come and gone. Yet now, under Hezekiah, the people were gathered again, remembering what the LORD had done.

The chapter closes by telling us that the priests and Levites blessed the people, and their voice was heard, and their prayer came up to God's holy dwelling place, even unto heaven.

What a contrast to the laughter and mocking that had greeted the messengers!

What about our day?

I don't want to suggest that our day and Hezekiah's day are identical. Israel had a particular covenant relationship with the LORD, and we should be careful to recognize the setting of the passage.

But there is something here that should make us think.

How easily can people become removed from the Scriptures? How many generations can pass before something once familiar becomes unfamiliar?

And yet, we should remember the nevertheless in this chapter.

There were still people who humbled themselves. There were still people who responded. There were still people who wanted to seek the LORD.

Perhaps we spend too much time looking at those who laugh and mock, and not enough time recognizing those who are quietly carrying on.

We may not know how many there are. We may not hear about them. They may not be the loudest voices in the room. But they are there.

Hezekiah sent the invitation. Some rejected it, but others came.

That is something worth remembering when we look at our own time.

The question I leave with you is this: Are we so discouraged by those who have turned away that we overlook those who are still willing to hear?

Read 2 Chronicles 30 for yourself. Notice the response of the people, the prayer of Hezekiah, and the joy that followed.

There is much more in this chapter than I can cover here. Sometimes the best thing a passage can do is send us back to the Scriptures to search out the matter for ourselves.

Lew Wallace governor  of New Mexico territory offered Billy the Kid amnesty in 1879.

The deal was finalized during a secret meeting in March 1879, where the New Mexico Territorial Governor promised clemency amnesty if you will in exchange for the outlaw's testimony regarding the murder of attorney Huston Chapman. Although Billy the Kid held up his end of the bargain by testifying, the local district attorney refused to release him, leading to his escape and eventual death in 1881.

Jesus Christ is offering you amnesty according to 2 Corinthians 5:19 "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." We are in a grace period of time in Ephesians 2:28-9 says For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. Christ as an atoning sacrifice Who gave of Himself willingly to die on a Roman cross for our justification before God to keep us from the wrath to come.  2 Corinthians 6:1-2  "We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured (helped you) thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."

Even though Billy's amnesty offer didn't turn out so well for him yours can mean eternal life in Jesus Christ. believe in Him Today for today is the day of salvation don't put it off because what If Tomorrow Never Comes?