God-Given Riches (2 Chronicles 32:29)

 


Tuesday, August 27, 2024


Psalm 140

2 Chronicles 32:24-33

Romans 15:1-13


Observance: Monica, mother of Augustine (d. 387)


God-Given Riches (2 Chronicles 32:29)


This latter part of King Hezekiah’s life is pretty well covered in the Bible. Here in 2 Chronicles we have the shortest account, but when we turn to 2 Kings 20 and Isaiah 38-39 we get much richer detail. Having the same event by different authors helps us round out our understanding of what took place; the four gospels are probably the best example of where this happens elsewhere. Not only do we get different little details that sate our curiosity, we can also compare what each author is trying to emphasise, making us more well-rounded Christians.


Here in the Chronicles, the author is trying to emphasise the fact that when the nation followed the ways of the Lord, things went well. Lest we try and constrain God’s ways, a spanner is thrown in the works: Hezekiah becomes ill. Hang on a minute, thinks Hezekiah (and we along with him): Hezekiah was a good king, and had lots of wealth and success to prove it. How come he is now getting sick?


As we read in Isaiah’s account, one of the king’s concerns was that he would no longer be able to praise God once he had died – and as his life experience had showed him, praising God was what it meant to live the good life (Isaiah 38:18).


All of us will one day die. And all of us will continue to experience medical unhappiness right up until that point. But we know that death is not the end; in fact, according to Christ’s resurrection, death is only the beginning.


Our theme in these readings is “The Sword And The Trowel”. We are looking for what the history of God’s people can teach us about what God’s people should be doing today. Today’s reading speaks to life, and what it means to enjoy long life from God’s perspective. There are two aspects we can hold on to here. The first is that every single person who trusts in the Lord Jesus will be resurrected on the last day and live forever; we should not be surprised or afraid when illness and death come our way. The second is that God blesses us as a group of people by continuing the life of the church through generations. Hezekiah’s prayer as recorded by Isaiah says as much; by passing down the love of God to the generations that follow us, the life of the body of Christ continues to be invigorated with the eternal life of the Lord Jesus:


“The living, the living – they praise you,

as I am doing today;

fathers tell their children about your faithfulness.”


What will you say to God when you sense your own death approaching? And have you spoken about God’s faithfulness to the next generation?


Lord Jesus, you overcame the power of death for my by your love. Give me the strength to trust in your love for me when my own death approaches, and glorify your name in the generations that follow me.

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