2 Chronicles Devotionals
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2 Chronicles Devotionals Related Resources 2 Chronicles Commentaries 2 Chronicles Devotionals Spurgeon on 2 Chronicles Spurgeon on 2 Chronicles Part 2 Alexander Maclaren on 2 Chronicles 2 Chronicles Devotionals F B Meyer - Our Daily Homily Today in the Word - Moody Bible Institute 2 Chronicles 1:11–12 I will give thee riches. Solomon had chosen wisdom and knowledge that he might honor God in the sight of his people. And in return God honored him, and supplemented his choice with abundant wealth. This reminds one of the constant teaching of Jesus. He who seeks his life loses it; but to lose it is to save it in the best and deepest sense. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added. The conception of life given in the Bible differs by a whole heaven from the maxims and practices of some good and earnest people. Their notion is that they must work for their living, “keep the wolf from the door,” educate their children for successfully meeting the demands of life. These objects are legitimate; but they were never meant by God to be the supreme aim of His servants. His object in our creation, redemption, and regeneration, was that we might serve His redemptive purposes in the world, manifest His character, do His will, win souls for His kingdom, administer the gifts with which He had entrusted us. He asks us to rise to this high calling, and give our whole life to its realization. He will be responsible for all else. It is surely His will that we should give ourselves to useful trades, and fill our days with honest toil; but the main purpose should ever be His glory, and the exemplification in word and act of His holy character. If we ask for wisdom to do this well, we shall get all else into the bargain. God is a Being of perfect honor and integrity. And if we dare to make His service the main end of life, we shall find that no good thing will fail. He paves the streets of heaven with gold, and will not withhold it from His children, if they really need. 2 Chronicles 1 Wisdom and knowledge will be given you. - 2 Chronicles 1:12 TODAY IN THE WORD In Harper Lee's classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch was sitting outside on his porch in a small Southern town when a local judge stopped by. The judge asked him to serve as the defense lawyer for an African-American man charged with rape. Atticus agreed. That decision, the key moment in the novel, exposed him and his children to ridicule, hostility, prejudice, and even physical attack. Atticus, one of the most respected characters in literature, made it because key principles of justice and racial equality were at stake. In today's reading, Solomon also had a difficult decision to make. The Lord appeared to him and offered him anything he wanted— what should he request? Perhaps this offer can be regarded as God's “coronation gift” to the young king. It was also a test, which he passed: instead of asking for riches or success, he humbly asked for the wisdom to carry out his God-given responsibilities (v. 10). This opening chapter also highlights the need for a temple. At this time, the ark of the covenant was in Jerusalem but the tabernacle and altars were at Gibeon. This was an awkward and even sinful situation, not in line with the Law. Solomon's temple would restore things to the way God had designed. That's why Bezalel, the lead craftsman in the construction of the original tabernacle, is mentioned prominently (v. 5). This month's book study of 2 Chronicles complements the study of 1 Chronicles from last July. Tradition identifies Ezra the priest as the writer of both books, though no author is identified in Scripture. He wrote to encourage and exhort the Jewish exiles who had returned from captivity and who were rebuilding their lives and nation. Much of the material retells narratives also found in 1 and 2 Kings, but was adapted or supplemented for a different audience and historical context. TODAY ALONG THE WAY By asking God for wisdom first, Solomon showed where his heart's treasure lay, that is, in which direction his deepest desires pointed. How about you? What's your most valued treasure? By what “true north” does your heart set its compass? Would those around you know it from your actions? Say with the psalmist: “My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God . Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere” (Ps. 84:2, 10). 2 Chronicles 1 Wisdom and knowledge will be given you. - 2 Chronicles 1:12 TODAY IN THE WORD In Harper Lee's classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch was sitting outside on his porch in a small Southern town when a local judge stopped by. The judge asked him to serve as the defense lawyer for an African-American man charged with rape. Atticus agreed. That decision, the key moment in the novel, exposed him and his children to ridicule, hostility, prejudice, and even physical attack. Atticus, one of the most respected characters in literature, made it because key principles of justice and racial equality were at stake. In today's reading, Solomon also had a difficult decision to make. The Lord appeared to him and offered him anything he wanted— what should he request? Perhaps this offer can be regarded as God's “coronation gift” to the young king. It was also a test, which he passed: instead of asking for riches or success, he humbly asked for the wisdom to carry out his God-given responsibilities (v. 10). This opening chapter also highlights the need for a temple. At this time, the ark of the covenant was in Jerusalem but the tabernacle and altars were at Gibeon. This was an awkward and even sinful situation, not in line with the Law. Solomon's temple would restore things to the way God had designed. That's why Bezalel, the lead craftsman in the construction of the original tabernacle, is mentioned prominently (v. 5). This month's book study of 2 Chronicles complements the study of 1 Chronicles from last July. Tradition identifies Ezra the priest as the writer of both books, though no author is identified in Scripture. He wrote to encourage and exhort the Jewish exiles who had returned from captivity and who were rebuilding their lives and nation. Much of the material retells narratives also found in 1 and 2 Kings, but was adapted or supplemented for a different audience and historical context. TODAY ALONG THE WAY By asking God for wisdom first, Solomon showed where his heart's treasure lay, that is, in which direction his deepest desires pointed. How about you? What's your most valued treasure? By what “true north” does your heart set its compass? Would those around you know it from your actions? Say with the psalmist: “My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God . Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere” (Ps. 84:2, 10). 2 Chronicles 2 Now I am about to build a temple for the Name of the Lord my God and to dedicate it to him. - 2 Chronicles 2:4 TODAY IN THE WORD The St. Lawrence Seaway was one of the major building projects of the twentieth century. This intricate system of locks, dams, and canals stretches 2,300 miles, and together with the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes, it connects middle America with the Atlantic coast. Starting as long ago as 1680, various businesses and government bodies worked on the project. When completed in the mid-1800s, the canal was only four meters deep, not enough for oceangoing ships. Eventually, Canada and the United States cooperated on the modern version, completed in 1959. More than two billion tons of cargo worth more than $400 billion move through the St. Lawrence Seaway every year. Solomon had the help of his father David in preparing for the monumental project of building a temple for the Lord, the spiritual climax of the golden age of Israel. Even with his father's preparations, though, the task must have been daunting. So when he took the first step toward actually doing it, God encouraged him with a positive response. He wrote a letter to King Hiram of Tyre, requesting materials and workers for the project. Hiram agreed to his proposals and sent the master craftsman Huram-Abi, born of parents from both countries, to oversee the labor. In the parallel stories of temple and tabernacle, Solomon is implicitly compared to Bezalel and Huram-Abi to Oholiab. Most commentators interpret Hiram's letter as using standard cultural expressions, but it's possible that he was also a follower of the true God. It seems clear that God wanted to keep His global plan for all nations in view. Though Israel was the “chosen nation,” there was no problem with the involvement of “unchosen people” in building His temple. The art, architecture, and building materials of foreigners would be woven into the project. For his part, Solomon kept God's infinite greatness in view, recognizing the inadequacy of any structure to contain the Almighty (v. 6). TODAY ALONG THE WAY If Solomon's elaborate preparations for the temple seem far removed from your situation, we have a suggestion: Prepare for your Sunday church service in the same worshipful spirit.