365 Reflections

Ezekiel 46 continues with the vision of the Temple. In this passage, we see the order of worship retired to Israel. God is a God of order. He will not tolerate confusion in His worship. He desires people to know Him in truth and righteousness. Chaos and confusion are the language of satan. Ezekiel 46:1–2 (ESV) “Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east shall be shut on the six working days, but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. 2 The prince shall enter by the vestibule of the gate from outside, and shall take his stand by the post of the gate. The priests shall offer his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening. We have here a requirement for the "prince" to act in a mediatorial role between the inner temple priestly system and the people. He will take his stand at the gatepost. H...

Ezekiel's tour of the Temple continues in chapter 45 and we come to the new "Holy of Holies".  Ezekiel 45:1–2 (ESV) “When you allot the land as an inheritance, you shall set apart for the LORD a portion of the land as a holy district, 25,000 cubits long and 20,000 cubits broad. It shall be holy throughout its whole extent. 2 Of this a square plot of 500 by 500 cubits shall be for the sanctuary, with fifty cubits for an open space around it. Every Bible passage about the Temple has a common theme. The Lord's people were to set apart a sacred space in three sections where they met with God. Ezekiel has this understanding reiterated to him here in Chapter 45. There is to be a place for the Lord, a holy district. This district was set apart for worship. Within that space was an even holier place. The priests would occupy the space outside of that holy place to act as an intermediary between the people and the Lord.  Ezekiel 45:3–4 (ESV) And from this measured district y...

Ezekiel sees the Lord as he tours the New Temple.  Ezekiel 43:1–2 (ESV) Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. 2 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. Having been shown the Temple by guided tour and seeing it in totality, the prophet now experiences the point of all of it. God's glory being made manifest among His people. As the prophet beholds this vision of restoration he is reminded that this God of restoration appears in the same way as He did when He was involved in Israel destruction. Ezekiel 43:3–5 (ESV) And the vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and just like the vision that I had seen by the Chebar canal. And I fell on my face. 4 As the glory of the LORD entered the temple by the gate facing east, 5 the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glor...

In Chapter 42, Ezekiel continues his guided tour of the New Temple.  Ezekiel 42:1 (ESV)  Then he led me out into the outer court, toward the north, and he brought me to the chambers that were opposite the separate yard and opposite the building on the north. The order of Ezekiel's tour of this New Temple is the exact opposite of the instructions God gives to Moses in Exodus for designing the tabernacle. In Exodus, the design starts from the inside out, beginning with the Ark, the Holy of Holies, and so on. In Ezekiel, the tour given to the prophet begins on the outside and makes its way in.  The first Tabernacle showed who was kept out. The new Temple is focused on bringing people in. The first Tabernacle brought people fear. The New Temple brings people near.  God is setting the stage for a redemption far larger than just the nation of Israel. Through Christ, all nations will have the opportunity to experience the blessing of knowing the Lord intimately.  In ou...

Ezra 6:1–3 (ESV) Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in Babylonia, in the house of the archives where the documents were stored. 2 And in Ecbatana, the citadel that is in the province of Media, a scroll was found on which this was written: “A record. 3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices were offered, and let its foundations be retained.  The crazy thing about Ezra and the rebuilding of the Temple at the behest of King Cyrus is that God has used the means of pagan kings to accomplish His purposes for His people in preparing a place to worship once again. After a 16 year pause, the work is resumed because the leaders remembered the decree of a pagan king and began to build based on that record.  Moreover, not only did the Lord use the decree of a pagan king to permit the rebuild, the Lord used the pagan treasury of the Medes to pay...

Holding on to the glories of the past can sour the potential of our present. And Ezra 3 provides a picture of this in the last two verses. The exiles have returned to celebrate the feast of booths before the presence of the Lord. And after the festival, the leaders begin to break ground on a new Temple for worship. Ezra 3:10–11 (ESV) And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD, according to the directions of David king of Israel. 11 And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.” And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. This was an exciting time for the Jews. Their freedom to worship and enjoy God's presence would soon be a reality again. The people sh...

The pinnacle of Solomon's reign is a beautiful picture of success as well as an impending disaster. He finishes the Temple, the Ark is transported inside, the priests worship and the glory of God fills the Temple.  2 Chronicles 7:1–2 (ESV) As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’s house. If we remember that this book is written to returning exiles being instructed on how to be God's people once again we should take note that at this time in the text, the pinnacle of their history is coordinated around the glory of God in the Temple. They were learning where to put their hope. Not in the king or palaces but in the presence of the Lord who dwelt among them. 2 Chronicles 7:11–12 (ESV) Thus Solomon finished the house of the LORD and the king’s house. All th...

Are we satisfied with our church meetings? A few songs, a nice "sermon" and a couple of handshakes? Do we really think that's the point of the Church?  In 2 Chronicles 5, the glory of God fills the Temple at the pinnacle of its completion. Solomon has built the outer casing of the Temple, he has consigned work to be done on the instruments to fill the Temple, and now in this chapter, the process to complete the Temple occurs as the Levites make their way into the Temple with the Ark to worship and serve the Lord. 2 Chronicles 5:2 (ESV) Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the people of Israel, in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 Chronicles 5:4 (ESV) And all the elders of Israel came, and the Levites took up the ark. Solomon is careful not to make the same mistake as David when transporting the Ark. He has the Levites which w...

As we continue to explore the Temple Solomon built we are given further pictures of what the Lord will build in the Church. Every object of importance and value, set aside from normal use for the special service to usher people into the presence of God. 2 Chronicles 4:1–2 (ESV) He made an altar of bronze, twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide and ten cubits high. 2 Then he made the sea of cast metal. It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference. It is interesting to remember that the "he" in this chapter is NOT referring to Solomon but rather to the man Hiram sent to Solomon with the skills he needed to fashion the articles of the Temple together. Remember from 2 Chronicles 2, Hiram king of Tyre reports to Solomon: 2 Chronicles 2:13–14 (ESV) “Now I have sent a skilled man, who has understanding, Huram - abi , 14 the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre . He is t...

2 Chronicles 3:1 (ESV) Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the place that David had appointed, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. The main event has come to Solomon's life. This is what God called him to do - build the Temple. And as he builds the temple as a place for God to dwell among the people, there are images we are given in the details to help us understand what the presence of God is all about.  What's clear is that Solomon invests heavily in the beauty of the Temple.  2 Chronicles 3:6–7 (ESV) He adorned the house with settings of precious stones. The gold was gold of Parvaim. 7 So he lined the house with gold—its beams, its thresholds, its walls, and its doors—and he carved cherubim on the walls. Gold and precious stones covered the Temple. The presence of God is a place of value. But something else is as well: 2 Chronicles 3:10–13 (ESV) In the Most Holy Place...

David calls on the assembly of Israel to donate to the construction of the temple in 1 Chronicles 29. He will also lead the giving of the assembly and the people will rejoice in their contributions to God's house.  1 Chronicles 29:2–5 (ESV) So I have provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able, the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, besides great quantities of onyx and stones for setting, antimony, colored stones, all sorts of precious stones and marble. 3 Moreover, in addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God: 4 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, for overlaying the walls of the house, 5 and for all the work to be done by craftsmen, gold for the ...

The 28th chapter of 1 Chronicles illustrates David's final charge to his son Solomon on the precipice of building the Temple. Already the writer has been made clear in the book that David's life of war would lead to Solomon's life of peace. David who shed much blood would not be the one to build the temple. You could say through the shed blood of David, Solomon receives peace.  Now with preparations made, the words from David to Solomon are clear: there's a work to accomplish now and Solomon needs to commit! First, David makes it plain for Solomon. Solomon must understand he's been chosen to do this very thing.  1 Chronicles 28:6 (ESV)  He (God) said to me, ‘It is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. On the heels of that impressive reality, David bears down: 1 Chronicles 28:9–10 (ESV) “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a wil...

There's a verse in 1 Chronicles 26 that James Boice, the great theologian, and pastor of the last Century shares about a Seminary dropout who ridiculed the Bible based on a verse within it. It sounds like a useless verse in a book that we say is inspired by God Himself.  What's the verse? 1 Chronicles 26:18 (ESV) And for the colonnade on the west there were four at the road and two at the colonnade . Boice points out that in older Bible translations, the Hebrew word, " Parbar " was simply used because translators were unfamiliar with its meaning.  1 Chronicles 26:18 (NKJV) As for the Parbar on the west, there were four on the highway and two at the Parbar . Modern translators use colonnade .  But here's the context of the verse in 1 Chronicles 26. Every ministry matters in the house of God. The chapter is spelling out the specific direction God has in mind for the maintenance men of the Temple, the janitors if you will. The verse comes after the chapter highlig...

The idea that God is not interested in order and process in our worship experience ignores the record both of God's own commitment to order (see the universe and seasons) and the regular reference to order and divisions in the company of Israel's priests and musicians.  As David continues preparation for the Temple build Solomon will undertake after him in 1 Chronicles 24, we see order and division of labor come clearly into place. 1 Chronicles 24:1–4 (ESV) The divisions of the sons of Aaron were these. The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 2 But Nadab and Abihu died before their father and had no children, so Eleazar and Ithamar became the priests. 3 With the help of Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, David organized them according to the appointed duties in their service. 4 Since more chief men were found among the sons of Eleazar than among the sons of Ithamar, they organized them under sixteen heads of fathers’ houses of ...

1 Chronicles 23:2–6 (ESV) David assembled all the leaders of Israel and the priests and the Levites. 3 The Levites, thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and the total was 38,000 men. 4 “Twenty-four thousand of these,” David said, “shall have charge of the work in the house of the Lord, 6,000 shall be officers and judges, 5 4,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 shall offer praises to the Lord with the instruments that I have made for praise.” 6 And David organized them in divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.  This passage comes right after David makes Solomon King in Israel.  1 Chronicles 23:1 (ESV) When David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel.   It’s incredible to think that upon the transfer of power for Israel David does not first take up the task of establishing a strong military. He has learned that hard lesson by God’s judgment at the time of the census. Nor does David seek to build storehouses of g...

David cannot build God's temple. Perhaps that reality is a struggle for many Bible readers because of how faithful and courageous David was for the Lord. Well, in 1 Chronicles 22 we get a LOT more clarity on that matter. Look with me: 1 Chronicles 22:7-10 (ESV) David said to Solomon, “My son, I had it in my heart to build a house to the name of the Lord my God. 8 But the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have waged great wars. You shall not build a house to my name, because you have shed so much blood before me on the earth. 9 Behold, a son shall be born to you who shall be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his surrounding enemies. For his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. 10 He shall build a house for my name. He shall be my son, and I will be his father, and I will establish his royal throne in Israel forever.’   There are some key ideas communicated here by David. First, the reason for ...

1 Chronicles 21:1–4 (ESV) Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel. 2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the army, “Go, number Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, and bring me a report, that I may know their number.” 3 But Joab said, “May the LORD add to his people a hundred times as many as they are! Are they not, my lord the king, all of them my lord’s servants? Why then should my lord require this? Why should it be a cause of guilt for Israel?” 4 But the king’s word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and went throughout all Israel and came back to Jerusalem. This chapter picks up on a particular sin of David recorded also in 2 Samuel 24. David takes a census of the nation. The account in 2 Samuel 24 says God was the instigator of the moment. Here, it is Satan. Why the difference? It's the Bible's way of saying the same thing in two ways. Yes, Satan incited David but the Lord was ultimately in charge of the entire moment.  The narrative of...

With great power comes great responsibility. This phrase was made popular by the Spiderman movies and comics although some attribute it to more historical figures. But the truth at the root of it can be traced to the moment Solomon finished the Temple of Israel in 1 Kings 9. 1 Kings 9:8–9 (ESV)   And this house will become a heap of ruins. Everyone passing by it will be astonished and will hiss, and they will say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 9 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore the Lord has brought all this disaster on them.’” The Lord is not playing games when it comes to Israel's future prosperity. They were the nation God had called to Himself, saving them from Egypt and establishing them in the Promised Land. They alone of all the Nations had the Word of God, the Testimony of the t...

It's amazing how much the Scriptures speak of rest . It is in the Garden of Eden, it's the goal of the deliverance of Israel and establishment in the Promised Land (see Joshua 14:15). It is there after Othniel's judgeship over Israel (Judges 3:11). It is also now here in 1 Kings 8 (the longest chapter in the book) after  Solomon's dedication prayer. 1 Kings 8:54–57 (ESV) Now as Solomon finished offering all this prayer and plea to the Lord , he arose from before the altar of the Lord , where he had knelt with hands outstretched toward heaven. 55 And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56 “Blessed be the Lord who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised. Not one word has failed of all his good promise, which he spoke by Moses his servant. 57 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers. May he not leave us or forsake us, This is the desire of God: rest for you with Him. I...

Solomon is making his intercessory prayer over the Temple of Israel in 1 Kings 8. It is a very long prayer filled with theological and practical truths for us today. In the last post we looked at how this Temple and it's dedication prefigures the Church of Jesus Christ, the true Son of David who builds His people as a living Tabernacle to bring the broken, defeated, sinful and stranger into God's presence. As we continue in the prayer, Solomon speaks of the future of Israel, that they would be the people who turn to God for grace when they experience punishment for sin in the form of exile. Notice what Solomon says: 1 Kings 8:48–50 (ESV)   if they repent with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name, 49 then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and ma...