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| 1 Hezekiah hath reigned a son of twenty and five years, and twenty and nine years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother [is] Abijah daughter of Zechariah; |
Hezeklah – Signifying "strength of Jehovah." R3462:3
Reckoned in the Lord's sight as one of the three most acceptable kings of Judah. R3462:3
Nine and twenty years – Link No. 39 in the chain of Bible chronology. B50; R1980:4
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| 2 and he doth that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that David his father did. |
That which was right – His entire reign was one of reformation. R3462:3
He was not double-minded but with his whole heart he sought to do right, to do the Lord's will. R4812:2, R3462:3
It is supposed that Isaiah, who was related to the royal family, was Hezekiah's tutor and helped guide him into right ways. R2379:2
Teaches the necessity for having a positive or strong will, rightly directed. R4812:2
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| 3 He, in the first year of his reign, in the first month, hath opened the doors of the house of Jehovah, and strengtheneth them, |
In the first month – He was already well instructed and thoroughly consecrated to the Lord at the time of his entrance to kingship. R2379:3
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| 4 and bringeth in the priests and the Levites, and gathereth them to the broad place to the east. |
Priests – Typical of God's saintly or sanctified people. R4812:4
Levites – Typical of the household of faith. R4812:4
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| 5 And he saith to them, 'Hear me, O Levites, now, sanctify yourselves, and sanctify the house of Jehovah, God of your fathers, and bring out the impurity from the sanctuary, |
Sanctify now yourselves – Before the cleansing of the Temple began the king directed the priests and Levites first to sanctify themselves. R4812:3
No one is properly ready to serve God in any form or work until he has come to a sanctified condition of heart. R4812:4
"Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord's house." (Isa. 52:11) R4812:4
House of the LORD – The great King commands his consecrated people to purify the Temple of God, which is the Church. R4812:4
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| 6 for our fathers have trespassed, and done that which is evil in the eyes of Jehovah our God, and forsake him, and turn round their faces from the tabernacle of Jehovah, and give the neck. |
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| 7 'Also they have shut the doors of the porch, and quench the lamps, and perfume they have not made, and burnt-offering have not caused to ascend in the sanctuary to the God of Israel, |
The God of Israel – Jehovah, to whom the price was to be paid. E449
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| 8 and the wrath of Jehovah is on Judah and Jerusalem, and He giveth them for a trembling, for an astonishment, and for a hissing, as ye are seeing with your eyes. |
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| 9 And lo, fallen have our fathers by the sword, and our sons, and our daughters, and our wives [are] in captivity for this. |
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| 10 'Now with my heart to make a covenant before Jehovah, God of Israel, and the fierceness of His anger doth turn back from us. |
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| 11 My sons, be not now at rest, for on you hath Jehovah fixed to stand before Him, to serve Him, and to be to Him ministering and making perfume.' |
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| 12 And the Levites rise Mahath son of Amasai, and Joel son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohathite; and of the sons of Merari: Kish son of Abdi, and Azariah son of Jehalelel; and of the Gershonite: Joah son of Zimmah, and Eden son of Joah; |
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| 13 and of the sons of Elizaphan: Shimri, and Jeiel; and of the sons of Asaph: Zechariah and Mattaniah; |
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| 14 and of the sons of Heman: Jehiel and Shimei; and of the sons of Jeduthun: Shemaiah and Uzziel |
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| 15 and they gather their brethren, and sanctify themselves, and come in, according to the command of the king in the matters of Jehovah, to cleanse the house of Jehovah, |
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| 16 and the priests come in to the inner part of the house of Jehovah to cleanse [it], and bring out all the uncleanness that they have found in the temple of Jehovah to the court of the house of Jehovah, and the Levites receive [it], to take [it] out to the brook Kidron without. |
Uncleanness – Typical of the idols and traditions of men in the form of venerable creeds of the past defiling the Temple of God. R4813:4, R3463:4
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| 17 And they begin on the first of the first month to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month they have come to the porch of Jehovah, and they sanctify the house of Jehovah in eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they have finished. |
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| 18 And they come in within unto Hezekiah the king, and say, 'We have cleansed all the house of Jehovah, and the altar of the burnt-offering, and all its vessels, and the table of the arrangement, and all its vessels, |
We have cleansed – If any have fallen into worldliness, sin, worship of Mammon, etc., there should be first a cleansing, a reformation. R3463:2
A great reformation came in the days of Luther, Melancthon and others. R3463:4
"Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit." (2 Cor. 7:1) F409
All the vessels – The vessels of the Lord's house must be cleansed of all defilements--their human traditions, heathen philosophies and superstitions. R4813:4
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| 19 and all the vessels that king Ahaz cast away in his reign in his trespass we have prepared and sanctified, and lo, they [are] before the altar of Jehovah.' |
All the vessels – Probably including certain brass plates and borders which King Asa had removed from the altar and tables for use in other places. R3462:6
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| 20 And Hezekiah the king riseth early, and gathereth the heads of the city, and goeth up to the house of Jehovah; |
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| 21 and they bring in seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven young he-goats, for a sin-offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah; and he saith to sons of Aaron, the priests, to cause [them] to ascend on the altar of Jehovah. |
Seven – A symbol of perfection or completeness, thus intensifying the matter. R3463:1
A sin offering – Shadows and types of the true sacrifices for sins by which the Lamb of God taketh away the sin of the world. R685:4
Altar of the LORD – Jehovah, to whom the price was paid. E449; R685:4
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| 22 And they slaughter the oxen, and the priests receive the blood, and sprinkle on the altar; and they slaughter the rams, and sprinkle the blood on the altar; and they slaughter the lambs, and sprinkle the blood on the altar; |
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| 23 and they bring nigh the he-goats of the sin-offering before the king and the assembly, and they lay their hands upon them; |
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| 24 and the priests slaughter them, and make a sin-offering with their blood on the altar, to make atonement for all Israel, for 'For all Israel,' said the king, '[is] the burnt-offering and the sin-offering.' |
An atonement – Not the regular atonement day sacrifice, because the proper day had passed; the sacrifices offered were effective merely for the remainder of the year. R3463:1
The Lord's people, after a reformation, should appeal to God for at-one-ment with him, for forgiveness of sins. R3463:2
For all Israel – Exhibiting Hezekiah's generous spirit. R3463:2
The whole nation seems to have come to a realization of its low condition and need of an uplift. R3463:1
Hezekiah recognized that the divine promises were made to all the seed of Abraham. R2379:5
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| 25 And he appointeth the Levites in the house of Jehovah with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, by the command of David, and of Gad, seer of the king, and of Nathan the prophet, for by the hand of Jehovah [is] the command, by the hand of His prophets; |
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| 26 and the Levites stand with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. |
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| 27 And Hezekiah saith to cause the burnt-offering to ascend on the altar; and at the time the burnt-offering began began the song of Jehovah, and the trumpets, even by the hands of the instruments of David king of Israel. |
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| 28 And all the assembly are doing obeisance, and the singers singing, and the trumpeters blowing; the whole [is] till the completion of the burnt-offering. |
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| 29 And at the completion of the offering up bowed have the king and all those found with him, and do obeisance. |
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| 30 And Hezekiah the king saith, and the princes, to the Levites to give praise to Jehovah in the words of David, and of Asaph the seer, and they praise unto joy, and they bow, and do obeisance. |
Sang praises with gladness – The work of reestablishing the true religion was not to be accomplished in a doleful manner. R3463:5
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| 31 And Hezekiah answereth and saith, 'Now ye have filled your hand to Jehovah, come nigh, and bring in sacrifices and thank-offerings to the house of Jehovah;' and the assembly bring in sacrifices and thank-offerings, and every willing-hearted one burnt-offerings. |
Thank offerings – The Lord's truly consecrated today rejoice to be free from the sins of the past and worship the Lord with thank-offerings and praise. R3463:5
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| 32 And the number of the burnt-offerings that the assembly have brought in, is seventy oxen, a hundred rams, lambs two hundred; for a burnt-offering to Jehovah [are] all these. |
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| 33 And the sanctified things [are] oxen six hundred, and sheep three thousand. |
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| 34 Only, the priests have become few, and have not been able to strip the whole of the burnt-offerings, and their brethren the Levites strengthen them till the completion of the work, and till the priests sanctify themselves, for the Levites [are] more upright of heart to sanctify themselves than the priests. |
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| 35 And also, burnt-offerings [are] in abundance, with fat of the peace-offerings, and with oblations for the burnt-offering; and the service of the house of Jehovah is established, |
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| 36 and rejoice doth Hezekiah and all the people, because of God's giving preparation to the people, for the thing hath been suddenly. |
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