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Keep God’s statutes and ordinances (March 25, 2018)

UNIFORM LESSON FOR March 25, 2018
Scripture passage and lesson focus: 2 Chronicles 7:12-22

In some parts of the United States an acrimonious debate rages about the significance and value of statues that memorialize Civil War heroes. In a similar way, controversy exists regarding the proper respect that should be shown to such cultural monuments as the U.S. flag and the national anthem.

For many people, these symbols belong to a heritage from a culture that no longer exists or they stand for a political ideal (“the land of the free and the home of the brave”) that is questioned by some. What happens when cultures go through identity-changing developments?

That is the underlying issue the Chronicler deals with in our passage for today. The Israelites, returnees from exile in Persia, were now living in a small client state of the Persian Empire. No longer an independent nation and struggling to rebuild their temple in Jerusalem, they were faced with the challenge of redefining themselves upon their return to Palestine. Many of the people who had not gone into exile but remained in Judea were not eager to give way to the returnees. The contemporaneous writings of Ezra and Nehemiah vividly and painfully reflect the ensuing conflicts. And to make matters more difficult, the returnees considered themselves to be the rightful heirs of the Israelite traditions. The Chronicler spoke for them even as those traditions were being re-written in the light of their current realities.

2 Chronicles 7:12-16 — God offers Israel conditional mercy
After recounting Solomon’s prayer of dedication for the rebuilt temple in 2 Chronicles 7:1-11, the Chronicler describes another epiphany of God experienced by Solomon. God came to Solomon, the Chronicler writes, in response to his prayer and God says that the temple was chosen by God to be “a house of sacrifice.” This expresses the Chronicler’s understanding of the primary purpose of the temple and its centrality in post-exilic Israel.

An ominous theological note is included in God’s message to Solomon. God says, “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people” and “if my people … humble themselves … and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” The Chronicler assumes that God will cause natural disasters to afflict the Israelites and only if they turn to God and change their sinful ways will God heal their land.

God’s love and care for Israel in 2 Chronicles is conditional and contingent on their acceptable behavior. As the introduction to this book in the Jewish Study Bible states, “On this view, virtuous deeds lead to a reward (wealth, children, etc.), while bad deeds bring punishment and suffering.” Although God is said to have assured Israel that “my eyes and my heart will be there for all time,” that promise is predicated on a very large “if.” If the Israelites will be faithful to God the way David is said to have been faithful to God, then there will always be a successor on David’s throne to rule over Israel.

2 Chronicles 7:17-22 — Solomon must obey God’s laws
Writing in the 4th century B.C., the Chronicler describes what he believes God said in the 10th century when Solomon reigned: “If you serve other gods and worship them, then I will pluck you up from the land … and this house which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight.”

Of course, this is exactly what happened to Israel that led to their exile in the 6th century B.C. The Chronicler engages in what is called “prophecy after the fact” in order to provide an explanation for Israel’s exile and a warning to Israel’s post-exilic leaders. In the Chronicler’s words, “Because they abandoned the Lord the God of their ancestors who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they adopted other gods, and worshipped them and served them; therefore God has brought all this calamity upon them.”

As Christians we now know that God’s love in Christ is not contingent on human behavior. As Paul says in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

For discussion: Do you agree with the Chronicler’s assumption that God causes natural disasters? What things do you fear might separate you from God’s love or presence? Where else in Scripture do you see examples of God showing that nothing will separate us from God’s love?

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