Hezekiah – Part IV

Hezekiah – Part IV

Sweet Savor Unto the Lord

2 Chronicles 29:20-32

Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the LORD. (2 Chronicles 29:20)

And they brought seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats, for a sin offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the priests the sons of Aaron to offer them on the altar of the LORD. (2 Chronicles 29:21)

So they killed the bullocks, and the priests received the blood, and sprinkled it on the altar: likewise, when they had killed the rams, they sprinkled the blood upon the altar: they killed also the lambs, and they sprinkled the blood upon the altar. (2 Chronicles 29:22)

And they brought forth the he goats for the sin offering before the king and the congregation; and they laid their hands upon them: (2 Chronicles 29:23)

And the priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all Israel: for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. (2 Chronicles 29:24)

And he set the Levites in the house of the LORD with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the king’s seer, and Nathan the prophet: for so was the commandment of the LORD by his prophets. (2 Chronicles 29:25)

And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. (2 Chronicles 29:26)

And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the LORD began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. (2 Chronicles 29:27)

And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished. (2 Chronicles 29:28)

And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves, and worshipped. (2 Chronicles 29:29)

Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the LORD with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped. (2 Chronicles 29:30)

Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the LORD, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of the LORD. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a free heart burnt offerings. (2 Chronicles 29:31)

And the number of the burnt offerings, which the congregation brought, was threescore and ten bullocks, an hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all these were for a burnt offering to the LORD. (2 Chronicles 29:32)

The temple was made ready, the brazen altar had been restored to it’s proper place, all was ready for God to meet Hezekiah and His people. Hezekiah had gathered the people and the rulers of the people, and now he escorts them to the house of the Lord. It is time for the king, the rulers, and the people to face God with their sin. In the day of Ahaz, Hezekiah’s father had removed the both the brazen altar and the burnt offering, and therefore, the sin offering had ceased. Ahaz had replaced God’s altar with an exact replica of the altar of Damascus, which was an altar to the heathen god of Assyria. Hezekiah set the work in motion when he first came to the throne. All was repaired, all was made ready, and the people were now prepared to meet their God. This would be the restoring of all things according to the words of Moses; yet, the rulers and the people, and Hezekiah had to be sanctified unto the Lord. As a nation they were far removed from the things of Jehovah; they had turned their backs on Jehovah their God; yet, this godly king at just 25 years of age had managed to move the hearts of the people, and their leaders to cry out to the Most High God, Possessor of heaven and earth.

The question goes out, where must this nation start, or where must any nation begin to deal with their sin? Even though this was an enormous task, still sin had to first be dealt with. Hezekiah prepared them to meet their sin as a nation, and to restore them to the blessings of Jehovah. The first offering would be a sin-offering. The offerings were composed of 7 bullocks, 7 rams, 7 lambs, and 7 he goats. The offering for sin was made for the entire nation, all twelve sons of Israel were brought into the enlargement of heart of both Hezekiah, and the people of Israel and Benjamin. In the multiplicity of the number 7, we have the rest of God.

For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. (Hebrews 4:8)

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. (Hebrews 4:9)

The Numbers

There is a rest for the people of God, but this is found only in the God of creation. The number 7 witnesses not only to the completed works of God, but also of His rest.And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Genesis 1:31) On the 6^th day, God saw all His works that He had made, and behold all His works were very good. So on the 7^th day, God rested from all His works. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. (Genesis 2:2) The number 7 represents not only completion, but a particular place of rest. In Hebrews 4:8 and 9 God was satisfied in all that He had created. When a man labors, and finishes his labors, he looks upon them, and he is satisfied, and then he takes his rest. In the work of salvation, the Holy Spirit works and labors, and broods over a soul until the cry or the whimper of new birth; then that soul has entered into God’s rest.

In the multiplicity of the number 7 in our main text we not only have God’s rest, but the four 7’s total 28. In the number 2, we have the number of God’s witness, (in the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word is established). In the number 8, we have a new beginning, or the day of resurrection. In this sin offering, God would resurrect a people who had left Him, and had died to the things of Jehovah. They were spiritually cast away, but why not start with the burnt offering first? Simple — man must present his sin first to God — first, man must have a repentant heart. Man must know who he really is — that he is sin; whether it be an individual, or an entire nation. Hezekiah was presenting his own heart, and the hearts of the people to Jehovah. They had brought their sin to God with repentant hearts; so the sin offering must come first if we are to present ourselves before an Almighty God. For the burnt offering speaks of the finished work of Christ as a sweet savor unto God the Father.

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. (Ephesians 5:2)

The sin offering and the burnt offering

The difference between the sin offering and the burnt offering is this: with the sin offering, we look up to the cross and the sacrifice on the cross in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. In the burnt offering, God looks down through the gloom and darkness of sin, and sees a glorious light which is His Son in whom He is well pleased. Still a sacrifice, but a sweet savor unto God the Father. The sin offering is our part, the burnt offering is God’s part.  

When we approach the sin offering, which is Jesus Christ, we must approach with a repentant, and broken, and contrite heart. We must see the weight of our sin, and the price that was paid for us on Calvary’s cross. Many feel that they can do something, maybe a great task, but simple faith is the only way to salvation. The only thing that we can bring to the cross is our own sinful nature, and cast it under the blood of Christ. There is no other redemption in heaven or earth except through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the sin offering on our part, Christ satisfied all the righteous claims of God the Father that were against us. As the burnt offering, and sweet savor unto the Lord, He glorified God the Father with the sacrifice of Himself for sin; therefore, becoming the Great Purifier.

But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. (Leviticus 1:9)

Le 1:13 But he shall wash the inwards and the legs with water: and the priest shall bring it all, and burn it upon the altar: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. (Leviticus 1:13)

Le 1:17 And he shall cleave it with the wings thereof, but shall not divide it asunder: and the priest shall burn it upon the altar, upon the wood that is upon the fire: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. (Leviticus 1:17)

Leviticus gives such a wonderful picture of the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ. If one would consider Psalm 22 and Leviticus, chapters 1 through 5, then one would understand the depth, and the length, and the breadth of the suffering of the Lord Jesus Christ, and what glory He presented to God the Father in His death. We often dwell solely on our part of this great transaction, and we tend to be blind to God’s part in the death of His Son. For this was His beloved Son, in whom He was well pleased. And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matthew 3:17)

The Animals of Sacrifice

Let us now consider the designation of the 4 groups of animals in our sacrifice:

1. Bullock — the bullock is a symbol of strength, and it also represents the service of Christ. It was the bullock that was designated for the burnt offering.

2. Ram — the ram is a symbol of conflict, who has not seen a picture of two rams butting their head together in conflict. So the Lord Jesus came to reveal the conflict between God and man; and through His sacrifice of Himself on the cross present the peace of God towards man. Remember, Abraham’s declaration, And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. (Genesis 22:8) And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind [him] a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. (Genesis 22:13)  

3. Lamb — although lambs are meek and lowly animals, it is this example that Christ would fulfill as the Lamb of God, and the ultimate sin offering to God the Father.

Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: (Romans 5:20)

The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (John 1:29)

4. He-Goat — Our last offering is the He-Goat. This brings out the stubbornness of man, or man’s self-will. When brought as a sacrifice, the stubbornness is changed into subjection. This is man at the foot of the cross; casting all that he is in the natural man at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ to bring all things into subjection under the Lord of glory. The same rebellious and sinful qualities that are found in man and Adam are exemplified in these animals, he-goats. All this must be subdued by fire, that God’s mercy may come, and bless those He will receive.

Hezekiah had everything ready, the altar was in place, the fulness of the sacrifices were present; all was made ready for the fire of God to consume the offering. (Hebrews 12:29) For our God is a consuming fire.

But wait pen — not so fast — the people had to identify with the sin offering. One had to approach the victim, and place his hand on the victims head, and look into the eyes of the animal, and to know in their heart that it was for their sin that this animal was to die. I feel a wave of repentance coming over all that were present, as the king and the leaders, and the people were joined together to confess their rebellious hearts and sin before God.

And they brought forth the he goats for the sin offering before the king and the congregation; and they laid their hands upon them:(2 Chronicles 29:23)

And the priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all Israel: for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. (2 Chronicles 29:24)

This is the requirement of God, if we meet these requirements in the divine sacrifice of God the Son, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world, then we have life from above in the Lord Jesus Christ. If a man refuses divine grace, he remains an enemy of God and he is swiftly traveling towards the lake of fire. Back to Hezekiah . . .

In verse 24, the heart of the king was for all of Israel. All the sons of Jacob must come under the offering. The blood of the sacrifices must cover the whole nation in hope that they, one and all, return to Jehovah. Although the sin offering comes first, this prepares us in the presence of God. Now, the burnt offering is for Jehovah. And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the LORD began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. Till now, there was silence dealing with sin, dealing with sin brings remorse, but then the seed of faith brings joy to the heart in the burnt offering. They could now sing the song of glory to the Lord, now they could blow the trumpet of salvation, and now they could play the harps of joy in the Lord as the burnt offering ascended to God in a sweet savor. Ephesians 5:1,2 Psalm 150

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;(Ephesians 5:1)

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. (Ephesians 5:2)

Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.(Psalm 150:1)

Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. (Psalm 150:2)

Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.(Psalm 150:3)

Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. (Psalm 150:4)

Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. (Psalm 150:5)

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD. (Psalm 150:6)

As Israel rejoiced Hezekiah saw all his brethren in the sacrifices. Although they were not present, his heart was present for them. The priests, the Levites, the leaders, and the people had one heart for the Lord. This always brings forth the greatest praise from the inner soul for the Omnipotent God who had created heaven and earth.

The final sacrifice was God’s dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. On that day, there was no song, there was no singing, nor blowing of trumpets, nor playing the harp, nor striking the cymbals, all was quite in darkness. Man’s heart full of hatred towards God and His Son had reached the fullness of man’s evil at the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary’s cross. They had killed the Prince of Life.

Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: (Acts 2:22)

Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: (Acts 2:22)

Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? (Acts 4:25)

The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. (Acts 4:26)

For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, (Acts 4:27)

For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. (Acts 4:28)

Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:29)

The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. (Acts 5:30)

Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.(Acts 5:31)

And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. (Acts 5:32)

When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them. (Acts 5:33)

The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. (Acts 3:13)

But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; (Acts 3:14)

And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. (Acts 3:15)

And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. (Acts 3:16)

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. (Acts 7:51)

Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: (Acts 7:52)

All these Scriptures from the Book of Acts show the condition of man under sin. Man in his condition with his evil heart cannot escape, he is doomed without hope, and without God in this world. Without divine intervention man would perish eternally, but in the love of God’s grace, through the sacrifice of God’s Son, and the work of the Spirit of grace brings forth new birth, new life in a repentant soul. When a child is born to God there is joy in heaven that resounds with the like of the days of Hezekiah. It is life from above to the repentant soul. We are united to Christ by the Spirit of God. Faith is the tangible gift from the Lord Jesus, and He is the object of that faith to everlasting grace and life. Let the trumpets sound so that all can hear the joy of the children of God in Jesus Christ. We are our beloved, and He is ours. Let’s join with Him and sing praise in the midst of the Church for His redeeming love towards us. Was this not the joy in the days of Hezekiah. Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the LORD with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.

<<A Song of degrees of David.>> Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; (Psalm 133:2)

As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore. (Psalm 133:3)

All the requirements of Jehovah were met. They were all gathered together in one heart to their God. This brought forth singing and worship, they were joined together in joyful song. The Israelites now sings ‘let my heart ascend as an offering to Jehovah, let me worship the God of salvation.’ The king worships, the leaders worship, the priests and the Levites worship, and the people worship all with one heart and mind to the glory of Jehovah. But that’s not all . . . the king now sees the hearts of the people lifted up to heaven in their worship, and announces with great joy to bring more offerings and the heart of the people were in like mind with the king. The people then responded with thousands of offerings.

Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the LORD, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of the LORD. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a free heart burnt offerings. (2 Chronicles 29:31)

And the number of the burnt offerings, which the congregation brought, was threescore and ten bullocks, an hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all these were for a burnt offering to the LORD. (2 Chronicles 29:32)

And the consecrated things were six hundred oxen and three thousand sheep. (2 Chronicles 29:33)

There were so many offerings that there were not enough priests to present them to Jehovah. So the Levites, being more honorable than the priests, who had not sanctified themselves, joined in this great task of offering this great sacrifice unto Jehovah. They had sanctified themselfs before Jehovah and were ready for the task ahead. Then the king rejoiced and the people, and now we see divine intervention in verse 36

And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly. (2 Chronicles 29:36)

Done Suddenly

The divine intervention was the thing was done suddenly. The Holy Spirit has a way of inserting words and phrases to bring our hearts to the matter. The Lord had prepared the people, for the thing was done suddenly. The Holy Ghost had been working long hours, and days, and years hovering, and brooding over these souls. The soul is brought to see the pain of his sin, the upheaval of his sin, and the end of his sin which is death. The people of Hezekiah’s day had seen many years of being downtrodden by the Assyrians. Their brethren, their wives, and their children had been taken into captivity, and now in a moment of time the Holy Spirit of God had drawn them back unto Jehovah — for the thing was done suddenly. The Holy Ghost is also called the ‘spirit of truth,’ which leads us to the truth which is in Jesus.

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)

Through the very words of the Lord Jesus Christ that He alone is the only way to God the Father, there is only one way to one God, and that is through Jesus Christ. Man cannot stand this truth that Christ Jesus spoke that there was only one way to God, and it was only through Him that man can have life; for man wants to point his own way, his own religion, the religion of Cain. Whose religion was rebellion against God and without repentance. Cain was of his father, the Devil, who was a murderer from the beginning. In our day, why does this ungodly world trample under foot the blood of Christ? If they don’t believe there is a God, why do they come out against Him in such evil ways? They not only have trampled under foot the blood of Christ, but they have done despite to the Spirit of grace. They have blasphemed the Holy Ghost.

In Hezekiah’s day their return to Jehovah was done suddenly. Think of your redemption. How many years did the Spirit of God brood over your heart, brood over you, and confront you with your sin and the hardness of your heart. Was not your salvation a long process of the Spirit of God working over you, and in you; and suddenly the Spirit of God came upon you and in a twinkling of an eye you were born into the fullness of the family of God; redeemed from this world in Christ Jesus our Lord to be with Him forever. The second I believed I was made a partaker of His holy calling; I was made a part of His body, part of Him, for Christ liveth in me, and I am one with Him. Does not the heart and soul worship on these great truths? Does not the heart soar into the heavens to have sweet fellowship with the Lord of glory? Was not the thing done suddenly in that moment of time, we were changed from darkness to light, we were brought into the glory of the Lord. We have a new home, and eternal life. None of this is of the earth, for we yearn to be in His presence, and to stay in His presence as a child faces his first school day, longing to stay with his parents, clinging to them with tears, yet lessons have to be learned. Life’s trials have to take place, we are saved by His grace, he now leads us through this life teaching us His ways and His truth, preparing us to don the veil of His bride. Oh, that man could see the beauties of Christ. The wonder of His name, the grace of His lips — our hearts worship, so the heart of king Hezekiah as he looked over the people prepared to meet Jehovah with heart felt worship.

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalm 136:1)

O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalm 136:2)

O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalm 136:3)

To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalm 136:4)

To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever. (Psalm 136:5)

Amen.

© Copyright 2015, Michael Haigh

Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.

All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)