Imagine if this were America after losing a major war to major powers like China and Russia, starting with destruction of our electrical grid and all communications. What matters most to America? And how do we best keep God’s judgment from raining down on us now like it did on Israel?
Remember that our entire study is based on classifying ten themes of the Cycle of disunity verse by verse: unity with God; commands of God; temptation; disobedience; disunity; warning; judgment; God’s never-ending love; repentance; and restoration. Since Chronicles repeats many historical facts from Samuel and Kings, to “double-score” those facts would skew our tally. So the challenge is to add only those verses in Chronicles that are not repetitive from previous books of the Bible.
This explains why your trusty blogger dares cover 15 chapters in one blog today!
The lone addition comes in 1 Chronicles 15:13 (after seemingly endless genealogies):
13 “Because you did not carry it the first time, the Lord our God broke out against us, because we did not seek him according to the rule.”[1]
What matters most to David when he becomes king is restoring the ark of Israel’s covenant with God, containing the original Ten Commandments, to the holiest of places inside the tent of meeting. But because the people of Israel have accidentally violated a very clear command that only the Levite priests are allowed to carry the ark, a man dies when he touches it. David corrects that error in repentance, the ark is carried according to the rule of Mosaic Law by the Levites, and it is restored to its holiest place.
Post-modern culture in America today would read this passage in horror and declare, “This law is ridiculous, offensive, and abusive. It should be erased from the law!” A certain candidate would promise to eliminate it with an amendment submitted to God in her first thirty days in office.
So what is it in America that, if stolen by an enemy, would be so precious that a leader in the aftermath would immediately restore it, and what difference, at this point, does it make?
It is the Constitution of the United States, and we are on the verge of eliminating parts of it we don’t like because someone may get hurt if we obey all its rules. Could it be that our greatest enemy lies within?
The parallel with Israel suggests that we could lose our nation and our liberty by appointing Supreme Court judges very soon to whittle away the God-inspired wisdom of our founders, ignoring the inconvenient, inspired truths of the Constitution.
To avoid God’s judgment, we must reject all assaults on our liberty now. This is what matters most to America today.
Let us learn the lesson of Israel and act before it is too late and we find ourselves trying to pick up the pieces after total devastation by the judgment of God for rejecting his role in our foundation.
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001). (1 Ch 15:13). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.