Christ In The Old Testament: 2ND CHRONICLES
The HISTORIC
Having seen how Christ displayed in the first book, let’s delve deeper into the second.
Leggo!
The historical narrative of 2 Chronicles provides profound insights into the role of Christ throughout its course.
BACKGROUND
2 Chronicles demonstrates the divine consequences of faithfulness and apostasy among God's people, spanning the period from 959 to 586 BC, marking the construction and ultimate destruction of Solomon's temple—an emblem of paramount significance in Israel.
Throughout, it becomes evident that God prioritizes unwavering allegiance above all else. The book concludes with a glimmer of hope as exiled Israelites are permitted to return home and restore their temple.
Notably, God's Spirit inspires select priests and prophets, drawing parallels with the guidance offered by biblical figures such as Isaiah and Jeremiah.
Four illustrious kings—Asa, Joash, Hezekiah, and Josiah—stand out for their endeavors to lead Israel back to God by addressing sin, refurbishing the temple, and promoting wholehearted worship.
STORY
Key Themes: The Davidic dynasty, the Temple, Rewards of obedience, and Consequences of disobedience.
Timeline: Spanning from Solomon's ascent to power until the initial year of Cyrus, the Persian king's rule over Babylon—spanning over 430 years (circa 970 - 538 BC).
During Solomon's reign, the geopolitical landscape favored Israel's expansion, with weakened neighboring superpowers.
Successively, three Mesopotamian empires rose to global prominence:
1. Assyria, which culminated in 612 BC, following the conquest of the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC.
2. Babylon, or Chaldea, reached its zenith in 538 BC after subduing the Southern Kingdom of Judah in 586 BC.
3. Persia emerged next, facilitating the return of Israelite exiles and persisting throughout the Old Testament era until its fall to Alexander the Great and the Greeks in 331 BC.
ORIGINAL HISTORICAL SETTING
Author: The author remains anonymous, but it may have been Ezra.
Date of Writing: Approximately 450 BC.
First Audience and Destination: Primarily addressed to the Israelites in Jerusalem after their return from exile.
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY
Following Solomon's magnificent reign, marked by the temple's consecration, subsequent Davidic kings, exhibiting varying degrees of righteousness, governed Jerusalem until the temple's devastation and the ensuing exile.
CHRIST IN 2ND CHRONICLES
2 Chronicles unveils the lineage of David's successors who ruled from Jerusalem, underlining their success when they honored God and worshipped in His temple. By the book's conclusion, with neither a reigning monarch nor a standing temple, the realization dawns that God's eternal kingdom transcends the temporal constructs of kings and temples.
The stage is set for the arrival of the everlasting King, who, as the Son of David, will rule eternally. This eternal temple, as elucidated in Ephesians 2:20-21, is not of bricks and mortar but the indwelling of God's Spirit within His people.
“built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.” (Ephesians 2:20–21, NIV)
Solomon's resplendent reign as Israel's third king serves as a foreshadowing of Christ's eternal dominion in the new Jerusalem, a vision described in Revelation 21-22.
