A Grander Scheme: “The Problem” (Part 3)
One Year Bible (July 17)
I Chronicles 24:1-26:11
A GRANDER SCHEME: “The Problem” (Part Three)
There is an older worship song called, The Heart of Worship”. If you don’t know it, I encourage you to give it a listen. The words are so penetrating to the soul!
“I’m comin’ back to the heart of worship And it’s all about YOU. It’s all about You, Jesus.” (Redman)
Today’s passage focuses on all of the men who were under the direction of their fathers as they made music at the house of the Lord. Their responsibilities included the playing of cymbals, harps, and lyres at the house of God.” (I Chronicles 25:6)
‘The Chronicler” is reminding the people from exile of their calling to return to worship God and to reestablish the responsibilities of the temple.
I Chronicles 21 has a message that “gets to the heart of the matter”...David, “the man after God’s own heart” has sinned greatly bringing a plague of death on 70,000 Israelites.
This humble king who had laid aside his royal robe to dance in a priestly garment worshipping the Lord with all his might while bringing the Ark of the Covenant home to the Temple has fallen into great sin. (2 Sam. 6:14)
In our June 5 post based on 2 Samuel 23: 24-24:25 we looked at how David got “Out of the frying pan and into the fire.”
David had come out of a season of discipline from the Lord because of his sin with Bathsheba. Then he proceeded into another season of discipline from the Lord with his “taking the census”.
It is interesting that the Chronicler who is writing the books of I and II Chronicles completely leaves the details of the “adulterous sin, murder, and consequences” out of this book.
Why do you think he chose to leave this part of the story out?
Not only is he leaving this detail out, but he is also giving new information for us to consider about the census. 2 Chronicles 2:17 says, “Solomon took a census…after the census, his father David had taken…”
Is Solomon in big trouble like his daddy was? How did Solomon’s census compare to his father’s census?
I Chronicles 21 has a message that helps us “get to the heart of the matter”...
First, let’s look at a little background about the census. A census in Bible times was taken for two basic reasons, preparation for TAXES or WAR.
All of the wars that David had won were with a voluntary army and under God’s direction. God had made David “famous”, and now late in his life, David tried to push ahead and expand his kingdom for his wealth or glory without consulting God first. This was his sin.
David did not rise to the place that he held without God, but now he is setting course without God’s guidance.
We also see that there were laws in place about taxing the Israelite citizens vs. foreigners and also about taxing those under twenty years of age, something forbidden by the Torah. ( I Chronicles 27: 23-24). There was also a half-shekel tax per person to be applied. (Exodus 30:11-16)
I think it would be so interesting to hear a Jewish Rabbi teach about what this passage meant to people in this time… Very enlightening!
Here is where the “rubber hits the road”. We may not understand all of the “In’s and Out’s” of the Jewish laws of that day, but EVEN "Jabbing Joab" knew David’s request was SERIOUSLY WRONG!
“Why do you want to do ‘THIS THING’?” This was Joab's very first question to David. This should have given him great pause!
Next, we see that David also knew this was very wrong, “I have sinned GREATLY by taking this census, Please forgive my guilt, Lord, for doing such a foolish thing.” (2 Samuel 23:10)
There is another interesting passage that tells us about David’s mindset in 11 Samuel 23 that is quite intriguing. Here it says that “the anger of the LORD burned against Israel and it incited David against them.”
This tells us that there was some nationwide sin at this time and that David’s motive for his actions may have come out of anger.
Remember Joab’s question to David, “Why do you want to do, "THIS THING”?
“THIS THING” is called PRIDE which is a “heart condition” of all mankind.
David needed rescue, and so do we...This redemption is part of “The GRANDER SCHEME”.
“I’m sorry, Lord for the thing I’ve made it.
When it’s all about You. It’s all about You, Jesus.” (Redman)
