Context No. 3576 of 4322 · 2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 35:7-15: in context

7Josiah gave to the children of the people, of the flock, lambs and young goats, all of them for the Passover offerings, to all who were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bulls. These were of the king’s substance. 8His princes gave a free will offering to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the rulers of God’s house, gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand six hundred small livestock, and three hundred head of cattle. 9Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, and Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad, the chiefs of the Levites, gave to the Levites for the Passover offerings five thousand small livestock and five hundred head of cattle. 10So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites by their divisions, according to the king’s commandment. 11They killed the Passover lambs, and the priests sprinkled the blood which they received from their hands, and the Levites skinned them. 12They removed the burnt offerings, that they might give them according to the divisions of the fathers’ houses of the children of the people, to offer to the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. They did the same with the cattle. 13They roasted the Passover with fire according to the ordinance. They boiled the holy offerings in pots, in cauldrons, and in pans, and carried them quickly to all the children of the people. 14Afterward they prepared for themselves and for the priests, because the priests the sons of Aaron were busy with offering the burnt offerings and the fat until night. Therefore the Levites prepared for themselves and for the priests the sons of Aaron. 15The singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their place, according to the commandment of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer; and the gatekeepers were at every gate. They didn’t need to depart from their service, because their brothers the Levites prepared for them.

King Josiah leads Israel in a great Passover, and what stands out is the generosity and the good order of it. The king gives thirty thousand lambs and goats, and thousands of cattle, from his own possessions for the people's offerings; his officials give freely too; and everyone serves in their appointed place.

Priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, each keeps his post, so that the whole celebration goes forward smoothly and joyfully, and no one has to leave his service. There is a picture here of a community worshiping God well: leaders giving sacrificially and generously to make worship possible for the people, and every person faithfully doing his part so that nothing is neglected. Great worship of God is not accidental; it flows from generous, self-giving leadership and from many people each keeping their appointed role. When the king gives from his own substance and every servant keeps his post, the worship of God flourishes and the whole people are served.

Do I give generously and serve faithfully in my own place so that the worship of God can flourish, following the example of leaders who gave from their own substance?

Sources

2 Chronicles 35:7: "Josiah gave to the children of the people... thirty thousand, and three thousand bulls. These were of the king's substance."
2 Chronicles 35:10: "So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites by their divisions."
2 Chronicles 35:15: "The singers... were in their place... and the gatekeepers were at every gate. They didn't need to depart from their service."