Rev. Don Campbell
2 Chronicles 6-7; Psalm 136
THOUGHT FOR TODAY, June 14, 2019
“SECOND VERSE SAME AS THE FIRST”
In 1965 Herman’s Hermits revived the 1910 Music Hall song Henry the Eighth, which became the fastest-selling song in history up to that point. It became their second number-one hit on Billboard Hot 100. The catchy line was “Second verse same as the first.”
When Solomon dedicated the temple to God and had finished his prayer of dedication, fire came down from heaven and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. The people praised the Lord, saying, “For He is good, for His mercy endures forever” (2 Chronicles 7:3, 6).
Psalm 136 has 26 verses and the refrain “For His mercy endures forever” is in every one of them. David exhorts, “Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalms 30:4-5). Sometimes we flip this, leaving the impression that God has an angry personality and is hard to placate. For example, the refrain of one hymn says, “Showers of blessing, Showers of blessing we need; Mercy-drops round us are falling, But for the showers we plead.”
Upon the dedication of the temple, Solomon prayed: “If they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to a land far or near, yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,’ if they repent with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity to which they were carried captive, and pray toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name, then hear from heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their pleas, and maintain their cause and forgive your people who have sinned against you” (2 Chronicles 6:36-39).
God answered: “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place” (2 Chronicles 7:12-15)
CONNECTIONS
1. In marketing, there is a slogan “Match your message to your market.” What was Jesus’ one-word message to the struggling God-seekers? (Matthew 5:1-10)
2. What one-word message did Jesus give to the scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites? (Matthew 23:13-29)?
