1034 - Hezekiah’s Reforms Inspired the People

 Hezekiah’s Reforms Inspired the People 


When the festival (of Unleavened Bread) ended in Jerusalem that year, the Israelites who attended, went to all the towns.. of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh, and they smashed all the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherah poles, and removed the pagan shrines and altars. 


After this, the Israelites returned to their own towns and homes. 


Hezekiah then organized the priests and Levites into divisions, to offer the burnt offerings and peace offerings, and to worship, and to give thanks and praise to the Lord, at the gates of the Temple. 


The king also made a personal contribution of animals, for the daily morning and the evening burnt offerings, the weekly Sabbath festivals, the monthly new moon festivals, and the annual festivals, as prescribed in the Law of the Lord. 


In addition, he required the people, in Jerusalem, to bring a portion of their goods, to the priests and Levites, so they could devote themselves fully, to the Law of the Lord. 


When the people of Israel heard these requirements, they responded generously, by bringing the first share… of their grain, new wine, olive oil, honey, and all the produce of their fields. 


They brought a large quantity—a tithe of all they produced. 


The people, who had moved to Judah, from Israel, and the people of Judah themselves, brought in the tithes… of their cattle, their sheep, and their goats …and a tithe of the things that had been dedicated to the Lord, their God, ….and they piled them up in great heaps. 


They began piling them up, in late spring, and the heaps continued to grow, until early autumn. 


When Hezekiah, and his officials, saw these huge piles, they thanked the Lord …and his people, Israel! 


“Where did all this come from?” 


Hezekiah asked the priests and Levites. 


And Azariah, the high priest, from the family of Zadok, replied, 


“Since the people began bringing their gifts, to the Lord’s Temple, we have had enough to eat …and plenty to spare. 


The Lord has blessed His people, and all this is left over.” 


2 Chronicles 31:1–10 (NLT)


Praise be to God!



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