2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 5: God's glory fills His house

Begin in prayer

Before we read how the ark came into the new house and the cloud filled it, let us pray. Ask God to show us His glory and His goodness, and to point us to Christ.

Oh magnify Yahweh with me. Let us exalt his name together.

Psalm 34:3

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us Your goodness and Your glory, and help us to see Jesus as the One who shows You to us. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

The work on the LORD's house is finished, and Solomon brings in the silver and gold that David had set apart. He gathers the elders and the heads of the tribes to Jerusalem for the feast in the seventh month. The Levites carry the ark up, and so many sheep and cattle are sacrificed that no one can count them. The priests set the ark in the most holy place under the wings of the cherubim. Singers and priests with trumpets stand together and praise the LORD with one sound. Then a cloud fills the house, and the priests cannot stand to serve, because the glory of the LORD fills it.

As you read 2 Chronicles 5, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

The LORD filled His house with a cloud of glory while His people praised Him for His goodness.

This chapter is the day the new house was opened, and it begins when the work was finished (verse 1). The ark was a chest, and it held only the two tablets Moses had put there at Horeb (verse 10). The Levites carried it, and the priests set it in the most holy place under the cherubim (verses 4 to 7). The singers and trumpeters sounded as one, and their one sound was praise and thanks to the LORD (verse 13). Their song was short, “For he is good; for his loving kindness endures forever!” (verse 13). Then a cloud filled the house, and the priests could not stand to minister, for the LORD's glory filled it (verse 14). The people built the house, but only the LORD could fill it with His glory. This shows that God Himself meets His people, and that His goodness and loving kindness are why they praise Him.

How does 2 Chronicles 5 show us that the LORD filled His house with a cloud of glory while His people praised Him for His goodness?

The ark was set in the most holy place.

The Levites took up the ark, and the priests brought it into the most holy place (verses 4 and 7). King Solomon and all Israel sacrificed so many sheep and cattle that no one could count them (verse 6). The poles stuck out so that their ends could be seen from the front (verse 9). The ark held only the two tablets that Moses put there at Horeb (verse 10).

The singers praised the LORD with one voice.

The priests had made themselves holy, and the Levite singers stood at the east end of the altar (verses 11 and 12). With them stood one hundred twenty priests who sounded trumpets (verse 12). Cymbals, harps and stringed instruments played with them (verse 12). They sounded as one, to praise and thank the LORD (verse 13).

The LORD's glory filled the house in a cloud.

After the singers praised the LORD, the house was filled with a cloud (verse 13). The priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud (verse 14). The text says the cloud came because the LORD's glory filled God's house (verse 14). The people had built a house, but the LORD Himself filled it.

Jesus is the radiance of God's glory.

Hebrews says the Son shines with the glory of God (Hebrews 1 verse 3). Paul says the light of the knowledge of God's glory shines in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4 verse 6). The cloud that filled the house was the LORD's glory, and Jesus is that same glory seen in a man. The priests could not stand before the cloud, and sinners can come to Jesus because He bore their sin.

Memorise

For he is good; for his loving kindness endures forever!

2 Chronicles 5:13

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, can I stand before the glory of God, and do I need Jesus?

The priests could not stand to serve, “for Yahweh’s glory filled God’s house.” Jesus is the radiance of God's glory (Hebrews 1 verse 3). The glory of God is seen in His face (2 Corinthians 4 verse 6).

Sinners cannot stand before such glory by themselves. So the Son of God became a man. At the cross He died for His people and made purification for their sins (Hebrews 1 verse 3). His death was enough for them all. He rose from the dead and sat down at the right hand of God.

So come to Him. Turn from your sin and put your trust in Jesus. Everyone who trusts Him will find forgiveness and a welcome in the presence of God.

Parent's note

Tell your children that the LORD filled His house with glory while His people praised Him, and that Jesus shows God's glory. Parents, please explain that the ark was a chest holding the tablets, and that the cloud showed the LORD's glory. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for His goodness and for His loving kindness that lasts forever, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

Praise Yahweh! Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.

Psalm 106:1

Father, thank You that You are good and that Your loving kindness lasts forever. Thank You for Jesus, who shows us Your glory and died for sinners. Please lead each of us to turn from our sin and trust Him. Amen.