1 Chronicles 16 - The importance of worship

The ark was placed inside a tent. In many ways these seems a most inauspicious place for the ark of the covenant, which represented the presence of God, to be placed. 

David then appoints various Levites to specific roles in worship. Praising God is an essential and vital part of our lives. We were created to worship God, and whatever the circumstances we find ourselves in, no matter how well or badly we are coping with them, no matter whether we haven't a clue what to do next, it is always worth worshipping God, it is always the right thing to do.

Sometimes in churches the preaching of the word and worship can seem to be out of balance. Sometimes there is such an emphasis on the word that the worship is seen as just a prelude to the really important part. Conversely, at other times the worship can be seen to be the be all and end all. Both are absolutely essential.

David's psalm of praise given here was a guide to how to worship God. We praise the Lord and proclaim His name, ie proclaim who He is. Moreover, this includes making known His deeds among the nations. There is a link between worship and evangelism. Worship of God is not a private matter.

Notice the emphasis on what God has done. Sometimes we say that we should worship God for who He is not for what He can do for us. Well this is OK as far as it goes, but it is actually unbiblical, for God demonstrates who He is by what He does.

God's covenant and associated judgements are another element of worship. We need to understand what God has done. So worship and word go together and enhance each other.

David praises God for His acts of salvation. How much more are we able to do this now after Jesus' death and resurrection!

Then there is God's protection and care for His people, and the fact that He is the only true God.

Worship us what we were created to do.

1 Chronicles 15 - The Ark returned

The ark was placed in a tent. Perhaps this is a reminder to the people who were seeking to restore Jerusalem that this was not the first time that God had not had a "proper" temple. Having learnt his lesson from the falling ark incident, David followed the Law and ensured that only the Levites were to take charge of the Ark.

The Levites were assembled for the  dedication of the ark. Verse 13 emphasises the reason for the failure of the initial attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem. This is a reminder that it is God who decides how things should be done, not us. Atheists in particular are very fond of deciding how God should behave. However, all of us are prone to this. David was a godly man, but then he followed his own ideas which were contrary to God's. We too can easily do the same. As it says in Proverbs, there is a way that seems right to man, but it leads only to death (Prov 14:12, 16:25).

Music was given great prominence in the worship that was associated with the ark. It always seems strange to me that some parts of the church seem to be so against music, and others seem to think that all church music must be ancient. Now it is true that some modern "worship" songs are pathetic, but there are also many excellent ones. Moreover, not every worship song or hymn needs to have a long life, some may just be for a season. As in all things, we need to use discernment.

It is interesting that Michal is referred to as Saul's daughter, but not David's wife.

1 Chronicles 14 - Defeating the Philistines

David's kingdom was established and he received help from the king of Tyre. We are also told that David took several wives and the children he had by them are mentioned. This included Solomon.

The Philistines went to try and defeat David, emphasising again that opposition is normal. David's response to the opposition was to go and meet the opposition. He also asked the Lord for guidance. So David had an attitude of boldness and a humble trust in the Lord. We have a tendency to either go out in our own strength without inquiring of the Lord, or to do nothing and just ask the Lord.

So David defeated the Philistines and he also destroyed their idols.

The Philistines attacked again. The enemy will not often be satisfied with just one attack. In Jesus' life there was constant opposition. David inquired of the Lord again. The Lord gave him the military tactics to use in the battle. Note also that the Lord was active in the battle as well (v15). The Biblical pattern is that God works with and through us. We have a part to play, but God is doing other things as well. It is about us, but it is not just about us.

Once again the Philistines were defeated.

1 Chronicles 13 - Setbacks are normal

Now we read of David bringing back the ark to Jerusalem.

David sends a proclamation throughout the land to come and join the nation in bringing the ark back. So there is again an emphasis on the whole nation working together. Verse 3 is also very important. Saul inquired of mediums and idols instead of inquiring of the Lord, and this is the key reason for all the defeats.

The incident of the ark falling and Uzzah's death are reported. So David was deeply discouraged. The writer is making the point that discouragement and setbacks are normal. David was seen as the great king, yet even he got things wrong and suffered setbacks. So the people should not be too downhearted that they were suffering their own setbacks. 

Note also the point that though the ark was sort of sidelined, it brought blessing to those who were looking after it.

1 Chronicles 11,12 - Uniting behind the task

The people recognise David as king and acknowledge that during the reign of Saul it was David who was responsible for their victories, and that God had anointed him as king to shepherd His people. There is an obvious parallel with Jesus here. Even under the Law it was Jesus who was responsible for all the "good things". Victories that were achieved, salvation that was granted, were all given by the grace of God. And, of course, God has appointed Jesus as shepherd over us. He is our ruler and the One who cares for us. Note that in all this the writer of Chronicles is assuming that the readers know about all the stuff in 1 and 2 Samuel and Kings. He is in a sense interpreting the history.

David then captured Jerusalem, this was despite the Jebusites declaring that David would never get in. Moreover, there was a reward for the one who led the attack. The message here is that although the task of rebuilding Jerusalem seemed daunting and there were many voices telling them they would never succeed (see Ezra and Nehemiah) they did succeed. Moreover, there is an encouragement to commit themselves wholeheartedly to the work.

The list of mighty warriors expands on the list in 2 Samuel 23:8-39. There appears to be a copyists error in verse 11 where it says 300, whereas it says 800 in 2 Sam 23:8. The list in 2 Samuel ends with Uriah, Chronicles expands the list.

Chapter 12 continues with lists of people who joined David. The writer is stressing commitment to David and the unity of the nation in the great task. He is trying to engender the same commitment in the people of his day.

1 Chronicles 10 - Not the end

The narrative account begins with the death of Saul, this is very similar to the account at the end of 1 Samuel (1 Sam 31:1-13). 

Verse 13 here is the most important, stating clearly why Saul had died. He had been unfaithful to the Lord, did not keep the word of the Lord, and consulted mediums instead of inquiring of the Lord Himself. So the Lord killed him and gave the kingdom to David.

There is a parallel here with the history of the nation as a whole. The whole nation had repeatedly been guilty of the same sins as Saul. This was why first the Northern kingdom of Israel, then Judah had fallen to other nations, and Israel had in a sense died in being sent to exile in Babylon. 

So the first message is that they needed to realise the source of the problem, their sin. This is something all of us need to realise. The second part of the message is that God had not actually given up on Israel. He handed the kingdom over to a faithful king, David. In fact we know from 1 Samuel that God had anointed David long before Saul's reign was finally finished. 

The immediate relevance is that God had not given up on Israel, and that they needed to be faithful to God. The ultimate message is that Jesus is the One to whom God has given the kingdom. He is the Messiah.

When the Philistines found Saul dead they hung up his head in the temple of Dagon, making a big show of boasting of their victory and humiliating Israel. Israel was a whole now felt humiliated and shamed because of her exile. There may be times when we feel the same, and sometimes it might be utterly deserved, but it is not the end. Our future depends on whether or not we turn to the Lord and trust in Him.

1 Chronicles 1:5-9:44 - Genealogies

Chapter 1 covers the time up to Jacob, with many of the offshoot tribes such as Esau (Edom) being listed as well. The pattern is apparently very similar to that used by the Assyrians in their list of genealogies. Much of the material is taken from Genesis. Note that at several points the list diverge between the chosen line and those that are not. Abraham had Ishmael and Isaac, Isaac had Esau and Israel (Jacob).

Chapters 2 and the start of 3 take us to David and his sons. After Solomon we get a whole list of the kings of Judah. The list then continues after the exile.

In Chapter 4 we get the prayer of Jabez which received much attention a few years ago. It was common to put brief historical notes in genealogies. Maybe to liven things up a little and break the monotony of it all! Jabez, whose name means "pain" cried out to God to be free from pain and for God to enlarge his territory. Interestingly Isaiah tells the widow to enlarge the place of her tent. 

We get genealogies of all the tribes of Israel.

Chapter nine includes lists of various people and officers in the nation Finally we come to an end of this lot at the end of chapter 9.

Apologies for giving so little spiritual insight into this, that is because I have none on this matter!