Глава 31

1–21. Hezekiah's concerns about the restoration of the orders of priesthood and the sources of support for the Levites and priests. 2 Chronicles 31:1. And when all this was finished, all the Israelites who were there went to the cities of Judah and broke the statues, cut down the dedicated trees, and destroyed the high places and altars in all Judah and in the land of Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh, to the end. And then all the children of Israel returned, every one to his possession, to his cities. Hezekiah’s religious zeal for the destruction of the pagan cult and not only within the kingdom of Judah (2 Kings 18:4), but also on the territory of the kingdom of Israel (which was then living out the last days of independent political existence), could find, as already mentioned, a sympathetic response from the last Israeli king Hosea. Both kings could fulfill the corresponding prescription of the law with equal zeal (Deut. 7:5). 2 Chronicles 31:2. And Hezekiah appointed the lines of priests and Levites, according to their distribution, each for his own work, priestly or Levitical, for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, for service, for praise and glorification, at the gate of the house of the Lord. The distribution of priests and Levites into turns of priestly service was carried out at one time by David (1 Chronicles 24:19), but under his wicked successors on the Jewish throne, like the entire practice of the cult of Jehovah, could not remain intact, especially under Ahaz, when the church itself was locked. Hezekiah, in order to ensure the correct flow of everyday and festive worship, restored the priestly and Levitical lines to serve “at the gates of the house of the Lord” (Heb. bishaare mahinot Jehovah, Vulgata: en portis castrorum Domini), i.e. church (LXX: ἐν ταῖς πύλαισ (ἐν ταῖς αὐλαῖς) ὄικου Κυρίου ). 2 Chronicles 31:3. And the king designated a portion of his wealth for burnt offerings: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and for the burnt offerings of the Sabbaths, and of the new moons, and of the feasts, as it is written in the law of the Lord. The custom of kings supplying materials for church sacrifices probably began with David. This is directly stated about Solomon in (2 Chronicles 8:12–13), and is also suggested in the story of Solomon’s visit to the Queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10:4–5). The prophet Ezekiel speaks of the delivery of sacrificial materials to the church as the duty of a prince (Ezek. 45:16–17). After the captivity, in the absence of a national king or prince, the Jewish community established an annual poll tax: 1/3 of a shekel to support daily worship (Neh. 10:32–33). 2 Chronicles 31:4. And he commanded the people living in Jerusalem to give a certain allowance to the priests and Levites, so that they would be zealous in the law of the Lord. While ensuring the normal and continuous performance of sacrifices (v. 3), Hezekiah also takes care of providing for the maintenance of the clergy (cf. Neh. 13:10), in accordance with the requirements of the law in this regard ((Num. 18:20–32); “Explanatory Bible”, vol. I, pp. 549–550) 2 Chronicles 31:5. When this commandment was made public, then the children of Israel brought in abundance of the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and all the produce of the field; and tithes of everything were given in abundance. 2 Chronicles 31:6. And the Israelites and the Jews who dwelt in the cities of Judah also presented tithes of herds and flocks, and tithes of offerings dedicated to the Lord their God; and they piled up piles and piles. 2 Chronicles 31:7. In the third month they began to lay piles, and in the seventh month they finished. 2 Chronicles 31:8. And Hezekiah and the nobles came and saw the heaps, and thanked the Lord and his people Israel. 2 Chronicles 31:9. And Hezekiah asked the priests and Levites about these heaps. Among the abundant theocratic offerings of the people, who responded with great readiness to the call of the king, is honey - probably fruit, prohibited by law (Lev. 2:11) only as a material for sacrifice, but not as a kind of theocratic tribute ("Explanatory Bible", vol. I, p. 415). The collection of offerings began in the third month - after the captivity, called Sivan ((Esth.8:9); around the feast of Pentecost - the feast of the harvest: (Ex.23:16)) and continued until the seventh month - Tisri, when, among other things, the Feast of Tabernacles was celebrated, the feast of gathering fruits (Ex.23:16) (see "Explanatory Bible", I, pp. 483-486). 2 Chronicles 31:10. And Azariah the high priest of the house of Zadok answered him and said, “Since the time they began to bring offerings into the house of the Lord, we have eaten our fill, and there is much left over, because the Lord has blessed His people.” From what remained there was made up such a multitude. 2 Chronicles 31:11. And Hezekiah ordered the chambers of the house of the Lord to be prepared. And they prepared it. “From the house of Sadok” (v. 10) – known from the initial history of ch. (1 Kings 1–2) the high priest Zadok, from the line of Eleazar, son of Aaron (1 Chronicles 24:3). Solomon built numerous side extensions at the church, which housed various storerooms ((1 Kings 6:5–6); “Explanatory Bible,” vol. II, p. 388). By Hezekiah's time, some of them might have fallen into disrepair or even been destroyed, and Hezekiah had to build new ones to house the abundant offerings from the people for the benefit of the clergy. 2 Chronicles 31:12. And they brought the offerings and tithes and offerings there with all precision. And Chonanah the Levite was chief over them, and Shimei his brother was second. 2 Chronicles 31:13. And Jehiel and Azaziah, and Nahath and Asahel, and Jerimoth and Jozabad, and Eliel and Ismahiah, and Mahath and Benaniah, were overseers under the hand of Chonaniah and Shimei his brother, according to the order of king Hezekiah and Azariah, the ruler of the house of God. 2 Chronicles 31:14. Kore, the son of Imna, the Levite, the gatekeeper on the eastern side, was with the voluntary offerings to God, for the delivery of what was brought to the Lord and the most important of the things dedicated. 2 Chronicles 31:15. And under his authority were Eden, and Minimin, and Yeshua, and Shemaiah, and Amariah, and Shechaniah in the priestly cities, to faithfully distribute portions to his brothers, both great and small, 2 Chronicles 31:16. above the list of them, to all the males from three years old and upward, to all who go to the house of the Lord for daily work, for their service, according to their offices and according to their departments, 2 Chronicles 31:17. and the priests who were listed according to their generations, and the Levites from twenty years old and upward, according to their offices, according to their departments, 2 Chronicles 31:18. and those included in the list, with all their minors, with their wives and with their sons and with their daughters - the whole community, for they devoted themselves with all fidelity to the sacred service. 2 Chronicles 31:19. And for the sons of Aaron, priests in the villages around their cities, named men were appointed in each city to distribute plots to all the males of the priests and to all those included in the list of the Levites. We read about a similar collection of theocratic offerings into the storerooms of the church in the book of Nehemiah (Neh. 9:35–40) about the time after the exile. “The ruler of the house of God” (v. 13), see (1 Chronicles 9:11) - the high priest (Vulgata: pontifex domus Dei) or a special official in charge of the reception and distribution of offerings. Verse 17. The initial age of Levitical service here and in (1 Chron. 23:3,24-28) is determined to be 20 years; in the legislation of Moses it is proven either at 30 (Num. 4:3,23,30), or at 25 years (Num. 8:24). Apparently, David found it necessary to call the Levites to serve at an earlier age (20 years old), and this practice was observed subsequently - not only under Hezekiah, but also after the captivity (1 Ezra 3:8). However, the independent responsible service of the Levites at the church could begin, in accordance with the instructions of Moses, no earlier than 30 years old; until that same age, they could only serve as assistants to the senior Levites (see The Explanatory Bible, vol. I, p. 525). Art. 18–19. All of Hezekiah’s concerns regarding theocratic offerings were aimed at ensuring that they were distributed among the priests and Levites according to their belonging “with all fidelity” - in order to prevent possible insults and deceptions of the lower members of the clergy by the higher ones. In subsequent history, such regrettable phenomena sometimes happened. Thus, under the procurator Felix (see Acts 23–24), says I. Flavius, “the high priests so lost all shame and reached such insolence that they decided to send their servants to the threshing floors in order to take away the tithes intended for ordinary clergy. Thus it happened that several poor priests died of hunger” (“Antiquities of the Jews,” book XX, chapter 8, 8). The entire section on the priestly and Levitical sequences introduced by Hezekiah and the sources of their content, distinguished by punctually precise details and containing a whole series of names (vv. 12–15), has all the signs of documentary and historical authenticity. 2 Chronicles 31:20. This is what Hezekiah did throughout all Judah—and he did what was good and just and true before the Lord his God. 2 Chronicles 31:21. And in everything that he undertook to serve the house of God and to keep the law and commandments, thinking about his God, he acted with all his heart and was successful. Here is the highest praise for all the theocratic and liturgical activities of Hezekiah, essentially identical with that given in (2 Kings 18:3,5). You might be interested in: