I Chronicles 24
Four sons of Aaron verse 1- 2
Now these are the divisions of the sons of Aaron – the sons of Aaron
Nadab – Abihu – Eleazar – Ithamar
But Nadab and Abihu died before their father – and had no children
therefore Eleazar and Ithamar executed the priest’s office
Two remaining sons of Aaron verse 3- 4
And David distributed them – both Zadok of the sons of Eleazar
and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar
according to their offices in their service
And there were more chief men found of the sons of Eleazar than of
the sons of Ithamar – and thus were they divided
Among the sons of Eleazar there were sixteen chief men of the house of
their fathers – and eight among the sons of Ithamar
according to the house of their fathers
Assignments of priests were done by casting lots verse 5- 6
Thus were they divided by lot – one sort with another
for the governors of the sanctuary
and governors of the house of God
were of the sons of Eleazar
and of the sons of Ithamar
And Shemaiah the son of Nethaneel the scribe – one of the Levites
wrote them before the king and the princes – and Zadok the priest
and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar
and before the chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites
one principal household being taken for Eleazar
and one taken for Ithamar
Twenty- four groups of priests verse 7- 18
Now the first lot came forth to Jehoiarib – the second to Jedaiah
the third to Harim – the fourth to Seorim – the fifth to Malchijah
the sixth to Mijamin – the seventh to Hakkoz – the eighth to Abijah
the ninth to Jeshuah – the tenth to Shecaniah – the eleventh to Eliashib
the twelfth to Jakim – the thirteenth to Huppah
the fourteenth to Jeshebeab – the fifteenth to Bilgah
the sixteenth to Immer – the seventeenth to Hezir
the eighteenth to Aphses – the nineteenth to Pethahiah
the twentieth to Jehezekel – the one and twentieth to Jachin
the two and twentieth to Gamul – the three and twentieth to Delaiah
the four and twentieth to Maaziah
Assigned duties established by LORD verse 19
These were the orderings of them in their service to come into the
house of the LORD – according to their manner
under Aaron their father
as the LORD God of Israel
had commanded him
Family leaders of other Levites verse 20- 30
And the rest of the sons of Levi were these
Of the sons of Amram = Shubael – Of the sons of Shubael = Jehdeiah
concerning Rehabiah – of the sons of Rehabiah = the first was
Isshiah
Of the Izharites = Shelomoth
of the sons of Shelomoth = Jahath
And the sons of Hebron – Jeriah the first – Amariah the second
Jahaziel the third – Jekameam the fourth
Of the sons of Uzziel = Michah – of the sons of Michah = Shamir
the brothers of Michah was Isshiah
of the sons of Isshiah = Zechariah
The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi
the sons of Jaaziah = Beno – the sons of Merari by Jaaziah
Beno – Shoham – Zaccur – Ibri
Of Mahli came Eleazar – who had no sons
concerning Kish – the son of Kish was Jerahmeel
the sons also of Mushi = Mahli – Eder – Jerimoht
These were the sons of the Levites after the house of their fathers
Duties assigned to other Levites verse 31
These likewise cast lots over against their brethren the sons of Aaron in the
presence of David the king – and Zadok – and Ahimelech
and the chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites
even the principle fathers over against their
younger brethren
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 2 But Nadab and Abihu died before their father, and had no children: therefore Eleazar and Ithamar executed the priest’s office. (3547 “executed the priest’s office” [kahan] means to act as a priest, to perform the religious duties of one of the priests of Israel, the anointed priest, serve as a priest, adorn like a priest, or to be or become a priest)
DEVOTION: We need to understand who these two sons were who died before their father. They were not acting properly as priests before the LORD. It is thought they were drunk and offered a type of worship that the LORD disproved of and because of their actions HE killed them immediately.
The LORD expects those who are chosen to make sure that they take their responsibility seriously and act according to the standard that the LORD has set for those in leadership.
HE will deal with those who are not acting properly in HIS own way and in HIS own timing. Remember that those who take communion improperly are chastened of the LORD in the New Testament with weakness, sickness and premature death for their actions. This includes everyone in the pews as well as those in leadership.
Today we need to make sure we are not making strange fire in our congregational meetings. This can mean anything from the misuse of spiritual gifts to a lack of proper standards for those who are given responsibilities in the worship services.
One author titled their book “Strange Fire” to deal with the use of the spiritual gifts some think were temporary but others think are for today and use them not according to the standard set down by the LORD in the New Testament.
It would be easier if the LORD would deal with those who were not acting properly in the same way HE dealt with these two men but that doesn’t seem to be HIS method today.
CHALLENGE: Premature death is still on the table for the LORD!!! Use your gifts wisely.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 Thus were they divided by lot, one sort with another; for the governors of the sanctuary, and governors of the house of God, were of the sons of Eleazar and of the sons of Ithamar. (8269 “governors” [sar] means representative of the king, official, commander, district leader, a person who holds or is invested with an office, chief, commander, official, or person of note)
DEVOTION: The priests served about two weeks a year with the division of responsibility given in this chapter. This means that those of the tribe of Levi were each given a time period to serve in the house of the LORD.
It was only one tribe that was to act in this way. They were divided, so that, there was time for each to serve the LORD in this responsibility.
Today we find that all Christians are priests. We all have the responsibility to life a holy life in the presence of the LORD. HE gives us the power to do this through the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
We have no excuses regarding our knowledge of what God expects of us each day of our lives once we make a decision to follow HIM. We have the Bible and the Holy Spirit to give us instructions. We have our prayer life to help us understand what God is doing in our individual lives.
We are not all called to serve as pastor in a local church. We are called to serve in some capacity in the local church. We are all gifted in an area that will help the local church move forward for the LORD.
The LORD gave the children of Moses their responsibility. It was to serve the LORD in HIS Tabernacle. HE has given us each responsibility to make sure that the local church is faithful to HIM in everything that it does.
CHALLENGE: Today we have gifts that the Holy Spirit gives us to help the local church move forward in its service to the LORD.
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: 6 And Shemaiah the son of Nethaneel the scribe, one of the Levites, wrote them before the king, and the princes, and Zadok the priest, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, and before the chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites: one principal household being taken for Eleazar, and one taken for Ithamar. (1 “principal” [awb] means chief, father, ancestor progenitor, a maile parent, also used as a term of address to one’s father, founder or caregiver)
DEVOTION: Records are important. We need to keep good notes regarding decisions that are made in the local and national organizations that serve the LORD. This way there is no misunderstanding as to where the church or organization is headed in the future.
There were twenty four orders of priests and twenty four orders of Levites to help the priests. They had to work together to make the worship services for the LORD to look organized and done decently and in order as the LORD expects of anything that is done in HIS name.
If it is written down what is going to happen when then there can be no questions about what took place at the business meeting of the church or leadership meetings.
There was a good secretary at this meeting with King David to record all that took place and because of this there was no question as to who would serve when and in what capacity.
Churches need to keep good records regarding every activity in the church and away from the church. One of the areas that suffer is the area of visitation in the local community. There never seems to be a good record of where the individuals of the church visited the previous year. If the church would keep good records of addresses visited and repeat visits there would be a record of when the house should be visited next.
Every aspect of the church needs to have a record that can be checked to give a record of the direction the church is headed or not headed if there is not good visitation.
CHALLENGE: Who is writing down what is happening in your leadership meetings or other meetings of the church? Are they keeping good records???
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 19 These were the orderings of them in their service to come into the house of the LORD, according to their manner, under Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him. (6486 “orderings” [pequddah] means visitation, account, charge, custody, office, oversight, or reckoning)
DEVOTION: David was busy getting things organized for the building and worship in the Temple. He wanted to make sure that everything was in place for his son, so that, it wasn’t overwhelming to him when he became king.
David really wanted to build the Temple himself but the LORD told him that his son was going to do it. So, he did the next best thing and made sure all the supplies and guidelines were in place.
The LORD is a God of accounting for all HIS children. All HIS children have responsibility in HIS service. This chapter is a list of assignments for the priests.
They were picked by lot, so that, no one thought the LORD showed favoritism. The sons of Aaron had the responsibility to visit the house of the LORD at their given month of service. One month every two years each male descendant of Aaron was to take charge of the tabernacle. They had the oversight of all the duties of the office of priest for that month.
Not only did the priests receive their assigned duties by lot but also the other Levites received their assignments by lot for their duties. Nothing was left to chance regarding the worship of the LORD. Everything was done decently and in order. Our God is a God of order.
We are charged with responsibilities according to our giftedness. The Holy Spirit gives each of us a spiritual gift at the point of salvation. That gift is to be used in the local church to give glory to the LORD. The LORD has given us the responsibility to visit (attend) our church and serve in the area of our giftedness.
We are priests of the LORD today. We are called a kingdom of priests. We all have a ministry. One of the ministries is the ministry of reconciliation. We are to make sure that we encourage those around us to stay close to the LORD. That is our vocation. We are to serve with praise and thanksgiving on our lips.
Is this the story in each of our churches? The LORD wants everything to be done decently and in order in each of our churches. Did we report to the LORD for service this week?
Realize that you have a gift. Use your gift in the local church, so that, your world can be reached for the LORD. We have to start in our Jerusalem and then reach out to the rest of the world.
CHALLENGE: If the church does things properly the world will see our witness and want to know more about our Savior.
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: 31 These likewise cast lots over against their brethren the sons of Aaron in the presence of David the king, and Zadok, and Ahimelech, and the chief of the fathers of the priests and Levites, even the principal fathers over against their younger brethren. (7218 “principal” [ro’sh] means head, chief, captain, leader, or leading man)
DEVOTION: The lot was used to make sure there was no discrimination because of age. Each individual was chosen by lot and given the responsibility of helping the priests in their duties in the Temple.
Those who were older were not picked sooner but took their turn in the duties that had to be preformed each month. It was done to make sure that everyone was chosen on a equal basis. The Holy Spirit was in control of the lot.
Sometimes we think that younger men can’t fulfill the responsibility to use their gifts for the LORD. It is true that some younger men are not mature enough to serve in some capacities but that has to be determined by the LORD. HE is the one who opens and closes doors for individuals no matter what their age.
We need to be willing to use both older and younger men in the same place as long as the LORD gives us direction. Too often we wait too long to allow young men to be active in the church. The only way they can mature at times is to throw them into the fire of service and see what the LORD will do with them. We might be surprised to find out how talented the young men are in the local body of believers.
This can also be true of older men because some think that anyone over 30 years of age is too old to understand this new generation. That is not true there are old men who think old and there are old men who think young. We need some of the second group in all of our church leadership.
Today we don’t use lots but we do use votes. We have to make sure that we have the right individuals selected for offices and that we allow prayer to be the guide to our decisions.
CHALLENGE: Age should not be the final judge of an individual’s ability to serve in leadership roles in the local church.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Divisions of the sons of Aaron verse 1- 4
Aaron
Nadab – died with no children
Abihu – died with no children
Eleazar – executed the priest’s office
Zadok – the priest
More chief men – 16
Ithamar – executed the priest’s office
Ahimelech – 8
Divided by lot
Governors of Sanctuary verse 5, 6
Governors of the house of God
Shemaiah – son of Nethaneel the scribe
Lot verse 7- 18
House of the LORD verse 19
Listing of sons of Levi verse 20- 30
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God – Elohim (Creator) verse 5, 19
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 19
House of the LORD verse 19
LORD God of Israel verse 19
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire verse 2
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Service verse 19
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
David the king verse 31
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
YHWH’s anger at human resistance to HIS call, however, must not be misinterpreted as the petulance of a deity who throws a temper tantrum when things do not go HIS way. Rather, YHWH’s wrath is a reflex of his passionate love that wants more for us than we want for ourselves. Our participation in YHWH’s work is crucial to our spiritual development and our joy. When we refuse HIS calling for lesser pursuits, YHWH smolders at the shortsightedness, selfishness, and shallowness we have succumbed to in our sin. HE burns at the prospect of our forfeiting participation in his joy because we prefer the comfort and familiarity of our old theological constructs and the less demanding life of spiritual mediocrity. (p. 87, Jonah: God’s Scandalous Mercy by Keven J. Youngblood)
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Ro˒sh sometimes means “leader,” whether appointed, elected, or self-appointed. The word can be used of the tribal fathers, who are the leaders of a group of people: “And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people …” (Exod. 18:25). Military leaders are also called “heads”: “These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains …” (2 Sam. 23:8). In Num. 1:16, the princes are called “heads” (cf. Judg. 10:18). This word is used of those who represent or lead the people in worship (2 Kings 25:18—the chief priest). (Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.)
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The primary meaning of this root is “head.” It is common to all Semitic languages and appears in its root forms and derivatives nearly 750 times. It is used for the “head” as part of the body (Gen 3:15) and by extension for the notion of “chief” of a family (Ex 6:14), as “chief officer” of the divisions of Israel (Ex 18:25) and the like. The unique Hebraic character of this usage is clear in the ot as the root is rarely applied to chiefs of Gentile nations. It is used also for the top or summit of a geographical feature such as a mountain or hill (Ex 17:9) and the upper part of a building or architectural feature (Gen 11:4; II Chr 3:15) and as a personification for such features (Ps 24:7, 9). The root was utilized in many colloquial expressions for plant names (Job 10:4) parts or portions of things (Gen 2:10) and terms for artifacts. In this last category is the usage of the root for both “head stone” (Zech 4:7) and “chief corner stone” (Ps 118:22). This passage and usage are carried over into the nt and quoted by Jesus concerning his being rejected by the Jews (Mt 21:42; Lk 20:17; Eph 2:20; I Pet 2:7). The root is widely used in the ot with other terms in the sense of the superlative, since Hebrew does not have any simple form to express the third degree. There are many examples of this usage (Ex 30:23) where the meaning is “best,” “foremost,” the uniquely finest, which alone was fit for the service of God. This theological meaning is carried over to the officers of the temple (II Kgs 25:18) and the best musicians (Neh 11:17). In most of the versions there are divergencies in the translation of rōʾš when it is used in the sense of “chief” as for example (Num 31:26) and many similar passages KJV reads “chief,” NIV and RSV read “head” but none are completely consistent. The root appears in many passages in the sense of “sum” or “total” (Prov 8:26) ASV “first” with a footnote which cities the difficulty of the Hebrew. The KJV consistently reads “total,” “sum” in passages dealing with the census of Israel (Ex 30:12; Num 1:2 etc.) and the Aramaic form appears in the unusual sense of the “sum” or “substance” of a dream (Dan 7:1). Although many of the usages of the root can be traced back to Akkadian and ultimately to Sumerian, the reliance on the nation’s “head” as a high officer or chosen personage is developed in Hebrew to much greater degree than the other languages. The theological use of the root to designate divinely appointed offices in the ot is carried over into the nt in such terms as “head of the church” (Eph 5:23), a title ascribed to Christ. (White, W. (1999). 2097 רֹאשׁ. (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke, Eds.)Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Chicago: Moody Press.)
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24:27–31 To assure the fairness of the Levites’ assignments, they were selected by their divisions through the casting of the sacred lots (v. 5). fathers … younger brethren: There was no age discrimination in the work and shifts allocated to each. All served equally no matter what their age or status. (Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary (1 Ch 24:27–31). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.)
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31. the principal fathers over against their younger brethren] i.e. “all the Levitical houses enumerated drew lots in their courses on equal terms, the elder families having no advantage over the younger ones.” As there were twenty-four courses of the priests, so we must suppose that there were twenty-four of the Levites, though the number of the families as given in the text (23:7–23, 24:20–30) is twenty-five. (Barnes, A. (1879). Notes on the Old Testament: I Samuel to Esther. (F. C. Cook, J. M. Fuller, Eds.) (p. 358). London: John Murray.)
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The principal fathers over against their younger brethren; the lots of the elder and younger brethren were promiscuously put together, and the order was settled as the lots came forth, without any regard to the age, or dignity, or number of the persons or families, the youngest family having the first course if they had the first lot, &c. (Poole, M. (1853). Annotations upon the Holy Bible (Vol. 1, p. 810). New York: Robert Carter and Brothers.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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“Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (James 2:23). Faith is central to the Christian experience. In fact, without faith, there is no Christian experience.
Why is faith so important? Because we cannot make ourselves righteous — any more than a cracked window can make itself uncracked.
We have sinned and only God can make us righteous. Faith then is the only thing we can do — and even our faith is a gracious gift of God! (Quiet Walk)
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The Lord reiterates His promise to bless Israel for faithfulness and to judge her for sin.
INSIGHT
Three things happen when Israel lives in a righteous relationship with the Lord. First, God is glorified. Second, Israel is blessed, receiving the fullness of life for which she longs. Third, the unsaved world is drawn to want to know God because of the magnificent picture they see of Him.
Because so much hinges on Israel’s standing before God, the Lord makes it clear to her how serious her position is. If she will trust and obey Him, He will bless Israel forever. However, if she lives in sin, He will utterly destroy her.
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1 Kings 10
The Queen of Sheba visits Solomon.
INSIGHT
Solomon leads Israel in righteousness, and God pours out His blessing on the nation to such an extent that the reports of Israel’s prosperity spread throughout the world. The Queen of Sheba visits Solomon because she cannot believe the reports she has been hearing. After Solomon meets with her and shows her around Jerusalem, she is overwhelmed.
The blessing of Israel is to draw attention to the God of Israel. Today as the Lord blesses us spiritually for our faithfulness to Him, attention will be drawn, not to us, but to the Lord. (Quiet Walk)
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THE PURPOSE OF REVIVAL
…as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over: That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the LORD your God for ever. Joshua 4:23-24
Why does God send revival from time to time? The first reason given in Joshua 4:24 is this: “that all the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty.” God does this thing from time to time, God sends revival, blessing, upon the church in order that He may do something with respect to those who are outside Him. He is doing something that is going to arrest the attention of all the people of the earth. Here, we must always realize, is the chief reason for ever considering this matter at all. This is my main reason for calling attention to this whole subject of revival and for urging everybody to pray for revival, to look for it, and to long for it. This is the reason—the glory of God.
You see, Israel alone represented God and His glory. All the other nations of the world were pagan; they had their various gods, and they did not believe in or worship the God of Israel. But God had chosen Israel. He had made a nation for Himself in order that through them, and by means of them, He might manifest His own glory and that they might bear this testimony to all the nations of the world. That was the real function of the children of Israel, and the other nations were watching them and were ready always to scoff at them and to ridicule them. Whenever the nation of Israel was defeated, the other nations would say, “Where is their God? Where is His power?”
A Thought to Ponder
God sends revival to arrest the attention of all the people of the earth.
(From Revival, p. 119. By Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Esteem Others
“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” (Philippians 2:3)
In this verse, Paul challenged us to refrain from any “strife” or “vainglory”—words that seem a bit stern in the colloquial terms of our day
Eritheia is the Greek word for “strife”—a contentious political maneuvering for greater power. “Vainglory” is similar. It comes from the Greek word kenodoxia, an empty pride or groundless glory. Both are rather unpleasant descriptions of the foolish and sinful human behavior that is seen all too often among God’s people: “Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another” (Galatians 5:26).
On the contrary, we are challenged to “esteem” the others in our fellowship as “better than” ourselves. The precise words in this instruction insist that we are to use deliberate and careful judgment in our evaluation of others in our relationships as being more “excellent” than what we have thought of ourselves.
Now, that goes against most of what we have been taught in our Western educational systems. Self-esteem is de rigueur in our schools, songs, movies, and television programs. In fact, “positive thinking” and “prosperity thinking” are very little more than self-esteem dressed up in religious terms.
In the biblical “body” analogy, we are told that “those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked” (1 Corinthians 12:23-24).
God thinks differently. We are told to think of each other like God thinks.
(HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Who Are You?
You are like a lion among the nations; you are like a monster in the seas. Ezekiel 32:2
The leader of our video conference said, “Good morning!” I said “Hello” back, but I wasn’t looking at him. I was distracted by my own image on the screen. Do I look like this? I looked at the smiling faces of the others on the call. That looks like them. So yes, this must be me. I should lose some weight. And get a haircut.
In his mind, Pharaoh was pretty great. He was “a lion among the nations . . . a monster in the seas” (Ezekiel 32:2). But then he caught a glimpse of himself from God’s perspective. God said he was in trouble and that He would expose his carcass to wild animals, causing “many peoples to be appalled at you, and their kings [to] shudder with horror because of you” (v. 10). Pharaoh was much less impressive than he thought.
We may think we’re “spiritually handsome”—until we see our sin as God sees it. Compared to His holy standard, even “our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). But God also sees something else, something even more true: He sees Jesus, and He sees us in Jesus.
Feeling discouraged about how you are? Remember this is not who you are. If you have put your trust in Jesus, then you’re in Jesus, and His holiness drapes over you. You’re more beautiful than you imagine. by Mike Wittmer (Our Daily Bread)
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The Joy of Reconciliation
“And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” (Romans 5:11)
The Greek word for “atonement” in this verse is kátallage, which everywhere else (some 10 times, either this word or its related forms) is translated “reconciliation” (or “reconciled” or “reconciling”). The connotation is that of full restoration to full fellowship after long enmity and alienation.
The Hebrew word for “atonement” (kaphar, “covering”) occurs some 80 times in the Old Testament, over half of them in Leviticus. It normally referred to the “covering” of one’s sins by the shed blood of an innocent (and blemish-free) animal sacrifice.
Although this could provide some comfort to the sinner, there was little to be joyful about, since the covering was only temporary and the sins were still there. When Christ came, however, He became “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). He “put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:26).
Consequently, “atonement” (in the sense of a temporary covering) is never mentioned at all in the New Testament. Instead, we have been fully “reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10). Thus, our text is really saying that we have real joy in God through Christ, “by whom we have now received the reconciliation!”
Our fellowship with our heavenly Father has been fully restored by the wonderful gift of eternal salvation through the work of Christ, “who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Romans 4:25). And as we rejoice in the Lord, we must remember, too, that He “hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation,” so that we are “ambassadors for Christ,” beseeching others also to “be ye reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:18, 20). (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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