Good and Gracious King
Scripture references: 2 Kings 25:27-30, Jeremiah 52:31-34, 2 Kings 21:2-15, Genesis 41:14, Genesis 41:41-42, Hebrews 4:14-15.
Introduction:
One indicator of a well written worship song is when the lyrics bring you to a specific passage of Scripture…allowing us to meditate on the Word of God. I had a moment like this when I was listening to one of our Communion songs for this coming Sunday. The song is called ‘Good and gracious king’, and the lyrics in the first verse read as follows:
“I approach the throne of glory
Nothing in my hands I bring
But the promise of acceptance
From a good and gracious King”
What passage came to mind? Well, the story appears in two places, actually…2 Kings 25:27-30 and Jeremiah 52:31-34. For this study we will focus on the account in 2 Kings, but the story is virtually identical in Jeremiah…
Devotional:
I included this passage in a devotional released last year but wanted to give it a bit more attention here…because it’s just too good! Before we get there, let’s set the scene…
The southern kingdom of Judah has turned away from God in a horrible way. Things take a turn for the worse when we’re introduced to King Manasseh in 2 Kings 21…
“And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. 3 For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal and made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel had done, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem will I put my name.” 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 And he burned his son as an offering[a] and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. “ -2 Kings 21:2-6 ESV
Manasseh’s list of evil continues for a couple more verses, then we read:
“But they did not listen, and Manasseh led them astray to do more evil than the nations had done whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel.” -Kings 21:9 ESV
Judah, like Israel before them, had become more evil than the people of Canaan that God had driven out during the conquest of the land. God is a righteous judge, and he will show no partiality towards Israel and specifically Judah here…
“And the Lord said by his servants the prophets, 11 “Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and has made Judah also to sin with his idols, 12 therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such disaster[b] that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle. 13 And I will stretch over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria, and the plumb line of the house of Ahab, and I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. 14 And I will forsake the remnant of my heritage and give them into the hand of their enemies, and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies, 15 because they have done what is evil in my sight and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came out of Egypt, even to this day.” -2 Kings 21:12-15 ESV
Manasseh’s successor, Amon followed in the footsteps of his Father. We then get a respite with King Josiah. Because of Josiah’s faithfulness, God graciously holds off on His judgement. But true to His word, judgement comes on Judah as they are taken away into exile in Babylon. This is where our key passage comes in. At the very end of the book of 2 Kings…just when things couldn’t look more hopeless…we read this:
“And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed[b] Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived.” -2 Kings 25:27-30 ESV
For how hopeless things were looking…2 Kings ends with a message of hope. The Faithlife Study Bible commentary puts it like this…
“Jehoiachin’s release from prison concludes the narrative of 1-2 Kings with a sense of hope that David’s royal line will continue and that the kingdom will one day be restored. This hope corresponds with God’s covenant with David (2 Sam 7:13). Thus, the narrative of 1-2 Kings ends where it began – with the expectation that David’s descendants will reign over Israel forever (1 Kgs 2:4; compare Matt 1:1).”1
This hope comes because of the gracious actions of a king. Brought up out of prison (the pit) and clothed in royal garments. This is not the first time we see something like this in Scripture.
Joseph is lifted up out of the pit (prison) by Pharaoh…
“Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharaoh.” – Genesis 41:14 ESV
“And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain about his neck.” -Genesis 41:41-42 ESV
These are precursors, types, foreshadowing the work of Jesus…our high priest and king…
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”-Hebrews 4:15-16 ESV
Like Israel in the days of Manasseh, we had gone astray. Like Israel, we are deserving of death…exile from God’s presence. But we have a ‘Good and gracious king’. A king who keeps his promises and preserved the line of David. The line from which Jesus had come to live a perfect life and die in our place as an atoning sacrifice…to bring us to the throne of grace. Like Jehoiachin, we are graciously brought up out of the pit…prison clothes gone. Replaced with robes of glory…to dwell with God forever!
“I approach the throne of glory
Nothing in my hands I bring
But the promise of acceptance
From a good and gracious King”
Sean Wagner
- Faithlife Study Bible: 2 Kings 25:27-30. Barry, John D., Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, Michael S. Heiser, Miles Custis, Elliot Ritzema, Matthew M. Whitehead, Michael R. Grigoni, and David Bomar. 2012, 2016. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. ↩︎