Hezekiah’s Passover

Can we invent exceptions to the commands of God?

2 Kings 18:4-7

IntroductionIntroduction

• John Mark Hicks (teacher at Lipscomb) and Greg Taylor (editor of Wineskins)

• Down in the River to Pray

• Gist of the book:– Baptism is important– But not essential– One is not lost because of a little detail –

sprinkled, wrong reason, infant

IntroductionIntroduction

• Their reasoning is based on Hezekiah’s Passover– Passover was to be on the 14th

day of the 1st month– Hezekiah did not have time to

get everything ready by then– He had Passover on the 14th of

the 2nd month

• AND GOD APPROVED IT!AND GOD APPROVED IT!

BackgroundBackground

• Hezekiah – king at 25• Drove out idol worship• 2Chronicles 29:2-32Chronicles 29:2-3 -. 2And he did

what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father David had done. 3In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the LORD and repaired them.

BackgroundBackground

• Hezekiah – king at 25

• Drove out idol worship• Hezekiah led a restoration movement – Passover

•BUT – A Problem:BUT – A Problem:–People not notified–Priests not consecrated–People not clean

BackgroundBackground

• SOSO – The first Passover to be observed in their lifetime would be delayed one month– News spread to Israel– Priests would be trained and

ready– People would be cleansed and

prepared to observe

• Passover would be on the 14th day of 2nd month

ResultResult

• Hezekiah’s Passover was different in 2 ways– 1) Time of Celebration1) Time of Celebration – wrong month from

the normal time commanded– Exodus 12:18aExodus 12:18a - In the first month, on the

fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread

– 2) Unclean2) Unclean - Some were not clean when they participated in Passover

Hezekiah’s PrayerHezekiah’s Prayer

• 2 Chronicles 29:18-202 Chronicles 29:18-20 - 18For a multitude of the people, many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the good LORD provide atonement for everyone 19who prepares his heart to seek God, the LORD God of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.” 20And the LORD listened to Hezekiah and healed the people.

AbusesAbuses

• Some are saying that ritual, details, specifics are not important

• As long as we are seeking God – He will overlook the details or specifics we missed

• Hicks and Taylor, “God values a seeker’s heart and benevolent mercy more than ritual.” (185)

AbusesAbuses

• “Is there any unity to be had at the river, where Catholics, Baptists, Methodists, and Campbellites had trod?” (256)

• “Baptism is a normative means through which God mediates his grace to us, but God is not limited by this means.” (238)

• They argue that God accepts anyone who seeks him even though they do not seek him “in accordance with the sanctuary’s rules of cleanness.”

AbusesAbuses

• They say “those whose hearts seek God are received, even though they transgress his ritual prescriptions, because God is good.”

• “Therefore, God values a transformed life more than he values baptism.” (191)

AnswerAnswer

• God allowed for a delayed Passover• Numbers 9:9-11Numbers 9:9-11 - 9Then the LORD spoke

to Moses, saying, 10“Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If anyone of you or your posterity is unclean because of a corpse, or is far away on a journey, he may still keep the LORD’S Passover. 11On the fourteenth day of the second month, at twilight, they may keep it. They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

AnswerAnswer

• God commanded a 2nd Passover for all who were unclean

• He commanded that it be done on the 14th day of the 2nd month

• Some were not clean before Passover– Hezekiah prayed for them– He knew they were wrong – He asked for

mercy and forgiveness for ignoring the details

ConclusionConclusion

• This example does not support ignoring the details

• It points out the dangerdanger and sinsin of not obeying in every detail of the command

• Closing QuestionsClosing Questions– Are you looking for loopholes?– Have you obeyed God in every detail?