I took this photo shortly after arriving in Mount Joy, PA in 2003. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Here was a corn-stalk growing on (or, in?) a cement bridge! It’s a fitting image of God’s people receiving a major dose of hope at the end of 2 Chronicles 36.

You might make sense of the narrative like this:

First, redemption is reversed in vv. 1-14 and 16-21. All four kings in this section share the same fate: “trouble and exile” says Pratt. Because “All the officers of the priests and the people…were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations” (v. 14) and because their rebellion got worse even after God sent them prophets (v. 16a), “the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, until their was no remedy” (v. 16b).

Second, thankfully compassion is extended in v. 15. I found it interesting that the Lord’s compassion matched the persistence of His people’s rebellion. Verse 15 reads, “The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them…because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place.” There’s tons of theology in both of those phrases.

Finally, we arrive at our hope and mission in vv. 22-23. Verse 22 states, “the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia” and Cyrus issues an hope-filled invitation for any of God’s people: “Let him go up” and build God’s house in Jerusalem. The odds of that happening are about as good as the odds of a cornstalk growing on a cement bridge.

It can happen. It did happen. It does happen every time God’s people respond to Him in loving obedience.

And, if you’re interested in making a Christological connection, the wish of the last verse in 2 Chronicles, “may the Lord his God be with him,” is very soon, according to one Jewish order of Scripture to be experienced in our Emmanuel, God with us (Matt. 1:23).

Preach these OT books so God receives glory in the church and in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:21),

Randal

N.B. One exegetical, contextual gem in this section is the mention of “the Chaldeans” in 2 Chronicles 36:17. The last time we read about these people was all the way back to Genesis 11:28. At the beginning of the narrative of God’s people, God calls Abram out of this land; at the end of the OT narrative of God’s people, God “brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans….He gave them all into his hand” (2 Chronicles 36:17). The story has come full circle, especially if you follow one Jewish rendering of the order of OT books (Chronicles coming last). Thankfully, the Story didn’t and doesn’t end there!