The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles — Section 38

Mosaic dispensation (Heh. viii. 5). Solomon was careful to do as he was "instructed for the building" (ver. 3); the dimensions were determined "by the first measure" (ver. 3); be was concerned to act obediently. In the service of Christ, while there is very litt.le indeed of prescription or proscription as to the details of devotion or tho par- ticula~ of Divine service, we shall be careful to consult the will of Christ in everything. The mrnd of our Master, and not our own individual preference, should be the main cons!dere.~ion in all Christian effort: we shall gain a knowledge of his mind by o. devout and int.el11gent study of his life and of bis words, and of those of bis apostles. II. SPONTANEITY. This is not any wise inconsistent with obedience, and it was not absent even from the building of the temple, in which there WRS, necessarily, so much of careful and detailed prescription. Solomon " garnished the house with precious stones" (ver. 6), and these had been furnished by the spontaneous liberality of David and of his people (1 Chron. xxi.x. 2, 8). In the service of our Saviour there is ample room for t.he play of spontaneous devotion. We may bring to his sacred cause the " precious stones" of our most reverent and earnest thought, of our most fervent feeling, of our most eloquent and convincing speech, of our most self-denying labour, all uncom- manded and unconstrained, all prompted by a pure and keen desire to serve our Lord and bless our brethren. ill. BEAUTY. These precious stones were" for beauty" (ver. 6), and the abundance of gold would also add to the beauty of the building, as seen from the inside. Every " house of the Lord" which we build should be fair and comely as well as strong. Happily for us, the beauty in which God delights is not pecuniarily costly; it is that which the poorest may bring to the sanctuary and the service of bis Lord. It is not found in precious stones which only the wealthy can secure; it is found in "a meek and quiet spirit" (1 Pet. iii. 3), in the spirit of true reverence and pure devotion (John iv. 23), in patient endurance under wrong (1 Pet. ii. 19, 20), in patient con- tinuance in well-doing (Rom. ii. 7), in a broad and deep Christian charity (1 Cor. xiii.). These are the beauties which adorn our character and make our service well-pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour. IV. TuoBOUGHNEss. The strong timber which Solomon used was" overlaid with pure gold"-with the precious metal, and that of the best kind. Nothing was spa.red that could give strength, solidity, perfectness to the building now erected. It was built, not for a few years, or for a generation, but for long centuries; to stand the force of the elements of nature; to remain strong and fair when children's children in distant times should come up to Zion to see the house of the Lord and to enter into its courts. All work that we do for our Divine Redeemer should partake of this character. It should be thorough; it should be of the very best that we can offer; it should be of ., pure gold." Not our weakness, but our strength; not our exhaustion, but our fresh- ness; not our crndeness, but our culture; not our ignorance, but our information and acquisition-our very best self should we bring to our Lord who gave him_self for u~. With the choicest materials we can furnish, in the exercise of our faculties at their fnllest, should we build up his sacred ea.use who lavished his strength and la.id down his life on our beha.lf.-C. Vera. 10-13.-.Life at its highest. These cherubim were, of course, symbolic; but what did they symbolize? 1. Certainly not the Divine. Nothing is more improbable, indeed nothing is more incredible, than that in the holy place of !he temple there should be anything artistic intended to portray or represent the Deity. That would have gone far to unteach the very truth which was so carefully taught by every Mosaic institution. 2. As certainly not the animal and irrational. Part of these creatures may have belonged to the unintelligent world; but if it were so, it would on)y be to represent some virtue or power of which that particular animal was suggest~ve. 3. Probably the highest form of creature-life, human or angelic; either man at his best, when endowed with nobler powers than he possesses here, or else the holy and pure intelligences which belong to that great realm that intervenes betwee1; the human and Divine. And the idea is that, as we reach the very noblest forms of hfe, we find these in the near presence of God and engaged in his study and servi~e.. 'l'o w~at shall we do well to aspire? Where shall we dwell when we touch our culmrnatmg pomt? In what activities shall we be then engaged? To these questions the cherubim provide the answer. orr. m. 1-17.] THE SECOND BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES. 39