After the Temple had been cleansed and purified, King Hezekiah immediately resolved that the Lord’s Passover would be observed in his kingdom! That annual feast was instituted as a memorial of the bringing of the children of Israel out of Egypt. But in this first year of Hezekiah’s reign (727 BC), it so happened that the reviving of the Temple-service (chapter 29) fell within the appointed time for the observance of that feast. “What shall we do about the Passover?” wondered Hezekiah. “It is a very refreshing ordinance, and it has been neglected for a long time. How shall we revive it? The time for celebrating it has passed for this year, and we cannot go about it immediately; for the people have no notice, and the priests are not prepared!”

But there was a proviso in the law of Moses for particular persons who were ceremonially unclean in the first month of the year, when the Passover was to be celebrated. This provision allowed them to observe the feast in the second month and still be accepted by the Lord (Num. 9:11). And Hezekiah realized that in this unique case, that provision might be extended to the whole nation. So they resolved to keep the Passover in the second month that year. Accordingly, therefore, a proclamation was issued to give notice of this Passover, and to summon the people to it.

Hezekiah also sent an invitation to the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, in an attempt to encourage them to come and join with the people of his own nation in observing this feast of the Lord. Express riders were sent post-haste throughout the Northern Kingdom, with invitations that earnestly pressed the people there to take this opportunity of returning to the God from Whom they had revolted after Solomon’s death. Hezekiah urged them to devote themselves to Jehovah’s service, to surrender to His terms of government, and to not stand out any longer against Him. The carnal mind is obstinate and unwilling to comply with God. If we, through grace, have been brought into Christ’s Kingdom, then we should do all that we can to call others to repentance also! Hezekiah reminded the people of the Northern Kingdom that they would certainly be consumed by Jehovah’s wrath if they continued to be stiff-necked against Him. But he also gave them hope with a promise that if they returned to God in a way of duty, he would return to them in a way of mercy. They would find Him to be gracious and merciful indeed, if they would only seek Him – notwithstanding the provocations which they had given Him.

Sadly, the majority of the people of the ten northern tribes slighted Hezekiah’s call and turned a deaf ear to it. His messengers went from city to city, and used pressing entreaties to convince them to come to Jerusalem to keep the Passover; but most of the people were so far from complying with the message, that they actually laughed and mocked at those who brought it. These men told them of God’s mercy and wrath; but most of them neither dreaded the one, nor desired the other. It is no marvel that the destruction of the Northern Kingdom was not far off. Only six years after this, in 721 BC, the king of Assyria laid siege to Samaria and led those tribes away into captivity. Their general contempt of Hezekiah’s gracious invitation only hastened their destruction and left them inexcusable. Yet there were a few people of Israel who did accept the invitation! Even in the worst of times, God always has a remnant; and here, His remnant consisted of a handful of people from the tribes of Asher, Manasseh, Zebulun, Ephraim, and Issachar. These persons humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem; they repented of their sins and submitted to God.

Of course, a command – not merely an invitation – was given to the people of the Kingdom of Judah to attend the celebration of the Passover in Jerusalem, and they universally obeyed it. A great assembly came together and made a good preparation for the feast. They took away all the idolatrous altars in the city of Jerusalem; for before they kept the feast of God, they had to cast out this old leaven of sin. The best preparation that we can make for the Gospel-Passover is to cast away our iniquities – our spiritual idolatries.

In the celebration of the Passover, the people were so eager and zealous that the priests and Levites blushed to see themselves outdone by them. The people were more ready to bring sacrifices than they were to offer them. This encouraged them to get busy sanctifying themselves, so that the work might not stand still for lack of sufficient hands to carry it on. According to the Lord’s appointment, the priests sprinkled the blood of the offerings upon the altar – which was a picture of Christ, our Passover-Lamb, being sacrificed for us, and making atonement for our sins by His own precious blood!

This Passover was celebrated with a great deal of devotion; but there were several irregularities done during this solemnity, which were not usually allowed by the law of Moses. For example, the Levites killed the Passover lambs for those who were still ceremonially unclean; this was supposed to be done by the offerors themselves. Also, many persons were permitted to eat the Passover, who were not yet purified according to the strictness of the law. They were already observing this feast in the second month; and there was no allowance to put it off further, for these people’s sake, to the third month.

Hezekiah prayed to the Lord for forgiveness of these irregularities. It was his zeal that had called them together in such haste, and he did not want anyone to fare the worse for being short of time in their preparations. Therefore, he considered it his responsibility to be an intercessor for those who ate the Passover otherwise than they were ordinarily supposed to, so that there might not be wrath upon them from the Lord. His prayer was short but to the point: “The good Lord pardon everyone in the assembly who has prepared his heart for those services, although the ceremonial preparation may be lacking!” The great thing required in our worship of the Lord is that we prepare our hearts to seek Him.

If God were to deal with us in strict justice, according to the best of our performances, we would certainly be undone! But the way to obtain pardon for our deficiencies in duty, and for all our sins and transgressions, is to seek it of God in prayer, through the blood of Christ. In Hezekiah’s prayer, we may take encouragement from the goodness of God. The king said, “The good Lord pardon” – and after he had proclaimed His goodness, he pleaded for Him to forgive the people’s iniquities. And his prayer was successful! “The Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people” (verse 20). Not only did He not lay their sins to their charge, but He also graciously accepted their services notwithstanding; for healing denotes not only forgiveness (Isa. 6:10; Ps. 103:3), but also comfort and peace (Isa. 57:18; Mal. 4:2).

The Passover was followed by the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which continued for seven days; and everything in this account looks pleasant and lively! An abundance of sacrifices were offered to God in peace-offerings. By these, they acknowledged and implored the favor of the Lord; and with their portions of these sacrifices that were given back to the offerors, they feasted with their friends during these seven days – in token of their communion with God, and of the comfort which they took in His favor and their reconciled relationship with Him.

Many good prayers were prayed to the Lord, along with all the peace-offerings. There was also a great deal of good preaching, for the Levites (according to the duty of their office; Deut. 33:10) taught the people the good knowledge of the Lord. They read the Scriptures and instructed the assembly concerning God and their duty to Him. And indeed, there was a great need of this, after such a long famine of the Word which had existed during the last reign. The assembly also praised the Lord every day during the Feast – thereby expressing their joy and thankfulness to Him, and encouraging each other therein.

Having kept the seven days of the Feast in this wonderful manner, the people had so much comfort in the service that they voluntarily decided to do the same for another seven days! They did not institute any new modes of worship, but they repeated and continued the old. They had gone for a long time without observing these ordinances; but now they had a very great assembly together and were in a devout and serious frame of mind, and they did not know when they might have another such opportunity. Therefore, they could not find it in their hearts to separate from one another until they had doubled the time. Many of them were a long distance from home, and had business in the countryside to look after; for this was the second month, and so they would have been in the midst of their harvest. Yet they were in no hurry to return to their homes, for their zeal for God’s house made them forget their worldly concerns.

All of these things were done with gladness! All the people rejoiced, including the people from the northern tribes of Israel. There was great joy in Jerusalem, such as had not been seen there since the dedication of the Temple in Solomon’s time, over 275 years earlier! Holy duties should be performed with holy gladness; we should take pleasure in them, and relish the sweetness of communion with God.

At length, the assembly was dismissed with a solemn blessing. The priests pronounced it, for it was part of their honorable duty to bless the people (Num. 6:22-23). In their blessing, they testified their desire for the people’s well-being and dependence upon the Lord and His Word of grace, to which they commended them. What a comfort it is to a congregation, to be sent home thus crowned! The voice of the priests, when they blessed the people, was heard in heaven. When they pronounced the blessing, God commanded it; and perhaps He even gave some visible token of His approval of it. The prayer that comes up to heaven in a cloud of incense will come down again to this earth in showers of blessings!

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