Struggling with a Passage

Bill Bagents

“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

We know the Old Testament has major value for believers of all time. “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction. That through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” (Rom 15:4). The “sacred writings” that Timothy knew from his childhood were able to make him “wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim 3:14–17). Certainly, these writings were what we know as the Old Testament. The Scriptures that Apollos used as “he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus” were also the Old Testament (Acts 18:28).

We know that 2 Chronicles 7:14 was originally spoken to Solomon about Israel, God’s single, unique, chosen nation among all the nations of the ancient world. Though Solomon was their earthly king, God was the King of His theocracy.

We don’t for a moment doubt the principles taught in the verse. Proverbs 14:34, Galatians 6:7–9, and countless examples from Scripture and history support the truth that God blesses those who turn to Him. The book of Jonah supports the truth that God delights in blessing the penitent. Correspondingly, we know that “the way of the treacherous is their ruin” (Prov 13:15), because God opposes those who oppose Him (Prov 3:34; Jas 4:6–8; 1 Pet 5:5–11). This is true for nations, churches, families, and individuals (Rev 2:16).

Identifying Concerns

So, where’s the struggle with 2 Chronicles 7:14? In part, it’s a realization that no political state, even a nation as blessed as the United States, is God’s chosen people in the Christian age (Romans 9–11; Acts 10–11, particularly 10:34ff). The kingdom of Christ “is not of this world” (John 18:36). We believe with all our heart that God moves those who put on Christ in baptism “to the kingdom of his beloved Son” (Col 1:13–14; Acts 2:47; Eph 2:1–10; Gal 3:26–29). As much as we love our nation, we are not—as ancient Israel was—the single, unique people called by God’s name.

Part of our struggle with this ever more popular verse can be expressed as a series of questions.

• When we read 2 Chronicles 7:14 from the perspective of a citizen of any modern political state, what are we asserting about other nations? Are we saying that our nation is more “chosen” than other nations?
• When we read 2 Chronicles 7:14 from the perspective of any modern nation, what are we saying about fellow Christians who are citizens of other nations? Do they hear us to be asserting nationalistic superiority? Do they hear us as demeaning their faith or their faithfulness?
• To what degree should we remember the remnant principle as we read 2 Chronicles 7:14? While the Old Testament has much to say to and for the faithful remnant, we know that ancient Israel, in the main, rejected God and was destroyed (2 Kgs 2:29–31; Ezra 9:5–9; Isa 10:20–27). We also know that God brought a remnant home. Has there ever been a nation where the majority of the people stayed faithful to God over the long term?
• When we read 2 Chronicles 7:14, are we tempted to wrongly think, “If we just return to God, then our nation won’t face problems anymore?” John 16:1–4 clearly states the opposite. When we teach from the passage, have we unintentionally made it easy for the devil to invite others to believe one of his most popular lies, “If we just walk with God faithfully, life will be nothing but continual prosperity”?

Major Misapplications

We see 2 Chronicles 7:14 misapplied in two major ways that often come in tandem. The first major error of application with 2 Chronicles 7:14 is absolutizing. If we as God’s people humble ourselves, pray, seek God, and repent, then God will grant our petition. There can be no possibility of exception. Support for this certainty is drawn from many passages (Prov 10:24; Mark 11:24; Luke 11:9–10; John 11:22; 14:13; 15:16; 16:23). Perhaps Matthew 21:22 is the clearest of all: “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”

No one possessed stronger faith than Jesus, but His passionate prayer in Gethsemane was not answered by deliverance from the cross (Matt 26:37–47). Of mere humans, we have the highest respect for Paul’s faith, but his thrice-repeated petition for physical deliverance was not granted (2 Cor 12:7–10). There is no reason to doubt David’s faith or sincerity in praying for the life of his son, but the baby did not recover (2 Sam 12:15–23).

To be blunt, God does not always grant the deliverance that we request, nor should He.

We err grievously when we present a biblical teaching as absolute when Scripture teaches us that it is not. Many years ago, in a critical care waiting room at Johns Hopkins Hospital, we heard a preacher tell the family of a critically ill infant, “I told God last night, ‘This child will not die!’ I told God because I had prayed to God for the life of this child. Your child will not die.” The baby died that night. We continue to wonder how the family dealt with this errant and arrogant claim. God hears prayer and blesses, but He is never obligated to deliver on demand (Dan 3:16–18). The preacher’s words to the hurting family were false. He erred by forgetting that we are never allowed to put words in God’s mouth. We cannot rightly say more than God says.

The popular “understanding” of 2 Chronicles 7:14 is beautifully concise. When God commands and we obey, problems end; it’s as simple as that. But it isn’t; there’s a huge gulf between simple and simplistic. While we cherish every word of Scripture and greatly value faith, we recognize the wisdom of letting the whole of Scripture speak. We dare not choose selective hearing. Both humility and sound reasoning remind us of the modern proverb: For every complex issue there’s an answer that’s simple, easy, and wrong.

The second major error of application with 2 Chronicles 7:14 concerns assumptions about specificity. Many seem to assume that any crisis of the moment addressed with humility, prayer, seeking, and repentance, will be averted or ended by God. The pandemic will stop. The hurricane won’t make landfall. The bomb won’t explode. The war won’t begin. The business won’t fail. There will be no divorce. The person we love won’t die. God does not give us such specific knowledge. The Bible offers no such specific promise. It’s exceedingly dangerous and damaging to assume otherwise. As much as we might prefer otherwise, our trials and challenges often serve a higher purpose (Job 42:1–6; Rom 5:1–5; Heb 12:1–11; 1 Pet 2:18–25).

Like the tragic and apparently harmful events in the life of Joseph—being hated by his brothers, being sold into slavery, being falsely accused and imprisoned, and being forgotten in prison for two extra years—in the moment we often do not see a higher purpose or the BIGGER plan (Gen 37–50). We struggle to see how Romans 8:28 applies. We so want God to make it better right now. We want both answers and relief; we strongly prefer the comfort of certainty. But God knows us—and our needs—better than we know ourselves. God far more often blesses us, not with the comfort of certainty, but with the comfort and challenge of faith (2 Cor 5:7).

In understanding any passage, context counts. In applying any passage, we need to ask God for wisdom (Jas 1:5; Ps 119:26–27). In study and in teaching, humility remains a vital virtue. We are wise to confess our struggles with 2 Chronicles 7:14 and to welcome help in understanding.