This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. – 2 Chronicles 31:20

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 2, 2017): 2 Chronicles 31 

In 1225, King Henry III introduced The Great Charter. The Charter was essentially a shorter version of the Magna Carta that had been forced onto King John, Henry’s father, as the result of the rebellion of the upper classes of English Society ten years earlier. The Magna Carta and the subsequent Great Charter placed a restriction on the powers of the King. For the first time, the King was no longer able to do whatever it was that he pleased. Often the King would fill his time pursuing his own interests and letting the petitions of others be delayed until the king decided to look into those requests at his leisure. It was the beginning of what has become known as the Constitutional Monarchy. Because of Henry’s Great Charter, kings had to begin to learn to work with the other classes of society in order to get the things that he wanted. But Kings also had to learn to lift up their eyes from their own wants to the needs of the nation. The Great Charter was confirmed again in 1237 and 1297, Edward I of England reissued The Great Charter to get a new tax. And it is this charter that remains in force until today (although all but three of the statutes of the 1297 charter have been repealed. Two of the clauses still in effect are the Freedom of the English Church [Clause 1] and the right of free citizens to due process [Clause 29].)

The description of Hezekiah that we have in 2 Chronicles is that of a good constitutional king. He did what was good and right, not for Hezekiah, but rather for Judah. He was directly involved in the raising of money for the repair of the temple, and he let the priests in the temple to do their duty. Hezekiah worked hard for both God and the people – and as a result, he prospered.

As much as we want to believe that we are the kings over our own lives; that is not the way that life operates. God has placed us where we are to work at the task of being constitutional monarchs – we are to work hard for the benefit of those who are around us. In a ‘me’ centered society, we sometimes forget the influence we have on those around us, for good or bad. Life is about community and our place in it.

It is something that Hezekiah understood well. Even though he was the most powerful man in Judah, he spent that power for the benefit of the people – and he set an example for his people to follow. 

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 20