“So the posts went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah, and according to the commandment of the king, saying, Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and he will return to the remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria.”
My Notes
What Does 2 Chronicles 30:6 Mean?
"So the posts went with the letters from the king and his princes throughout all Israel and Judah... saying, Ye children of Israel, turn again unto the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and he will return to the remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria." Hezekiah sends letters throughout ALL Israel — not just Judah but the northern tribes — inviting everyone to return to the LORD and celebrate Passover in Jerusalem. The invitation crosses the political boundary between the divided kingdoms. The spiritual invitation ignores the political division.
The phrase "turn again unto the LORD" (shuvu — return, repent) is the classic prophetic call to repentance, but here it comes from a king, not a prophet. Hezekiah takes on the prophetic role of calling the nation back to God. The letter is a royal decree that functions as a prophetic sermon.
The conditional promise is precise: "he will return to the remnant of you." God's return is responsive to Israel's return. The turning is mutual — you turn to God, God turns to you. But God's turning is conditional on theirs. The initiative is placed on the people: you make the first move. God responds.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What invitation to return to God are you currently receiving — and how are you responding?
- 2.What does Hezekiah inviting the conquered northern tribes teach about who qualifies for restoration?
- 3.How does 'turn again and He will return' reshape your understanding of repentance?
- 4.What division — political, relational, personal — does God's invitation ignore in order to reach you?
Devotional
Turn again — and He will return. Hezekiah's letter carries the simplest and most powerful promise in Scripture: if you turn back to God, God will turn back to you. The repentance and the restoration are linked. Your turning triggers His returning.
The radical part is who receives this letter: ALL Israel and Judah. The northern kingdom has been conquered by Assyria. The survivors are scattered, displaced, and demoralized. Hezekiah writes to them anyway. The invitation to return to God goes to the people who seem least likely to accept it. The king of Judah reaches across every political, geographic, and historical division to say: come back.
The 'remnant of you, that are escaped out of the hand of the kings of Assyria' identifies the audience precisely: survivors. People who've been through conquest, exile, and loss. Hezekiah's letter isn't written to people at their best. It's written to people at their worst — the remnant, the leftovers, the ones who barely escaped. And the message to them is: it's not too late. Turn, and He returns.
The letter gets mocked in some towns (verse 10) — people laugh at the messengers. But some humble themselves and come (verse 11). The invitation that gets mocked by some produces repentance in others. The same letter, the same words, received differently by different hearts.
What invitation to return to God are you receiving right now — and are you mocking it or humbling yourself before it?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And be not ye like your fathers, and like your brethren, which trespassed against the Lord God of their fathers,.... By…
The posts went - The bearers of the letters were probably the “runners” who formed a portion of the king’s body-guard…
So the posts went - רצים ratsim, the runners or couriers; persons who were usually employed to carry messages; men who…
Here is, I. A passover resolved upon. That annual feast was instituted as a memorial of the bringing of the children of…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture