Sunday, May 14, 2023

Sara Japhet on 2 Chronicles 35:4

  

Now comes a detailed order to the Levites in a series of imperatives: 'prepare yourselves . . . and stand in the holy place . . . and slaughter the passover, and sanctify yourselves and prepare for your brethren . . .'

 

The references to 'the writing (RSV directions) of David' and 'the document (RSV directions) of Solomon', raise one of the more salient features of the pericope—the author's constant effort to root all the features of Josiah's Passover in earlier prescriptions and authority, referring in fact to all the recognized sources of authority: the Law of Moses (vv. 6, 12), the prescriptions of David and Solomon (V. 4), or David and the chief singers (V. 15), the authority of the ruling king (vv. 10, 16), and 'the ordinance' (v. 13). This is the most variegated and comprehensive appeal to authority in any single pericope, with very clear delineations of the various aspects of ritual and their respective sources of authority. It is noteworthy, however, that the division of the clerical personnel into divisions, the attribution of which to David is a common feature in Chronicles, is regarded here as having been found in a written document. This is another point of comparison between the authority of David and that of Moses, both established by 'books'. (Sara Japhet, I & II Chronicles: A Commentary [Old Testament Library; Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993], location 25962 of 26645 of the Kindle ed.)

 

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