Contemplative Bible Reading

1 Chronicles 16:21-22 (New Living Translation)

21 Yet he did not let anyone oppress them. He warned kings on their behalf:
22 “Do not touch my chosen people, and do not hurt my prophets.”

These statements are part of a song that King David wrote on the occasion of bringing the Ark of the Covenant into a special tent. David sings of the things God (mentioned as “he” in these statements) has done.

God issued a warning to the kings of other peoples in the region: do not touch my chosen people.

God, the Creator of all, chose a group of people to do something on earth to help all mankind for all time. The first person in the people was Abraham who was chosen because of the faith he displayed. The rest of the chosen people were descendants of Abraham through one particular line of descent.

The chosen people were not more capable than other people. The chosen people often fell flat on their face. They remained, however, the chosen people.

And God adds one more item: do not hurt my prophets. God sent messages to the people through these prophets. The test of, “is this guy really a prophet or just a used car salesman?” was quite simple. If the events a person always foretold came to be, that was a prophet. We aren’t talking about getting bets on football games right 55% of the time. We are talking about specific world events and being right ALL THE TIME. Don’t hurt those special people.

The result? Naw. Folks didn’t follow the command. The kings who were warned went on and did whatever they did. Suffering followed.

When God warns and commands, act accordingly. History teaches. We should learn.