What is Propitiation? (1 Chronicles 21:1-22:1)

This sermon was preached to Grace Church Guildford on 11 August 2024. The audio recording of the sermon can be found below along with the transcript.

It is the kind of story that is often shown at the cinema. Humanity is in danger. The earth is under threat. A meteor is plummeting towards our planet. And no one seems to know how to stop it. It is a common story that has filled countless films over the years. And of course, it isn’t just asteroids that threaten earth in these disaster movies, but tidal waves and superstorms, volcanic eruptions and new ice ages, have all been seen as dangers to our planet, in films such as The Day after Tomorrow, Armageddon, 2012, Deep Impact. Perhaps you find these kind of disaster movies silly, even predictable. And yet, have you ever wondered why we keep writing such stories? Watching these films? Have you ever considered, that the reason these stories repeatedly resonate with us, is because there is something to them? That they do in fact reflect the reality that all of us are in danger, that life on this planet is under threat. That something terrible is coming our way, and unless it is stopped, none of us will survive.

I think that is the underlying reality revealed to us here in 1 Chronicles 21. For this passage we read earlier is really the Bible’s version of a disaster movie. And we are looking at it this morning as part of our ongoing series in our statement of faith. If you remember last week, Jamie taught us all about the person of Jesus, who he is. That was the subject of the sixth paragraph of the doctrinal statement. And so this week, we move into the seventh paragraph, which is all about work of Jesus Christ. Not who Jesus is, but what Jesus has done. That paragraph is up on the screen, and you can see it begins with this sentence: ‘We believe that God’s Son died at Calvary [...] to effect propitiation, reconciliation, redemption and atonement for His elect people.’ And that sentence is so central to the message of Christianity, so foundational to what we believe as a church, we aren’t just going to spend one or even two weeks looking at it, but we are going to spend the next four weeks walking through that sentence [...].

This morning, we are considering that concept of propitiation. Which is a word you probably don’t use that much, if at all. And so, if you are here this morning and you have never encountered that word before, then don’t worry. Hopefully by the end of our service you will have a good idea what it means. The word is explicitly used 4 times in the New Testament: in Romans 3, Hebrews 2, 1 John 2 and in 1 John 4, which we read at the start of our service. However, while the idea of propitiation is stated in the New Testament, it is best seen in the Old Testament. While the New Testament says it, it is the Old Testament that shows it. Which, Christian, I hope you realise is almost always the case when it comes to biblical words and theological ideas. After all, was that not the whole point of the Old Testament? The reason God delayed sending the Saviour, was to prepare us for his arrival. He first had to give Israel the law, so we would know about sin. He told them to bring offerings to the temple, so we might see the meaning of sacrifice. [...] Again and again, what the New Testament says in a word, the Old Testament shows in a story. And that is certainly true for propitiation, which we see well illustrated for us here in 1 Chronicles 21.

If you have never read the books of 1-2 Chronicles, all you need to know is they record (i.e. they chronicle) the history of God’s people from the time of Adam, the first man at the start of the Old Testament, all the way to Israel’s return from exile, at the end of the Old Testament. For that reason, 1-2 Chronicles are like the Olympics highlight videos you’ve all been watching this week [...]. Here in 1 Chronicles 21, we jump into the book at one of the highlights of Israel’s history, the reign of King David. Our story easily breaks into two sections, which we will look at together today: (1) Sin is our problem (21:1-17); (2) Propitiation is God’s solution (21:18-22:1). [...]

1.     SIN IS OUR PROBLEM (21:1-17)

If you have grown up in church, or been coming along for any length of time, you will know this is what Christians believe. That the good news of Christianity always begins with the bad news about humanity. Before we speak of the solution, we must first pinpoint the problem. And according to Christianity, the greatest problem that humanity has as a whole, and that each of us have as individuals, is our sin. Our rebellion against God as our ruler. Breaking his perfect laws. Disregarding his good ways. The Bible clearly teaches us that sin is humanity’s greatest problem.

However, I wonder if you found yourself scratching your head as we read our passage earlier? Trying to work out what the problem is with what David does here? There in 21:2, we simply read that David decides to take a census, calculate how many people live in his land. He tells Joab, his leading servant, to go from Beersheba (the far south) to Dan (the far north) and to report back to him how many people there are. And it cab be a struggle to see what is so wrong, so sinful about that. Afterall a census is a helpful thing to have. It allows a king to administrate their country better.For that reason, I imagine most of us filled the last census out a few years ago here in the UK!

And yet, two things in the passage should have alerted you to the fact that there is more to David’s decision than meets the eye. First, in 21:1 we are told that the source of this census is Satan, who tempts David into this decision. And second, in 21:3 we see that Joab is shocked, even scandalised, at this command to conduct a census. It might not seem like a sinful decision to us today, but Joab, on the ground at the time, was appalled. Indeed, in 21:6 we read that he was repulsed by his King’s request. Clearly there is something about this census that just isn’t right.

Different people have tried to explain it in different ways. Some suggest that David failed to follow the procedure laid down in Exodus 30 for taking a census, or that he tried to count the tribe of Levi in it, which was prohibited. However, I think we see the sin most clearly when we realise that this was not a civil census. Rather, it was a military one. David was not interested in how many people were in his land, but in how many troops were at his command. Did you notice that in 21:2? David sends the commanders of his troops to go and conduct this count. And when Joab finally gives David the results in 21:5, he only reports back on how many “fighting men” he has. How many men can swing a sword in Israel and Judah. David didn’t want to find out how many citizens he had, he wanted to find out how many soldiers he had. And that is why this census was a sin. For in counting his army, David is seeking safety and strength in the great number of troops he has, rather than in the great God that he has.

This is in sharp contrast with what has just happened in 1 Chronicles, where in preceding chapters David claimed the throne and defeated his enemies not because of his army, but because of his God. Again and again, the author tells us that, “The LORD gave David victory wherever he went.” (18:6, 13). Indeed, David himself put that lesson into many of his psalms. In Psalm 33, we read, “No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.” As Joab tries to reason with him here in 21:3, the Lord could multiply his men a hundred times if he needed to. So why bother counting them now? And yet, David fails to have faith in God. He puts his trust in his earthly assets, rather than in his heavenly Father.

That is David’s sin. But if we are honest, it can feel like a rather small sin. If this was a foul in a football match, surely it would barely warrant a yellow card, never mind a red one? Afterall, no one was hurt. What harm has this census caused? We can understand why God must punish David’s major sins, like when he commits adultery with Bathsheba and murders her husband Uriah. But surely this smaller sin doesn’t deserve a significant punishment? And yet, as we read on in our passage, we are reminded that even a seemingly small sin is a very great problem. For the most important thing about sin is not whether it wrongs another human being, but whether it wrongs God. And so every sin, even the smallest one, is a great evil, because every sin is an offence against our great God.

Grace Church, if we naturally struggle to feel the weight of David’s wrong, then perhaps this passage should be a wakeup call for us, cause us to ask God to open our eyes and help us see the true seriousness of even the smallest sin. To see sin as Joab clearly does, when in 21:6 he is repulsed by David’s request. To see sin as God does, there in 21:7, we are told that David’s command was evil in God’s sight. Brothers and sisters, is that how you feel about even the smallest sin? Repulsed? Sick in your stomach? Is every and any sin, evil in your sight? When you look out at the world today are you overwhelmed by the weight of all the wrongdoing that is taking place, both in great, and also in little ways? When you examine your own heart, are you sensitive to even the smaller sins that have crept into your life? Brother or sister, do you take all sin seriously? Do you see even a small sin as a great problem?

That’s what we see here. David’s seemingly small sin turned out to be a very great problem. For in 21:7, we read that because the king did evil in God’s sight, his kindgom was punished. Remarkably, David is allowed to choose which sentence God will hand down, and he picks the third and final option, three days of plague, as the angel of God sweeps his sword through the land. There in 21:14, we are told that as a result 70,000 men of Israel fall dead. And this is where we see that this punishment fits the crime. David sought safety in numbers, and so God has now reduced his numbers. David’s army had suddenly become a lot smaller. And the section ends with that incredible scene, as the angel of the Lord, the divine executioner, the one who God used to punish Egypt during the Passover, now stands with his sword over Jerusalem, ready to strike the very city of David, the great capital of his kingdom. As David stands on a hilltop there in 21:16, at this threshing floor outside the city, he can see the coming judgment, he’s granted a glimpse of the angel hovering between heaven and earth, with his sword stretched out over the city.

It is a terrible, terrifying image, of the judgment that is about to fall on Jerusalem. And yet, it is the reality that is not only facing the nation of Israel in our passage, but indeed is facing each one of us here today. Like David, we have all sinned, in both big and little ways. There is much in each of our lives that is evil in God’s sight. And so, we too stand under the outstretched sword of God. If God allowed us to see what is about to take place on earth, just as he allowed David to see the coming judgment of the angel that day, we too would fall on our faces in fear. For the disaster coming on this earth, the wrath of God that will one day be released on our planet, makes this great plague of David’s seem like a passing flu. Makes every disaster movie you could ever see look like a storm in a teacup. Indeed, in Revelation, the final book in the Bible, God does give us all a glimpse of the judgement to come, the disaster that is on its way. In it we read of plagues spreading across the planet, the sea and rivers being turned into blood, the sun covering the world in flame, and darkness stretching across the earth. And at the end, the worst part of all, is that this sword of the Lord finally falls, and humanity receives its last judgment, as sinners are sentenced to suffer in Hell forever. Friends, the reason that disaster movies resonate with us, is that we are all living in one. Here disaster falls on Israel because of David’s sin. And friend, we too will face such a judgement.

I wonder if you accept that this morning? Do you believe in a disaster to come? That there is a future judgment for your sin? That one day this whole world will be destroyed, and that you will spend eternity in either Heaven or Hell? Paul certainly did. In Ephesians 5:5, he writes, “For of this you can be sure: no immoral, impure or greedy person...has any inheritance in the kingdom of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath [is coming] on those who are disobedient.” [... deceive you...] Sin is our problem.

2.     PROPITIATION IS GOD’S SOLUTION (21:18-22:1)

If you cast your mind back to some of those disaster movies, they all usually follow a similar storyline. After this meteor is discovered to be hurtling towards the planet, the main characters try to solve the problem in a variety of different ways. First, they attempt to build a laser to blast the asteroid into pieces, but that doesn’t work. And so, next they try to knock it off course by launching a rocket at it, but again that doesn’t work. And so, eventually, someone must get in a spaceship and head up there themselves, putting their life on the line, to save everyone on earth. In a disaster movie, the problem is so serious, the coming disaster so catastrophic, a solution must be found.

And the same is true in our passage. This judgement that about to fall on Jerusalem is so great, that something must be done. A solution to this problem must be found! And did you notice there at the end of the first section, in 21:17, that David has a suggestion? His solution is to have God place the judgment for this sin, on him and his family. When confronted with the outstretched sword of the Lord, David bravely, boldy, puts his own head on the chopping block, offers up his life, and that of his family, in order to save his people. It is an amazing act of love. And yet, like the failed attempt of the laser and the rocket in the disaster movie, this suggestion cannot solve the problem. For is God was to cut down the king of Israel, and all of his family, it would bring an end to his promise to bless the whole world through the family of David, to bring forth from David’s sons a king, a son of David, who will reign and rule forever. And so, instead of taking up David’s suggestion, God puts forth his own solution.

I think it is important for us to stop to see that this morning. That the solution to our problem is from God himself. There in 21:18, we read that the very angel of the Lord who is standing with the sword stretched out over the city, ready to strike, also sends the prophet Gad to David, telling him what he needs to do. Yes, the executioner has raised his axe, but before he brings it down on the guilty prisoner, he first stoops down to offer him a full pardon! Friends, it is here that we see, as we sang earlier in our service, love and justice meet. Oh yes, we face utter ruin, eternal, everlasting destruction, as a result of the coming wrath of God, but there is a solution to our problem, and it is rooted in the constant love of God. Friend if you are here this morning, and you are not a Christian, and you are feeling somewhat shocked at some of the things that I have said, perhaps even feeling appalled at this idea of a seemingly vengeful God who judges sinners forever, a God who could destroy this earth. Then I hope that seeing this will dispel your doubts. For the same God who sends the disaster, has also arranged for our deliverance. The same God who lifts up his sword, has also worked out a way to stop it. And it is propitiation that is God’s solution.

It is here we finally get to the meaning of that word we are meant to be studying this morning. If sin is our problem, then propitiation is God’s solution. And our passage perfectly illustrates what this word, propitiation, means. For propitiation is the removal of wrath. The appeasement of anger. To propitiate is to turn away God’s just judgment by offering a sacrifice for sin. That’s what we see happening in the passage, isn’t it? The punishment of God is about the fall on the people. The sword of the Lord is about to come down. And in order to stop it, in order to turn God’s right and just anger for sin away, God commands David to build and altar and make a sacrifice. And so, David goes and purchases that piece of land where the angel of the Lord is standing, this threshing floor, a place where grain is separated from straw, the edible ear from the useless stalk, David buys this land at great cost, and underneath this raised sword of the Lord, he builds an altar and sacrifices animals upon it. Almost as if the sword of the Lord, the judgement of God for the people’s sin, was falling on these animals instead of on Israel. They died in the people’s place. And so, the punishment was paid. God’s wrath was removed. Propitiation took place.

Sin was David’s problem. And propitiation was the solution. And you know, it can be our solution too. For this record of a specific instance of propitiation in history, is a foreshadow of the much greater sacrifice to come. And that isn’t just something that Christian preachers say, not this is the clear implication in our text. For at the end of the passage, we read in 22:1 that having seen the incredible effects of this sacrifice, the power of an offering in this place, David declares, “The house of the Lord God is to be here.” And if you take the time to read on into the next few chapters, you will see that is exactly what happens. As preparations are made for the temple to be built on this same threshing floor, so that eventually, in 2 Chronicles 3, we read that the son of David, King Solomon, is able to finally finish his father’s work, and the great temple of God in Jerusalem is opened, and offerings are made for the sin of Israel on its altar, removing God’s wrath against the nation, turning away his just judgement for their sin. And this temple becomes the place of propitiation for 1000 years. Until finally, the last son of David appears, a new king arrives in Jerusalem, and offers up himself as a sacrifice for sin. Jesus Christ is crucified on the cross, outside the very same city, on the hill called Calvary, to effect propitiation for his people. To take their punishment for sin. To turn away God’s coming judgment for all who will repent of their sin and believe in him.

Oh yes, in our passage, David suggests offering up himself and his sons. But the wonderful news of Christianity, is that God’s solution is instead to offer up himself and his son. To put forward a sacrifice for sin that was even more costly that the one that David offers up here in our passage. As Paul puts it in Romans 3:25, “God put forward [Jesus Christ] as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” And so, as we close this morning, the only question I have to ask you is a very straight forward one. Have you received this work of Jesus by faith?

This morning we have thought about the work of Jesus Christ, seen something of what he has done […] We have all sinned against God, and so we must offer a sacrifice before God. […] God himself is willing to put his head on the chopping block for you. The executioner is ready to put down his axe, if you only will accept his pardon. Come as David does in his passage, confessing your wrongdoing, the great evil you have done in God’s sight, and trusting his the sacrifice of Jesus laid out before you. […]