We continue this post with our look at some of what I like to call “Inigo Montoya Passages.” Those verses which are often misquoted and misapplied, causing us to say, “You keep quoting that verse. I do not think it means what you think it means.” We want to find out what it exactly does mean so that we don’t wind up misunderstanding it or, even worse, believing or doing something different than what God had said. The verse I want to examine this time is one that is very popularly quoted around patriotic holidays such as The Fourth of July and 9/11. You will hear it especially referenced on the National Day of Prayer. During times of drought, it will show up on people’s lips as well and in encouragements to pray in an election year. Many hold out hope of a national revival breaking out if they do what it says. This is the well-known statement of God to King Solomon right after the dedication of the temple in response to the king’s prayer for the temple. 2 Chronicles 7:14, “If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their evil ways, then I will listen from heaven, I will forgive their sin, and I will heal their land.”
The first thing we need to realize here is that this is a SPECIFIC promise for a SPECIFIC people regarding a SPECIFIC land in a SPECIFIC time. It is not general for ALL people and EVERY land at ALL times. God is not saying that whoever prays and repents should expect Him to heal whatever land they are in. Only those who are counted as being His people with the land He refers to here. This means that to rightfully understand this promise and guard against misapplying it, we have to figure out the identity of the “My people” the verse mentions. That’s who the promise is for. And it is not America or Americans but the nation of Israel. Those who were in a covenant relationship with the Lord. That can’t apply to our nation as a whole today because clearly not everyone in it could rightly be called a part of God’s people. Only those who as a result of being born again by the Spirit have repented and trusted in Christ alone for their salvation can. We can say that there are those within our nation who would be part of God’s people but certainly not the entire nation or everyone in it. The only nation in history collectively together to have ever been recognized as being God’s people was ancient Israel. There has been no cutting of a covenant with our nation the same as occurred with the Israelites in the past. So, right away, we need to put a pause on appealing to this as a promise contingent for the citizens of our nation being on their knees.
We also must keep in mind that this promise was given as part of the old covenant with its stipulations of blessings on the people for obedience and curses to come upon them in their disobedience. The withholding of rain and destruction by grasshoppers or locusts mentioned in the previous verse serves as part of those prescribed curses. In fact, you will see such in the list of curses specified for the Israelites for their disobedience in Deuteronomy 28. In verses 24 and 38 there specifically. Therefore, we shouldn’t assume that the lack of rain we may be experiencing or a bad year for our crops is the result of some specific sin in our lives that we need to repent of together as a nation or due to the nation’s many sins. If it were, we would never have any rain and be bombarded with locusts!
The next thing we need to consider in understanding this passage is WHAT LAND. What specific land is being referred to in this promise that God will heal contingent on His people’s prayers? Once again, context is key. Since the “My people” are the people of Israel as part of the old covenant at the dedication of the temple, the land therefore must be the land of Canaan which God had given to them. Not the land of North America which we live. If we would even want to claim this promise for our country today, we shouldn’t expect any physical healing from pestilence or the relief of rain after a drought in response to it. That’s simply because the promise is for a different place entirely. We can’t just make the “land” be whatever “land” we live in or wherever we want it to be. It doesn’t work like that. In that context, God has a specific land in mind and it isn’t America.
So, what are we to do with this promise then if it doesn’t directly apply to us at all? Since we are not a part of the nation of Israel with the stipulations of the old covenant living in the land of Canaan, what relevance does it have to us? Should we just dismiss it or throw it out? Absolutely not! It is included with the “all Scripture” Paul speaks of in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that “is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be equipped, having been thoroughly equipped for every good work.” There has to be something for us in these words then. Whenever we find a text that isn’t given directly TO us, we are to look for the principle we can derive from it FOR us. In this case, one of those principles is for us to continue to humble ourselves, pray, seek the Lord, and turn from our sins in repentance, resting in the blessed and glorious truth that we have forgiveness for each and every one of those sins on account of Jesus’ living and dying on our behalf. We don’t have to worry about the old covenant curses such as drought and locusts falling upon us or our land as judgment on us since Jesus took all the curses of the old covenant on Himself so that we could receive the blessings of it as part of the new covenant even though we don’t deserve it on account of our disobedience.
An equivalent New Testament promise for the church would be 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The verb for “confess” is in the present tense in Greek, indicating an ongoing confession for daily cleansing. When Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, He told them that they each have already had their bath but needed their feet clean from the dirt of their walking to get there (John 13:10). Likewise, we have been fully and completely cleansed spiritually of our sins the moment we first have trusted in Christ alone for our salvation. We have had that bath we could say. But we still need His cleansing of our feet if you will for the dirt of sin we’ve collected throughout our day as we seek to grow in our sanctification and walk with the Lord. This is a regular prayer for us.
And we can and should pray for our nation. As was discussed in a previous article, we are commanded to pray for our leaders, especially for their salvation (1 Timothy 2:1-4). Also, mirroring the Jews in Babylon, to “seek the peace of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to Yahweh on its behalf; for in its peace you will have peace (Jeremiah 29:7). And we should make it our aim to see more and more people in this nation come to Christ, so that they, by God’s grace through faith in Him, will be counted among God’s people to humble themselves, pray, repent, and confess their sins with us as we enjoy the blessings Christ has achieved for us on our behalf. And that is what will bring true revival! Be sure to remember all this the next time you hear this verse quoted but wrongly applied at the a national prayer service or patriotic celebration.
With my love in Jesus,
Pastor Lee
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