Two New Year Temple Stories

Given it’s the time of the new year, I looked recently to see what scriptural events may have taken place at the new year.  I found two stories in the Old Testament, both of which are related to the house of the Lord.  The first is in the book of Exodus.  After Moses oversaw the construction of the tabernacle, it was time to put it in use and be officially set up, and the Lord commanded that this be done on the first day of their year: “And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation” (Exodus 40:1-2).  Moses was given specific commandments about how this was to take place and we read that Moses did as he was asked on the first day of the new year: “And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up” (Exodus 40:17).  The second story comes from the reign of Hezekiah.  When he became king he was distraught at the great neglect that the temple had received and his first priority was to restore the sanctity of the temple.  We read, “He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of the Lord, and repaired them….  Now they began on the first day of the first month to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month came they to the porch of the Lord: so they sanctified the house of the Lord in eight days” (2 Chronicles 29:3, 17).  I’m not sure if this was actually a new calendar year or if it was only referring to the fact that it was the first of his time as king, but either way it is certainly a powerful example that the very first thing he would do is focus on the temple.  Both of these stories show not only the importance of the temple, but also the need for sanctification when dealing with the house of the Lord. 

                Both of these scriptural accounts speak of sanctifying the temple/tabernacle and its participants.  In the story of the tabernacle the Lord commanded Moses, “And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar: and it shall be an altar most holy.  And thou shalt anoint the laver and his foot, and sanctify it.  And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water.  And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him” (Exodus 40:10-13).  The Lord wanted the tabernacle to be a place of holiness, both in terms of the actual structure and the priests who would be officiating therein.  Similarly, in the story of Hezekiah, he commanded that both the Levites and the temple itself be purified after so much unrighteousness and disregard for the temple in previous years: “Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify now yourselves, and sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the holy place….  And the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord, to cleanse it, and brought out all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 29:5, 16).  Hezekiah wanted both the physical place to be pure and clean as well as the participants to be sanctified and holy.  Perhaps we need more of that same kind of attitude as we prepare to attend and participate in the temple ordinances: we should bring “out all the uncleanness” that we find in our own “inner part” before entering the house of the Lord.  It may be that we could do more to reflect on the questions of Alma as we get ready to attend the temple: “Behold, are ye stripped of pride?...  Behold, I say, is there one among you who is not stripped of envy?...  Is there one among you that doth make a mock of his brother?” (Alma 5:28-30)  If we can’t answer these questions as we should, we “are not prepared to meet God” as Alma said, which is, in some sense, the whole purpose of the going to His house.  But if we can find ways to “carry forth the filthiness” out of our thoughts, actions, and feelings as part of our preparation to go to the temple, perhaps we may experience in a more powerful way “the glory of the Lord” that filled the house of the Lord in ancient times for those who were sanctified (Exodus 40:35).