“there they dwelt with the king for his work” (1 Chron. 4:23)
The Chroniclers lived in the fourth century before Christ. They were, one may suppose, scribes of the order instituted by Ezra. Here and there, in the dry enumeration of names, we find an interjected sentence which lends itself to a spiritual application. As one sometimes notices in the very heart of an iceflow a pocket of earth in which austere Alpine flowers lift their pale blossoms to the sky, so, among the bare genealogies one occasionally comes on an extract from some antique document which has a distinctly human interest.
The compiler of this chapter has found one of these tucked away perhaps in an obscure pidgeon-hole. He says apologetically, “These are ancient things;” in other words, “The record is very old.” The writing may have been blurred, the script unfamiliar, the leaf crumpled; but so far as the Chronicler was able to decifer it, this is what he read: “And Jokim, and the men of Cozeba, and Joash and Saraph, who held dominion in Moab, but returned to Bethlehem. They were the potters, who lived in Netaim and Gederah; there they dwelt with the king for his work.”
Real men behind the facts
One believer testified of having “found Christ among the hard names of Chronicles.” And this “ancient record” which introduces us to certain humble men who “dwelt with the king for his work” may enable us to see from afar the face of our sovereign Lord.
It is probable that the spiritual suggestion which these words convey to our minds was present also to the Chronicler as he bent down to trace the dim writing on this scrap of parchment which had been hidden away in the royal archives. For the kingdom of Judah was a theocracy: the descendants of David occupied the throne of Jehovah, and they ruled in His Name and stead.
“There they dwelt…”
Archeologists have found in the territory of Judah more than a hundred jar handles, each of them bearing the inscription “For the king.” A number more have been found inscribed, “For Yahweh (Jehovah).” The jars have long since shattered, but the handles, being less liable to breakage, are still intact.
These jars held tributary offerings, wine and oil especially, to be assigned for the royal household. This was the usage as long as the kingdom lasted; afterwards the tribute was dedicated to the priesthood for the service of the Lord’s house.
The potters and the clay
An interesting point with reference to the levy consigned to the royal palace, and one that throws light on this verse, is that all the jars have come from one factory—the nature of the clay, the construction, the technique—all evidence this fact. We may take it for granted therefore that they were fashioned in the clay fields around Netaim and Gederah, where the potters “dwelt with the king for his work.”
Dr. R. A. S. Macalister has suggested that some of the names in this passage were actually names of some of the potters. This is doubtful; but if we could accept it, we should see in it an evidence of the divine magnanimity—the names of these humble men having been written down in the book of God to be read and remembered as long as the Church shall remain on earth.
We find the spiritual analog of this in many places in Scripture, as in the familiar oracle of Malachi: “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another; and the Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him, for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name.”
Home sweet home
These potters resided in “Netaim and Gederah.” These words are probably descriptive. Today there is a moshav, or collective farm located in Israel’s Coastal Plain, called Netaim because of its association with plants. Some give the rendering of 1 Chronicles 4:23 as “those that dwelt among plants and hedges.” This is possibly the territory spoken of in verse 40: “They found fat pasture and good; and the land was wide and quiet and peaceable.” The storm of war had passed over that region once and again, but had been suceeded by a period of security and rest.
We also have been ushered into a good and safe land as well. “You cannot hurt us,” said one of the early confessors to his Roman captors. “You may kill us, but you cannot hurt us.” No harm can come to those who are the called according to His purpose, since “all things work together for good.” “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee…Trust ye in the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength” (Isa. 26:3-4).
“There they dwelt with the king…”
This implies, first of all, that the king had made himself responsible for their maintenance. And is this not our high privilege? “The Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those that walk uprightly” (Ps. 84:11). “When I sent you forth,” said the King to His messengers, “without purse and scrip and shoes, lacked ye anything?” They answered, “Nothing.”
But to dwell with the king means more than this. To the craftsmen in the valley of Elah the king of Judah was the representative of Jehovah. All their tasks were performed as under his eye; their stedfast aim was to win his approval. But the spiritual reality far transcends this figure. Our fellowship with the Saviour is closer than words can say. At all times He is “a very present help” (Ps. 46:1). In every circumstance we may encourage ourselves with the apostle’s words of cheer: “The Lord is at hand” (Php. 4:5).
The Lord’s Supper is the most precious assurance of our Saviour’s fellowship with us. He brings us to His banqueting house and His banner over us is love. We taste of the sweetness of His forgiveness, we partake of the joy of His triumph, and we anticipate the glory of His return.
And when our life-day is ended, we shall pass into that land of satisfied desire where we shall receive the fulfillment of the Redeemer’s farewell testament; “Father, I will, that they also whom Thou hast given Me be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory.”
Dwelling with the king for his work
The work in which these potters were engaged was toilsome. The jars they shaped were of course material and inartistic design. But the work was for the king; thus it was made honorable.
Our work for the Master may be obscure and unadorned. But we remember the Carpenter’s shop in Nazareth, and those quiet years during which the Light of the world veiled His splendor. We look again on the Christ of the Upper Room, who bears in His hands the laver of cleansing and is girded with the apron of a slave. And we recall that solitary Figure on the lakeshore, with wounded hands gathering driftwood, kindling a fire, and preparing a morning meal for some fisher-folk, weary after their night of toil. He says, “I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done…”
Many Christians were condemned to forced labor on the Baths of Caracalla in Rome. It was their custom to draw a cross-mark on the bricks they set in place, a reminder to themselves that this servile toil was truly the King’s business, and that, in their patient endurance they were following in the Master’s steps.