2 KINGS 23
Read 2 Kings 23:1-30
This chapter details the sweeping reforms to worship that King Josiah made in order to undo the detestable effects of the last fifty years or so wrought by the rule of Manasseh and Amon. The list of Josiah’s actions shows the thorough reforms he brought in: pagan objects were removed from the temple (v4), the pagan clergy was sacked (v5), the images and icons of false worship were destroyed (v6), the accommodation of the male prostitutes in the temple was destroyed (v7), the outlying pagan shrines were demolished (v8), as was the site of human child sacrifice (v10). Everything to do with sun worship was removed (v11) as were the royal altars that Solomon set up when he was influenced by his foreign wives (vv12-13) and much else. Josiah made sure that there was nothing left of the false worship that had dominated the nation for all that time.
On the positive side, he called upon all the people to hear the word of God that was discerned in the book that had been found during the temple renovations. The book was referred to as the Book of the Covenant. The covenant was the special relationship between God and his people that he set up, initially with Abraham in Genesis 12 and 15, and had been renewed from time to time as the people of God grew into a nation (at Sinai for example in Exodus 19). The covenant was a bit like a contract: God bound himself to his people using the formula, “I will be your God and you will be my people” and the people responded by pledging to obey God. God had remained faithful to the covenant, but as we have seen, the people, led by kings such as Ahab and Manasseh, broke it again and again by disobeying God, being unfaithful to him, and worshipping idols and doing detestable things such as child sacrifice. Josiah was intent on re-stablishing that covenant relationship with the Lord and instituted a covenant renewal ceremony (v3) to which the people responded positively.
This is all very commendable and we applaud Josiah for his actions. But did they achieve anything? And we might ask, “why did he bother”? The writing was already on the wall. During the reign of Manasseh God had already made it clear that he would bring judgement upon his people. And Josiah knew this as well. In the previous chapter he had been told that the judgement would come – he would be spared seeing it because of his faithfulness, but judgement was inevitable. So why did Josiah bother? Well, he had just read this Book of the Covenant setting out God’s will, and he took the instruction to be obedient very seriously indeed. That is at the heart of our relationship with the Lord: “this is love; that we walk in obedience to his commands” (2 John 6). Josiah’s attitude is an example to us all. Whatever the circumstances, our priority is to walk in obedience to the word of God.