King Josiah

For weeks I have been reading through 1 and 2 Kings, the history of Israel and Judah, and what has seemed like one wicked king after another. But right at the end of the book we come across King Josiah, and I have been so encouraged by this man and his relationship with God.

Josiah’s grandfather Manasseh was king of Judah for fifty-five years and led the people in such idol worship and pagan occult practices that God said He would wipe out Jerusalem ‘as you wipe out a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down’ (2 Kings 21:13).

Manasseh’s son, Amon, also an evil man, succeeded his father as king and was assassinated two years later.

And then comes Josiah. He is a boy of eight when he comes to the throne.  Aged twenty-six, he calls his senior minister – the ‘Secretary’ - and instructs him to organise the rebuilding of the broken-down temple in Jerusalem. For many years the temple has been used for all kinds of pagan worship, and is in a truly bad state.

In the middle of this re-building, the High Priest discovers a book.  They hardly know what it is, but they take it to the king. And as the king reads this book – this Book of the Law - he tears his robe. He is confronted with God’s holiness, God’s way – and sees how, as a nation, he and his people have disobeyed their God. He is appalled.

We are told: ‘Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did – with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses’ (2 Kings 23:25). Josiah was a changed man. He was ruthless in cleansing the land of idols. And God never once blamed or punished Josiah for all his past life: God welcomed him back, blessed him and forgave all that he had done in his ignorance.

What God most valued about Josiah was the genuineness of this man’s repentance. Josiah had no idea of what God’s commandments were; neither of the Law nor of the temple worship.  But when that scroll was found, he wept and he turned totally to God.