2 Kings chapter 23. 23 goes along with chapter 22 as it deals with the reign of King Josiah. And last week we saw how the finding of the book of the law was read to Josiah and he humbled himself before God and the Lord God through the prophet Huldah. promised there would in fact be judgment upon Judah, but Josiah would be spared in terms of his own death. It wouldn't necessarily be a peaceful death for him as he dies in battle, but peace in terms of the condition of Judah. So beginning in chapter 23, we'll read from verses 1 to 30.

Now the king sent them to gather all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem to him. The king went up to the house of the Lord with all the men of Judah, and with him all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which had been found in the house of the Lord. Then the king stood by a pillar and made a covenant before the Lord to follow the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and all his soul to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book.

And all the people took a stand for the covenant. And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the articles that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the hosts of heaven. And he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel. Then he removed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, and those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the hosts of heaven.

And he brought out the wooden image from the house of the Lord to the brook Kidron outside Jerusalem, burned it at the brook Kidron, and ground it to ashes, and threw its ashes on the graves of the common people. Then he tore down the ritual booths of the perverted persons that were in the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the wooden image. And he brought all the priests from the cities of Judah and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba. Also, he broke down the high places at the gates which were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the governor of the city, which were to the left of the city gate.

Nevertheless, the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brethren. And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire to Molech. Then he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun at the entrance to the house of the Lord by the chamber of Nathan Melech, the officer who was in the court, and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. The altars that were on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, the king broke down and pulverized there and threw their dust into the brook Kidron.

Then the king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, which were on the south of the Mount of Corruption, which Solomon, king of Israel, had built for Ashtoreth, the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh, the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom, the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he broke in pieces the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images and filled their places with the bones of men. Moreover, the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down. And he burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the wooden image.

As Josiah turned, he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it according to the word of the Lord. which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. Then he said, What gravestone is this that I see? So the men of the city told him, It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel.

And he said, Let him alone, let no one move his bones. So they let his bones alone with the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria. Now Josiah also took away all the shrines of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger. And he did to them according to all the deeds he had done in Bethel.

He executed all the priests of the high places who were there on the altars and burned men's bones on them, and he returned to Jerusalem. Then the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant. Such a Passover surely had never been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. But in the 18th year of King Josiah, this Passover was held before the Lord in Jerusalem.

Moreover, Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists and household gods and idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses. Nor after him did any arise like him.

Judgment Upon Judah (vv. 26–27)

Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn from the fierceness of his great wrath, with which his anger was aroused against Judah, because of all the provocations which Manasseh had provoked him. And the Lord said, I will also remove Judah from my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city, Jerusalem, which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there. Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? In his days, Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, went to the aid of the king of Assyria, to the river Euphrates.

And King Josiah went against him. And Pharaoh Necho killed him at Megiddo when he confronted him. Then his servants moved his body in a chariot from Megiddo, brought him to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz, the son of Josiah, anointed him and made him king in his father's place.

Amen.

Introduction to Josiah's Reign

So just by way of reminder, King Josiah reigned from 640 BC to 609 BC. And as we learn in this particular chapter, he was in fact a great king, one of the best of Judah. And the text is very conspicuous and specific to indicate that. And what we find here primarily are his reforms with reference to the worship and priesthood in Judah.

And the fact that he does these sorts of things indicates to us just how bad it was in Judah at this particular time. I mean, in many respects, chapter 23 reads like a spring cleaning. Josiah went in and cleaned house. He made a purge both in the south and also into the north.

And in that, he shows some degree of unification of the two kingdoms of Israel.

Reformation Under Josiah (vv. 1–25)

I want to look at, first of all, the Reformation under Josiah in verses 1 to 25. Secondly, the judgment upon Judah in verses 26 and 27. And then the death of Josiah in verses 28 to 30. But note first with reference to this reformation.

Covenant Renewal (vv. 1–3)

There is first covenant renewal in verses 1 to 3. Notice, they find the book of the law in chapter 22. It's read in Josiah's hearing according to verse 10b. Josiah then humbles himself under the reading of the law and he cries out or asks or seeks or inquires of prophetic testimony to interpret and apply that particular law.

So in light of the finding of the book of the law, now they ratify or engage in this covenant. They're not making a brand new covenant, but they are renewing the covenant that was already present. Remember, God made a covenant with the nation of Israel. They swear fidelity in Exodus chapter 24.

They swear and testify all the things written in this law we will do. They get to chapter 32 and they abandon that and they dance before a calf. and they engage in all matter of idolatry. And there is, subsequent to that, renewal ceremonies. And you see that specifically in the book of Deuteronomy in chapter 29, the whole chapter, chapter 31, verses 9 to 13.

And then there is a covenant renewal ceremony at Shechem under Joshua's lead in Joshua chapter 24. So it was not an uncommon thing. In times of revival, in times of reformation, the people would indeed affirm the covenant that they had made with God renew that covenant that they had made with God and swear faithfulness in terms of that covenant. So all of the people are gathered together.

Notice in verse 1, we see the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. Verse 2, we see priests and prophets and all the people. And then Josiah has read in their hearing the book of the covenant. This is the book of the law that was found in the previous chapter.

It's probably specifically the Book of Deuteronomy. Here it's termed as the Book of the Covenant. And then in verse 3 it says, Then the king stood by a pillar, made a covenant before the Lord to follow the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and all his soul to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And it goes on to say, and all the people took a stand for the covenant.

So they renew it. And this serves as the basis then for this reformation under Josiah. And as I said, it's quite extensive and it's quite intensive and it is utterly comprehensive because all manner of wickedness is dealt with by Josiah.

Why Josiah Reforms Despite Coming Judgment

We have seen these sins heaped up by the various kings in Israel and in Judah. We have seen some of the kings of Judah purge, at least to one degree or other, but we have never seen a king like this do this thorough of a sweep in the entirety of the nation. So Josiah truly is a godly man. He certainly doesn't end well in terms of his death at Megiddo there, and probably he is possibly pro-Babylonian as he goes against Pharaoh Niko and he dies on the field of battle.

But all in all, the testimony concerning this man is stellar and it is very much worthy because he was indeed a godly man. So let's look at these religious reforms.

The Purge in Judah (vv. 4–14)

Note first the purge in Judah in verses 4 to 14. So he begins in the south. He is a king of Judah, so he is beginning in the south. That's the only kingdom that is still extant or still intact at this particular time.

The northern kingdom has already been judged. The fact that he's able to go into the north and engage in purge there may be indicative of the fact that Assyria was weakening at this particular time and probably depopulating the northern kingdom. Remember that in chapter 17 in 2nd Kings when Assyria conquers Samaria, they resettle peoples there. Well, probably as Assyria is weakening, those peoples are now leaving.

And so it leaves it open for Josiah to go to the north, we'll see that in verse 15, to engage in a purge there. But notice with reference to Judah, in the first place he removes and burns the pagan vessels in verse 4. Anything that was used in the temple of the Lord in concert with pagan worship, he orders those things to be removed, and to be burned. Secondly, we note the removal of idolatrous priests in verse 5.

Again, the fact that these things are even in the kingdom of God on earth is quite an alarming thing, but it is a blessing to see this man enabled by the Spirit of God, empowered by the Word of God, engaged in this reform under God. So verse 5, he removes the idolatrous priests. Verse 6, he burns and pulverizes the image of Asherah. Remember that Asherah was a female deity, a female goddess.

Baal was a male and oftentimes these would be worshipped through fornication or copulation on the part of the worshipper in order to try and get Baal and Asherah to mate so that then Baal would indeed increase fertility on the land. So that Israel's engaged in this sort of thing, or Judah is, when they serve and fear the living and true God, is indicative of how far they have fallen. But this image of Asherah is burned and pulverized. Notice in verse 7, we have the destruction of the cult prostitutes' temple apartments.

Notice, it says, then he tore down the ritual booths of the perverted persons that were in the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the wooden image. If you go back for just a moment to 1 Kings 15, this deals with male prostitutes that served in a cultic setting, probably to facilitate Baal and Asherah doing their thing. But in 1 Kings 15, we see that Asa was committed to this. In verse 12, Go to 1 Kings chapter 22, you see the same thing takes place under Jehoshaphat in verse 46.

The rest of the perverted persons who remained in the days of his father Esau, he banished from the land. So you see, even though Esau did this and Jehoshaphat did this, sin nevertheless returns and the people of Israel, the people of Judah specifically here, are engaged in this wickedness. But Josiah makes this purge, he deals with this particular situation, and he does rid them from the land. Then notice as well the defiling of Judah's high places and the removal of her priests in verse 8.

He brought all the priests from the cities of Judah and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Deba to Beersheba, Also, he broke down the high places at the gates, which were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the governor of the city, which were to the left of the city gate." Notice, it says specifically that he defiled the high places. Now, this probably means that he rendered them inoperative, not just by way of destroying them, but also defiling them. That's why there's this emphasis on bones. Josiah putting these bones in various places.

It was to render those things permanently unclean. One man, a commentator named Ellison, makes this observation. The frequent mention of defiling in this section, verses 8, 10, 13, and 16, and the defiling by certain acts in verses 4, 6, 14, 16, and 20, is explained by the fact that a sanctuary or high place did not lose its sanctity by the cult objects and buildings being destroyed. In other words, it wasn't enough just to destroy those particular things.

It needed more drastic action to make the spot profane or ordinary. It's ultimately what profane means. I mean, in our language or in our use, it typically means something that's bad. But profane is just the opposite of sacred.

It's something that is ordinary. It is something that is not of special use. And that's what he suggests here. It needed more drastic action to make the spot profane or ordinary.

Unless this action was taken, the sanctuaries would be restored at the next relapse. So this is why he is doing these particular things. Again, he uses bones later on in terms of rendering these sites or these particular places profane or ordinary such that they would not be utilized again in the service of these false gods. And then notice in verse 10, the desecration of Topheth.

This was the place of child sacrifice. Verse 10, he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire to Molech. Remember, Molech was that god of the pagans that was put into the flames of fire at the base of the statue, and he had arms outstretched, and persons or worshipers would take their babies and throw them up into the arms of this idol. Well, he had hands and arms, but he couldn't catch, so the babies would fall off into the fire, and there they would die.

Remember that Manasseh reinstitutes this. Manasseh is Josiah's grandfather, and he reinstituted this practice in Israel. So already we see that this had been engaged in, it had been done away with at certain times, but then reinstituted by Manasseh, but under Josiah he gets rid of it. Again, notice in verse 11, the removal of things, specifically horses dedicated to sun worship, and he burned the chariots.

Now, there's a whole host of reasons why horses may have been used with reference to sun worship, but suffice it to say that he dealt with that as well. And then in verse 12, the destruction of royal idolatrous altars, probably used for astral deities, the sun, the moon, the stars, these constellations, Notice in verse 12, "...the altars that were on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, the king broke down and pulverized there, and threw their dust into the brook Kidron." You see, the kings themselves had engaged in this wickedness. In fact, if you look at the prophet Zephaniah, he prophesied at the same time as Josiah. And in Zephaniah chapter 1, At verse 4, we read, I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

I will cut off every trace of Baal from this place, the names of the idolatrous priests with the pagan priests, those who worship the host of heaven on the housetops, those who worship and swear oaths by the Lord, but who also swear by Milcom, those who have turned back from following the Lord and have not sought the Lord nor inquired of Him. You see, this was a systemic problem both in Israel and in Judah. And for those of us who have been here for some time going through 1st and 2nd Kings, especially 2nd Kings chapter 17, we see or have seen what happened in the Northern Kingdom when they engaged in these particular activities. We have already been reminded that this is, in fact, going to happen in Judah, which begs the question, and we'll deal with this a bit more at the end of our study tonight, why does Josiah do this?

In other words, Josiah knows that Judah is, it's been prophesied to be destroyed. At the reading of the law, he understood the curses of the covenant were in fact targeted against Judah. He says as much. That's why he sends his men to Huldah, the prophetess, to seek or inquire of the Lord.

Huldah comes and tells Josiah, or rather through the servants, to tell Josiah that yes, indeed, Judah is going to be decimated. Judah is going to be destroyed. She does promise, however, that he would die in a time of peace. In other words, the execution of judgment would be stayed during the life and times of Josiah.

But he knows that this is a nation that's ultimately going to collapse. It's on the verge of collapse. So we ask the question, why does he do this? Because he's a godly man.

And because this glorifies God. And when a godly man seeks to honor the Lord, whether he benefits from it or not, whether he gets something from it or not. See, godly men are not mercenaries. They do what the Lord commands because the Lord commands.

They don't do it with the promise of blessing. They don't do it with their hands held out. They're not freeloaders off the government that are going to just do their thing so that they can get their thing. No, Josiah knows that ultimately Judah is going to fall, and yet he engages in this thoroughgoing purge in terms of idolatry in both the south and the north because he fears God.

He wants to honor God, he wants to keep the covenant, and he wants to lead the people in that way as well. Now we see that it's short-lived. The people who swear fidelity to this covenant here in verse 4, ultimately follow Jehoahaz when he does evil in the sight of the Lord. It shows us that this reformation, though beautiful and blessed and thorough and deep on the part of Josiah, was shallow amongst the inhabitants of the land.

They ultimately do reap the curses of the covenant But we ought to appreciate that Josiah does what's right because it's right. He doesn't do what's right at the promise of a certain particular blessing. I think that this is what Paul's point is when he admonishes children to obey their parents and the Lord. Why?

For this is right. How many times do parents say, if you obey me, I'll give you a cookie. If you obey me, I'll take you to the store. If you obey me, I'll play this game with you.

If you obey me, you're doing what's right, and that's what you need to be taught. Brethren, it is the right thing to serve, to fear, to glorify, and honor God whether we get blessed or not. Now we know our God's gracious, our God is kind, our God is merciful, and more often than not, He heaps up blessings upon us, especially when we don't deserve them. So there's never the sense where we're going to be cheated or gypped or anything like that, But that ought not to go into our decision-making process.

I think far too often we are mercenaries. We are as bad as Benny Hinn and the health, wealth, and prosperity people. We won't pray unless we think we're going to get something. We won't go to church unless we think we're going to get something.

I mean, you hear that when people go to church. Oh, I just didn't get anything out of it. Since when did your getting something out of it become the mark and measure of the Christian church? I mentioned the Belgic Confession on Sunday morning in our confession study, and I'm going to mention again on Sunday morning in the sermon on Matthew 28, or as we conclude the Gospel of Matthew.

The Belgic Confession says there are three marks of the Church, and guess what one of them isn't, if you and I get something out of worship. Now, again, it is the case when we come into contact with the living God through the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, we do get something. We get encouragement, we get joy, we get blessing, we get happiness, because there's no better place to be than worshiping the triune God. Is there?

There is no better place to be than under the Word of God, worshiping with the people of God, singing praises unto God. This is what should delight the people of God. But the mark of the church isn't, what do I get out of it? There's a mercenary spirit in our hearts that serves only to get, and Josiah destroys that idea in his actions and in his conduct.

He knows that Judah is going to fall. He knows because he has been assured of it by the prophet Tesholdah, speaking under the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit, having interpreted properly the covenant curses of God in Deuteronomy 28, Leviticus 26. So what does he not do? He doesn't say, well, I'm going to finish out the rest of my years playing golf.

I'm going to finish out the rest of my years because the Lord said that Judah will have peace, so that means I'll have peace and I can just sort of skate and be a lame duck king and reap the benefits of being a king. No, not Josiah. He goes on this mission to purge Israel of its absolute wickedness. Notice, in verse 13, the elimination of Solomon's falling.

See, this is the most grievous text. Verse 13, then the king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, which were on the south of the Mount of Corruption. It's the Mount of Olives, but it's become the Mount of Corruption because of the wickedness conducted there. Solomon, king of Israel, had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the people of Ammon." You see, what he is doing is thoroughgoing.

The reference here to Solomon ought to hang any... or ought to cause any Israelite with any degree of respectability to hang his head in shame. Solomon was a godly king, Solomon was a righteous man, Solomon was full of wisdom, but he disobeyed God and he multiplied wives and they led his heart away from the living and true God. And so now Josiah comes and he rectifies this. In fact, Paul House says, Josiah rolls back the clock, so to speak, to pre-idolatry Jerusalem, to the glory days of David when images were not welcome in the capital city of the Lord's people.

Monotheism is once again at least the official theology, whether or not the people in fact embrace what is to them a novel concept. You see, even Solomon instituted idolatry in the covenant people of God. So it's Josiah now who is, as House says, turning back the clock to that pre-idolatry era when David was the king of Israel and there wasn't institutionalized idolatry. Remember we have seen that in many cases, many instances, many times in our studies in the Kings.

David was a man after God's own heart. Not because he was perfect. We know he committed murder, he committed adultery, but he never committed idolatry. He never departed from Yahweh.

He never engaged in idolatry against the living and true God. And then notice finally, with reference to the purge in the south, the destruction of things used in fertility worship in verse 14. He broke in pieces the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images and filled their places with the bones of men. Again, just these sort of 10 items that he's done in the South.

This is a lot of work for a man who knows that ultimately Judah's going to collapse. But he does it for the glory of God. He does it to have a positive impact upon the people of his day at that particular time. In short, he does it because it's right, not because of what he'll get.

Now, note the purge in the north in verses 15 to 20. This has already been hinted at in verse 4. If you notice back in verse 4, the king commanded Elkiah, the high priest, the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the articles that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven, and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel. Remember that Bethel was one of the primary locations instituted by Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, for the worship of the calves.

This was wickedness. Jeroboam, again Solomon didn't do very well in terms of the end of his life, Jeroboam comes along, and he institutionalizes idolatry in a way that even Solomon hadn't done. And then we get to Ahab, and we see him institutionalize idolatry in a way that men hadn't done. So you see the wickedness that these particular individuals are engaged in, and Josiah is correcting it.

Notice he destroys Jeroboam's Bethel worship center. And it's intriguing. Proven makes this observation. He says, Josiah now takes action against this cult, which has lived on in the activities of the new settlers in the land of Israel.

He does so in a way that recalls Moses' own action against the first golden calf. He burns the high place along with the Asherah pool and grinds it to powder. Josiah is a second Moses. Josiah is Moses-like.

Many times he is compared, or his conduct, rather, is gauged against or measured against the law of Moses. The fact that he follows the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, hearkens back to the Shema of Deuteronomy 6, verse 4, and its response, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. So, this Josiah is a Mosaic-like man, and he does the same as Moses did at the calf worship in Exodus chapter 32.

Fulfillment of the Word of God

Something else we ought to appreciate here, specifically in verses 16 to 18, is the fulfillment of the Word of God. The fulfillment of the Word of God back in 1 Kings 13. In fact, you can turn there. For those who were not here at that particular time, there's something significant happening in our text that was prophesied about 300 years prior to this.

This is after Jeroboam institutes these worship centers. This is after he erects the golden, or the calves, and he calls upon Israel to bow to these calves. Notice in chapter 13 of 1 Kings, verse 1. And behold, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.

Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord and said, O altar, altar, thus says the Lord. Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David. You see, there's always hope in a Davidic son. There's always hope in a son of David to come and correct the problems of a particular age.

In fact, there's some typology going on here. We see the prophetic statement concerning Josiah and that he would indeed purge Israel of its idols. Josiah in turn functions typologically for our Lord Jesus. One of his prophesied roles, according to Malachi chapter 3, is to purge Israel of her idolatry and of her sin.

We see this as well in Revelation chapter 2 and 3 where Jesus is purging the church of their sin. So when we see this particular statement, About 300 years prior, thus says the Lord, Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David, and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men's bones shall be burned on you. And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the Lord has spoken. Surely the altar shall split apart, and the ashes on it shall be poured out.

You see the fulfillment of God's word here in 2 Kings 23. Josiah is the Davidic son prophesied in 1 Kings 13 to bring an end to Jeroboam's calf cult. And this is precisely what's happening here in 2 Kings 23 verses 16 to 18. It really is a beautiful thing.

It's really a glorious thing to see this happening. And then notice the purge throughout the northern cities in verses 19 and 20. Now Josiah also took away all the shrines of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger. And he did to them according to all the deeds he had done in Bethel.

He executed all the priests of the high places who were there on the altars and burned men's bones on them, and he returned to Jerusalem." Now I think there's troublesome people because they get a little freaked out that the king is actually killing priests. But this is in accordance with God's Word. Remember Elijah on Mount Carmel with those prophets of Baal? He ordered their execution.

Brethren, this was a violation of the theocratic republic that was constituted at this particular time. To engage in idolatry was an act of treason in the commonwealth of Israel. But as well, we see in Exodus 2220, it says very specifically, he who sacrifices to any God except to the Lord only, he shall be utterly destroyed. Deuteronomy chapter 13, that blessed passage, a blessed passage in terms of the reality of God's holiness and righteousness and the necessity for the people of God to resist apostasy, to resist idolatry, to resist seduction to idolatry.

Remember in Deuteronomy chapter 13, you were to kill the false prophets. You see, there are those who prophesy today falsely, and nothing ever happens to them. If they happened to live a thousand or two thousand years ago, several thousand years ago, they would have been put to death for false prophecy. That was the mandate.

You didn't live after you engaged in false prophecy. God demands it. And then specifically in chapter 13, verses 6 to 11, he says, if your brother, the son of your mother, your son, or your daughter, the wife of your bosom, or your friend who is as your own soul, secretly entices you saying, let us go and serve other gods, basically, you shall kill them. The idea being that seduction to apostasy or seduction to idolatry was a capital offense in Israel, and we see the execution of these priests in 2 Kings 23 is absolutely legit.

Again, Paul Howe says, with Judah cleansed, Josiah moves north to Bethel. which had served as one of the major worship centers in Jeroboam's maverick cult. Josiah does this and thereby reclaims all the promised land for the worship of the Lord. Don't miss the theology that's going on here. We've already had a nod to Solomon in a negative way.

But what do we now have? We have a Judean king going up into the north and essentially uniting the kingdom. Not politically necessarily, because he doesn't occupy sort of the reign or rule over the northern kingdom, but theologically this is a very significant event. He purges the south, he purges the north, and thus he brings the two kingdoms together once again in a way that shows that when the text says that there was never a king like him, that's accurate.

Hezekiah was a good and godly king to be sure, but Josiah is doing things here that are Davidic-like, that are David-like and Solomon-like. The last time the kingdom was united was under Solomon. And so what he's doing here is very significant. He says, again, the author emphasizes restoration.

Both parts of the divided kingdom are reunited spiritually, if not politically. Both sections of the land return to fidelity to the Lord and to an emphasis on worship at a central sanctuary. Very significant. Again, we know it's going to be short-lived, Judah's going to collapse when we get to chapter 25, but it's a blessed thing to see Josiah functioning as a Davidic son, doing the work of Yahweh.

Sacraments Restored (vv. 21–22)

Now notice, with reference to the Reforms, sacraments are observed. You see, this follows a particular pattern, or this sort of sets forth a particular pattern, that is duplicated in the Church ever since. You see, the law of God is found, it's internalized by those who have found it, and then reform follows, right? And there's a close connection between chapters 22 and 23.

They find the law of God, they act upon the law of God. What happens when we act upon the law of God? We get our worship practices in order. What happens when we follow the law of God?

We get our sacraments in order. What happens when we follow the law of God? We get rid of idols. We get rid of those things that would, you know, promote wickedness within the camp of the people of God.

This is a common thread or theme. If you study church history, this is what revival looks like. The people get gripped with the truth of God's Word and they engage in reform. They engage in those sorts of things. that are pleasing to God, they obey God, they renew covenants, they reform worship, and they engage in biblical sacraments.

Notice in verses 21 and 22, then the king commanded all the people saying, keep the Passover to the Lord your God as it is written in the book of the covenant. This is written obviously in Exodus chapter 12, and then it's repeated in Deuteronomy chapter 16. You see, this had gone by the wayside. When you've got, you know, idols with Asherah, you've got idols to Baal, you've got priests that are prostituting the temple worship.

Passover was long forgotten. They weren't engaged in these particular things. Remember, God gave Passover for the people to remember God's work of redemption of His people out of the land of Egypt. That was the significance.

So if they are not engaged in Passover, guess what else they're not engaged in? They're not remembering the God of salvation. They're not remembering the God of redemption. They're not remembering what they were in terms of Egypt and having been brought out in the Exodus by the power of Yahweh.

Same thing is true for us today. When we neglect the supper, when we neglect the truths represented by the supper, we're neglecting the God who orchestrated the work of redemption and gave us the supper in order to symbolize it and represent it. in a tangible way for His people so that they can be confirmed in the faith. You see, sacraments are forgotten when the people of God are neglecting God. Sacraments become important when the people of God are remembering God.

They're specific signposts or tent pegs that God gives us to hang our souls on to encourage ourselves in the knowledge of God and who He is and what He's done. See, this is why Pastor Porter and I often nag the people of God in our church. Don't miss the Lord's table. It's very important.

A neglect of the table is a neglect of the God of the table. He is lavishing this bounty upon us as the householder to refresh his weary pilgrims. And we're going to slight that? We're going to neglect that?

We're going to resist that and say, no, God? The Lord gives us these benefits for His glory and for our good. Now, in verse 22, it says, such a Passover surely had never been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. Now, if you look at 2 Chronicles chapter 30, Hezekiah kept Passover.

And some say, well, how in the world could the author here say this with reference to the fact that Hezekiah kept a Passover? I think the idea is that Josias exceeded it in terms of participation. Remember, he's unified the kingdom, as it were, at least theologically, not politically. And so it's all the people gathering together for this Passover feast.

So in that sense, what the author says is absolutely, positively, 100% true. Such a Passover surely had never been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. But in the 18th year of King Josiah, this Passover was held before the Lord in Jerusalem. So we see.

We've got the covenant renewal, we've got the reform of worship, and we've got the observation of sacraments. That's biblical reformation. You look at the Reformation in the 16th century, what did they do? They essentially renewed covenant with God to purge the church of popish errors.

They engage in the reform of worship, get the incense out, get the priests out, get the pulpit in the center, get rid of the altar, get rid of the mass, get rid of all those abominations. They reform the sacraments in terms of observance. We don't do it the way that Rome does it. We don't transubstantiate and actually turn these things into the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

One of the most debated issues, one of the topics that was written on the most during the Protestant Reformation. Guess what it was? We probably all say justification by faith alone. And we would be absolutely positively wrong.

It was the supper. It was the Lord's Supper. You say, well, why? Because it touches on who Jesus Christ is.

You see, there's more problems with the Romish doctrine of transubstantiation than meets the eye. If what they are saying is true, they are divinizing the body, the physical humanity of our Lord Jesus. That's a denial of what's called the hypostatic union. The Lord's Supper touches on Christology, that's why it's so important, and that's why the reformers dealt with it at great detail.

But that pattern, the reception of the Word of God, renewal of the covenant, Reformation of worship, the proper observance of the sacraments. That is precisely what Josiah undergoes in this particular chapter.

The Uniqueness of Josiah (vv. 24–25)

This particular section ends with the uniqueness of Josiah in verses 24 and 25. Notice. Moreover, Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord." Certainly, the scriptures forbid such in the land of Israel. Leviticus 19.13, Leviticus 20.27, Deuteronomy 18.11.

It is not the case that Israel is supposed to entertain spiritists and mediums. Remember that Saul purged the land, and then when Saul didn't get a word from Yahweh, he fetched the witch in Endor. He sought out the witch in Endor. So he was not consistent.

Josiah, however, is consistent. He puts these things out of the land. And then verse 25 is a glowing statement concerning this man. Now before him, there was no king like him who turned to the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses. nor after him did any arise like him." See, that is a comparison that is supposed to remind us of Moses.

He's a second Moses. If Hezekiah was a second David, so is Josiah, but Josiah is a second Moses. He's a lawman. He purges Israel of their wickedness and sin.

He gets rid of the idols. He gets rid of Baal. He gets rid of Asherah. He gets rid of these priests that engage in these things.

He gets rid of the sodomites from the land, these cult prostitutes. He gets rid of anything that smacks up or reeks of idolatry and rebellion against the living God. Again, notice the particular standard according to all the law of Moses. He didn't pick and choose.

He didn't take a little bit, but rather it was all the law of Moses. Now, having said all that, verses 26 and 27 sort of smack us right in the face, don't they? Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn from the fierceness of his great wrath." After all this great stuff that Josiah does, we're inclined to think, well, everything's going to be peachy king now, isn't it? Everything's going to be rosy.

Josiah's fixed everything. No, he hasn't. The nation was bad. The nation had come under God's judgment.

The nation is heading on that collision course, and all the good that Josiah accomplishes may stay the execution of judgment, at least for a brief time, but the execution of judgment is coming. You cannot continually rebel against God. You cannot continually reject God, and you cannot then think that everything's going to be okay with God. Learn something from the nation of Judah.

God is not mocked. Jeremiah 3 deals with this in great detail. Remember, Jeremiah prophesied at the same time that Josiah was king in Judah. In Jeremiah chapter 3, Jeremiah upgrades the nation of Judah.

And essentially he says, you should have learned from your sister in the north. You should have learned by what happened to her. She sinned against God and God sent her away. Now you've come along and you have out sinned even her.

Ezekiel 23, I think, uses that same convention as well. The two sisters that were Israel, the north, and Judah, the south. So in Jeremiah 3, Judah should have learned the lesson. In fact, this is what makes them more guilty and more culpable with reference to the judgment of God.

They not only do the same sins that the north does, but they have the pattern of the northern exile. In other words, they have seen what God does to a nation that continues to reject Him. Now, may I jump into the New Covenant and say, how dare we continue to sin against this God when we have the example of the North and the Assyrian captivity, we have the example of the South and the Babylonian captivity, we have the written admonition from John the Apostle in 1 John 5.21, my little children, keep yourselves from idols, and then we dare to go and engage in idolatry. It's absolute insanity when you stop and parse it out.

There is so much in the scripture to argue against any participation of us with Belial that we are a madman to engage in it. I almost said knuckleheads, that's accurate. It doesn't quite convey how bad it is, though. Brethren, we see what God does to idolatry.

We are told in the Gospels not to be lovers of Mammon. We're told in the Gospels not to be lovers of the world. We have seen James. I mean, has anybody sat pleasantly, happily under these messages in James?

James doesn't mess around. James smacks you right like this nevertheless does in 2 Kings 23-26. You cannot continue to profess faith in Jesus Christ and live as if God doesn't matter. That is simply unacceptable behavior.

We saw this in the Great Commission. What's the purpose of the Commission? Go, therefore, make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to do what? To observe all the things that I have commanded.

Not to reject them, not to neglect them, not to pretend like they're not there. What's James say in James 119? We are to be doers of the Word, not just hearers. We don't get points for simply hearing.

We need to take the Word of God, internalize the Word of God, and apply the Word of God the way that Josiah does, with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his might. Now certainly, as I say this, you will hopefully see your absolute need for the Holy Spirit. Because we can't do this on our own. We don't do this in our own strength.

If we don't have the Spirit of God, we will not be compliant with the Word of God. So we see that nevertheless the Lord did not turn from the fierceness of His great wrath, with which His anger was aroused against Judah, because of all the provocations excuse me, with which Manasseh had provoked him. And the Lord said, I will also remove Judah from my sight as I have removed Israel and will cast off this city, Jerusalem, which I have chosen and the house of which I said, my name shall be there. John Gill says, notwithstanding the great reformation wrought among them, for though Josiah was a sincere reformer and did what he did heartily as to the Lord according to his will and for his glory, yet the people were not sincere in their compliance.

They turned to the Lord not with their whole heart, but faintedly. And then he refers to Jeremiah chapter 3 verse 10. So we see that what happens in Josiah is a blessing, it's good, it's awesome, it's a wonderful example for us, but it's too late for Judah. Proven says, at this juncture in Judean history, strangely enough, Judah finds herself with yet another righteous king, a second Moses to match her second David, Hezekiah.

Josiah is a long-awaited king, is long-awaited, 1 Kings 13. He is the best of all kings, but he is a king come too late. It's not going to benefit the people at this particular point.

The Death of Josiah (vv. 28–30)

And then the final scene is his death at Megiddo. His death at Megiddo under Pharaoh Necho. It's not a lot of details here. There's more details in 2 Chronicles, chapter 35, verses 20 to 27.

We ask the question, why does he do this? Why does he go out there and face Pharaoh and Assyria? Well, the text doesn't give us the specifics. Most likely, it wasn't a good move on his part.

I mean, obviously, it wasn't a good move because he died at the hands of Pharaoh Necho. but he does die as it was stipulated, or as it was written, or as we have seen here specifically. It's not a violation of what Huldah says. The peace there in 2220 has to do with Judah. Judah will remain intact throughout the life of Josiah.

Application and Conclusion

So thus the exposition. We ought to learn from this by way of a quick conclusion. First, the reception of God's word should lead to reformation. according to God's Word. In other words, when we receive that Word and we understand that Word, we ought to reform ourselves to that Word.

This is a fundamental principle in biblical religion. God wants us to do what He tells us to. You want your kid to do what you tell him to or you tell her to. And if they don't, there's chastisement, hopefully, because if not, then they're going to grow up and be rotten human beings.

Discipline your children for the good of society. But God demands obedience and compliance with his word. That is crucial, brethren, and we see this in the reform under Josiah. The nature of his reform, it was intensive.

Not one iota of idolatry is left intact. Everything that had been instituted, everything that had been put in place, right down to Jeroboam, son of Nebat, institution of calf worship in 1 Kings 13. Josiah deals with it. He goes to the north, he goes to Bethel, he goes to that worship center, and he deals the death blow to all these things.

It was extensive, the entirety of the land, both south and north, was purged, and the reform was comprehensive. It was according to the law of Moses. We learn in this passage as well the judgment of God. The judgment of God, this nevertheless, in verse 26, is a stark reminder that God's judgment upon Judah was in fact inevitable.

They had filled up the measure of their guilt and the judgment of God would indeed come upon them. Notice the statement in verses 26 and 27 confirms what we've already seen. Go back to 2 Kings 17. 2 Kings chapter 17 is a record of the fall of the northern kingdom. And in 2 Kings chapter 17 at verse 19, it says, Now it's just a short statement, a brief statement, but in the context of the fall of the North, When it tells us that Judah is doing the same things that the North has done, that does not bode well.

That foreshadows bad things concerning Judah. Notice in chapter 20. Chapter 20, remember Hezekiah entertains Babylonians, and Isaiah the prophet rebukes him. In 2 Kings 20 at verse 16, Isaiah said to Hezekiah, hear the word of the Lord.

Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house and what your fathers have accumulated until this day shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord, and they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. That's basically a statement saying the southern kingdom is going to be shut down. Remember that these kings, it was dynastic.

You depended on, you know, sons that could reproduce to further the dynasty. And the fact that the sons of the king are going to be eunuchs indicates the end of the line in terms of the dynasty. We see it very specifically stated in chapter 21, verses 10 to 16. Under Manasseh, we have this promise of the coming judgment of God.

And then in chapter 22, specifically to Josiah, the prophetess Huldah says that this is indeed going to happen. Verses 16 and 17. Josiah had heard the covenant curses. Josiah had heard the prophecy from Huldah.

Josiah knew what was coming, but back to that question, why does he do what he does? Proven says, since Josiah is a pious king, Huldah's oracle about the future does not deflect Josiah from the path of reform. Because he was godly, he did what he was supposed to do. That's a principle that we need to capture again in the church.

Do what you're supposed to do because it's right, not because of what you get. You know, we constantly have to sort of encourage and entice and incentivize people. And God does encourage, God does entice, and God does incentivize. But brethren, we should do what we're supposed to do because it's right.

That is a gift that is somewhat lacking today. He says, Reformation in the light of the law book is still the right thing to do, and Josiah is one who, above all others, does what is right. And I like Davis's response to this whole issue. Why does Josiah do what he does in light of the fact that the kingdom is going to collapse?

Wrath is consuming and coming uncertain, but Josiah already knew this. Huldah's prophecy had made that clear, yet he pressed on infidelity to the covenant. in commitment, sacrament, and worship. But why? Would it make any eventual difference?

Would it last? Would it save the nation? Would it cool God's wrath? No to all these, but Josiah's is a faithfulness that does not confuse obedience with pragmatism and so pushes on, not because it will change anything, but simply because God demands it.

It's so simple. Please do what God says. You know, we want to paint everything with these complicated sort of strokes of the brush. When all is said and done, do what God says.

Obedience, I love this line, obedience without incentives is likely genuine. Obedience without incentives is likely genuine. It's a beautiful statement. And then he makes the comparison, Davis does, with Mary and Bethany.

Remember the anointing of Bethany at the introduction of the passion narrative in Matthew 26? We get sort of lay of the land, what's happening, the priests are conniving. and they're gonna destroy Jesus, and then we get this scene of Mary and Bethany anoint the feet of the Savior. In Mark's gospel, the disciples try to stop her, and he says, leave her alone, she did what she could. Remember that?

Wasn't huge, wasn't astronomical, but she did what she could. Davis says, one might say something similar of Josiah and any one of the Lord's people who remain faithful with no relief in sight. And it is the way of Josiah's spiritual descendants who, unlike the king, may not have the potential to sway a nation, but who worship God faithfully and keep his commandments, though it may not resolve personal problems, bring economic success, or relieve emotional distress. You ever have that?

Why do you serve God? Your life looks as miserable as mine. Because it's the right thing to do. And because it's what does produce joy.

It's not all the bells and the whistles, but it's the service and the devotion and the worship of God that ultimately matters for God's people. I think Josiah is a very instructive character for us in the history of redemption. Why don't we close in a word of prayer.

Closing Prayer

Father, we thank you for your word. Thank you that Josiah did what he could, and may we, like him, seek to be faithful and obedient unto you, even when there isn't immediate payout or we aren't incentivized or enticed. Help us, God, to be a faithful, disciplined, persevering people, knowing that God is, in fact, good, knowing that the best joy is to serve the Lord Most High. May we have that mindset, may you cause us to receive the Word and to make those reformations in our own hearts and in our own lives and in our own churches that are according to your Word.

Go with us now, we pray and we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Scripture References

• Exodus 12; 22:20; 24; 32
• Leviticus 19:13; 20:27; 26
• Deuteronomy 6:4; 13; 13:6-11; 16; 18:11; 28; 29; 31:9-13
• Joshua 24
• 1 Kings 13; 13:1; 15; 15:12; 22; 22:46
• 2 Kings 17; 17:19; 20:16; 21:10-16; 22; 22:16-17; 23:1-30
• 2 Chronicles 30; 35:20-27
• Jeremiah 3; 3:10
• Ezekiel 23
• Zephaniah 1:4
• Malachi 3
• Matthew 26; 28
• James 1:19
• 1 John 5:21
• Revelation 2-3