2 KINGS LESSON 22
We will begin this lesson in II Kings 22:1 "Josiah [was] eight
years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty and one years
in Jerusalem. And his mother's name [was] Jedidah, the daughter of
Adaiah of Boscath."
This is an unusually young age to begin the reign as king.
Someone will have a great influence upon him, perhaps his mother. It
appears, his mother was Hebrew. "Jedidah" means beloved. "Adaiah"
means whom Jehovah adorns. Boscath was a city of Judah. He reigned,
until he was 39.
II Kings 22:2 "And he did [that which was] right in the sight of
the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned
not aside to the right hand or to the left."
This is high praise of any of the kings, but is even more so
because of the king's age. The last king of Judah, that this had been
said of, was Hezekiah. The land was full of idolatry and he made a
stand for God. He was a man after God's heart. It was wonderful how he
broke the chain of sins of his father and grandfather, and lived for
the LORD.
II Kings 22:3 "And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of
king Josiah, [that] the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son
of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the LORD, saying,"
In the book of 2 Chronicles, there is a more extensive list of
the things that Josiah did. II Chronicles 34:3 "For in the eighth
year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the
God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge
Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the
carved images, and the molten images." II Chronicles 34:4 "And they
brake down the altars of Baalim in his presence; and the images, that
[were] on high above them, he cut down; and the groves, and the carved
images, and the molten images, he brake in pieces, and made dust [of
them], and strowed [it] upon the graves of them that had sacrificed
unto them." II Chronicles 34:5 "And he burnt the bones of the priests
upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem." In verse 3
above, he would be 26 years old. He had begun to cleanse the land,
when he was 16. He had been a good king, doing what was right in God's
sight. Shaphan was a very prominent officer in the service of Josiah.
Josiah sent him to the temple for him.
II Kings 22:4 "Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum
the silver which is brought into the house of the LORD, which the
keepers of the door have gathered of the people:"
We see there was, now, a high priest in the temple. It appears,
that Josiah had been gathering silver for the temple. He wanted an
accounting of that silver.
II Kings 22:5 "And let them deliver it into the hand of the doers
of the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD: and let
them give it to the doers of the work which [is] in the house of the
LORD, to repair the breaches of the house,"
The house of the LORD had been allowed to fall into need of
repair under the evil kings. They had done much damage, as well, with
their evil altars and statues of idols. Josiah had already had the
evil removed, but now the building and its furnishings were in need of
repair. Josiah had them to gather silver from the people to pay for
it. He, now, has the silver distributed to the overseers, and they
could in turn pay the actual workmen.
II Kings 22:6 "Unto carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to
buy timber and hewn stone to repair the house." II Kings 22:7 "Howbeit
there was no reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered
into their hand, because they dealt faithfully."
There was no need for a reckoning since they were all men chosen
by Josiah for their honesty. It appears, that Josiah had removed
those, who were not worshippers of Jehovah. The silver was used, not
only for the wages of the laborers, but for the materials for
building, such as stone and wood.
II Kings 22:8 "And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the
scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And
Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it."
This book of the law is, probably, speaking of the Pentateuch
{five books of Moses}. At one time, there was a copy kept at the side
of the ark. I would not say they found this by chance. I believe God
planned this, for this young king to know fully the law of God, that
he loved. The high priest would have been in the area where the book
would have been kept. Shaphan, being the record keeper, checked it to
see, if he thought it was a true work. He would have to tell the king
his opinion, of whether this is the law, or not.
II Kings 22:9 "And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and
brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have gathered the
money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand
of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the
LORD." II Kings 22:10 "And Shaphan the scribe shewed the king, saying,
Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book. And Shaphan read it
before the king."
Shaphan had carried out the request of his king to count the
funds and distribute it for the re-building of the temple. In the
process, of seeing what needed to be done to the temple, the high
priest had found the book of the law. Shaphan read the law to the
king, for his approval.
II Kings 22:11 "And it came to pass, when the king had heard the
words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes."
King Josiah accepted this book as the truth from the beginning.
After hearing the book, he knew that Judah had greatly sinned against
God, when they committed all of the sins during his father's time. He,
also, realized that there were definite things to be observed in the
temple. The tearing of his clothes, showed his grief in seeing how
Judah had failed God. He knew the wrath of God should fall upon them.
II Kings 22:12 "And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and
Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan
the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's, saying," II Kings
22:13 "Go ye, inquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for
all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great
[is] the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our
fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do
according unto all that which is written concerning us."
These were people of importance in the kingdom. The high priest
represented the religious in this. The Urim and the Thummim of the
high priest, in the days of Moses, was the way the LORD spoke to the
people. The temple had been so desecrated from time to time and the
priesthood reduced to a puppet situation, that the king would inquire
of God through a prophet, or a prophetess, now. Isaiah is dead.
Manasseh killed him. King Josiah wanted to hear from God to know what
to do, to save Judah. Whatever God wanted him to do, is what they
would do.
II Kings 22:14 "So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor,
and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of
Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe;
(now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with
her."
Jeremiah was a prophet in these days. We are not told why he was
not consulted on this matter. There is a confirmation in this
following Scripture, that these men of authority in the temple and the
civil government went to inquire of this prophetess. Her husband was
not a prophet. This one verse in Chronicles and in Kings defeats the
complaint about women ministers. II Chronicles 34:22 "And Hilkiah, and
[they] that the king [had appointed], went to Huldah the prophetess,
the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of
the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college:) and they
spake to her to that [effect]." "Huldah" means weasel. This lets us
know that her prophetic ability had been underground, perhaps, to save
her life. She was not a feminist. She was married. It appears, that
she was a teacher of the prophets in the school of the prophets. That
is the school that is meant here. It appears, that she was held in
high esteem as a prophetess by the king, and his government officials,
and by the temple authorities, as well. Hilkiah was the high priest.
II Kings 22:15 "And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God
of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me,"
She was unusual amongst women. She spoke as an oracle of God. As
Isaiah and Jeremiah and prophets of that stature, she spoke the Words
of God to the people {Thus saith the LORD}. Notice, she wanted these
people to realize that the king was not diety. She called him man.
II Kings 22:16 "Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil
upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, [even] all the
words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:"
She boldly brought the judgement of God to the ears of these
listeners. She said the things in the book, they had found, were true
and God will bring judgement upon Judah for their unfaithfulness to
God.
II Kings 22:17 "Because they have forsaken me, and have burned
incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all
the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against
this place, and shall not be quenched."
"The burning of incense" symbolizes prayer. To burn incense to a
false god, means they were praying to that false god. God's wrath was
kindled against Judah, because they had been unfaithful and turned to
false gods. There had been so much worship of false gods before the
reign of Josiah, that God's wrath would not be quenched.
II Kings 22:18 "But to the king of Judah which sent you to
inquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God
of Israel, [As touching] the words which thou hast heard;"
This king had not gone unnoticed by the LORD. In all of this land
of evil, Josiah stood out as someone who truly loved God. This part of
the message was specifically to him. Shaphan had read Josiah the law,
and that was when he rent his clothes in horror.
II Kings 22:19 "Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast
humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake
against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they
should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and
wept before me; I also have heard [thee], saith the LORD."
Josiah loved the LORD. The tearing of the clothes by Josiah, was
an act of humiliating himself before the LORD. It was as if Josiah
were saying, "I am at your mercy LORD". God heard the prayer of Josiah
because it was from an humble, loving heart. God will not lift the
curse off this evil land, but there was no curse on Josiah.
II Kings 22:20 "Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy
fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine
eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place.
And they brought the king word again."
The destruction of Jerusalem in particular, and Judah in general,
will be delayed, until after the death of Josiah. God will not punish
the righteous with the wicked. In the lifetime of Josiah, there would
be peace in the land. What a wonderful report to take back to the
king. Huldah explained that the destruction of Judah was ordained of
God and would come, but Josiah would be dead when it came.
2 Kings 22 Questions
1. How old was Josiah, when he began to reign?
2. Who was his mother?
3. What does "Jedidah" mean?
4. How long did he reign?
5. And he did that which was __________ in the sight of the LORD.
6. Who was the last king of Judah, before him, this had been said of?
7. Who did Josiah send to the house of the Lord for him?
8. What was his reason for sending him?
9. Read 2 Chronicles chapter 34 verses 3, 4, and 5.
10. Who was the high priest?
11. What had the silver been gathered for?
12. What was Josiah having done to the temple?
13. What did they have to buy to repair the house?
14. What had Hilkiah found in the house of the LORD?
15. Who read it?
16. What was this book of the law?
17. When Shaphan read it to the king, what did the king do?
18. Where did the king send the high priest and the high officers in
his government, to get Word from the LORD?
19. What had Josiah realized, that had disturbed him?
20. Who was a prominent prophet at that time?
21. Was Huldah's husband a prophet?
22. What was he?
23. Where was Huldah living?
24. What did it appear that she was doing at the college?
25. How do we know that she spoke as an oracle of God?
26. What message did she have for the king that was distressing?
27. What does the "burning of incense" symbolize?
28. Why was God's wrath kindled against Judah?
29. What exception did the LORD make in His condemnation of Judah?
30. Why did He make this exception?
31. When will the wrath of God be poured out on Judah?
Home