Old Testament · Personal Bible Study · Christian Leadership · Biblical Figures
Who was Josiah? What did he do?
5 min read, approximately
“Behold, a man of God came from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord. As Jeroboam stood beside the altar to burn incense, the man cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord and said: Altar, altar, thus says the Lord: A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and human bones will be burned on you. That same day he gave a sign, saying: This is the sign that the Lord has spoken: the altar will split apart, and the ashes on it will spill out.” (1 Kings 13:1-3)
Josiah? Who was Josiah?
Before exploring Josiah’s life, let us learn a little about his roots…
God’s Word teaches us that his grandfather Manasseh began to reign at age 12 and ruled in Jerusalem for 55 years, doing many evil things, including making several of his children pass through fire… Sadly, all his decisions had serious consequences for the people (2 Chronicles 33:1-22; 2 Kings 21:1-18). After Manasseh’s reign, his son Amon succeeded him at age 22. He was already married to Jedidah, and they had a son.
Incredible as it may seem, King Amon’s reign lasted only 2 years because of all the evil he did: his own servants conspired against him and killed him in his own house. How much evil must King Amon have done for them to conspire against him? (2 Chronicles 33:21-24; 2 Kings 21:19-23)… In any case, his son Josiah, only 8 years old, was made king in his place. (2 Chronicles 33:25; 2 Kings 21:24)…
A child who probably saw the evil deeds of his grandfather and father; a child who had to witness his father being taken from him through a conspiracy; a child robbed of his childhood because he could no longer be an ordinary child but had to mature much faster than usual in order to reign… Unfair? Why was this happening to a child?… On the other hand… What could we expect from this child? What would his laws be? Could we say that, given what he saw in his grandfather and father, he would be a bad king?
With God, everything always has a purpose. God always has a plan!
Who was Josiah? Let us see
\1. He decided to do what was good
His reign in Jerusalem lasted 31 years, and he decided to do what was good! (2 Chronicles 34:1-2; 2 Kings 22:1-2)
\2. He worshiped the Lord as his only King
From age 8 he understood that the key to his success as king was to melt before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords… He had to seek God’s direction! (2 Chronicles 34:3)
\3. He removed evil from his kingdom
He began the arduous task of removing, breaking apart, and destroying everything evil in Judah and Jerusalem until it was reduced to dust. He did this from age 8 to age 18… 10 years!! (2 Chronicles 34:3-8)
\4. He repaired the house of God
As if that were not enough, after finishing the cleansing of Judah, he ordered the house of the Lord his God to be repaired and cleansed… What did he cleanse it of? Read 2 Kings 23:4-20…. and along the way they found the Book of the Law. (2 Chronicles 34:8-28)
\5. He called the people together to worship the Lord
He ordered all the people of Judah and Jerusalem to gather in the house of God so that the words of the Book of the Law could be read to them. After this, he first committed himself to living according to the ordinances of the Book of the Law. After making his covenant, he commanded the people to do the same, and so they did throughout his reign! (2 Chronicles 34:29-33)
\6. He restored the Passover!
“When you enter the land the Lord will give you, as he promised, you shall observe this rite. When your children ask you: What does this rite mean to you? you shall answer: It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians and spared our houses. Then the people bowed down and worshiped.” (Exodus 12:25-27)
For more than 60 years this rite had ceased to be practiced, and King Josiah observed it again! (2 Chronicles 35:1-19; 2 Kings 23:21-23)
\7. And as if that were not enough…
“Josiah also swept away the mediums, diviners, household idols, and all the abominations seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, to fulfill the words of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had found in the house of the Lord.” (2 Kings 23:24)
For this and many other things, God’s Word recorded that
“Before him there was no other king who turned to the Lord with all his heart, all his soul, and all his strength, according to all the law of Moses; nor did another like him arise afterward.” (2 Kings 23:25)
Most of us complain about life’s circumstances and why things happen to us, and often we think all is lost. But we must know that God always has a plan for us amid adversity and difficulty!
Is there anything from King Josiah’s life that we can apply to our own?
May God continue to bless you
and may you continue to have an excellent day in Christ Jesus!
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