Year 2, Week 10, Day 3 Bible Reading Observations

Year 2, Week 10, Day 3

I have a brief observation for today’s reading of 2 Chronicles 34.

Today’s reading takes us back to the Chronicles as we read of the Chronicler’s account of events from the life of Josiah, king of Judah. 2 Chronicles 34 corresponds with the record of King Josiah found in 2 Kings 22-23. 2 Chronicles 34 describes Josiah’s leadership to renew Judah’s covenant with the LORD: “And the king stood in his place and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after 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 the covenant that were written in this book. Then he made all who were present in Jerusalem and in Benjamin join in it. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers” (2 Chronicles 34:31-32). And as a result of their covenant renewal, 2 Chronicles 34 records how Josiah lead Judah to rid themselves of their idolatry: “And Josiah took away all the abominations from all the territory that belonged to the people of Israel and made all who were present in Israel serve the LORD their God. All his days they did not turn away from following the LORD, the God of their fathers” (2 Chronicles 34:33).

One of the things that struck me from today’s reading was the repeated theme of Josiah being a man who sought the LORD: “For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet a boy, he began to seek the God of David his father, and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherim, and the carved and the metal images” (2 Chronicles 34:3). The Chronicler loves to emphasize the importance of seeking the LORD. And there is much to say about how Josiah sought the LORD. Josiah’s seeking, “the God of David his father,” reflects a love for the LORD that expressed itself in a reformation of Judah’s worship. Josiah’s devotion to the LORD sent him, not only in Jerusalem and Judah, but all throughout the land to reform worship: “And in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, in their ruins all around, he broke down the altars and beat the Asherim and the images into powder and cut down all the incense altars throughout all the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem” (2 Chronicles 34:6-7). Seeking the LORD and striving to see the LORD worshipped faithfully are intertwined realities that compatibly reside in the heart. It would seem quite odd to seek the LORD and yet feel indifferent about whether the LORD is truly worshipped or not.

The second occurrence of the theme of Josiah seeking the LORD occurs in the context of the Law of God being rediscovered. When the Law was brought to Josiah and read to him, he expressed great repentance: “And when the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes” (2 Chronicles 34:19). In the context of his humility before the LORD, Josiah again seeks the the LORD: “And the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, “Go, inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book” (2 Chronicles 34:20-21). Josiah directs the priestly officials to “inquire of the LORD” or seek the LORD. The Word of God is a powerful source for prompting the heart to seek the LORD. In particular, the Word of God’s wrath and judgment prompted Josiah to seek the LORD for mercy. In several places throughout Chronicles, the truth of God’s mercy is a reality that is available for all who humbly seek the LORD: “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). Seeking the LORD is oriented by the hope that mercy is available to all who humbly come to the LORD. The mercy of the LORD drives His people to seek him. 

The third occurrence of the theme of Josiah seeking the LORD occurs in the context of the response of Huldah, the prophetess, to Josiah’s inquiry: “But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard, because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me and have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD” (2 Chronicles 34:26-27). Huldah acknowledges that is was Josiah’s seeking the LORD or who sent the priests “to inquire of the LORD,” and she locates the source of such seeking in a heart that it humble and tender toward the LORD. Huldah promises that seeking the LORD brings about peace from the LORD: "Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place and its inhabitants.’” And they brought back word to the king” (2 Chronicles 34:28). The LORD hears a tender, humble heart that seeks Him. Josiah modeled this posture; Israel would need to learn this posture.

What struck you in today’s reading? What questions were prompted from today’s reading?

Pastor Joe