2 Kings 22:1-23:30 "When Loving the LORD with All Your Heart Isn't Enough" February 25, 2007 Introduction: Josiah Did What Was Right (22:1-2) We saw last time that Manasseh is best described as "an idolatrous Solomon on steroids." We saw last time that when Manasseh made Judah to sin God declared that it was time to pull the plug on the house of David. I've been telling you for the whole series that the message of the book of Kings is that Israel and Judah must die. Tonight we see very poignantly that there is nothing that can save Israel from death. All of God's blessings to Israel are found in this passage: a reforming king, a faithful priest, a true prophetess, a cleansed and properly functioning temple, and a renewed obedience to the law. But this passage makes it abundantly clear that none of these things is enough: A reforming king cannot save them. The temple cannot save them. A prophet cannot save them. A faithful priest cannot save them. Even obedience to the law cannot save them. Israel's hope is not that they will escape death Israel's hope is that there is life beyond the grave. Israel's hope is that God will raise them from the dead! We have also seen that Hezekiah is described as the best king between David and Jesus. We now hear (23:25) that there was no king like Josiah "before him" "nor did any like him arise after him." So is Hezekiah the best king? Or is Josiah the best king? We'll answer that question at the end! Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign. And like another child king (Joash) he begins restoring the temple. Joash and Josiah are the two boy kings in the line of David and they are the two kings who do the most to restore the temple. Then again, that is not entirely surprising. Because why do you have a boy king? It is usually because his father died young. And why does a king die young? Usually it is because things are not going well in the kingdom. And when your kingdom is the kingdom of God, if things are not going well, that is usually a sign that God is not pleased with you. And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in all the way of David his father, and he did not turn aside to the right or to the left. (v2) The rest of our passage is expounding verse 2. 1. The Finding of the Book of the Law (22:3-20) Verses 3-20 describe the finding of the book of the law in the temple. This section stresses the fact that Josiah was a good and faithful king even before he found the law. The law does not change his character his response to the law is the response of faith. Josiah's concern for the temple reminds us of the importance of the temple the place where God's name dwells in the midst of his people. The temple is the place where God has promised to meet with his people. The temple is the place where God deals with sin. But as we will see, repairing and restoring the temple is not enough. In verses 3-7 we hear of the repairs that began in Josiah's 18th year. Like Joash, Josiah finds repairmen who deal honestly and need no accounting. But this time, Hilkiah the high priest finds something that appears to have been lost: the Book of the Law. This has been a matter of considerable debate. Most scholars agree that the Book of the Law is Deuteronomy. After all, it is in Deuteronomy that Moses threatens exile if Israel turns to other gods. The debate is over when Deuteronomy was written. The cynical have argued that Hilkiah and his buddies wrote the Book of the Law and then "found" it at a convenient time when they had a king who would be receptive to their pious forgery. Some have even argued that God inspired them to do this! Part of the reason that they argue for this is the scarcity of references to any "books" prior to Josiah's day. In 2 Kings 11:12 we are told that the high priest Jehoiada gave Joash the "testimony." This is almost certainly a reference to the Mosaic law, but it is hard to say for certain how much of the law it contained. And to be honest, we do not know when Deuteronomy was written. We know when it was preached! Moses preached these sermons just before he died. Someone else wrote them down, and gave the book its introduction and conclusion. In a nutshell, my own view is that Deuteronomy had to be in some sort of written form by the time of David. Because the book of Judges is constantly interacting with the themes of Deuteronomy, and the book of Judges almost certainly had to be written around the time of David, because the book of Judges is addressing a conflict between Benjamin and Judah (and after the time of David Benjamin and Judah were the best of friends). So the most likely scenario is that the while the law of Moses was still preserved in some form as late as the days of Joash, few kings ever took it seriously; and during a time apostasy (perhaps as early as Rehoboam or as late as Manasseh) the Law was forgotten. Perhaps a copy of the law was used for ceremonial purposes (like Joash's coronation), but it is clear from 22:13 and 23:22 that its content had been ignored for a long time. It is easy to see how this could happen. In those days books would have been very expensive. Very few copies of the law would exist. If the kings and the priests became corrupt (as they were for much of the period) then even the few copies that did exist would be buried in the archives. But When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law he tore his clothes. Notice that from 22:3 until 23:16 Josiah is not named. It is "the king" who does all these things. We have seen this before in the book of Kings. Whenever the author wants to focus on the king in his official capacity he will simply refer to him as "the king" or "the king of Judah." With Ahab and other wicked kings this has highlighted how miserable a failure the king is. But with Josiah this highlights his faithfulness. This is what a king should be! The faithful king hears the words of the law, and instantly realizes that Judah has fallen short. His own father, Amon, and his grandfather, Manasseh, have brought the curse of Yahweh upon Judah and Jerusalem. And so he commands his officers Go, inquire of Yahweh for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found. For great is the wrath of Yahweh that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us. This makes it clear that whatever was read must have contained curses (almost certainly the curses of Deuteronomy). And Josiah responds the way a king should! He hears the word of the LORD and responds in faith, asking, in effect, "what shall we do?" Whose word causes you respond? Whose opinion matters to you? Who can get you to act? Your boss? Your spouse? Your friends? Our hearts should be tender and open to the Word of the LORD. But as we see in verses 15-20, hearing the Word of the LORD is not enough. The prophetess Huldah responds to the king's question, Tell the man who sent you to me . . . Later in verse 18 she will refer to him as the King of Judah. But now he is only an "ish" in other words, now she is reminding him that he is a mere mortal. Thus says the LORD, behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the words of the book that the king of Judah has read. Because they have forsaken me and have made offerings to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore my wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched. Sorry, Josiah, it's too late. Judgment is coming, and it is too late to stop it. But then she addresses the king: Regarding the words that you have heard, because your heart was penitent, and you humbled yourself before the LORD, when you heard how I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD. Because you heard me, I have heard you. I hope that you understand that this is how prayer works. If you refuse to hear God, don't expect him to hear you! If you insist on rejecting the word of the LORD, then don't be surprised when God refuses to hear your prayers! As we saw in Solomon's prayer, prayer is a response to the Word of God. Because God has spoken because God has acted to redeem his people therefore we respond in faith and repentance to the Word of the LORD. And when we respond in faith and repentance, God hears us. This is most true of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews 5:7 says In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Jesus himself was heard by God because Jesus was faithful to his Father's word. Jesus is the faithful king who humbled himself, and therefore was heard. Because Josiah was faithful, God promises that the disaster would not come in his day. Josiah can save himself, but he cannot save the land or the temple. How would you respond to this news? Would the word of impending doom make you complacent? Josiah responds with the most extensive reformation in Israel's history. 2. "The King" Renews the Covenant (23:1-3) He starts by making a covenant with the people. He gathered all the people and read all the words of the Book of the Covenant, and he stood by the pillar (like Josiah had done), 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 this covenant that were written in this book. Notice that Josiah makes this covenant for himself that he will do all these things. He is a faithful covenant mediator. If the king is faithful there is hope for the people. And since they had a faithful king, all the people joined in the covenant. We don't often think about the Josianic covenant. We usually speak of it as a covenant renewal. Some people even object to it, pointing out that unlike the Mosaic or Abrahamic or Davidic covenant it is not initiated by God. But it is entirely appropriate for man to covenant to do what God says! especially if you follow through the way Josiah did! 3. "The King" Destroys Idolatry in Judah (23:4-14) Verses 4-14 tell us how thorough Josiah's reforms were. Not only did he destroy the high places and remove idolatry from the temple (like Hezekiah) He also burned the vessels made for Baal, Asherah and the host of heaven, and carried their ashes to Bethel. (This is a key symbolic act as Bethel was the place where idolatrous worship began in Israel). And Josiah's reforms also dealt with people: he deposed the priests whom his fathers had ordained for the high places. (Again going further than Hezekiah). He burned the Asherah that had been in the house of the LORD and cast its dust on the graves of the common people (v6). As we'll see, a lot of Josiah's actions are related to death: not only does he cast the dust of the Asherah on the graves of the common people, but he also replaced the Asherim with the bones of men (v14), and he sacrificed the priests of Bethel on their own altar, and burned human bones on them. These actions are defiling actions. The people of Judah and Israel have rebelled against the LORD, and so Josiah is casting the dust of their idols upon their graves, as if to say, "may their idolatry die with them." He also broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes (here we see that idolatry had led Judah to adultery), and he removed the priests of the high places but he did not let them serve at the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem. They were priests, so they could eat the unleavened bread that belonged to the priests, but because they had served at the high places they would never serve as priests again. (v7-9) He eliminated Molech worship (v10) and removed sun-worship (v11); and the altars of Ahaz and Manasseh he broke in pieces (v12). He also defiled the high places that Solomon had built (v13). The detail of Josiah's reforms make Hezekiah look half-hearted! Hezekiah had "removed" the high places (18:4), which appears to mean that he removed their altars (18:22), but he did not totally destroy them. Josiah is thorough! The detail of verses 4-14 makes it clear that Josiah utterly eradicated every form of pagan worship that he could find in Judah. 3'. Josiah Destroys the Altar at Bethel (23:15-20) Not only that, Moreover, the altar at Bethel, the high place erected by Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, that altar with the high place he pulled down and burned, reducing it to dust. He also burned the Asherah. The sin of Jeroboam is finally destroyed. Jeroboam had feared that if "his people" worshiped at Jerusalem, they would return to the house of David. So he had established two shrines at Bethel and Dan, where he set up two golden calves. And now, for the first time in 31 verses, Josiah is named again. In the last 31 verses he has been called "the king" fifteen times. Now, as he fulfills the prophecy of the man of God from Judah, he is once again identified by name: And as Josiah turned, he saw the tombs there on the mount. 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 that the man of God had proclaimed, who had predicted these things. (v16) Why does Josiah burn the bones on the altar? His men would have become unclean by touching human bones (Num 19:11-22). Desecrating graves is highly irregular. We could say that he did it because the man of God predicted it, but it is not clear that Josiah knew about the prediction until after he fulfilled it. But by sacrificing the priests and burning human bones on the altar, he rendered it unfit for any future sacrifice. But he spared the bones of the man of God from Judah and the prophet from Samaria (1 Kgs 13). This demonstrates what the burning of bones is all about. It is a symbolic demonstration of their future. The bones of the wicked are burnt as a sign of the coming wrath of God against them. But the bones of the righteous are spared as a sign that there is still hope for them! Some day God will raise their bones from their graves and give them life. Just a few short years later Ezekiel will see a vision of dry bones in Ezekiel 37. Israel and Judah have died. They have descended into the grave of exile and death. And their only hope is that God will raise the dead and give life to their bones. But for the wicked priests who served at the altar of Bethel, there is no hope. Their bones are burnt. There is quite a debate these days about cremation. Is it appropriate for a Christian, who hopes in the resurrection of the body, to request that his bones be burnt. The Judeo-Christian tradition has long said that burial is an important picture of that hope. I'm not willing to say that cremation is inherently sinful and certainly cremation is not the same as Josiah burning bones on a pagan altar but there is something proper about burial. I'm not a huge fan of modern burial practices. The ancient "family grave" makes a lot more sense to me! You could easily fit 20 in the space we allot for one! Just give the previous body a few years to decompose before putting the next one in. But Josiah thought that how we treat the bodies of the dead says something about what we think of the future. He exhumes the bodies of the wicked, and burns their bones in a sense it is a second death. And I think he was right. Then he returned to Jerusalem. Having eliminated the last vestiges of the sin of Jeroboam, he returns to Jerusalem. The son of David now reigns over the whole people of God. Chronicles even tells us that the remnant of the north came to Jerusalem with Josiah. 2'. Josiah Observes the Passover (23:21-23) And there they kept the Passover as they had not kept the Passover since the days of Joshua. For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah. But in the 18th year of Josiah, all God's people gathered for the Passover. In other words, all these events in chapters 22-23 happened in less than a year. It was in the 18th year of Josiah that they started work repairing the temple. It was in the 18th year of Josiah that they found the law. It was in the 18th year of Josiah that he renewed the covenant. It was in the 18th year of Josiah that he destroyed idolatry. And it was in the 18th year of Josiah that they observed the Passover. We don't know much about the other 30 years of Josiah's reign but the 18th year was quite a year! What happened to the Passover? For nearly 800 years the Passover had fallen into disuse. Did the faithful still celebrate it in their homes? Did the priests still celebrate it in the temple? Certainly Solomon had ordered the sacrifices for the feasts (2 Chron 8:13), (but Chronicles never mentions any public celebration of the Passover) Hezekiah had also celebrated the Passover (2 Chron 30). Chronicles tells us that Samuel had kept the Passover as well (35:18), but also makes it clear that the public celebration of the Passover was very rare. And if you think about it, if Israel had never gotten into the habit of keeping the Passover, then even the faithful would not have remembered it. 1'. Josiah's Observance of the Law (23:24-25) Just because the law is written does not mean that people will follow it! Indeed, Josiah is remarkable because he is careful to do what the law says! He put away the mediums and necromancers and the household gods and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might establish the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD. Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses, nor did any like him arise after him. How do you reconcile this with 2 Kings 18:5 Hezekiah trusted in the LORD the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those that were before him. For he held fast to the LORD. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the LORD commanded Moses. Who was best? There was no one like Hezekiah who came after him (so Josiah is not like Hezekiah?), but there was no king like Josiah before him (so Hezekiah is not like Josiah?)! I suspect the author of Kings knew exactly what he was doing when he wrote these contradictory statements! Josiah was the greatest king. He is the only king in all of the history of Israel and Judah who obeys the law. He is the king who destroys the sin of Jeroboam He is the king who celebrates the greatest Passover feast (perhaps the first public celebration of the Passover to include all Israel). But Hezekiah was the greatest king: Because he trusted in the LORD, and delivered Judah from its enemies through prayer. Conclusion: But Loving the LORD with all His Heart Was Not Enough (23:26-30) And that is something Josiah never did. In his days Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt went up to the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah went to meet him, and Pharaoh Neco killed him at Megiddo, as soon as he saw him. For all Josiah's greatness, he cannot save Judah from destruction indeed, he cannot even save himself. Still the LORD did not turn from the burning of his great wrath, by which his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him. There is that little word, "shuv," (turn) that has played such an important role in our story. It is the word that was used to refer to Manasseh "rebuilding" or "returning" to the high places. It is the word used for "repentance" in Solomon's prayer in 1 Kings 8; it is also the word for "turn away" many times in Kings. It is the word used to describe how Jeroboam would not "turn away" from his sin. It is also the word used when Elijah raised the widow's son, to say that the life "returned" to the child; and when Naaman washed in the Jordan river 7 times his flesh was "returned" or restored like the flesh of a little child. Every "turning" point has used this little word. And now we hear that the LORD did not turn away from his anger. Why did God set it up this way? That the law would be rediscovered only here at the end? That the king who kept the law most faithfully would die a shameful death at the hands of his enemies? Habakkuk prophesied during these days the last days of the Assyrian empire and the rise of the neo-Babylonian empire. Perhaps he was thinking of the death of Josiah when he said, So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted. (1:4) Even the greatest, most law-abiding king in the history of Judah and Israel cannot save himself or his people. Or, to say it another way, For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.