Second Kings 23:1-3 describe the response of King
Josiah when it was reported to him what the prophetess Huldah had said.
Apparently, he was not discouraged by the message at all. He clearly understood
the heart of God. Instead of being despondent over what he had heard he
intensified his resolve to reform the nation. Although the message explicitly
said that the disaster would not occur in his lifetime, he was still concerned
about what would happen to the nation. How unlike King Hezekiah was he! Second Kings 20:19 shows us a
somewhat similar situation. The Prophet Isaiah had warned Hezekiah of a future judgment
that would come upon Judah because of his pride. He had shown some envoys from
Babylon all that the nation possessed. When warned that the nation would be
carried into exile in Babylon in the distant future, Hezekiah was somewhat nonchalant.
His thought and attitude were, “if it would not happen during my watch,
it is alright with me.” What a myopic man!
In 2 Kings 23:1-3, we see how
different Josiah was. Although he was told that the disaster that would happen
to Judah would not occur in his lifetime, he took steps to reform the nation.
He immediately summoned all the elders from Judah and Jerusalem. He also went
up to the house of the Lord and
called an assembly. All the men of Judah, all the inhabitants who dwell in
Jerusalem with him, the priests, and the prophets, and all the people
regardless of status came together at the temple. They came to hear the content
of the book of the covenant made known to them. Josiah wanted them to know the
basis of the reform he would undertake. So there at the gathering, the king and
all the people renewed their commitment and covenant with the Lord.
Verse 3 said, “The king stood by the pillar 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 carry
out the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the
people entered into the covenant.”
Josiah had shown himself to be an unselfish king. He could have
said to himself since the disaster would not happen in my lifetime, why worry!
But he obviously was not. His primary concern was to get the
nation in the right relationship with God and to walk obediently to all His
instructions. His aim was to get them to amend their wrongs. He himself would
set the pace for the change and get the reform going. What an attitude to
emulate! Like Josiah, our concern must always be for God and His desire. We
must seek to bring about the best attitude of people toward God. May the word
of Paul in Philippians 2:3-4 shape our attitude towards God and one another.
May it be that we will “Do
nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of
mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do
not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also
for the interests of others.”
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