Second Chronicles 34:1

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 34:14-18, “And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.[15] And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.[16] And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed to thy servants, they do it.[17] And they have gathered together the money that was found in the house of the LORD, and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers, and to the hand of the workmen.[18] Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.” One of the problems in the history of Israel and Judah was that up to this point they had stopped reading the Bible. On a national level, they had set aside the Word of God. That was a serious mistake. But the Word of God is always there: ready to be picked up and read. In the age in which we live, a good place to start is the gospels. The word of God was brought to the king. Verse eighteen says, “And Shaphan read it before the king.” Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God.” Yes, everyone needs the Word. No one should ever make a decision, saying, you cannot have the Bible here. That would be a terrible decision, and would have terrible consequences. And that is exactly what judges did in the United States of America.

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 34:19-21, “And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes.[20] And the king commanded Hilkiah, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Abdon the son of Micah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king's, saying,[21] Go, inquire of the LORD for me, and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do after all that is written in this book.” It says at the end of verse nineteen that when the king heard the words of the Bible that he “rent his clothes.” This means that he was brought under conviction concerning his own sins and the sins of his nation. That is one of the important things that the Word can do. It is as sweet as honey, but it can also be very bitter when it shows you your sins. Just make sure you have the proper reaction to that conviction: repent, turn to the Lord, and start doing what the Word says. In the Old Testament, they were in great trouble when they did not obey the Word because they were under the law, and the law warned of many curses for those who did not obey it. Thankfully, for those of us who live under the New Testament of Christ our Savior, there is no curse. In the first part of verse twenty-one, the king knows that he now needs two things: he needs prayer and he needs to be instructed from God about what all this means. God’s means of giving His instruction is through the Word and through someone that He has called to deliver His Word.

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 34:22-25, “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.[23] And she answered them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell ye the man that sent you to me,[24] Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the curses that are written in the book which they have read before the king of Judah:[25] 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 poured out upon this place, and shall not be quenched.” A prophetess is a female version of a prophet. There is no difference between a prophet and a prophetess except that one is male and the other female. The Bible is a book of equality. A prophet gets a message from God and delivers that message. Her message was basically that the law is the law. There are curses in the law for those who do not obey, and the curses will come to pass. How fortunate we are that we live in the age of grace. John 1:17, “The law came by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” The people of Judah had gone too far away from God, and for some reason they would not come back to Him. They were involved in false religion, and God would not allow that to continue.

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 34:26-28, “And as for the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard;[27] Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD.[28] Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of the same. So they brought the king word again.” Whenever someone truly repents, God always accepts them and forgives them, no matter how bad the situation was. First, Josiah heard the word of God. That shows the importance of the preaching and the teaching of the Word. Jesus did say, “Go into the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” Once someone hears the Word, then the question is, How will they respond? Josiah responded properly because his heart was “tender.” We pray that God would prepare hearts so that we also can bring the truth, and so that it will be received. Josiah humbled himself, he repented, and he wept. Because of this true repentance, Josiah was given longer life. He was not destroyed by the curses of the law. The same thing happens when we receive Christ: the curse of the law is taken away, and we will live forever.

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 34:29-33, “Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.[30] And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people, great and small: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the LORD.[31] 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 with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book.[32] And he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.[33] And Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve, even to serve the LORD their God. And all his days they departed not from following the LORD, the God of their fathers.” Josiah understood the value of the Word of God because he experienced it for himself. And so of course, he wanted to use his influence and position to help others hear the Word. Josiah wanted “all the people, great and small” to hear the Word. Yes, school children need to hear the Word. It is a good thing for children to hear the Bible. Those who have taken the Bible and prayer away from school children have done a great evil to the nation, and have helped send people to hell.

The Bible says in Second Chronicles 35:1-19, “Moreover Josiah kept a passover unto the LORD in Jerusalem: and they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.[2] And he set the priests in their charges, and encouraged them to the service of the house of the LORD,[3] And said unto the Levites that taught all Israel, which were holy unto the LORD, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build; it shall not be a burden upon your shoulders: serve now the LORD your God, and his people Israel,[4] And prepare yourselves by the houses of your fathers, after your courses, according to the writing of David king of Israel, and according to the writing of Solomon his son.[5] And stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the families of the fathers of your brethren the people, and after the division of the families of the Levites.[6] So kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.[7] And Josiah gave to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passover offerings, for all that were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bullocks: these were of the king's substance.[8] And his princes gave willingly unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen.[9] Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.[10] So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the king's commandment.[11] And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them.[12] And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they with the oxen.[13] And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance: but the other holy offerings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them speedily among all the people.[14] And afterward they made ready for themselves, and for the priests: because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared for themselves, and for the priests the sons of Aaron.[15] And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's seer; and the porters waited at every gate; they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them.[16] So all the service of the LORD was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the LORD, according to the commandment of king Josiah.[17] And the children of Israel that were present kept the passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.[18] And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.[19] In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this passover kept.” The Passover is very important in the law, in the Old Testament, and in all of the Bible. Josiah understood what was important when he read the Bible. At the first Passover God said to Moses and the children of Israel, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” It had to do with blood, and it had to do with the death of an innocent lamb. Jesus is our Passover Lamb. Jesus died in our place so that the wrath of God and the judgment of God would not fall upon us. That is the great message about God’s plan for the human race. God loves us. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

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