Read: 2 Kings 22:1-23:35
Verses chosen for meditation
2 Kings:23:1-3 "Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him. 2 And the king went up to the house of the Lord, and with him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the prophets, all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the Lord. 3 And 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 perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant."
Reflect
When King Josiah found the book of the Law through Hilkiah the High Priest, his heart was grieved. When he read the words found in the book of the Law, he came to realise that many of the kings before him did not follow what was right. Therefore, King Josiah decided to make things right.
He had great reverence for God and His word. And that true reverence was shown through his deeds. The very first thing he did was to seek advice from a prophetess of God. The prophetess advised that due to the sinfulness of the kings and the people; the kingdoms of Judah (and Israel) will be destroyed. However, God will preserve peace to Josiah as he had chosen to humble himself before the Lord.
Despite the tragic pronouncements, Josiah gathered the whole nation to hear the words that come from the Book of the Law. As a nation, they also made a covenant to walk in the ways of the Lord based on the book of the Law.
We came to know that Josiah was not just a paper general. He took the covenant made with God very seriously as he did many reforms to destroy idol worship and even restored the Passover. Perhaps Josiah had hoped that God would turn back from His wrath. Yet everything was already cast in stone. God had given the kings and people many opportunities to turn back. It is now too late.
Relate
Beneath the gloom, we can see that King Josiah had true reverence for the Lord. This was demonstrated by how he took the covenant he made with God seriously and did the reforms. This was despite the decision made by God to destroy Judah. Josiah had demonstrated true reverence for the Lord and that reverence bore good actions and fruit.
To know whether a person truly love and revere God; we cannot only judge by what he or she says; it must be discerned through the person's bearing of good fruit in his personal and public life. These days, much emphasis is placed on "image"; yet the Bible is constantly teaching us to focus on what is deep within our hearts. To do that, we need to learn how to discern with God's timing and not rush. We need to learn how to journey with one another and allow God to do His mighty work in us.
Perhaps one good question I can ask myself today is: "Am I bearing good fruit in my own life even as I proclaim that I love God and the people?" I believe I have a lot to learn from King Josiah's high reverence for God. And how that translates to good fruit in his life. May the Lord grant me to be more sensitive in my relationship with Him; so that I can continue to be of a blessing to His people.
Rest
Lord, help me to hold You as my priority. Grant me the reverence that Josiah had for You. This I pray in Jesus' Name. Amen.
Jason
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