Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Kings 23:25
And like unto him was there no king before him, that 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; neither after him arose there [any] like him.
25. no king before him ] For before the kingdom was established the religious strictness of the people had greatly degenerated, and even the best rulers never were so solemnly recalled to the legal regulations as Josiah was by the discovery of the temple-copy of the Law. The next verse makes it clear why there was no such good king after Josiah. The evil doings of Manasseh had corrupted the nation past redemption. The reforms of Josiah lasted not nearly so long.
‘The evil that men do lives after them:
The good is oft interred with their bones.’
We have now come to the last mention of the book which was found in the temple and of its influence. From the allusions to its contents we can see that it must have contained such threatenings against neglect of the Law as are found in Deuteronomy; such injunctions for the putting down of idolatry and its attendant superstitions as we have now in Deuteronomy and Leviticus, and such ordinances concerning the observance of the passover as are found in Exodus and in Numbers. Without saying therefore that the book was in the form which we now possess (for that probably underwent revision in the days of Ezra and even later), yet there was in it that which represented for that time the same code and regulations as we have now in the books of Moses, from which it is seen that the portions read by Josiah and Shaphan were substantially derived. It is to be supposed that modifications would be here and there introduced into the regulations, both for civil and religious observances, according to the changed circumstances of the people. But these would only be made by persons acting in the spirit of the great lawgiver, and endued with zeal for God’s service as he was, and therefore everything thus included would continue to be called, as it continued to be in spirit, the law of Moses.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And like unto him … – See 2Ki 18:5 note. We must not press the letter of either passage, but regard both kings as placed among the very best of the kings of Judah.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
2Ki 23:25-37
And like unto him there was no king before him.
Josiahs reformation
This and the previous chapter show us the influence of a godly sovereign. This prince at the age of twenty-six begins to repair the house of God. This leads to the discovery of the long-lost book of the law. At once Josiah obeys its teaching. He consults Huldah, and receives the Lords message. Finding himself exempted from vengeance on account of his repentance, he endeavours to lead his people to obtain the same exemption, and for this purpose institutes a thorough national reformation. This, we read, consisted of
(1) purifying the temple of idolatrous vessels;
(2) putting down all idolatrous teachers;
(3) defiling all idol altars throughout the land;
(4) keeping the Passover in a solemn manner. From this we may learn–
I. That personal reformation springs from a knowledge of Gods word applied to the heart by faith. It was this that influenced Josiah (Psa 119:130). The entrance of Thy word giveth light (Act 17:11-12). Therefore many believed.
II. That true personal reformation consists of doing and undoing.
1. Undoing old associations, by–
(1) Looking sin in the face, and comparing ourselves with our pattern, by the light of Gods written Word (Php 2:5, etc.).
(2) Cleansing the temple of God (2Co 6:16) of all that defiles.
(3) Giving up all people, practices, and places which tempt to sin; e.g. cards, novels, balls, etc.: let each conscience decide for itself.
2. Doing, by–
(1) Entering into a solemn covenant with God to obey Him, etc.; confirmation.
(2) Publicly, as well as privately, keeping His commandments and wishes; Holy Communion.
III. That personal reformation has results:
1. Comfort and peace to those who carry it out. For thirty years Josiahs reign was a peaceful and happy one to himself. So soul-reformation brings peace to the believer.
2. A blessing, though it may be only a temporary one, to those who, even outwardly, take part in it. The punishment pronounced upon the land was deferred (2Ki 22:20) till after Josiahs death, and a believer brings blessings on those around him.
3. The fulfilment of Gods word (2Ki 23:16 and Isa 5:11). The Christian rejoices in the fulfilment of Mat 11:28-30. But notice two warnings:
1. No personal reformation can be effected without the guidance and grace of the Holy Spirit (Joh 16:8, etc.; Zec 4:6).
2. Personal piety cannot stop national punishment (of. Zec 3:2). Josiah has a grand epitaph written over him (verse 25) by the finger of God. May much be ours! (J. W. Mills, M. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 25. Like unto him was there no king] Perhaps not one from the time of David; and, morally considered, including David himself, none ever sat on the Jewish throne, so truly exemplary in his own conduct, and so thoroughly zealous in the work of God. David was a greater but not a better man than Josiah.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Like unto him there was no king before him, to wit, for his diligent study in Gods law, and his exact care, and unwearied industry, and fervent zeal, in rooting out of idolaters, and all kinds and appearances of idolatry, not only in Judah, but in Israel also; and in the establishment of the true religion in all his dominions, and in the conforming of his own life, and his peoples too, (as far as he could,) to the holy law of God; though Hezekiah might excel him in some other particulars; of whom therefore the like is said above, 2Ki 18:5.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And like unto him was there no king before him,…. The same is said of Hezekiah, 2Ki 18:5, Hezekiah might excel him in some things, as Josiah might excel Hezekiah in others:
that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might; with such sincerity, heartiness, zeal, and constancy:
according to all the law of Moses; having respect to every commandment, especially relative to worship, with the greatest precision and exactness:
neither after him arose there any like him; for all to the captivity were wicked princes.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
| The Death of Josiah. | B. C. 610. |
25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that 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; neither after him arose there any like him. 26 Notwithstanding the LORD turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal. 27 And the LORD said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there. 28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 In his days Pharaoh-nechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him. 30 And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father’s stead.
Upon the reading of these verses we must say, Lord, though thy righteousness be as the great mountains–evident, conspicuous, and past dispute, yet thy judgments are a great deep, unfathomable and past finding out, Ps. xxxvi. 6. What shall we say to this?
I. It is here owned that Josiah was one of the best kings that ever sat upon the throne of David, v. 25. As Hezekiah was a non-such for faith and dependence upon God in straits (ch. xviii. 5), so Josiah was a non-such for sincerity and zeal in carrying on a work of reformation. For this there was none like him, 1. That he turned to the Lord from whom his fathers had revolted. It is true religion to turn to God as one we have chosen and love. He did what he could to turn his kingdom also to the Lord. 2. That he did this with his heart and soul; his affections and aims were right in what he did. Those make nothing of their religion that do not make heart-work of it. 3. That he did it with all his heart, and all his soul, and all his might–with vigour, and courage, and resolution: he could not otherwise have broken through the difficulties he had to grapple with. What great things may we bring to pass in the service of God if we be but lively and hearty in it! 4. That he did this according to all the law of Moses, in an exact observance of that law and with an actual regard to it. His zeal did not transport him into any irregularities, but, in all he did, he walked by rule.
II. Notwithstanding this he was cut off by a violent death in the midst of his days, and his kingdom was ruined within a few years after. Consequent upon such a reformation as this, one would have expected nothing but the prosperity and glory both of king and kingdom; but, quite contrary, we find both under a cloud. 1. Even the reformed kingdom continues marked for ruin. For all this (v. 26) the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath. That is certainly true, which God spoke by the prophet (Jer 18:7; Jer 18:8), that if a nation, doomed to destruction, turn from the evil of sin, God will repent of the evil of punishment; and therefore we must conclude that Josiah’s people, though they submitted to Josiah’s power, did not heartily imbibe Josiah’s principles. They were turned by force, and did not voluntarily turn from their evil way, but still continued their affection for their idols; and therefore he that knows men’s hearts would not recall the sentence, which was, That Judah should be removed, as Israel had been, and Jerusalem itself cast off, v. 27. Yet even this destruction was intended to be their effectual reformation; so that we must say, not only that the criminals had filled their measure and were ripe for ruin, but also that the disease had come to a crisis, and was ready for a cure; and this shall be all the fruit, even the taking away of sin. 2. As an evidence of this, even the reforming king is cut off in the midst of his usefulness–in mercy to him, that he might not see the evil which was coming upon his kingdom, but in wrath to his people, for his death was an inlet to their desolations. The king of Egypt waged war, it seems, with the king of Assyria: so the king of Babylon is now called. Josiah’s kingdom lay between them. He therefore thought himself concerned to oppose the king of Egypt, and check the growing, threatening, greatness of his power; for though, at this time, he protested that he had no design against Josiah, yet, if he should prevail to unite the river of Egypt and the river Euphrates, the land of Judah would soon be overflowed between them. Therefore Josiah went against him, and was killed in the first engagement, 2Ki 23:29; 2Ki 23:30. Here, (1.) We cannot justify Josiah’s conduct. He had no clear call to engage in this war, nor do we find that he asked counsel of God by urim or prophets concerning it. What had he to do to appear and act as a friend and ally to the king of Assyria? Should he help the ungodly and love those that hate the Lord? If the kings of Egypt and Assyria quarrelled, he had reason to think God would bring good out of it to him and his people, by making them instrumental to weaken one another. Some understand the promise made to him that he should come to his grave in peace in a sense in which it was not performed because, by his miscarriage in this matter, he forfeited the benefit of it. God has promised to keep us in all our ways; but, if we go out of our way, we throw ourselves out of his protection. I understand the promise so as that I believe it was fulfilled, for he died in peace with God and his own conscience, and saw not, nor had any immediate prospect of, the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem by the Chaldeans; yet I understand the providence to be a rebuke to him for his rashness. (2.) We must adore God’s righteousness in taking away such a jewel from an unthankful people that knew not how to value it. They greatly lamented his death (2 Chron. xxxv. 25), urged to it by Jeremiah, who told them the meaning of it, and what a threatening omen it was; but they had not made a due improvement of the mercies they enjoyed by his life, of which God taught them the worth by the want.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES.
2Ki. 23:26. Notwithstanding the Lord turned notThe nations heart was not changed by all this fervour of the king and the reformation of external worship. Jeremiahs ministry during Josiahs reign shows the gross moral corruption and total spiritual falsity of this hopelessly apostate people.
2Ki. 23:28-30. Josiah slain at MegiddoNecho, the son of Psammeticus, ascended the throne of Egypt in the twentieth year of Josiah. The two rival monarchies of Egypt and Assyria were then still struggling for ascendancy. Palestine was a coveted frontier territory. From Manassehs time Juda was tributary to Assyria, and Josiah felt necessitated to rally to Assyrias side against Necho of Egypt. On the Egyptian monarchs way to Charchemish, by the Euphrates, Josiah intercepted his line of advance by meeting his in the great vale of Migeddo, in the plain of Esdraelon. Although Necho remonstrated (Chronicles account), yet Josiah opposed him, and was slain.
2Ki. 23:31-34. JehoahazIt was the peoples act to raise Shallum, Josiahs youngest son, afterwards named Jehoahaz, to the throne in preference to his elder brother Eliakim. This popular choice may be accounted for by Shallums military spirit (Eze. 19:3), and his resolute opposition to the Egyptian monarchy; for there were two parties in the Jewish state, the one favouring allegiance with Assyria, the other with Egypt. He was quickly deposed by Necho.
2Ki. 23:34-37. Eliakim, named Jehoiakim by Pharoah-Necho, followed an evil course, and was a reckless ruler. Jeremiah portrays his character most vividly (2Ki. 22:13-19).W. H. J.
HOMILETICS OF 2Ki. 23:25-37
FAILURE IN THE WORK OF REFORMATION
I. That the work of Reformation may fail, notwithstanding the exemplary character of the principal agent (2Ki. 23:25). High praise is here accorded to Josiah. It is usually maintained that Hezekiah equalled or surpassed him in trusting Jehovah (2Ki. 18:5), but that he excelled Hezekiah in his scrupulous adherence to the minute details of the Mosaic law. It is, however, evident from this verse that Josiah was also conspicuous for his trust in Jehovah, for he turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might. The eulogy of Josiah, as of Hezekiah, may be regarded as a passage worded after the manner of oriental hyperbole, not to be literally understood, but as intended to distinguish a person who was gifted with specially great qualities. Josiah was the best character that age could produce, and was the fittest to grapple with the abuses that others deplored, but were powerless to rectify. With all the high personal qualifications and supreme royal influence possessed by Josiah, his reforming work was not permanently successful. He was not the first, or the last, great man who has attempted a great and much-needed reform, and failed.
II. That the work of Reformation fails when it does not prevent the accomplishment of the threatened doom (2Ki. 23:26-27).After all the colossal and drastic efforts of Josiah to remove the dark curse that lowered over his kingdom and people, we learn from these verses the fateful sentence is still unrepealed. The evil was too deep and inveterate to be easily eradicated. By a comparatively early death, the good king was removed from the evil to come. Scarcely had the wail of lamentation for the popular monarch died away, ere the people relapsed into their former sins. The nation sank into deeper gloom, and the vial of Divine wrath, so long and patiently restrained, was at length poured out. The position of Judah at this time was similar to that of the Netherlands when William the Silent retired for a time from his loved Fatherland, which he felt himself unable to save, and a thunderbolt burst upon the land in the savage onslaught of the Duke of Alva and his butchering armythe thunderbolt that ultimately fell on Israel being Sennacherib and his victorious legions.
III. That the work of Reformation fails when it does not raise up competent agents to perpetuate its policy (2Ki. 23:28-37).Josiah left no successor, either clerical or lay. The priests whose cause he had so bravely championed, had not the ability, or the will, to press forward the good work; and his two sonsJehoahaz and Jehoiakimwho held the sceptre but as vassals under the dominating authority of the Egyptian monarch, showed their dislike to their fathers reforming work by throwing in their lot with the opposing party. They forsook the God of their father, and became idolaters. A great work of genuine reform usually creates its own agents, who perpetuate and consolidate the work, when the pioneer advocate is no more; and there must have been something defective about the plans and methods of Hezekiahs work that failed to do this. Reformation, says Sir Joshua Reynolds, is a work of time. A national taste, however wrong it may be, cannot be totally changed at once; we must yield a little to the prepossession which has taken hold on the mind, and we may then bring people to adopt what would offend them if endeavoured to be introduced by violence.
IV. That the work of Reformation fails when it does not thoroughly penetrate the heart and life of every member of the community.Reform, to be real and abiding, must be personal, convincing the judgment, biassing the will, changing the spirit. Reform, like charity, must begin at home. Once well at home, how will it radiate outwards, irrepressible, into all that we touch and handle, speak and work; kindling ever new light by incalculable contagion, spreading in geometric ratio, far and wide, doing good only wherever it spreads, and not evil (Carlyle). National evils are thoroughly cured only so far as the individual is morally transformed and exalted.
LESSONS:
1. The mightiest efforts of reform may come too late.
2. The failure of any worthy effort is an occasion of sincere sorrow to the good.
3. Failure should lead to self-examination and more complete trust in God.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
2Ki. 23:25-28. We cannot doubt that the sanguinary acts of Josiah, no less than of Elijah and Jehu, are condemned by Him in whom was fulfilled the spirit of the true Deuteronomy, the Revived Law, which the impetuous king carried out only in its external observances, and by its own hard measures. It was the first direct persecution that the kingdom of Judah had witnessed on behalf of the True Religion. Down to this time the mournful distinction had been reserved for the half-Pagan king Manasseh. But cruelty had here, as in all like cases, provoked a corresponding cruelty; and the reformation of Josiah, if from his youth and zeal it has suggested his likeness to our Edward VI., by its harsher features encouraged the rough acts which disfigured so many of the last efforts of that and other like movements of the Christian Church. But, in spite of all this effort, the kingdom of Judah was doomed. Perhaps the very vehemence of the attempt carried with it its own inefficacy. Even the traditions which invested Josiah with a blaze of preternatural glory, maintained that in his day the sacred oil was for ever lost. Too late is written on the pages even which described his momentary revival. It did not reach the deeply-seated, wide-spread corruption which tainted rich and poor alike.Stanley.
2Ki. 23:26-27. The downward course of sin.
1. May reach a depth from which recovery is hopeless.
2. The best considered efforts of reform may fail to arrest.
3. Sinks at last to its inevitable doom.
2Ki. 23:29-30. The hope of Judah.
1. Rose to its brightest zenith amid the reforming efforts of Josiah.
2. Was quenched in that monarchs death.
3. Rose no more in the history of the kingdom.
4. Will revive and burst into perfect glory, only under the sceptre of the Messiah-King.
The early death of the king was no punishment for him, for he was thus gathered in peace to his fathers; but it was a chastisement for his unrepentant people, who now lamented him, and saw, when it was too late, what noble purposes he had had in their behalf.
2Ki. 23:30. His fall caused a universal mourning. Jeremiah wrote a lamentation for him (Lam. 4:20). His loss formed the burden of regular songs even after the captivity, when the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon was still the type of the deepest national affliction (Zec. 12:11). Well might such feelings be excited by the battle of Megiddo. That great valley of Esdraelon, the lists of Palestine, the scene of the great victories of Barak and of Gideon, was now stained with a second defeat more disastrous than that in which Saul lost his life. Then it had witnessed the fall of the short-lived dynasty of the peoples choice, but now it saw the virtual end of the earthly monarchy of the house of David. Hence may be traced the mystic significance which surrounds the name of this battlefield. The prophet Zechariah employs the mourning of Megiddo as a type of the more wholesome sorrow of Judah, in the day when God shall pour out upon them the spirit of grace and prayer, as a preparation for His final destruction of all the nations that come up against Jerusalem; and his imagery is adopted in the visions of the Apocalypse. On the very scene of the two most signal defeats of Israel and Judah by their most inveterate enemies, the Philistines and Egypt, the seer beholds the mystic Battle of Armageddon, which avenges all such defeats by the final overthrow of the kings of all the world in the great day of God Almighty (Zec. 12:9-14; Rev. 16:14-16).Dr. Smiths Students Scripture History.
What eye doth not now pity and lament the untimely end of Josiah? Whom can it choose but affect to see a religious, just, virtuous prince, snatched away in the vigour of his age? After all our foolish moan, the Providence that directed that shaft to his lighting place, intends that wound for a stroke of mercy. The God whom Josiah serves, looks through his death at his glory, and by this sudden violence will deliver him from the view and participation of the miseries of Judah. O the wonderful goodness of the Almighty, whose very judgments are merciful! O the safe condition of Gods children, whom very pain easeth, whom death revives, whom dissolution unites, whom their very sin and temptation glorifies!Bp. Hall.
2Ki. 23:31-37. Royal automata.
1. Divested of personal freedom and power, and manipulated by a grasping and imperious will (2Ki. 23:33-35).
2. Imitating with mechanical helplessness and precision the worst features of wicked predecessors (2Ki. 23:32-37).
3. Maintained by the privations and sufferings of their subjects (2Ki. 23:35).
4. Indicate a lowering of natural spirit and prestige.
2Ki. 23:32. The reassertive power of sin.
1. Repressed for a time by the influence of public reformation.
2. Ready to take advantage of the slightest relaxation of restraint.
3. Defiantly awaits its unavoidable punishment.
2Ki. 23:35. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people. Though he received likely from the subjects no less sums of curses than of coin.Trapp.
2Ki. 23:37. Jehoiakin was a most unprincipled and oppressive tyrant. Jeremiah sternly rebukes his injustice and oppression, his cruelty and avarice, and his reckless luxury in building himself a magnificent palace; and contrasts all this with his fathers justice to the poor (Jer. 22:13-19). In the Chronicles his name is dismissed with an allusion to all the abominations that he did. To all his other evils he added this, that he slew Urijah, the prophet (Jer. 26:20; Jer. 26:23).
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(25) And. like unto him was there no king before him.Comp. 2Ki. 18:5-6, where a similar eulogy is passed upon Hezekiah. It is not, perhaps, necessary to insist upon any formal contradiction which may appear to result from a comparison of the two passages. A writer would not be careful to measure his words by the rule of strict proportion in such cases. Still, as the preceding account indicates, the Mosaic law does not appear to have been so rigorously carried out by any preceding king as by Josiah. (See Note on 2Ch. 30:26.)
With all his heart . . .An echo of Deu. 6:5. That Josiahs merits did not merely consist in a strict observance of the legitimate worship and ritual, is evident from Jer. 22:15-16, where he is praised for his righteousness as a judge.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
25. Like unto him was there no king before him It is commonly held that Hezekiah equalled or surpassed him in trusting Jehovah, (2Ki 18:5,) but that he excelled Hezekiah in his scrupulous adherence to all the law of Moses. But see note on 2Ki 18:5.
Josiah was the last true theocratic king of Judah, and, from the great events belonging to his reign, as well as his profoundly earnest effort to extirpate idolatry from all Israel, his name and memory are highly panegyrized in the annals of his people. “The remembrance of Josiah,” says the son of Sirach, “is like the composition of the perfume that is made by the art of the apothecary; it is sweet as honey in all mouths, and as music at a banquet of wine. He behaved himself uprightly in the conversation of the people, and took away the abominations of iniquity. He directed his heart unto the Lord, and in the time of the ungodly he established the worship of God. Except David, Hezekiah, and Josiah, all were defective.” Sir 49:1-4 .
Josiah’s reformation is open to criticism, for its methods of violence were such as have ever characterized religious persecutions, and it failed, as the subsequent history shows, to effect any permanent change in the nation for the better. “Large as is the space occupied by it in the historical books,” says Stanley, “by the contemporary prophets it is never mentioned at all.”
It may therefore be held up as signal evidence and admonition that violent measures are useless to effect a genuine or permanent reformation. But we must not judge Josiah’s work by the standards of our Christian age. What other or milder measures could we rationally expect a Jewish king of that age to have thought of? “Judaism,” says Sumner, ( in Schaff’s Lange,) “had intolerance as one of its fundamental principles. Violence in support of Jehovah’s religion was a duty of a Jewish king. In attempting to account for and understand the conduct of Josiah, it would be as senseless to expect him to see and practice toleration as to expect him to use firearms against Necho. We can never carry back modern principles into ancient times and judge men by the standards of to-day.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2Ki 23:25. Like unto him was there no king before him, &c. As it is mentioned to the particular praise of Hezekiah, chap. 2Ki 18:5., that there was no king like him, who trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so the preference given to Josiah is here limited to his turning to the Lord with all his heart, &c. by which is partly meant that he made a more thorough and complete reformation than any of his predecessors. But however sincere he was in this reformation, omitting nothing to restore the purity of God’s worship wherever his power extended, yet a great part at least of the people still had a hankering after the corruption of the former part of Manasseh’s reign. They complied indeed with the present reformation, but this was only through fear of incurring the king’s displeasure, or of feeling the severity of his justice. Their hearts were not right towards God, as appears fully from the writings of the prophets of those times; and therefore, seeing no sign of their repentance, God had no reason to reverse his decree, nor to turn from the fierceness of his great wrath; 2Ki 23:26.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 382
THE CHARACTER OF JOSIAH
2Ki 23:25. And like unto him was there no king before him, that 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; neither after him arose there any like him.
THIS is the character given of King Josiah. A similar eulogium had been passed on his progenitor, Hezekiah; of whom it is said, He trusted in the Lord God of Israel; so that after him was none like him of all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him [Note: 2Ki 18:5.]. But there is nothing contrary in the two accounts: each of these persons had his peculiar excellencies, in which he surpassed all others: Hezekiah was distinguished (as the words cited intimate,) for his confidence in God; and Josiah, as our text informs us, for his zeal and piety. No person, merely human, was ever perfect, since the introduction of sin into the world. There have indeed been bright characters, who have reflected with great lustre and fidelity some rays of the Sun of righteousness; but of Christ alone can it be said, that He is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
The character here given of Josiah is as exalted as any that was ever ascribed to fallen man: and for the purpose of illustrating it, we propose to mark some of the chief features of which it was composed.
I.
He began to serve God at a very early period of life
[At eight years old he began to reign: and no sooner did he arrive at years of discretion, than he began seriously and devoutly to serve the Lord [Note: 2. Chron. 34:3.]. At sixteen years of age, when it might have been expected that he should be studious only of pleasure, he turned from earthly vanities to seek his happiness in God: and at twenty years of age, when it is probable he began to exercise without control his regal office, he set himself to reform the whole nation. Not fearing the face of man, he stemmed the torrent of iniquity which had overwhelmed the land; and devoted to the service of his God all the powers with which he was invested.
This was doubtless most pleasing to God, who required by the law that the first-fruits of man and beast should be his, and who has given a peculiar promise to those who seek him in early life; They that seek me early shall find me. Happy would it be if all of us began at the early age of sixteen to serve the Lord; and if from that period every talent committed to our care were improved for God! How much better this, than to be wasting our youthful days in sin and vanity! True, we have not all the same authority as he; but all in our respective spheres should exert ourselves to the utmost of our ability; remembering, that if youth labours under some disadvantages in point of influence, it has a tendency to put to shame the indolence of more advanced years, and to impress more forcibly the minds of those who are yet young and tender. Whilst then we say to all, Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, we would exhort all, from the first moment that they feel the value of their own souls, to exert themselves with all diligence to benefit the souls of others ]
II.
He proceeded in his career with extraordinary zeal and diligence
[It seems almost incredible that this young monarch should effect so much as he did in so short a time. He first began to root out idolatry from those tribes which were under his own dominion; and then set himself (by the connivance or permission of the Assyrian monarch) to effect the same changes among the remnant of the ten tribes. Not choosing to devolve these labours on others, he proceeded himself throughout all the land of Israel, that he might see his orders carried into execution. The means he used to produce a reformation were of the most extraordinary kind; breaking in pieces all the images that he could find, strewing the dust of them on the graves of those who had sacrificed unto them; and burning on the altars the bones of the priests who had placed their offerings upon them [Note: See 2Ch 34:3-7.].
Here we see how justly he deserved the character given him in our text: he entered into his work with all his heart, and all his soul, and all his might. And this is the spirit which we also should manifest in all our services for God. We should not indulge a lukewarm spirit, but be zealously affected always in a good cause. Whatever our hand findeth to do, we should do with all our might ]
III.
He was as zealous in promoting piety as in suppressing vice
[When he had put down the reigning abominations, he endeavoured to establish the worship of the true God: he repaired the temple, which had fallen into decay; he convened all his subjects, the priests and Levites, and all the people both small and great, and himself read to them the word of God, and made a covenant with the Lord both for himself and them to serve the Lord God with their whole hearts; and he caused all the people to stand to the covenant. After this he kept a passover, such as had not been kept even from the time of Samuel to that hour: and toward the expenses of it he himself very largely contributed.
Now here was real piety: here was a manifest regard for the honour of God and the good of men. This it is that most exalts a character. Many there are who will be extremely zealous against open profaneness, who yet have no real concern, for Gods honour and glory. But we must combine godliness with honesty. We must labour, each in his sphere, to promote the Knowledge and the worship of God: and having given up ourselves to him in a perpetual covenant, we must endeavour to engage others also to a like surrender of themselves to him. In a peculiar manner we should ourselves respect, and to the utmost of our power cause others also to regard, the wonders of redeeming love. Since Christ our passover is sacrificed for us, we should keep the feast Here is scope for the best energies of our souls. In reference to these things it is not possible to be too earnest, provided we are alike attentive to every duty, and careful that God in all things may be glorified through Christ Jesus ]
IV.
In all he did he adhered strictly to the word of God
[From the first moment that the Scriptures were found and read to him, he determined to make them the one rule of his conduct. He humbled himself deeply before God for the utter disregard of them which had obtained throughout the whole kingdom: and he himself read them in the ears of his people, and required a conformity to them in every particular. In celebrating the passover, he was especially mindful of every direction given by Moses relative to that divine ordinance; and indeed in the whole of his conduct he laboured to secure a perfect compliance with Gods revealed will. This is the thing noticed, both in the text and in many other places; and it forms a very essential part of that goodness, for which he is applauded in the sacred records [Note: 2Ch 35:26.].
It often, happens, that men are zealous for their own party and their own opinions; and men in such a state will sometimes compass sea and land to make one proselyte: but unless we build according to the model given us in the mount, we lose all our labour. To please our God, we must have a strict regard to his revealed will: and for this end we must study the Holy Scriptures, and turn from them neither to the right hand nor the left.]
Address
[Here we may rejoice, that we all have the Scriptures in our hands. They are not hid, as in the days of Josiah; but are so freely and universally dispersed, that every man in the kingdom who desires to study them, may obtain them. How signally blessed are we in this respect! Nay, we not only have access to the Scriptures, but have them read and expounded to us from Sabbath to Sabbath. Let us then learn to tremble at the word. Let us remember that every jot and tittle of it will be fulfilled in its season. Let us bear in mind, that our wilful deviations from it will be visited with the divine displeasure: and that, if we study to fulfil it with all our heart, and soul, and might, God, who knoweth our hearts, will bear testimony to us in the day of judgment, as here he has done to King Josiah; and will say to us before the assembled universe, Well done, good and faithful servants, enter ye into the joy of your Lord.]
END OF VOL. III.
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
2Ki 23:25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that 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; neither after him arose there [any] like him.
Ver. 25. And like unto him was there no king, &c. ] He was a matchless man, a peerless prince, the world’s paragon,
“ Hic regum decus et iuvenum flos, spesque bonorum.
Deliciae saecli et gloria gentis erat. ”
As Cardan singeth of our Edward VI, a second Josiah, as all good men acknowledged. See 2Ki 18:5
And with all his might. like unto. Note the Figure of speech Epanadiplosis, by which (for emphasis) the statement begins and ends with the same words.
soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13.
am 3363-3394, bc 641-610
unto him: 2Ki 18:5
that turned: 2Ki 23:3, Deu 4:29, Deu 6:5, 1Ki 2:4, 1Ki 8:48, 1Ki 15:5, Jer 29:13
according: Neh 10:29, Mal 4:4, Joh 1:17, Joh 7:19
Reciprocal: 1Ki 21:25 – But there Job 1:8 – none Jer 22:15 – thy Heb 11:38 – whom
2Ki 23:25. Like unto him was there no king before him For his diligent study in Gods law, and his exact care, and unwearied industry, and fervent zeal, in rooting out idolaters, and all kinds and appearances of idolatry, not only in Judah, but in Israel also; and in the establishment of the true religion in all his dominions, and in the conforming of his own life, and his peoples too, (as far as he could,) to the holy law of God: though Hezekiah might excel him in some particulars.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments