Josiah’s Revival

Scripture records a reprieve in Yahweh’s determination to judge Judah after years of persistent and heinous devotion to idols. This reprieve occurred during the reign of Josiah (640-609 b.c., recorded in 2 Kings 22 and 2 Chron. 34). He was only 8 years old when he began to reign, but he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. In his eighth year of rule, Josiah began to seek God. This seeking manifested itself in an active reformation in Judah, purging the land of its idolatry.

We need to look deeper into this account. First, we must ask how Josiah came to seek the Lord. His fathers were evil, leaving him no godly example. Yet Josiah sought the Lord in the final years of Judah’s spiritual decline. Judgment was already pronounced on the nation. Babylonia would soon defeat Judah, indeed, just four years after Josiah’s death. So, what caused Josiah to seek the true God? Paul, quoting Psalm 14:2, argues that no natural man will seek after God (Rom. 3:10, 11). He loves only his unrighteousness. It is only when God’s Spirit sovereignly opens a sinner’s heart that he seeks Him. Again, Paul affirms this in Romans 10:20 (quoting Isa. 65:1), “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”

God was working in Josiah to accomplish His own purpose in that dark hour of Israel’s history. That is what drives the narrative. It spotlights God’s glory, not Josiah’s goodness. We are prone to read Scripture from a human standpoint, looking for personal encouragement. Of course, we do find such encouragement, but we also need to understand that what is revealed there is not ultimately about us. It is all about God and how He will get glory to Himself through His incredible acts and power.

In the eighteenth year of his reign, Josiah set about to repair the house of the Lord. In the process of clearing debris from years of accumulated neglect because of forsaking the Lord in the worship of other gods, the high priest, Hilkiah, discovered a copy of the Pentateuch, which he delivered to the king through his secretary, Shaphan (2 Kings 22:8). This discovery humbled the king in repentance because saw that God’s wrath was already kindled upon Judah because of her disobedience. What should he do next?

To this point, the reform was apparently driven by remembered tradition. The discovery of the book of the law set the revival on the proper foundation. Nevertheless, the king still sought the counsel of a prophetess who affirmed that judgment was indeed coming but that there would be a short reprieve because of Josiah’s humbling as he heard the Scriptures read.

Surely God had a special purpose in this stay. It is very probable that the Lord did so to prepare His servants to be His witnesses in Babylon. Daniel was born two years before the book was discovered and its truth revealed. Josiah’s revival furthered God’s kingdom plans. May this understanding encourage our own hearts in our dark hour of spiritual decline.