2 Chronicles 34

Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for thirty-one years.

1Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.

NoteJosiah ruled Judah, the southern kingdom, from about 640 to 609 BC. The northern kingdom, called Israel, had been destroyed by Assyria roughly eighty years earlier, so by his day the family of David ruled only Judah and Jerusalem. Because he was eight when he took the throne, adults would have governed for him at first.

2He did what was right in the LORD's sight. He lived the way his ancestor David had lived, and he did not turn away from it to the right or to the left.

2And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left.

3In the eighth year of his rule, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his ancestor David. In the twelfth year he began to clear Judah and Jerusalem of the worship sites on the hills, the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the metal idols.

3For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images.

Note"Worship sites on the hills" translates a term usually given as "high places": local open-air shrines, often on a hilltop, with an altar and standing stones. They were the ordinary way people worshiped in the countryside, and were used for the LORD as well as for other gods. "Asherah poles" were wooden objects (a pole, or possibly a stylized tree) set up beside an altar. Asherah was a goddess worshiped across the region, and the poles stood for her. The "carved idols" were shaped from wood or stone; the "metal idols" were cast from molten bronze or silver poured into a mold.

4The altars of the Baals were torn down while he watched, and he cut down the incense altars that stood above them. He smashed the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the metal idols, ground them to dust, and scattered the dust over the graves of the people who had sacrificed to them.

4And they brake down the altars of Baalim in his presence; and the images, that were on high above them, he cut down; and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images, he brake in pieces, and made dust of them, and strowed it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto them.

Note"The Baals" is a plural. Baal means "lord" or "master" and was the title of the chief storm-and-fertility god of Canaan; each town had its own local version of him, hence the plural. The "incense altars" were small stands, often stone, for burning aromatic resin as an offering; they sometimes stood on top of the larger altars. Scattering the dust on the graves of the worshipers was not just insult. Contact with a grave or a corpse made a person or place ritually unclean, so this permanently spoiled the ground-up idols and the burial sites together.

5He burned the bones of the priests of those idols on their own altars. In this way he cleaned out Judah and Jerusalem.

5And he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.

NoteBurning human bones on an altar was the strongest possible way of putting it out of use. An altar polluted by corpses could not be used for sacrifice again.

6He did the same thing in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far north as Naphtali, in the ruined places all around them.

6And so did he in the cities of Manasseh, and Ephraim, and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, with their mattocks round about.

NoteManasseh, Ephraim, Simeon and Naphtali are tribal territories, not cities, Naphtali lay in the far north. All of this was outside Judah's borders, in what had been the northern kingdom before Assyria destroyed it, so Josiah was acting well beyond his own realm. The Hebrew phrase behind "in the ruined places all around them" is uncertain; older English versions read it as a word for a digging tool and translated "with their mattocks."

7He tore down the altars and the Asherah poles, ground the carved idols to powder, and cut down all the incense altars throughout the whole land of Israel. Then he went back to Jerusalem.

7And when he had broken down the altars and the groves, and had beaten the graven images into powder, and cut down all the idols throughout all the land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem.

8In the eighteenth year of his rule, after he had cleaned out the land and the temple, he sent Shaphan son of Azaliah, Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah son of Joahaz, the record keeper, to repair the temple of the LORD his God.

8Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the LORD his God.

NoteThe eighteenth year of Josiah's reign was about 622 BC. The "record keeper" (older versions: "recorder") held a senior post at court, roughly a chief of staff or royal secretary who kept the official annals and handled communications, not a clerk.

9They went to Hilkiah the high priest and handed over the money that had been brought into God's temple. The Levites who guarded the doors had collected it from the people of Manasseh and Ephraim, from all who were left in Israel, and from all Judah and Benjamin and the people of Jerusalem.

9And when they came to Hilkiah the high priest, they delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites that kept the doors had gathered of the hand of Manasseh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel, and of all Judah and Benjamin; and they returned to Jerusalem.

NoteThe Levites were members of the tribe of Levi, set apart to serve at the temple in support roles (guarding doors, handling the offerings, singing, keeping records) under the priests, who came from one family within that tribe. The high priest was the head of the whole priesthood. "Money" here means silver weighed out by amount, not coins; coinage had not yet come into use in Judah. "All who were left in Israel" refers to the people still living in the northern territories after the Assyrian conquest and deportations.

10They put the money into the hands of the men in charge of the work on the LORD's temple, and those men paid the workers who were restoring and repairing it.

10And they put it in the hand of the workmen that had the oversight of the house of the LORD, and they gave it to the workmen that wrought in the house of the LORD, to repair and amend the house:

11They gave money to the carpenters and builders to buy cut stone, and timber for the joints and beams of the buildings that the kings of Judah had let fall apart.

11Even to the artificers and builders gave they it, to buy hewn stone, and timber for couplings, and to floor the houses which the kings of Judah had destroyed.

12The men did the work honestly. The Levites in charge of them were Jahath and Obadiah, from the family of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, from the family of Kohath, who kept the work moving. Other Levites, all of them skilled with musical instruments,

12And the men did the work faithfully: and the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadiah, the Levites, of the sons of Merari; and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to set it forward; and other of the Levites, all that could skill of instruments of musick.

NoteMerari and Kohath were two of the three family lines of the tribe of Levi, each traditionally responsible for particular temple duties.

13were in charge of the laborers and directed everyone doing the work, job by job. Some of the Levites served as secretaries, officials, and gatekeepers.

13Also they were over the bearers of burdens, and were overseers of all that wrought the work in any manner of service: and of the Levites there were scribes, and officers, and porters.

Note"Gatekeepers" (older versions: "porters") were the guards posted at the temple entrances, controlling who and what came in. "Secretaries" were record-keepers who tracked the money and materials.

14While they were bringing out the money that had been taken into the LORD's temple, Hilkiah the priest found the book of the LORD's law, given through Moses.

14And 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.

NoteA "book" at this date was a scroll of leather or papyrus, not a bound volume. What exactly this scroll contained is not stated and is much debated; the curses it lists (verse 24) match those at the end of Deuteronomy.

15Hilkiah said to Shaphan the scribe, "I have found the book of the law in the LORD's temple." And Hilkiah handed the book to Shaphan.

15And 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.

NoteA "scribe" was not a copyist but a high-ranking government official, a literate minister who drafted documents, handled state correspondence, and had direct access to the king.

16Shaphan took the book to the king and also gave him a report, saying, "Your servants are doing everything that was handed to them to do.

16And 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.

17They have collected the money that was found in the LORD's temple and have handed it over to the supervisors and the workers."

17And 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.

18Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a book." And Shaphan read it aloud to the king.

18Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.

19When the king heard the words of the law, he tore his clothes in grief.

19And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes.

NoteTearing one's own clothing was the standard public gesture of grief, shock or dread throughout the ancient Near East, the way a person showed that something terrible had happened.

20The king gave an order to Hilkiah, to Ahikam son of Shaphan, to Abdon son of Micah, to Shaphan the scribe, and to Asaiah the king's servant. He said,

20And 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 and ask the LORD for me, and for those who are left in Israel and Judah, about the words of this book that has been found. The LORD's anger against us is great, because our ancestors did not obey the LORD's word or do everything written in this book."

21Go, enquire 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.

NoteTo "ask the LORD" about something meant going to a recognized prophet for an answer, in the way one might consult an oracle. It was a formal procedure, which is why the king sends a delegation of named officials.

22So Hilkiah and the men the king had chosen went to Huldah the prophetess. She was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, who looked after the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District. They told her what the king had said.

22And 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.

NoteA prophetess is a woman who speaks messages received from God; several appear in Israel's history, and Huldah is consulted here in preference to prophets known to be active at the same time. "Looked after the royal clothing" translates "keeper of the wardrobe," a court office responsible for the king's or the temple's garments. The "Second District" is a quarter of Jerusalem, probably a newer expansion of the city. The Hebrew word means "second" or "repeated"; the King James translators took it to mean a school and rendered it "the college."

23She answered them, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me,

23And she answered them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell ye the man that sent you to me,

Note"This is what the LORD says" is the fixed opening formula of a messenger delivering someone else's words, the same wording a herald used to introduce a king's message. It marks everything that follows as quoted speech, not the speaker's own opinion.

24this is what the LORD says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and on the people who live here, all the curses written in the book that was read to the king of Judah.

24Thus 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:

NoteThe "curses written in the book" are the penalties spelled out at the end of a covenant document, listing what would follow if its terms were broken. Ancient treaties between a ruler and his subjects were drawn up the same way, with blessings for keeping the terms and curses for breaking them.

25This is because they have abandoned me and have burned incense to other gods, making me angry with everything they have made with their hands. So my anger will pour out on this place, and no one will put it out.

25Because 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.

NoteBurning incense was an ordinary act of worship, not an extra: aromatic gum was burned so the smoke rose to the god being honored. "Everything they have made with their hands" means the images themselves, objects manufactured by people and then treated as gods.

26But tell the king of Judah, who sent you to ask the LORD, this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the words you heard:

26And as for the king of Judah, who sent you to enquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard;

27Your heart was soft, and you made yourself humble before God when you heard what he said against this place and against the people who live here. You humbled yourself before me, tore your clothes, and cried in front of me. So I have heard you, says the LORD.

27Because 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.

Note"Your heart was soft" renders a phrase meaning receptive or easily moved, not weak or foolish. The point is that he took the words seriously rather than shrugging them off.

28I will bring you to rest with your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your own eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on the people who live here." So they took her answer back to the king.

28Behold, 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.

Note"Bring you to rest with your ancestors" is a standard idiom for dying and being buried in the family tomb, where the bones of earlier generations already lay. "Buried in peace" is contrasted here with living to see the disaster; Josiah is in fact killed in battle in the next chapter, but dies and is buried before Jerusalem falls.

29Then the king sent for all the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem and gathered them together.

29Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.

30The king went up to the LORD's temple with all the men of Judah, the people who lived in Jerusalem, the priests, the Levites, and all the people, from the least important to the greatest. There he read aloud to them every word of the book of the covenant that had been found in the LORD's temple.

30And 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.

NoteA covenant is a binding agreement with stated terms and consequences, of the kind made between a ruler and his people or between two states. The "book of the covenant" is the document containing those terms. "From the least important to the greatest" is an idiom meaning everyone without exception, whatever their rank.

31The king stood in his place and made an agreement before the LORD: he would follow the LORD and keep his commands, his rules, and his laws with all his heart and all his life, and would carry out the words of the agreement written in this book.

31And 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.

Note"Stood in his place" refers to a fixed spot in the temple where the king customarily stood on public occasions; the parallel account in 2 Kings 23:3 describes it as "by the pillar."

32Then he had everyone who was there from Jerusalem and Benjamin commit to it as well. And the people of Jerusalem did what the agreement with God, the God of their ancestors, required.

32And 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.

33Josiah removed all the detestable idols from every territory that belonged to the Israelites, and he made everyone in Israel serve the LORD their God. As long as he lived, they did not stop following the LORD, the God of their ancestors.

33And 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.

Note"Detestable idols" translates a word for anything ritually repulsive, here the images, altars and equipment of the other gods.