The Sunday School Lesson

II CHRON. 34.-15 And Hil-ki'ah answered and said to Sha'phan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD, And Hilki'ah delivered the book to Sha'phan. 18 Then Sha'phan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilki'ah the priest hath given me a book. And Sha'phan read it before the king. 19 And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes, 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. 1 26 And as for the king of Ju'dah, who sent you to enquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Is'ra-el 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. 29 Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Ju'dah and Je-ru'sa-lem. 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 Je-ru'sa-lem and Ben'jamin to stand to it. And the inhabitants of Jeru'sa lem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers. 33 And Jo-si'ah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of ls'ra-el, and made all that were present in ls'ra-el 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.

HEART OF THE LESSON King Josiah reigned in Judah from 640 to 609 B.C. Though he was a child when he ascended the throne, he became one of the finest and most righteous rulers Judah ever had. As part of his devotion to God, he ordered a major repair of the temple.

1. The definition of sin (II Chron. 34:15, 18-19). In the course of those repairs, the high priest discovered an old scroll somewhere in the temple. This was probably the nucleus of the book of Deuteronomy, material that had dropped out of sight long before. The book was brought to King Josiah and read to him. For Josiah, hearing this recitation of God's covenant with Israel was like being hit with bad news, for as he listened, he realized that he and his people had fallen far short of what God commanded. Josiah reacted physically by tearing his clothes, a sign in that culture of mourning and dismay. In effect, this scroll served as a standard against which Josiah measured himself and his nation. Whenever we measure ourselves against God's righteous law, we cannot help becoming conscious of how far short we fall of God's requirements. Thus, the first effect of hearing God's covenant is becoming aware of our sinfulness.

2. The consequences of sin (II Chron. 34:25-27). Recognizing the sin of his nation, Josiah asked the Lord through the Prophetess Huldah what was to come as a result of that sin. Speaking for God, Huldah said that His wrath would be poured out on the nation and could not be deflected. We might wish for a different answer. When we have sinned, we would like to hear that we can be excused from the consequences of our wrongdoing. We can be excused from eternal consequences, of course, when we sincerely repent and seek God's forgiveness; but earthbound penalties usually remain. That was the case for Judah.

3. The renewal of the covenant (II Chron. 34:29, 31- 33). Despite the devastating news Josiah had learned about Judah's future, he knew it was still crucial to do all he could to get his people to be faithful to the covenant again. Thus, he called the nation's leaders and citizens together and led them in a ceremony renewing the covenant. He insisted that everyone commit themselves to live by God's laws. To help the people follow through on what they had promised, Josiah undertook a sweeping campaign to destroy the idols, tearing down their altars and high places of worship and deposing their priests. Josiah's efforts were effective, at least for the remainder of his reign. Throughout his remaining years, the people kept the covenant. In the parallel account of Josiah's reign found in 11 Kings, the writer makes this observation about him: "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" (23:25). Since the consequences of his people's previous wrongdoing could not be turned aside, some might wonder why Josiah was still so determined to lead his nation in a revival. But clearly he understood a deep spiritual truth. Our ultimate hope is with God, Beyond whatever earthly penalty we must pay because of our sins is eternity with God, and we want to be there with Him.

QUESTIONS

1. What did King Josiah order after a spiritual awakening in his own heart? 2. What occurred to catch Hilkiah's attention, and to whom did he relate his discovery? 3. What did Josiah do after hearing the message of the recovered book, and what message came back to him? 4. Why did God extend His mercy to Josiah in spite of His wrath?

(Reprinted by permission of The Incorporated Trustees of the Gospel Worker Society and Union Gospel Press, P.O. Box 6059, Cleveland, Ohio, 44101)