Thu, 29 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

2 Chronicles 34:14-21

¹⁴ While they were bringing out the money that had been brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the LORD given through Moses. ¹⁵ Then Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan. ¹⁶ Shaphan brought the book to the king, and further reported to the king, “All that was committed to your servants they are doing. ¹⁷ They have emptied out the money that was found in the house of the LORD and have given it into the hand of the overseers and the workmen.” ¹⁸ Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it before the king.

¹⁹ And when the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes. ²⁰ And the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, ²¹ “Go, inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”

Young king Josiah ascended to the throne of Judah when he was eight years old. Our chapter tells us that when he was sixteen he began to seek God, and when he was twenty, he began to purge the land of the false worship. When he was twenty-six, he begins repairs on the temple. In the process of the repairs, the priests make an amazing discovery. They find the Book of the Law of the LORD given through Moses. This is most likely the book of Deuteronomy, and as they read it to Josiah, he is struck to the heart and is convicted of the way they have been violating God’s law.

What do we learn from this?

First we see that God preserves His word. There have been times and places when people have dedicated themselves to the goal of destroying God’s word. It is hard to imagine now in our modern electronic Internet world, but it used to be quite possible to destroy all the copies of a book. At times, people have tried to do just that with the Bible. But God did not allow that to happen. He preserved His word, and He will continue to preserve it. Sometimes God’s word might drop from prominence. It might be lost, suppressed, or forgotten. But it will never be destroyed. God will preserve His word, and it will come back to its position of prominence at His appointed time. After everyone has forgotten about it, someone will find it and restore it to the world.

Secondly, we see the power of God’s word at work in Josiah. Josiah has been seeking God. He has tried to follow God as best he could. But he didn’t have God’s word, and so he was doing the best he could. He was shooting at the target of obedience to God while being blindfolded. Josiah cleaned up the idol worship and was trying to restore true temple worship. But he didn’t have God’s word. He didn’t know everything God required.

Then God graciously brings to light a copy of Deuteronomy, and Josiah is cut to the heart. God’s word convicts him of his sin and the sin of the people. God’s word will show us our sin, and drive us to repent before God.

Today in America, unlike some parts of the world, there is no shortage of God’s word. No one is trying to destroy or confiscate the Bible, yet most people completely ignore it. God has given us a rich gift: we should take full advantage of His word. God will speak to us in His word to convict us of sin and drive us come to Him in faith.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Josiah repented of his sin and the sin of the people as he read God’s word. It drove him to repent and throw himself upon God’s mercy. As he read in the law, he saw that God provided a way for people to be forgiven of their sins by way of a blood sacrifice. They would confess their sins over an animal, symbolically transferring their sin onto the animal, and then they would kill the animal, shedding the animal’s blood as an atonement for their sin. It was in this substitute that they found salvation.

Josiah probably didn’t understood all of this as we can looking back, but we know from the futher revelation of the New Testament that this blood sacrifice of an animal didn’t save anyone. It was only to point the people to the coming substitute who would truly bear the sins of all His people through all time. Jesus Christ is the substitute for our sins. On the cross He bore the punishment for the sins of all who come to Him in faith. As Josiah trusted in God’s substitute for his sins, he found salvation in Jesus Christ. It is no different for us today. As we read God’s word and are convicted of our sins, we are driven to repent and come to God in faith, trusting in His provision for our salvation: Jesus Christ.