Josiah the King Who Found the Book of the Law
KNOWLEDGE OF THE BIBLE AND GOD’S LAWS HAD BEEN FUNDAMENTALLY LOST
For more than 300 years, the information in the Book of the Law had been almost totally forgotten and thus ignored among the leaders and people of Judah. Both the King and the high priest were stunned when they learned what was contained in the lost Bible. Josiah was in the process of attempting to turn Judah back to worship of the true God of Israel when they found a copy of the Bible. No doubt the pagans had destroyed all the copies of the Law that existed except the original that was kept in the Temple. Probably a good priest hid the original so it would not be destroyed in the pagan desecration of the Temple of God led by previous evil Kings. Josiah was having the Temple cleaned up from all the years of rough pagan abuse when the copy was found. See II Chron 34:14, 19. Also note II Kings 22:8, 11. He cleaned the Temple and removed the male and female temple prostitutes.
ARE MOST AMERICANS LOSING WHAT GENERAL BIBLICAL KNOWLEDGE USED TO EXIST IN SOCIETY?
Schools in America and Britain use to teach biblical literature as a normal function and most politicians quoted the Bible liberally. The pressure is on now in society to ban Christianity and all its beliefs from the public square. Bible I.Q.’s are decidedly declining in America Just like Israelites forgot much of the ways and Laws of their God. Most people held the bible in high regard one or two generations ago, but that is not the case currently. We are ignoring the Bible today, as they did in ancient Israel.
BLESSINGS AND CURSES JOSIAH READ FROM THE BIBLE REGARDING ISRAEL’S SPIRITUAL ADULTERY TO PAGANISM WAS A SHOCK
The laws of God describe in vivid details all the blessing and cursing that will befall God’s people based on their behavior. Moses elaborated that if they worshipped the true God many blessings would flow and if they turned to the false gods of the nations around them, curses would follow. One of the blessings is rain in due season, as needed for prosperity. Note Deut 28:12. Today, for many years, California was in a deep drought. Now California expects to be overwhelmed with massive flood creating rains. The king realized just how far from God his people had gone and tore his robe in mourning.
Our weather does not seem to be much of a blessing to us anymore. It almost feels like God has removed his protective shield from our country. We have floods in the Southeast and Midwest, massive snows in the east, prolonged drought in California, followed by torrential rains. Is this just a normal weather cycle? Are we beginning to see curses?
IS THE NATION BEGINNING TO SUFFER SOME OF THE CURSES DESCRIBED BY MOSES?
Deut 28:19-20 describe a nation in confusion. Things the people and government try do not work. People are confused and angry as well. We seem to have anger among both political parties. A debtor curse has fallen on our nation. If our nation turns from God they will no longer be a creditor nation but become debtor foreigners. See Deut 28:43-44. America has that curse. The nation will soon be 21 Trillion dollars in debt some is internal debt. That is greater than our nations GDP.
JOSIAH WAS ONLY ABLE TO DELAY THE TOTAL COLLAPSE OF THE NATION
Commentaries opine that Josiah was not able to truly turn back the hearts of most of the people from idolatrous revelry. Soon after his death they returned to false gods. A prophetess, Huldah gave the revelation from God that it was too late for Judah but that they would be blessed as long as Josiah lived. He led his nation in a great revival, including one of the greatest Passover and Unleavened Bread rededication to God in Israel’s history. He reordered the Levitical priesthood who had been disorganized and abandoned. He placed the Ark of the Covenant back into the Temple. See II Chron 35:1-4. When God’s word is preached and spread, the people are blessed and Judah was blessed because of Josiah having the Law read and taught for years.
If Americans can elect more godly leaders and if churches begin to preach against sin, our nation’s decline can be halted or at least postponed. Can we turn back to God fully or just delay the decline? Some say the corruption of religion, the media news, hollyweird, the legal profession and miss-education has gone too far for any permanent return to God and the blessing of America. We can only hope and pray for a delay in the moral collapse of the nation. God postponed judgement when Ahab sort of repented. Maybe He would do it again. (ll Kings 23:25-26) What do you all think?
Can the Bible, as most understand it; make a powerful comeback in the public square?
Moses calls from antiquity to all of us to CHOOSE YOU THIS DAY. We are to choose to go with God and be blessed and protected or go with the pagan gods and superstitions of the world and be cursed. See Deut 30:19.
