2 Kings 22

1 Josiah was of eight years, when he began to reign, and he reigned one and thirty years in Jerusalem; the name of his mother was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath.

2 And he did that, that was pleasant before the Lord, and he went by all the ways of David, his father; he bowed not, neither to the right side, nor of the left side. (And he did what was pleasing before the Lord, and he went in all the ways of his forefather David; he turned not, neither to the right, nor to the left.)

3 Forsooth in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, the king sent Shaphan, the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, [the] scribe, either doctor, of the temple of the Lord (to the Temple of the Lord), and said to him,

4 Go thou to Hilkiah, the great priest, (and command) that the money, which is borne into the temple of the Lord, be molten together, which money the porters of the temple have gathered of the people; (Go thou to the High Priest Hilkiah, and command that the money, which is brought into the Temple of the Lord, be melted down, which money the guards, or the door-keepers, of the Temple have gathered from the people;)

5 and that it be given to craftsmen by the sovereigns of the house of the Lord; which also parted that money to them that work in the temple of the Lord, to repair the roofs of the temple of the Lord, (and that it be given to the craftsmen by the foremen of the House of the Lord; and they deal out that money to those who work in the Temple of the Lord, to make the needed repairs to the Temple of the Lord,)

6 that is, to carpenters, and to masons, and to them that make [together] broken things (and to those who put together broken things), and (also) that timber and stones of quarriers be bought, to repair the temple of the Lord;

7 nevertheless the silver, which they take/that the workmen take, be not reckoned to them, but have they it in (their own) power, and in faith (but trust them to have it under their own power, or control).

8 And Hilkiah, the bishop, said to Shaphan, the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, the scribe, which also read it. (And the High Priest Hilkiah said to Shaphan, the writer, I have found The Book of the Law in the House of the Lord. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, the writer, and he read it.)

9 Also Shaphan, the scribe, came to the king, and told to him those things, which Hilkiah had commanded, and he said, Thy servants have spended the money, that was found in the house of the Lord, and they have given, that it should be parted to [the] craftsmen of the sovereigns of [the] works of the temple of the Lord. (And Shaphan, the writer, came to the king, and reported to the king about those things which he had commanded, and he said, Thy servants have spent the money that was found in the House of the Lord, and they have ordained that it be dealt out to the craftsmen by the foremen of the repairs to the Temple of the Lord.)

10 Also Shaphan, the scribe, told to the king, and said, Hilkiah, the priest of God, hath given to me a book; and when Shaphan had read that book before the king,

11 and the king had heard the words of the book of the law of the Lord, he rent his clothes. (and the king had heard the words of The Book of the Law of the Lord, he tore his clothes.)

12 And he commanded to Hilkiah, the priest, and to Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and to Achbor, the son of Michaiah, and to Shaphan the scribe, and to Asahiah, (a) servant of the king, and said,

13 Go ye, and ask, or counsel ye, the Lord on me, and on the people, and on all Judah, of the words of this book, that is found; for (the) great ire of the Lord is kindled against us, for our fathers heard not the words of this book, to do all thing which is written to us. (Go ye, and ask ye the Lord's counsel for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, about the words of this book, that is found; for great is the Lord's anger that is kindled against us, for our forefathers did not listen to the words of this book, to do all the things which be written to us.)

14 Therefore Hilkiah, the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went to Huldah, the prophetess, the wife of Shallum, the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the clothes, the which Huldah dwelled in Jerusalem, in the second dwelling/in the second environing of the wall (in the second quarter); and they spake to her.

15 And she answered to them, The Lord God of Israel saith these things, Say ye to the man, that sent you to me,

16 The Lord God of Israel saith these things, Lo! I shall bring evils upon this place, and upon the dwellers thereof (and upon its inhabitants), and I shall fulfill all the words [of the law], which the king of Judah read;

17 for they forsook me, and made sacrifice to alien gods, and stirred me to ire in all the works of their hands; and mine indignation shall be kindled in this place, and shall not be quenched. (for they deserted me, and made sacrifice to foreign, or other, gods, and stirred me to anger with all the works of their hands; and my indignation shall be kindled against this place, and it shall not be quenched.)

18 Soothly to the king of Judah, that sent you, that ye shall counsel (with) the Lord/that ye shall ask the Lord('s) counsel, ye shall say thus, The Lord God of Israel saith these things, For thou heardest the words of the book,

19 and thine heart was afeared, and thou were made meek before the Lord, when his words were heard against this place, and against the dwellers thereof, that is, that they should be made into wondering, and into cursing, and thou rentest thy clothes, and weptest before me, and I heard, saith the Lord; (and that thy heart was afraid, and thou were humbled before the Lord, when his words were heard against this place, and against its inhabitants, that is, that they should be made into wondering, and into cursing, and that thou torest thy clothes, and weptest before me, and for thou hath done all these things, I have heard thee, saith the Lord;)

20 therefore I shall gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy sepulchre in peace; (so) that thine eyes see not all the evils, which I shall bring in upon this place. And they told to the king that, that she said (And they told the king what she said);

2 Kings 22 Commentary

Chapter 22

Josiah's good reign, His care for repairing the temple, The book of the law found. (1-10) Josiah consults Huldah the prophetess. (11-20)

Verses 1-10 The different event of Josiah's early succession from that of Manasseh, must be ascribed to the distinguishing grace of God; yet probably the persons that trained him up were instruments in producing this difference. His character was most excellent. Had the people joined in the reformation as heartily as he persevered in it, blessed effects would have followed. But they were wicked, and had become fools in idolatry. We do not obtain full knowledge of the state of Judah from the historical records, unless we refer to the writings of the prophets who lived at the time. In repairing the temple, the book of the law was found, and brought to the king. It seems, this book of the law was lost and missing; carelessly mislaid and neglected, as some throw their Bibles into corners, or maliciously concealed by some of the idolaters. God's care of the Bible plainly shows his interest in it. Whether this was the only copy in being or not, the things contained in it were new, both to the king and to the high priest. No summaries, extracts, or collections out of the Bible, can convey and preserve the knowledge of God and his will, like the Bible itself. It was no marvel that the people were so corrupt, when the book of the law was so scarce; they that corrupted them, no doubt, used arts to get that book out of their hands. The abundance of Bibles we possess aggravates our national sins; for what greater contempt of God can we show, than to refuse to read his word when put into our hands, or, reading it, not to believe and obey it? By the holy law is the knowledge of sin, and by the blessed gospel is the knowledge of salvation. When the former is understood in its strictness and excellence, the sinner begins to inquire, What must I do to be saved? And the ministers of the gospel point out to him Jesus Christ, as the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

Verses 11-20 The book of the law is read before the king. Those best honour their Bibles, who study them; daily feed on that bread, and walk by that light. Convictions of sin and wrath should put us upon this inquiry, What shall we do to be saved? Also, what we may expect, and must provide for. Those who are truly apprehensive of the weight of God's wrath, cannot but be very anxious how they may be saved. Huldah let Josiah know what judgments God had in store for Judah and Jerusalem. The generality of the people were hardened, and their hearts unhumbled, but Josiah's heart was tender. This is tenderness of heart, and thus he humbled himself before the Lord. Those who most fear God's wrath, are least likely to feel it. Though Josiah was mortally wounded in battle, yet he died in peace with God, and went to glory. Whatever such persons suffer or witness, they are gathered to the grave in peace, and shall enter into the rest which remaineth for the people of God.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 22

This chapter begins with the age and character of Josiah king of Judah, 2Ki 22:1-2, relates his orders for repairing the temple, 2Ki 22:3-7, his attention to the book of the law, which was found, and read to him, and the effect it had upon him, 2Ki 22:8-11, the command he gave to certain persons to inquire of the Lord about it, who applied to Huldah the prophetess, 2Ki 22:12-14, who returned an answer by them to the king, foretelling the destruction of Jerusalem, and giving the reason of it, and at the same time assuring the king it should not be in his days, 2Ki 22:15-20.