Daily Devotions
January 12th, 2017 by Pastor Solley2 Chron 34:1-3 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.
2 And 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.
3 For 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.
KJV
What was it that turned Josiah to the Lord, what was it that brought him to the point that he would seek after the Lord? We find the answer a little later in the chapter. (2 Chron 34:14-21 And 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.15 And 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.16 And 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.17 And 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.18 Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan 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.20 And 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, inquire 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.) Josiah had a desire to follow the Word of God. I know the book of the Law was found after he set his heart to follow the Lord, but I also believe that God knows the heart of man and knew the heart of Josiah, knew that Josiah would want to obey the Word of God and that is why the book of the Law was found. It never would have been discovered if Josiah had not been rebuilding and cleaning up the Temple, if he had not purged the land and his own life of idols. His desire to follow the Bible turned the life of Josiah to the Lord and also to a life of blessings as we will see tomorrow. What is your desire today, what do you do with the Bible? Will you, are you willing to obey the Word of God? Josiah was and it shaped his life and the kingdom over which he ruled as well.