2 Kings 23 summary meaning ai explained commentary

2 Kings 23 meaning explained in AI Summary

This chapter details the sweeping religious reforms enacted by King Josiah of Judah and foreshadows the kingdom's impending fall.

Key Events:

Discovery of the Book of the Law (v. 1-3): While repairing the temple, Hilkiah the priest finds the Book of the Law (likely a form of Deuteronomy). Shaphan the scribe reads it to Josiah, who is deeply troubled by its contents, realizing how far the people have strayed from God.
Josiah's Covenant Renewal (v. 4-20): Josiah launches a passionate campaign to eradicate idolatry and re-establish Yahweh worship. He destroys pagan altars and idols in the temple, banishes idolatrous priests, and defiles pagan worship sites throughout Judah and even former Israelite territory. This includes tearing down the altar at Bethel, fulfilling a prophecy given centuries earlier.
Celebration of Passover (v. 21-23): Josiah reinstitutes the Passover celebration with unprecedented fervor and adherence to the Law.
Prophecy of Doom (v. 24-27): Despite Josiah's reforms, God's anger towards Judah remains due to the sins of Manasseh. The prophetess Huldah foretells the inevitable destruction of Jerusalem.
Josiah's Death (v. 28-30): Josiah dies in battle against Pharaoh Neco of Egypt at Megiddo. His death is mourned deeply by the people, marking the end of an era of righteous leadership.
Brief Reigns and Judah's Decline (v. 31-37): Josiah's sons, Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim, rule briefly but wickedly. Jehoiakim becomes a vassal to Egypt, marking the beginning of Judah's final decline towards Babylonian captivity.

Themes:

Repentance and Renewal: Josiah's actions highlight the importance of seeking God's will and repenting from sin.
The Power of God's Word: The discovery of the Law sparks a national revival and exposes the emptiness of idolatry.
Justice and Judgment: Despite Josiah's reforms, God's justice demands accountability for past sins, foreshadowing Judah's downfall.
The Consequences of Leadership: Josiah's righteous reign contrasts sharply with the wickedness of his successors, highlighting the impact of leadership on a nation's fate.

Overall, 2 Kings 23 is a pivotal chapter, showcasing both the hope of religious revival and the tragedy of impending judgment. It serves as a reminder of the importance of covenant faithfulness and the enduring consequences of both righteousness and sin.

2 Kings 23 bible study ai commentary

2 Kings 23 documents the most extensive and zealous religious reformation in Judah's history, led by King Josiah. Acting on the authority of the newly found "Book of the Covenant," Josiah launches a sweeping purge of all idolatrous practices, first in Jerusalem and Judah, then extending into the former northern kingdom. His reforms centralize worship at the Jerusalem Temple, culminating in a national Passover observance unprecedented in its faithfulness to the Law. The chapter gives Josiah the highest praise of any king. However, it pivots tragically, affirming that even his profound righteousness cannot revoke God's decreed judgment on Judah for the deep-seated sins of Manasseh. The chapter ends with Josiah's shocking death and the immediate succession of evil kings, marking the beginning of the nation's final, swift decline into exile.

2 Kings 23 context

This chapter is set in the late 7th century BC (c. 640-609 BC). The Neo-Assyrian Empire, which had dominated the region for centuries, was in rapid decline following the death of its last great king, Ashurbanipal. This power vacuum created a window of opportunity for Josiah to assert political and religious independence. He was able to not only reform his own kingdom of Judah but also extend his influence into the northern territories of the former kingdom of Israel, which had been an Assyrian province. This period also saw the rise of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the resurgence of Egypt under Pharaoh Necho II, setting the stage for the geopolitical clash that would lead to Josiah's death and Judah's demise.

2 Kings 23:1-3

Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him. And the king went up to the house of the Lord, and with him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the Lord. And the king stood by the pillar 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 all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.

In-depth-analysis

Public and Inclusive: The reform begins with a public ceremony involving every stratum of society: elders, priests, prophets, and "all the people, both small and great." This inclusivity underscores the national scope of the covenant renewal.
Royal Leadership: Josiah personally leads the ceremony, reading the Law and making a public pledge. This sets a top-down example, demonstrating that the king himself is subject to God's Law.
Stood by the Pillar: This act echoes the inauguration of King Joash (2 Kings 11:14), signifying a formal, royal commitment in a specific, recognized location within the Temple court.
Word Level: The phrase "with all his heart and all his soul" is a direct echo of the central command of Deuteronomy, the Shema (Deut 6:5). It signals a radical reorientation of personal and national loyalty to Yahweh alone.
People's Agreement: "And all the people joined in the covenant" (wayya‘amōd kāl-hā‘ām babbərît) literally means "all the people stood to the covenant." It implies an active acceptance and binding commitment, not passive observation.

Bible references

Deut 29:10-15: "You are standing today, all of you, before the LORD your God... that you may enter into the sworn covenant of the LORD your God..." (Direct parallel to a national covenant ceremony).
Exod 24:7: "Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, 'All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.'" (The original covenant ratification at Sinai).
Neh 8:1-3: "And all the people gathered as one man... And he read from it... from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women..." (Ezra's public reading of the Law after the exile, mirroring Josiah's).

Cross references

Josh 24:25 (Joshua's covenant renewal); 2 Chr 34:29-32 (parallel account); Deut 6:5 (the Shema).

2 Kings 23:4-14

And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest... to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven... And he deposed the idolatrous priests... He broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes... he defiled Topheth... he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun... And the high places that were before Jerusalem... which Solomon... had built... the king defiled.

In-depth-analysis

Systematic Purge: The reforms are executed in a systematic, geographically expanding order: from the Temple itself (v. 4), to Jerusalem and its surroundings (vv. 5-8, 10-14), to the wider territory of Judah.
Comprehensive Targets: The purge targets every form of paganism that had infiltrated Judah:
- Canaanite: Baal and Asherah (v. 4). The Asherah pole was likely a large, cultic wooden image.
- Mesopotamian/Assyrian: "The host of heaven" (stars and constellations), a key part of Assyrian state religion (v. 4-5).
- Syncretic Practices: High places (bamot) used for illegitimate Yahweh worship (v. 8), cult prostitution (qedesim) (v. 7), and child sacrifice to Molech (v. 10).
Defilement: Josiah doesn't just destroy these cultic sites; he "defiles" them, often with human bones (v. 14) or other unclean materials. This was a permanent desecration intended to render them ritually impure and psychologically repulsive, preventing their future use.
Centralization of Worship: By bringing the legitimate priests from the rural high places to Jerusalem (v. 8), Josiah enforces the Deuteronomic law that sacrifice is only permissible at the central sanctuary (Deut 12). However, these priests were not permitted to serve at the altar, indicating a tiered priesthood and the supreme status of the Jerusalem Zadokite line.

Bible references

Deut 12:2-3: "You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served their gods... You shall tear down their altars..." (The direct legal basis for Josiah's actions).
2 Kgs 21:3-7: "For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal and made an Asherah... And he built altars for all the host of heaven..." (Josiah is systematically reversing the apostasy of his grandfather Manasseh).
Lev 18:21: "You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech..." (The law forbidding the practice at Topheth).

Cross references

Deut 17:2-5 (punishment for worshiping other gods); 1 Kgs 11:7 (Solomon's initial high places); 1 Kgs 15:12 (Asa's reforms); Ezek 8:16 (sun worship in the Temple).

Polemics

Josiah's actions are a direct polemic against the state religions of the surrounding superpowers. Removing the "host of heaven" and the horses dedicated to the sun god (Shamash) was a declaration of independence from Assyrian/Babylonian cosmic deities, asserting that Yahweh alone controls the heavens. Destroying the altars for Chemosh (Moab) and Molech/Milcom (Ammon) was a rejection of the gods of Judah's immediate neighbors.

2 Kings 23:15-20

Moreover, the altar at Bethel, the high place erected by Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, that altar and the high place he broke down... He also took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar and defiled it, according to the word of the Lord that the man of God proclaimed, who had proclaimed these things. Then he said, “What is that monument that I see?” And the men of the city told him, “It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things that you have done against the altar of Bethel.”

In-depth-analysis

Prophecy Fulfilled: This is the dramatic climax of the reforms. Josiah's actions at Bethel—destroying the altar and defiling it with human bones—are the direct, verbatim fulfillment of a prophecy made by an unnamed "man of God" over 300 years earlier (1 Kings 13:2).
Reunification Theme: By extending his purge into Bethel, the heart of the former northern kingdom's apostate worship, Josiah symbolically reclaims the territory for Yahweh and re-unites the people of Israel and Judah under the Torah. This was only possible due to Assyrian decline.
Poetic Justice: He uses the bones of the dead pagan worshipers and priests to defile the very altar they served, a potent symbol of the deadness of their faith.
Respect for the True Prophet: In a striking contrast, he commands that the tomb of the prophet who foretold these events be left untouched. This act honors the true word of Yahweh, which has now been proven powerful and precise over centuries.

Bible references

1 Kgs 13:2: "And he cried against the altar... 'O altar, altar, thus says the LORD: "Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you."'" (The direct prophecy being fulfilled).
1 Kgs 12:28-33: "So the king... made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, '...Behold your gods, O Israel'... And he put one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan." (The original sin of Jeroboam that Josiah is now erasing).
Amos 3:14: "that on the day I punish Israel for his transgressions, I will punish the altars of Bethel, and the horns of the altar shall be cut off and fall to the ground." (Another prophecy against Bethel fulfilled by Josiah).

Cross references

2 Chr 34:6-7 (parallel account of reforms in the north).

2 Kings 23:21-23

And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.” For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah. But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem.

In-depth-analysis

Capstone of Reform: The Passover serves as the positive culmination of the negative purge. After cleansing the land, the nation is rededicated to Yahweh through this foundational act of worship.
"As it is written": The emphasis is on its fidelity to the Deuteronomic text, specifically the requirement for a centralized celebration in Jerusalem, which contrasted with the family-based observance of the original Passover.
Unprecedented Observance: The narrator claims this Passover surpassed any since the time of the Judges. This is hyperbolic praise, likely not meaning it hadn't been observed at all (see 2 Chron 30), but that none had been conducted with such nationwide participation and strict adherence to the newly recovered text, especially the centralization aspect.

Bible references

Deut 16:5-6: "You may not offer the Passover sacrifice within any of your towns... but at the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell in it..." (The Deuteronomic law requiring a central sanctuary for Passover).
2 Chr 35:1-19: (Provides a much more detailed account of this Passover, describing the immense organizational effort by the king, priests, and Levites).
Exod 12: (The original institution of the Passover in Egypt).
2 Chr 30:1: "Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah... that they should come to the house of the LORD at Jerusalem to keep the Passover" (An earlier, large-scale Passover, but Josiah's is framed as superior in faithfulness).

2 Kings 23:24-25

Moreover, Josiah put away the mediums and the necromancers and the household gods and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land... that he might establish the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found... Before him there was no king like him, who 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, nor did any like him arise after him.

In-depth-analysis

Final Sweep: This verse acts as a summary, mentioning the removal of folk religion practices (mediums, necromancers, household gods - teraphim) which demonstrates the reform's depth.
Ultimate Praise: The author gives Josiah the highest possible commendation. The language is an explicit and unique reference to the Shema from Deuteronomy 6:5 ("heart, soul, might"), marking Josiah as the ideal Deuteronomic king.
Absolute Standard: He is declared the greatest king, exceeding even David or Hezekiah in his specific zeal for "all the Law of Moses." This praise is absolute and unequivocal.

Bible references

Deut 6:5: "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might." (The standard by which Josiah is judged and found perfect).
Deut 18:10-11: "There shall not be found among you anyone who... practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens... or a necromancer." (The specific law Josiah is enforcing).
2 Kgs 18:5-6: "He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him." (Similar praise for Hezekiah, but Josiah's is specified as obedience to the Law of Moses with heart, soul, and might, making it distinct and arguably stronger from the Deuteronomist's perspective).

2 Kings 23:26-27

Still the Lord did not turn from the burning of his great wrath, which was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him. And the Lord said, “I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off this city that I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the house of which I said, ‘My name shall be there.’”

In-depth-analysis

The Tragic Turn: This is the theological pivot of the entire narrative of Josiah. Despite the king's perfect piety, it is "too little, too late."
Irrevocable Judgment: God's decree of judgment is irreversible. The "provocations of Manasseh" had so deeply corrupted the nation and shed so much innocent blood (2 Kings 21:16) that the consequences were now inescapable.
Corporate Guilt: This highlights the biblical concept of corporate and generational sin. The nation as a whole bears the consequence of its most wicked king, and even the most righteous successor cannot completely atone for it. The rot was too deep.
Word Level: The "great wrath" (meḥărôn ’appô haggādôl) is a powerful phrase indicating a settled, judicial anger that will not be assuaged until justice is done.

Bible references

2 Kgs 21:11-15: "...Manasseh king of Judah has done these abominations... therefore thus says the LORD... I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such a disaster..." (The original prophecy of doom that Josiah's reforms could not stop).
Jer 15:1, 4: "Then the LORD said to me, 'Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people.'... And I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh... did in Jerusalem." (Jeremiah's contemporary prophecy confirming the irrevocability of the judgment).
Num 14:18: "The LORD is slow to anger... but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children..." (The principle of generational consequences of sin).

2 Kings 23:28-30

...Now the rest of the acts of Josiah... are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? In his days Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah went to meet him, and Pharaoh Necho killed him at Megiddo, as soon as he saw him. And his servants carried him dead in a chariot from Megiddo and brought him to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb.

In-depth-analysis

Abrupt and Shocking End: The death of the righteous king is narrated with shocking brevity and lack of theological explanation. He simply goes to confront the Egyptian king and is killed.
Theological Crisis: This event posed a major theological problem. Why would God allow the most obedient king, who had a covenant of peace (2 Kings 22:20), to die a violent, premature death in battle? The author of Kings presents it starkly, perhaps to show that the divine decree of judgment (v. 26-27) overrides everything, even the life of the righteous king.
Megiddo: The location is significant. Megiddo was a strategic crossroads and the site of many famous battles. His death here would later become a symbol of great mourning (Zech 12:11).
Geopolitical Context: Pharaoh Necho II was marching north to aid the remnants of the Assyrian army against the rising Babylonians. Josiah's interception was likely an attempt to thwart Egypt's reassertion of power in the region, perhaps in allegiance with Babylon, but his motivations are not stated here.

Bible references

2 Chr 35:20-24: (This parallel account provides more detail, stating that Necho warned Josiah he was on God's mission, but Josiah disguised himself and went to battle anyway, leading to his death by archers. This adds a layer of human error to the tragedy).
Zech 12:11: "On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo." (Josiah's death becomes the ultimate example of national grief).
2 Kgs 22:20: "Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace..." (The seeming contradiction with Huldah's prophecy. "Peace" is interpreted by scholars as being spared from seeing the destruction of Jerusalem, rather than a peaceful death).

2 Kings 23:31-37

Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign... And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord... And Pharaoh Necho put him in bonds at Riblah... and laid on the land a tribute... And Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim... Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign... And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.

In-depth-analysis

Immediate Reversal: The spiritual decline after Josiah's death is immediate and complete. Both of his sons who succeed him are evil. This strongly suggests that Josiah's reforms, while thorough, had not produced a lasting change in the hearts of the people or the royal court.
Loss of Sovereignty: Judah's political situation deteriorates instantly. "The people of the land" chose Jehoahaz, but he reigned only three months before Pharaoh Necho deposed him, exiled him to Egypt (where he died), and installed his brother Eliakim as a puppet king.
Name Change: Necho changing Eliakim's name to Jehoiakim was a classic act of a suzerain asserting dominance over a vassal. It signaled that Jehoiakim ruled by Egypt's authority, not God's or the people's.
Economic Ruin: Judah is now forced to pay heavy tribute to Egypt, which Jehoiakim levies directly on the people, beginning the economic spiral that would plague its final years.

Bible references

2 Chr 36:1-5: (Parallel account of the reigns of Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim).
Jer 22:10-12: "Weep not for the dead [Josiah]... But weep bitterly for him who goes away [Jehoahaz], for he shall return no more to see his native land." (A direct prophecy about Jehoahaz's exile and death in Egypt).
Jer 36: (Shows Jehoiakim's utter contempt for God's word, as he burns Jeremiah's scroll, a stark contrast to his father Josiah's reaction to finding the Law).

2 Kings chapter 23 analysis

Fulfillment of Prophecy as a Literary Device: The explicit fulfillment of the 300-year-old prophecy from 1 Kings 13 is a key structural element. It validates the authority of prophecy and the sovereignty of God over history, framing Josiah as a long-awaited figure of destiny.
Reform: External vs. Internal: The chapter, read alongside the contemporary book of Jeremiah, presents a poignant tension. While Kings focuses on the unparalleled external actions of Josiah's reform, Jeremiah's ministry suggests it was largely superficial. The people's hearts did not fundamentally change (Jer 3:10: "Judah did not return to me with her whole heart, but in pretense"). The rapid return to idolatry after Josiah's death confirms this.
Theological Problem of Retribution: The chapter complicates a simple doctrine of retribution (the righteous prosper, the wicked suffer). Josiah, the most righteous king, dies violently and early. Manasseh, the most wicked king, reigned for 55 years. This forces the reader to consider deeper themes of national/corporate guilt, the unchangeable nature of God's judicial decrees, and a divine purpose that transcends individual circumstances.
Deuteronomistic History's Climax and Tragedy: For the author (the Deuteronomistic Historian), Josiah represents the pinnacle of what a king should be—a ruler whose entire reign is governed by the book of the Law. His story is both the climax of the history of Judah's monarchy and its greatest tragedy, as his perfection is ultimately insufficient to save the nation.

2 Kings 23 summary

King Josiah leads an exhaustive and zealous reformation based on the rediscovered Book of the Law. He cleanses Judah of all idols, centralizes worship in Jerusalem, fulfills a 300-year-old prophecy at Bethel, and holds a historically unparalleled Passover. Despite receiving the highest praise of any king, his piety cannot avert God's judgment for the sins of Manasseh. His shocking death at Megiddo is followed by the immediate installation of evil kings, triggering Judah's swift and final collapse into foreign subjugation and exile.

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2 Kings chapter 23 kjv

¹ And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem.
² And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the LORD.
³ And the king stood by a pillar, 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 their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.
⁴ And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel.
⁵ And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.
⁶ And he brought out the grove from the house of the LORD, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people.
⁷ And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove.
⁸ And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba, and brake down the high places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand at the gate of the city.
⁹ Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread among their brethren.
¹⁰ And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.
¹¹ And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
¹² And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.
¹³ And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile.
¹⁴ And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men.
¹⁵ Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the grove.
¹⁶ And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
¹⁷ Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel.
¹⁸ And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.
¹⁹ And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel.
²⁰ And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them, and returned to Jerusalem.
²¹ And the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the LORD your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant.
²² Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah;
²³ But in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, wherein this passover was holden to the LORD in Jerusalem.
²⁴ Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD.
²⁵ 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.
²⁶ Notwithstanding the LORD turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal.
²⁷ And the LORD said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.
²⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
²⁹ In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him.
³⁰ And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.
³¹ Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
³² And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.
³³ And Pharaohnechoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of an hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold.
³⁴ And Pharaohnechoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.
³⁵ And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh: he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaohnechoh.
³⁶ Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
³⁷ And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

2 Kings chapter 23 nkjv

¹ Now the king sent them to gather all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem to him.
² The king went up to the house of the LORD with all the men of Judah, and with him all the inhabitants of Jerusalem?the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant which had been found in the house of the LORD.
³ Then the king stood by a pillar and made a covenant before the LORD, to follow the LORD and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant.
⁴ And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to bring out of the temple of the LORD all the articles that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel.
⁵ Then he removed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, and those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven.
⁶ And he brought out the wooden image from the house of the LORD, to the Brook Kidron outside Jerusalem, burned it at the Brook Kidron and ground it to ashes, and threw its ashes on the graves of the common people.
⁷ Then he tore down the ritual booths of the perverted persons that were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the wooden image.
⁸ And he brought all the priests from the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba; also he broke down the high places at the gates which were at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were to the left of the city gate.
⁹ Nevertheless the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brethren.
¹⁰ And he defiled Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire to Molech.
¹¹ Then he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, at the entrance to the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathan-Melech, the officer who was in the court; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
¹² The altars that were on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, the king broke down and pulverized there, and threw their dust into the Brook Kidron.
¹³ Then the king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, which were on the south of the Mount of Corruption, which Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the people of Ammon.
¹⁴ And he broke in pieces the sacred pillars and cut down the wooden images, and filled their places with the bones of men.
¹⁵ Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the wooden image.
¹⁶ As Josiah turned, he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
¹⁷ Then he said, "What gravestone is this that I see?" So the men of the city told him, "It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel."
¹⁸ And he said, "Let him alone; let no one move his bones." So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria.
¹⁹ Now Josiah also took away all the shrines of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the LORD to anger; and he did to them according to all the deeds he had done in Bethel.
²⁰ He executed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned men's bones on them; and he returned to Jerusalem.
²¹ Then the king commanded all the people, saying, "Keep the Passover to the LORD your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant."
²² Such a Passover surely had never been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah.
²³ But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was held before the LORD in Jerusalem.
²⁴ Moreover Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD.
²⁵ Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to the LORD with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses; nor after him did any arise like him.
²⁶ Nevertheless the LORD did not turn from the fierceness of His great wrath, with which His anger was aroused against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked Him.
²⁷ And the LORD said, "I will also remove Judah from My sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, 'My name shall be there.' "
²⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
²⁹ In his days Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went to the aid of the king of Assyria, to the River Euphrates; and King Josiah went against him. And Pharaoh Necho killed him at Megiddo when he confronted him.
³⁰ Then his servants moved his body in a chariot from Megiddo, brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in his father's place.
³¹ Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
³² And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.
³³ Now Pharaoh Necho put him in prison at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and he imposed on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
³⁴ Then Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. And Pharaoh took Jehoahaz and went to Egypt, and he died there.
³⁵ So Jehoiakim gave the silver and gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give money according to the command of Pharaoh; he exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land, from every one according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Necho.
³⁶ Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
³⁷ And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

2 Kings chapter 23 niv

¹ Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
² He went up to the temple of the LORD with the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets?all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the LORD.
³ The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD?to follow the LORD and keep his commands, statutes and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.
⁴ The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel.
⁵ He did away with the idolatrous priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem?those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts.
⁶ He took the Asherah pole from the temple of the LORD to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem and burned it there. He ground it to powder and scattered the dust over the graves of the common people.
⁷ He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes that were in the temple of the LORD, the quarters where women did weaving for Asherah.
⁸ Josiah brought all the priests from the towns of Judah and desecrated the high places, from Geba to Beersheba, where the priests had burned incense. He broke down the gateway at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua, the city governor, which was on the left of the city gate.
⁹ Although the priests of the high places did not serve at the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, they ate unleavened bread with their fellow priests.
¹⁰ He desecrated Topheth, which was in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could use it to sacrifice their son or daughter in the fire to Molek.
¹¹ He removed from the entrance to the temple of the LORD the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court near the room of an official named Nathan-Melek. Josiah then burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.
¹² He pulled down the altars the kings of Judah had erected on the roof near the upper room of Ahaz, and the altars Manasseh had built in the two courts of the temple of the LORD. He removed them from there, smashed them to pieces and threw the rubble into the Kidron Valley.
¹³ The king also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the Hill of Corruption?the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the people of Ammon.
¹⁴ Josiah smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles and covered the sites with human bones.
¹⁵ Even the altar at Bethel, the high place made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin?even that altar and high place he demolished. He burned the high place and ground it to powder, and burned the Asherah pole also.
¹⁶ Then Josiah looked around, and when he saw the tombs that were there on the hillside, he had the bones removed from them and burned on the altar to defile it, in accordance with the word of the LORD proclaimed by the man of God who foretold these things.
¹⁷ The king asked, "What is that tombstone I see?" The people of the city said, "It marks the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced against the altar of Bethel the very things you have done to it."
¹⁸ "Leave it alone," he said. "Don't let anyone disturb his bones." So they spared his bones and those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.
¹⁹ Just as he had done at Bethel, Josiah removed all the shrines at the high places that the kings of Israel had built in the towns of Samaria and that had aroused the LORD's anger.
²⁰ Josiah slaughtered all the priests of those high places on the altars and burned human bones on them. Then he went back to Jerusalem.
²¹ The king gave this order to all the people: "Celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant."
²² Neither in the days of the judges who led Israel nor in the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah had any such Passover been observed.
²³ But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was celebrated to the LORD in Jerusalem.
²⁴ Furthermore, Josiah got rid of the mediums and spiritists, the household gods, the idols and all the other detestable things seen in Judah and Jerusalem. This he did to fulfill the requirements of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had discovered in the temple of the LORD.
²⁵ Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did?with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.
²⁶ Nevertheless, the LORD did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to arouse his anger.
²⁷ So the LORD said, "I will remove Judah also from my presence as I removed Israel, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and this temple, about which I said, 'My Name shall be there.'"
²⁸ As for the other events of Josiah's reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?
²⁹ While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo.
³⁰ Josiah's servants brought his body in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and anointed him and made him king in place of his father.
³¹ Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.
³² He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, just as his predecessors had done.
³³ Pharaoh Necho put him in chains at Riblah in the land of Hamath so that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and he imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
³⁴ Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah and changed Eliakim's name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz and carried him off to Egypt, and there he died.
³⁵ Jehoiakim paid Pharaoh Necho the silver and gold he demanded. In order to do so, he taxed the land and exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land according to their assessments.
³⁶ Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother's name was Zebidah daughter of Pedaiah; she was from Rumah.
³⁷ And he did evil in the eyes of the LORD, just as his predecessors had done.

2 Kings chapter 23 esv

¹ Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him.
² And the king went up to the house of the LORD, and with him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the prophets, all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.
³ And the king stood by the pillar 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 all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.
⁴ And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the second order and the keepers of the threshold to bring out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel.
⁵ And he deposed the priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to make offerings in the high places at the cities of Judah and around Jerusalem; those also who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and the moon and the constellations and all the host of the heavens.
⁶ And he brought out the Asherah from the house of the LORD, outside Jerusalem, to the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron and beat it to dust and cast the dust of it upon the graves of the common people.
⁷ And he broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes who were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the Asherah.
⁸ And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings, from Geba to Beersheba. And he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on one's left at the gate of the city.
⁹ However, the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brothers.
¹⁰ And he defiled Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, that no one might burn his son or his daughter as an offering to Molech.
¹¹ And he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, at the entrance to the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathan-melech the chamberlain, which was in the precincts. And he burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
¹² And the altars on the roof of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars that Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, he pulled down and broke in pieces and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.
¹³ And the king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, to the south of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
¹⁴ And he broke in pieces the pillars and cut down the Asherim and filled their places with the bones of men.
¹⁵ Moreover, the altar at Bethel, the high place erected by Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, that altar with the high place he pulled down and burned, reducing it to dust. He also burned the Asherah.
¹⁶ And as Josiah turned, he saw the tombs there on the mount. And he sent and took the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar and defiled it, according to the word of the LORD that the man of God proclaimed, who had predicted these things.
¹⁷ Then he said, "What is that monument that I see?" And the men of the city told him, "It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted these things that you have done against the altar at Bethel."
¹⁸ And he said, "Let him be; let no man move his bones." So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came out of Samaria.
¹⁹ And Josiah removed all the shrines also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which kings of Israel had made, provoking the LORD to anger. He did to them according to all that he had done at Bethel.
²⁰ And he sacrificed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
²¹ And the king commanded all the people, "Keep the Passover to the LORD your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant."
²² For no such Passover had been kept since the days of the judges who judged Israel, or during all the days of the kings of Israel or of the kings of Judah.
²³ But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the LORD in Jerusalem.
²⁴ Moreover, Josiah put away the mediums and the necromancers and the household gods and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might establish the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD.
²⁵ Before him there was no king like him, who 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, nor did any like him arise after him.
²⁶ Still the LORD did not turn from the burning of his great wrath, by which his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him.
²⁷ And the LORD said, "I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off this city that I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there."
²⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
²⁹ In his days Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt went up to the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah went to meet him, and Pharaoh Neco killed him at Megiddo, as soon as he saw him.
³⁰ And his servants carried him dead in a chariot from Megiddo and brought him to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's place.
³¹ Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
³² And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.
³³ And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
³⁴ And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there.
³⁵ And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco.
³⁶ Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
³⁷ And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

2 Kings chapter 23 nlt

¹ Then the king summoned all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
² And the king went up to the Temple of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, along with the priests and the prophets ? all the people from the least to the greatest. There the king read to them the entire Book of the Covenant that had been found in the LORD's Temple.
³ The king took his place of authority beside the pillar and renewed the covenant in the LORD's presence. He pledged to obey the LORD by keeping all his commands, laws, and decrees with all his heart and soul. In this way, he confirmed all the terms of the covenant that were written in the scroll, and all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.
⁴ Then the king instructed Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the second rank and the Temple gatekeepers to remove from the LORD's Temple all the articles that were used to worship Baal, Asherah, and all the powers of the heavens. The king had all these things burned outside Jerusalem on the terraces of the Kidron Valley, and he carried the ashes away to Bethel.
⁵ He did away with the idolatrous priests, who had been appointed by the previous kings of Judah, for they had offered sacrifices at the pagan shrines throughout Judah and even in the vicinity of Jerusalem. They had also offered sacrifices to Baal, and to the sun, the moon, the constellations, and to all the powers of the heavens.
⁶ The king removed the Asherah pole from the LORD's Temple and took it outside Jerusalem to the Kidron Valley, where he burned it. Then he ground the ashes of the pole to dust and threw the dust over the graves of the people.
⁷ He also tore down the living quarters of the male and female shrine prostitutes that were inside the Temple of the LORD, where the women wove coverings for the Asherah pole.
⁸ Josiah brought to Jerusalem all the priests who were living in other towns of Judah. He also defiled the pagan shrines, where they had offered sacrifices ? all the way from Geba to Beersheba. He destroyed the shrines at the entrance to the gate of Joshua, the governor of Jerusalem. This gate was located to the left of the city gate as one enters the city.
⁹ The priests who had served at the pagan shrines were not allowed to serve at the LORD's altar in Jerusalem, but they were allowed to eat unleavened bread with the other priests.
¹⁰ Then the king defiled the altar of Topheth in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, so no one could ever again use it to sacrifice a son or daughter in the fire as an offering to Molech.
¹¹ He removed from the entrance of the LORD's Temple the horse statues that the former kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were near the quarters of Nathan-melech the eunuch, an officer of the court. The king also burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.
¹² Josiah tore down the altars that the kings of Judah had built on the palace roof above the upper room of Ahaz. The king destroyed the altars that Manasseh had built in the two courtyards of the LORD's Temple. He smashed them to bits and scattered the pieces in the Kidron Valley.
¹³ The king also desecrated the pagan shrines east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Corruption, where King Solomon of Israel had built shrines for Ashtoreth, the detestable goddess of the Sidonians; and for Chemosh, the detestable god of the Moabites; and for Molech, the vile god of the Ammonites.
¹⁴ He smashed the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles. Then he desecrated these places by scattering human bones over them.
¹⁵ The king also tore down the altar at Bethel ? the pagan shrine that Jeroboam son of Nebat had made when he caused Israel to sin. He burned down the shrine and ground it to dust, and he burned the Asherah pole.
¹⁶ Then Josiah turned around and noticed several tombs in the side of the hill. He ordered that the bones be brought out, and he burned them on the altar at Bethel to desecrate it. (This happened just as the LORD had promised through the man of God when Jeroboam stood beside the altar at the festival.) Then Josiah turned and looked up at the tomb of the man of God who had predicted these things.
¹⁷ "What is that monument over there?" Josiah asked. And the people of the town told him, "It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted the very things that you have just done to the altar at Bethel!"
¹⁸ Josiah replied, "Leave it alone. Don't disturb his bones." So they did not burn his bones or those of the old prophet from Samaria.
¹⁹ Then Josiah demolished all the buildings at the pagan shrines in the towns of Samaria, just as he had done at Bethel. They had been built by the various kings of Israel and had made the LORD very angry.
²⁰ He executed the priests of the pagan shrines on their own altars, and he burned human bones on the altars to desecrate them. Finally, he returned to Jerusalem.
²¹ King Josiah then issued this order to all the people: "You must celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, as required in this Book of the Covenant."
²² There had not been a Passover celebration like that since the time when the judges ruled in Israel, nor throughout all the years of the kings of Israel and Judah.
²³ But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah's reign, this Passover was celebrated to the LORD in Jerusalem.
²⁴ Josiah also got rid of the mediums and psychics, the household gods, the idols, and every other kind of detestable practice, both in Jerusalem and throughout the land of Judah. He did this in obedience to the laws written in the scroll that Hilkiah the priest had found in the LORD's Temple.
²⁵ Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the LORD with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since.
²⁶ Even so, the LORD was very angry with Judah because of all the wicked things Manasseh had done to provoke him.
²⁷ For the LORD said, "I will also banish Judah from my presence just as I have banished Israel. And I will reject my chosen city of Jerusalem and the Temple where my name was to be honored."
²⁸ The rest of the events in Josiah's reign and all his deeds are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.
²⁹ While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, went to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah and his army marched out to fight him, but King Neco killed him when they met at Megiddo.
³⁰ Josiah's officers took his body back in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. Then the people of the land anointed Josiah's son Jehoahaz and made him the next king.
³¹ Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.
³² He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, just as his ancestors had done.
³³ Pharaoh Neco put Jehoahaz in prison at Riblah in the land of Hamath to prevent him from ruling in Jerusalem. He also demanded that Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold as tribute.
³⁴ Pharaoh Neco then installed Eliakim, another of Josiah's sons, to reign in place of his father, and he changed Eliakim's name to Jehoiakim. Jehoahaz was taken to Egypt as a prisoner, where he died.
³⁵ In order to get the silver and gold demanded as tribute by Pharaoh Neco, Jehoiakim collected a tax from the people of Judah, requiring them to pay in proportion to their wealth.
³⁶ Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah from Rumah.
³⁷ He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, just as his ancestors had done.