King Josiah, after the discovery of the Book of the Covenant, leads Judah in a national covenant renewal with the LORD. He then initiates a sweeping religious reformation, systematically purging idolatry, high places, and abominable practices throughout Judah and even into the former kingdom of Israel. This extensive purification culminates in an unprecedented Passover celebration. Despite Josiah's unparalleled devotion, the LORD's fierce wrath against Judah remains due to Manasseh's sins, and Josiah's reign ends tragically in battle, followed by the wicked reigns of his sons.
And he went up to the house of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as well as the priests and the prophets—all the people small and great—and in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.
So the king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the LORD to follow the LORD and to keep His commandments, decrees, and statutes with all his heart and all his soul, and to carry out the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people entered into the covenant.
Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests second in rank, and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal, Asherah, and all the host of heaven. And he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel.
Josiah also did away with the idolatrous priests ordained by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem—those who had burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven.
He brought the Asherah pole from the house of the LORD to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem, and there he burned it, ground it to powder, and threw its dust on the graves of the common people.
Then Josiah brought all the priests from the cities of Judah and desecrated the high places, from Geba to Beersheba, where the priests had burned incense. He tore down the high places of the gates at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which was to the left of the city gate.
And he removed from the entrance to the house of the LORD the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court near the chamber of an official named Nathan-melech. And Josiah burned up the chariots of the sun.
He pulled down the altars that the kings of Judah had set up on the roof near the upper chamber of Ahaz, and the altars that Manasseh had set up in the two courtyards of the house of the LORD. The king pulverized them there and threw their dust into the Kidron Valley.
The king also desecrated the high places east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Corruption, which King Solomon 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 Ammonites.
He even pulled down the altar at Bethel, the high place set up by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin. Then he burned the high place, ground it to powder, and burned the Asherah pole.
And as Josiah turned, he saw the tombs there on the hillside, and he sent someone to take the bones out of the tombs, and he burned them on the altar to defile it, according to the word of the LORD proclaimed by the man of God who had foretold these things.
Then the king asked, “What is this monument I see?” And the men of the city replied, “It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced these things that you have done to the altar of Bethel.”
“Let him rest,” said Josiah. “Do not let anyone disturb his bones.” So they left his bones undisturbed, along with those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.
Just as Josiah had done at Bethel, so also in the cities of Samaria he removed all the shrines of the high places set up by the kings of Israel who had provoked the LORD to anger.
Furthermore, Josiah removed the mediums and spiritists, the household gods and idols, and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem. He did this to carry out the words of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had found in the house of the LORD.
Neither before nor after Josiah was there any king like him, who turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, according to all the Law of Moses.
Nevertheless, the LORD did not turn away from the fury of His burning anger, which was kindled against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to provoke Him to anger.
For the LORD had said, “I will remove Judah from My sight, just as I removed Israel. I will reject this city Jerusalem, which I chose, and the temple of which I said, ‘My Name shall be there.’”
At the end of Josiah’s reign, Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt marched up to help the king of Assyria at the Euphrates River. King Josiah went out to confront him, but Neco faced him and killed him at Megiddo.
From Megiddo his servants carried his body in a chariot, brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in place of his father.
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.
And Pharaoh Neco imprisoned Jehoahaz at Riblah in the land of Hamath so that he could not reign in Jerusalem, and he imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
Then Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, and he changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Jehoahaz and carried him off to Egypt, where he died.
So Jehoiakim paid the silver and gold to Pharaoh Neco, but to meet Pharaoh’s demand he taxed the land and exacted the silver and the gold from the people, each according to his wealth.
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.
And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as his fathers had done.
Study Notes for 2 Kings 23
Verse 2
Reading the book of the covenant publicly validates the reform effort and emphasizes the authority of the rediscovered Law (likely Deuteronomy) as the foundation for national life.
Verse 3
The public renewal of the covenant (a Deuteronomic requirement) shows Josiah's commitment and binds the entire nation to the Law, reversing the apostasy of previous reigns.
Verse 4
The vessels used for pagan worship were destroyed outside the city, and the ashes were taken to Bethel, symbolically defiling the primary cult center established by Jeroboam (1 Kings 12).
Verse 5
The 'idolatrous priests' were likely non-Levitical priests (kĕmārîm) ordained by previous kings to serve pagan deities, including the pervasive astral cults ('all the host of heaven').
Verse 7
The 'sodomites' (Hebrew: qadesh) refers to male cult prostitutes associated with Canaanite fertility rites, indicating the depth of pagan corruption even within the temple complex.
Verse 8
'From Geba to Beersheba' is a classic phrase defining the geographical extent of Judah, confirming that Josiah purified the entire territory under his control.
Verse 9
These priests were disqualified from serving at the central Jerusalem altar because they had served at high places, but they were not completely defrocked; they were permitted to eat community provisions (unleavened bread).
Verse 10
Topheth, located in the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna), was the site of child sacrifice to the god Molech. Defiling this site was critical, as this ritual represented the height of moral depravity.
Verse 11
This verse reveals the extent of syncretism: even horses and chariots were dedicated to the sun god, a practice common in Mesopotamian and Egyptian religion.
Verse 13
These high places, built by Solomon centuries earlier for his foreign wives (1 Kings 11:7), had persisted through all previous reform efforts, illustrating the tenacity of foreign cults.
Verse 15
Josiah extended his reform into the territory of the former Northern Kingdom (Israel), which was by this time under Assyrian control, demonstrating his zeal and political influence.
Verse 16
Burning human bones upon the altar ritually defiled the site beyond redemption, ensuring it could never be used for worship again. This action fulfills the prophecy made in 1 Kings 13:2.
Verse 17
The preservation of the bones of the prophet from Judah confirms the accuracy and longevity of the divine word spoken centuries earlier against Jeroboam's altar.
Verse 20
Slaying the idolatrous priests of the high places was a severe act of judgment, mirroring the actions of Elijah (1 Kings 18:40) and confirming the Deuteronomic demand for the execution of those who lead Israel astray.
Verse 22
The emphasis on the unparalleled nature of this Passover highlights the thoroughness of Josiah's reform, which successfully centralized worship in Jerusalem as demanded by the covenant Law.
Verse 24
Josiah’s removal of all magical and occult practices was a final effort to make the nation conform precisely to the Law found in the rediscovered book.
Verse 25
This verse provides the definitive Deuteronomic evaluation of Josiah: he was the most righteous king, turning to God with total devotion. His piety sets the standard for all subsequent kings.
Verse 26
God’s refusal to turn back confirms the doctrine of corporate responsibility; Manasseh's deep, institutionalized evil was so pervasive that even Josiah’s righteousness could not avert the decreed judgment.
Verse 27
The coming destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple is inevitable. The Lord treats Judah exactly as he had treated Israel (the Northern Kingdom), demonstrating impartiality in judgment.
Verse 29
Pharaoh Neco II was marching to aid the collapsing Assyrian Empire against the rising Babylonians. Josiah opposed him, likely attempting to prevent Egyptian dominance over Judah, a fateful political error.
Verse 30
Josiah’s death marks the end of Judah’s independence and the beginning of its final decline under the influence of foreign powers.
Verse 31
Jehoahaz (also called Shallum in Jeremiah 22:11) reigned only three months, indicating the rapidly deteriorating political stability of the kingdom.
Verse 33
Pharaoh Neco deposed Jehoahaz and imposed a heavy tribute, confirming Judah’s status as an Egyptian vassal state subject to foreign political control.
Verse 34
The renaming of Eliakim to Jehoiakim by Pharaoh Neco was a powerful symbolic act asserting Egyptian sovereignty and control over the Judean throne.
Verse 36
Jehoiakim was a puppet king installed by Egypt. His reign was characterized by political submission to foreign powers and internal wickedness (cf. Jeremiah 22:13-19).
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