Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Chronicles 34-36.

Josiah took the throne at eight years of age.  At sixteen he began to seek God.  As I read that, he didn’t really know what he should do, but he sought to understand what God wanted him to do, and did it.  At twenty he began to destroy the places of worship for idols in Judah.  At twenty-six he began to have the temple cleaned, repaired, and purified.  While the priests and Levites were cleaning the temple they found a copy of the book of the Law, which was then read to Josiah.  In a way, we see Josiah gaining a progressively better understanding of what it meant to serve God, until, finally, God revealed Himself to him.

But what I want to really focus on is that when the book of the Law was read to Josiah, he realized just how badly the people of Israel had angered God, and the terrible judgement which they were due.  In response to that understanding Josiah tore his clothes and mourned.  Then he sent messengers to inquire of God of what they should do.  The prophetess told Josiah’s messengers that he was correct that it was too late to avoid God’s judgement upon the people of Judah, but that because Josiah had humbled himself and wept before God, he, Josiah, would not see God’s judgement fall.  Josiah sought with all that was within him to serve God, and led the people to do likewise.  As a result, God chose to delay the judgement which their sin had brought upon them.  This should serve as a message of hope for those of us who serve God today.  Let us serve God with all that is in us and perhaps God will likewise delay the judgement which the sins of humanity are bringing upon the Earth.  Let us strive, as Josiah did, to serve God to the best of our understanding, and seek to improve that understanding.  Hopefully by doing so we will lead others to serve God.  Perhaps if we do so with all that we have, God will delay His judgement until we have gone.  And, here is my true hope, perhaps if we serve God with all that we have, we will inspire the next generation to do likewise, and God will decide to delay His judgement until they have gone from this Earth, and then perhaps the generation after that will follow their example.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.