Read 2 Kings 23 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
The Hebrew paragraphs:
22:3-23:30 {p} The acts of Josiah: the Temple restored, the Law found, the land cleansed idolatry, the Passover celebrated
23:31-35 [s} Jehoahaz son of Josiah king, but removed by Pharaoh who made Jehoiakim son of Josiah king
23:36-24:7 {p} …
2 Kin 22:3-23:30 Chiastic structure:
The two central axes of the A.2 substructures—Huldah’s prophecy in 2 Kin 22:15–20a and YHVH’s wrath in 23:26–27—also pair thematically. For hundreds of years, from the days of King Solomon up through the reign of Josiah, Judah had a divided heart toward YHVH, sometimes serving Him, and sometimes forsaking Him for other gods. Out of seventeen kings from Solomon through Josiah, eight doing what was right in the eyes of YHVH, and nine doing what was evil in the eyes of YHVH, or roughly over the course of four centuries, Judah’s divided heart persisted, as YHVH called them to repent again and again. But finally a tipping point had been reached, which even the complete eradication of idolatry under Josiah could not reverse.
The takeaway: YHVH is longsuffering, patiently enduring lasting offense (Webster’s) but not forever. And why not? Patience had not purged the divided heart from Judah. Patience is always the first (and second, and third) recourse, but at some point consequences must follow. A wise man learns from patient rebuke and instruction and changes his course. But a foolish man (or nation in this case) can only learn by consequences, as they demonstrate by repeatedly returning to their folly. I always told my children growing up, “Learn by instruction, and not by consequences. Because you will learn, one way or another, but learning by consequences is so much harder, so save yourself future grief.”
Judah’s hard lesson in consequences, by the way, worked. When Judah returned from captivity, idolatry was so abhorrent to them that they would rather face exile than compromise with Greek and Roman insults to their monotheism.
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