2 Chronicles 35:1-27
1 Moreover Josiah kept a passover unto the LORD in Jerusalem: and they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.
2 And he set the priests in their charges, and encouraged them to the service of the house of the LORD,
3 And said unto the Levites that taught all Israel, which were holy unto the LORD, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build; it shall not be a burden upon your shoulders: serve now the LORD your God, and his people Israel,
4 And prepare yourselves by the houses of your fathers, after your courses, according to the writing of David king of Israel, and according to the writing of Solomon his son.
5 And stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the families of the fathers of your brethren the people, and after the division of the families of the Levites.
6 So kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.
7 And Josiah gavea to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passover offerings, for all that were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bullocks: these were of the king's substance.
8 And his princes gave willinglyb unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen.
9 Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gavec unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.
10 So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the king's commandment.
11 And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them.
12 And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they with the oxen.
13 And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance: but the other holy offerings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them speedilyd among all the people.
14 And afterward they made ready for themselves, and for the priests: because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared for themselves, and for the priests the sons of Aaron.
15 And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place,e according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's seer; and the porters waited at every gate; they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them.
16 So all the service of the LORD was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the LORD, according to the commandment of king Josiah.
17 And the children of Israel that were presentf kept the passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
18 And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present,g and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
19 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this passover kept.
20 After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple,h Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Carchemish by Euphrates: and Josiah went out against him.
21 But he sent ambassadors to him, saying, What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not against thee this day, but against the housei wherewith I have war: for God commanded me to make haste: forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroy thee not.
22 Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself, that he might fight with him, and hearkened not unto the words of Necho from the mouth of God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.
23 And the archers shot at king Josiah; and the king said to his servants, Have me away; for I am sore wounded.j
24 His servants therefore took him out of that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had; and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
25 And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.
26 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his goodness,k according to that which was written in the law of the LORD,
27 And his deeds, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
AN EXCEPTIONAL PASSOVER
(vv.1-19)
So near to the end of the history of the kings of Israel it is beautiful to see a Passover being kept, of which we are told, "There had been no Passover kept in Israel like that since the days of Samuel the prophet, and none of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as Josiah kept, with the priests and the Levites, all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem" (v.18). Does this not tell US that it is possible, even in our own day of the ruin and failure of the Church publicly, to give some true honour to the name of the Lord Jesus such as will delight the heart of God? For the Passover speaks of the thankful worship of the Lord Jesus as the One who sacrificed Himself for us on the cross of Calvary. While the people may fail miserably, yet He remains faithful and true.
Hezekiah had kept a remarkable Passover (ch.30), but it was one month later than the prescribed time, though none like it had been kept since the days of Solomon (ch.30:36). However, there had been no Passover like Josiah's since before any king had ever reigned. Josiah made sure that all the details of order were observed in this Passover. Today this would remind us that for centuries the simple service of breaking of bread in remembrance of the Lord Jesus was ignored, and as we near His coming He would surely desire us to give Him honour in this simple way.
The Passover that Josiah kept was the most correct in all its details of any that were kept in the time of the Kings, because Josiah was careful to see that it corresponded to the Word of God. Josiah was the last of the kings in Israel or Judah who truly honoured God, and this should be an encouragement for believers today to get back to the truth of scripture at a time when God's rights have been cast aside by the professing church. The following outline will be helpful in our studying this passage:
1. The Time (v.1) ¾ that which scripture had prescribed.
2. The Centre (v.3) ¾ The Ark, typical of Christ, to whom the people were to gather.
3. The Preparation (v.4) ¾ Every house finding its place according to the instructions of David and Solomon.
4. The Order (v.5) ¾ Priests and Levites standing in their place to kill the Passover according to the Word of the Lord by Moses.
5. The Provision (vv.7-9) ¾ Josiah, the princes and chief of the Levites willingly giving to the people the necessary offerings for the Passover
6. The Death (v.11) ¾ The Passover killed, the blood sprinkled, with burnt offerings accompanying the sacrifice.
7. The Roasting (v.13) ¾ Speaking of the severe judgment of the Lord Jesus, exposed directly to the flame of God's wrath.
8. The Singing (v.15) ¾ Speaking of the unspeakable joy resulting from the value of Christ's sacrifice.
9. The Guarding (v.15) ¾ Porters (or gatekeepers) were necessary at every gate, allowing in what should be in and keeping out all that should be out.
Thus, the Passover was kept on the 14th day of the first month, with the, priests set in their proper places and encouraged to serve the Lord. The Levites were told to put the ark of the covenant in the temple Solomon had built, for this was the gathering centre of Israel (v.3), just as Christ is the gathering centre for the Church of God. "For where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20).
The Levites were told also to prepare themselves by the houses of their fathers (v.4). Their fathers were Kohath, Gershon and Merari, whose distinct services are recorded inNumbers 4:2; Numbers 4:24; Numbers 4:42. Thus, having prepared themselves, they were to "stand in the holy place according to the divisions of their families" (v.5), maintaining an order according to God when they killed the Passover according to God's word by Moses (v.6).
Before the actual killing of the Passover, however, the provision for it is seen in verses 7-10. Josiah's gift for this far outnumbered the gifts of the princes and of the chief of the Levites. For the king, is typical of the Lord Jesus whose giving far exceeds the willing-heartedness of the most devoted servants. Josiah gave 30,000 lambs and kids and 3,000 bulls (v.7). The rulers gave 2,600 small animals (sheep, etc.) and 300 oxen (v.8). The chief of the Levites gave 5,000 small animals and 500 oxen. This was more than the rulers gave, but only one-sixth of Josiah's gift.
Verse 12 records the killing of the Passover, the priests sprinkling the blood and the Levites skinning the animals. The burnt offerings were however removed from the Passover sacrifice, which was a peace offering of which the offerers were to share. But the burnt offerings were evidently gifts given to the people to offer ¾ not to eat, but to offer all in fire to the Lord, signifying the glory that God receives from the value of the sacrifice of Christ.
After being killed, the Passover offering was roasted as prescribed inExodus 12:8. Other offerings were made at the same time, some boiled in pots or cauldrons, some baked in pans, those too being peace offerings (seeLeviticus 7:11). These were divided among the people, which shows they were peace offerings.
The Levites afterward prepared portions for themselves and for the priests, all of whom had been unselfishly occupied with caring for the people (v.14). How lovely an example for the Church of God! Those prominent are to remember they are servants to the need of others, not masters who demand first consideration.
The singers are seen in their place, for the occasion was one of real joy in praising the Lord (v.15). The death of the animals is of course symbolic of the death of the Lord Jesus, and this surely affects believers with deep sorrow, yet the results of that matchless death are so great and marvellous that we should be filled with unspeakable joy in the very face of the greatest sorrow. Is this not true when we remember the Lord in the breaking of bread?
Thus, at this late date in the history of the Kings, the Lord moved His servant to keep the Passover in its prescribed order, and the seven days' Feast of Unleavened Bread. This took place in the 18th year of his reign (v.19), his age only 26 at the time. Who could despise his youth?
JOSIAH'S UNTIMELY DEATH
(vv.20-27)
"After all this" ¾ after Josiah's faithful devotion to the Lord in banishing idolatry out of Judah, and after his keeping so outstanding a Passover to the Lord, ¾ this favoured king made a serious blunder in not consulting the Lord before going out to war. The king of Egypt came to the Euphrates River to engage Carchemish (a Hittite king) in battle, and Josiah intervened to fight against Egypt (v.20). Why he did this we are not told. Could it have been that since be had been preserved by God from harm in warfare that he thought he could settle the disputes of others by the force of arms? In this case the king of Egypt was wiser than Josiah, telling him that he was meddling with God whom the king of Egypt considered was on his side (v.21).
Surely Josiah ought to have considered this advice and to have at least sought God's guidance himself before proceeding any farther. But he had committed himself, and refused to change. In fact, he disguised himself (always a bad act for any believer), and like Ahab, who disguised himself to go to battle (2 Chronicles 18:29). he suffered similar consequences, though he was a believer, as Ahab was not.
Verse 22 tells us that Josiah "did not heed the words of Necho from the mouth of God." God may speak to believers through any agency, and we should be awake to discern whether it may be God speaking even through an unbeliever. At least, Necho's words ought to have made Josiah pause to consider that he ought to consider God's will in this matter.
Josiah received no benefit from his going into battle. We are not even told whether others were killed in the battle, but only that Josiah was wounded by an arrow and ordered his servants to take him away (v.23). He was taken by his second chariot to Jerusalem, and died, then was buried in one of the graves of the kings. How unspeakably sad was this unnecessary death of a king who been so faithful to the Lord for the years before!
Jeremiah and all the people were deeply affected by Josiah's death and lamented greatly. Well they might, for his reign had been like a shining light in the midst of Israel's darkness, which darkness descended again rapidly after his death. In fact, the lamentations of the singing men and women became a regular memorial of Josiah (v.25).
Verse 26 tells us that the rest of Josiah's acts and his goodness in observing the law of the Lord are matters recorded in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.