2 Kings 22 explained: A Lost Book Turns Up

A boy king who chose well (vv. 1-2)

Josiah took the throne at eight after a father and grandfather the book judges harshly, yet he is ranked with David, the standard for a faithful king. Not turning to the right or the left means he stayed steady and did not drift.

Paying for temple repairs (vv. 3-7)

Money the people gave at the temple doors went straight to carpenters, builders and stonemasons. The supervisors were trusted so fully that no one checked their accounts, a rare note of honesty in the story.

The book is found (vv. 8-10)

During the work the high priest found the Book of the Law, and the royal secretary read it aloud to the king. Many scholars think it was some form of Deuteronomy, though whether it was an old scroll long lost or one shaped more recently is debated.

The king's alarm (vv. 11-13)

Tearing one's clothes was a public sign of grief and shock. Josiah saw that the nation had long ignored this book and feared its warnings would fall on them, so he sent leading officials to ask God about it.

Huldah's warning for Judah (vv. 14-17)

The officials went to Huldah, a respected prophet living in a newer district of Jerusalem, and she did not soften the message. Because the people had turned to other gods and idols, disaster would come on the city and would not be stopped.

A personal word for Josiah (vv. 18-20)

Because the king listened, humbled himself and wept, God says he will be spared from seeing the coming ruin. Josiah later dies in battle (2 Kings 23), so being buried in peace is usually taken to mean he would die before Jerusalem fell, not that his death would be calm.

Key verse: 2 Kings 22:19

Where Christians differ

Christians are divided along the same line as wider scholarship: many traditional readers hold the found book was an ancient book of Moses that had been lost, while many critical scholars, Christian, Jewish and secular alike, think it was an early form of Deuteronomy written or reshaped closer to Josiah's time.

Something to think about

Have you ever come across something old, like a letter, a promise or a rule, that made you see your present life very differently, and what did you do with that?