He was struck by 300 darts; he made no complaint except to acknowledge "The Lord is righteous, for I rebelled against His commandment.[45]. His mother was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. [24] That is, historical-critical biblical scholars generally believe that the "Book of the Law"—an early predecessor of the Torah—was invented by Josiah's priests, who were driven by ideological interests to centralize power under Josiah in the Temple in Jerusalem. Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem [34] Although Josiah went to war with Egypt against the prophet's advice, Jeremiah knew that this was an error by the otherwise pious king;[35] and later he bitterly laments the king's death: the fourth chapter of Lamentations beginning with a dirge on Josiah. The instruments and emblems of the worship of Baal and "the host of heaven" were removed from the Jerusalem Temple. The ironic result of Josiah’s actions was that a battle which was intended to solidify Judah’s position in Palestine did just the opposite, as it brought about the death of their king, whose personal faithfulness was the only thing delaying God’s judgment. In 616 B.C.E. [32] These three prophets divided their activity: Hulda spoke to the women and Jeremiah to the men in the street, while Zephaniah preached in the synagogue. (Ver. Josiah is credited by most biblical scholars with having established or compiled important Hebrew scriptures during the "Deuteronomic reform" which probably occurred during his rule. [6] An assembly of the elders of Judah and Jerusalem and of all the people was called, and Josiah then encouraged the exclusive worship of Yahweh, forbidding all other forms of worship. There is a further complication in that the Kings account can be read as a "simple" assassination, rather than death in battle, whereas the Chronicles account is explicit in describing the injuries inflicted during battle. There is no mentioning of the end of the military conflict, but as Neco was in a hurry to reach Carchemish in time (2 Chronicles 35:20-24), we may be sure that as soon as Josiah had died, the matter was over. [17] The phrase sefer ha-torah (ספר התורה) in 2 Kings 22:8 is identical to the phrase used in Joshua 1:8 and 8:34 to describe the sacred writings that Joshua had received from Moses. Matthew 1:10–11). A comparison of the two accounts of his death, however, raises the question of whether he may have died out of the will of God. The Babylonian Chronicle dates the battle at Harran between the Assyrians and their Egyptian allies against the Babylonians from Tammuz (July–August) to Elul (August–September) 609 BCE. King Josiah was one of the best kings ever to rule over God’s people (2 Kings 23:25). The inscription of the ring says, "(belonging) to Nathan-Melech, Servant of the King". It is doubtful whether "the Gate of Huldah" in the Second Temple (Middot 1:3) has any connection with the prophetess Huldah; it may have meant "Cat's Gate"; some scholars, however, associate the gate with Huldah's schoolhouse (Rashi to Kings l.c.).E. The pious but mistaken monarch felt he had received his death-blow. The 5th year of Jehoiachin’s captivity was also the 5th year of the reign of Judah’s last king, Zedekiah. In the wake of Josiah's death, Josiah's son Jehoahaz was made king by "the people of the land" (2 Chronicles 36:1). His death in the latter account was attributed to him "not listening to what Necho had said at God's command..." when Necho stated: "What have I to do with you, king of Judah? [7], Josiah had four sons: Johanan, and Eliakim (born c. 634 BCE), whose mother was Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah; and Mattanyahu (c. 618 BCE) and Shallum (633/632 BCE), whose mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. Josiah's father, King Amon, was assassinated when Josiah was eight, and he ascended to the throne at that age. [23], For much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it was agreed among biblical scholars that this "Book of the Law" was an early version of the Book of Deuteronomy, but recent biblical scholarship sees it as a largely legendary narrative about one of the earliest stages of the creation of Deuteronomistic work. Immediate. Josiah became king of the Kingdom of Judah at the age of eight, after the assassination of his father, King Amon. Conclusions is a figure of extraordinary importance for the history of ancient Israel and Judah. 29 While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. But on his way, Josiah the king of Judah brings out his army to intercept the Egyptians at Megiddo. After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Charchemish by Euphrates…. He ascended to the throne ages eight, after the assassination of his father, King … There are two accounts of Josiah's death in the Bible. …of the reign of King Josiah of Judah, who died in 609 bce and was the ruler who accepted the Deuteronomic reform that began in 621 bce, and of the Babylonian Exile, which traditionally lasted 70 years, though it began in 597 bce, the temple was destroyed in 587/586, some… [47] Though it may not directly mention King Josiah by name, it does appear to be from the same time period in which he would have lived. The Bible describes him as a righteous king, a king who "walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left" (2 Kings 22:2; 2 Chronicles 34:2). Konrad Schmid, "The Persian Imperial Authorization as a Historical Problem and as a Biblical Construct," in G.N. Some of these catchphrases become so memorable that one only has to repeat it and immediately the whole movie comes to mind. [33] When Josiah restored the true worship, Jeremiah went to the exiled ten tribes, whom he brought to Israel under the rule of the pious king. As such, he would have been about 13-14 when Josiah died, and 25 when taken into captivity. During the last few centuries, the Old Testament books of Kings and Chronicles have come under intense scrutiny as their historical reliability, theological perspectives, and relationship with one another have all been thoroughly examined.In the midst of this examination and relevant to each of its parts has been the reign and death of King Josiah of Judah. Josiah reigned for thirty-one years, from 641/640 to 610/609 BCE. [4] Nevertheless, most scholars believe that he existed historically and that the absence of documents is due to few documents of any sort surviving from this very early period, and to Jerusalem having been occupied, conquered, and rebuilt over thousands of years.[5]. His father had been wicked, as had the Jewish kings and culture for generations before him. Necho then took Jehoahaz back to Egypt as his prisoner. However, a signet ring has been found in the City of David in Jerusalem featuring the name of one of King Josiah's officials, Nathan-Melech, mentioned in 2 Kings 23:11. According to 1 Kings 13:1–3 an unnamed "man of God" (sometimes identified as Iddo) had prophesied to King Jeroboam of the northern Kingdom of Israel (Samaria), approximately three hundred years earlier, that "a son named Josiah will be born to the house of David" and that he would destroy the altar at Bethel. I am not coming against you today, but against the house with which I am at war; and God has commanded me to hurry. He wiped out all of the pagan cults that had formed within his land. The book is not identified in the text as the Torah and many scholars believe this was either a copy of the Book of Deuteronomy or a text that became a part of Deuteronomy. Josiah was an amazingly unique king. In this power vacuum, Jerusalem was able to govern itself for the time being without foreign intervention. The Bible describes him as a righteous king, a king who "walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left" (2 Kings 22:2; 2 Chronicles 34:2). [21], The Hebrew Bible states that the priest Hilkiah found a "Book of the Law" in the temple during the early stages of Josiah's temple renovation. [8] Eliakim had his name changed by Pharaoh Necho of Egypt to Jehoiakim.[9]. [29] While Jeremiah admonished and preached repentance to the men, she did the same to the women. The Second Book of Kings merely states that Necho II met Josiah in battle at Megiddo and killed him (2 Kings 23:29), whereas the second book of Chronicles (2 Chronicles 35:20–27) gives a lengthier account and states that Josiah was fatally wounded by Egyptian archers and was brought back to Jerusalem to die. [26] However, most biblical scholars are coming to believe that the Deuteronomistic History was composed using other earlier sources, including a brief chronicle of king's names, age at the beginning of their reign, and their mother's names.[27]. 2 Kings 23:29-30. First, Josiah shows the influence a … After the setback in Harran, Necho left a sizeable force behind, and returned to Egypt. Hit movies love to use catchphrases. Josiah (/dʒoʊˈsaɪ.ə/ or /dʒəˈzaɪ.ə/)[1][2] or Yoshiyahu[a] was the sixteenth king of Judah (c. 640–609 BCE) who, according to the Hebrew Bible, instituted major religious reforms. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him ..at Megiddo. It was: 1. Friedmann, p. 129], compare Maimonides in the introduction to "Yad"; in, Lamentations Rabbah 4:1; Targum II Chron. (2 Kings 23:31) Necho deposed Jehoahaz, who had been king for only three months, and replaced him with his older brother, Jehoiakim. [48], The date of Josiah's death can be established fairly accurately. After the fall of Nineveh in 612, the Assyrian army consolidated its positions in the western part of the empire, Harran and Carchemish. And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem. Necho had left Egypt in 609 BCE to relieve the Assyrian Harran under Babylonian siege. The priests, the prophets, and all the people—from the least important to the most important—went with him. But fortunately King Amon’s rule was short. At age 15, he “began to seek after the God of David .”. According to the biblical narrative, a Torah scroll was discovered during the renovation of the Jerusalem Temple in the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign. ): Megillah 14a,b; compare Seder 'Olam R. 21, Pesiḳta Rabbah 26 [ed. According to the biblical narrative, Josiah was the son of King Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. His father, King Amon was assassinated because… With Josiah out of the way, it was time for Judah’s destruction to proceed. (2Ki 23:31, 34, 36) Of his four sons mentioned in the Bible, only the firstborn, Johanan, did not rule as king over Judah. All the people of Judah and the people who lived in Jerusalem went with him. 35:25, List of artifacts in biblical archaeology, The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings, The Three Deaths of Josiah and the Strata of Biblical Historiography, "Tiny First Temple find could be first proof of aide to biblical King Josiah", List of Jewish leaders in the Land of Israel, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Josiah&oldid=998998369, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 8 January 2021, at 00:52. Josiah's reforms are described in two biblical accounts, 2 Kings 22–23, and 2 Chronicles 34–35. On his return march, Necho found that Jehoahaz had been selected to succeed his father, Josiah. 2 Then the king went up to the Lord ’s Temple. The death of King Josiah at Megiddo c. 608 BCE. Firstly, before Josiah appears on the scene the reader of 1-2 Kings knows that Judah is doomed to destruction and exile by Babylon just as the northern Kingdom of Israel had … After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Neco king of Egypt went up to fight against Carchemish by the Euphrates: and Josiah went out against him. The combined forces failed to capture the city, and Necho retreated to northern Syria. However, the passage over the ridge of hills which shuts in on the south of the great Jezreel Valley was blocked by the Judean army led by Josiah, who may have considered that the Assyrians and Egyptians were weakened by the death of the pharaoh Psamtik I only a year earlier (610 BCE): Psamtik having been appointed and confirmed by Assyrian kings Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal. God’s Gracious Promise to Josiah Because king Josiah … [6] His grandfather Manasseh was one of the kings blamed for turning away from the worship of Yahweh. [28] Huldah was a relative of Jeremiah, both being descendants of Rahab by her marriage with Joshua. After the assassination of his father and the execution of the conspirators, eight-year-old Josiah became king … the Egyptians went up to the north to help the Assyrians, but to no avail. This "was a technical term that referred to a body of leaders such as a council of elders or a kind of informal parliament (see 33:25). [42], The account in Chronicles is considered unreliable by some scholars,[43] as it is based on the description of the death of a different king, Ahab, in 1 Kings, and it meets the Chronicler's religious agenda to attribute the death of a righteous king to some form of sin. Josiah had at least two wives, Hamutal and Zebidah. Assyria, weakened by her struggle with Babylon, found the Egyptians as allies. 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