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The Word is Found Again - The Books of 2 Chronicles & 2 Kings · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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Speaker 1: Let us pray. And Hilkiah the high priest said unto
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Speaker 1: Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the
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Speaker 1: law in the house of the Lord. And Hilkiah gave
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Speaker 1: the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 2 Kings
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Speaker 1: 22.8 Dear Father, I will not allow my age or
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Speaker 1: the maturity of my knowledge in my given space to
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Speaker 1: stop me from relying on you and your word. Give
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Speaker 1: me the heart of King Josiah. Give me the passion
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Speaker 1: and dedication to observe your ways, no matter what I
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Speaker 1: face or what I may be going through. Like the
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Speaker 1: reading in 2 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 34, I
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Speaker 1: too am making the decision, I too am making the
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Speaker 1: decision to seek after and to stay in your holy word.
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Speaker 1: I will praise you as I read through the Bible.
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Speaker 1: knowing that between the pages are promises forevermore. Today I
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Speaker 1: will rejoice in what you rejoice in. I will cry
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Speaker 1: over what grieves you, because I now know that the
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Speaker 1: level of my activity is connected to the level of
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Speaker 1: my purity. Therefore realign my sight, fix my focus on you,
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Speaker 1: and give me the strength to tear down any walls
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Speaker 1: that hinder me from living in your presence. In Jesus' name, amen.
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Speaker 1: Thanks for making prayer a priority in your life. To
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Speaker 1: hear the Bible come to life, stay tuned for The
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Speaker 1: Bible in a Year, brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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Speaker 2: The word is found again. In our last story, we
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Speaker 2: learned of the wicked kings Manasseh and Amon. Their evil
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Speaker 2: knew no limits. They openly sacrificed their own children at
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Speaker 2: the altar of false gods and mocked God himself. They
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Speaker 2: provoked him and beckoned him into conflict. Manasseh learned his lesson,
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Speaker 2: but Amon did not. Now, out of the evil seed
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Speaker 2: of Manasseh, a redeeming force for good emerges. King Josiah
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Speaker 2: is raised up as a pillar to Judah. His devotion
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Speaker 2: to God and dedication to kindness begins to restore Judah's heart.
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Speaker 2: Inspired by the book of 2 Chronicles and 2 Kings.
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Speaker 3: Hello, this is Jack Graham, and I'm so glad that
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Speaker 3: you've joined us once again for today's episode of The
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Speaker 3: Bible in a Year. In our last reading, we heard
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Speaker 3: how Manasseh lived in wickedness and darkness for years, defying, mocking, blaspheming,
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Speaker 3: angering God with his idolatry and murderous ways. And yet,
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Speaker 3: when he turned back to God in genuine repentance, God
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Speaker 3: showed him mercy and restored Manasseh to a relationship with him.
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Speaker 3: It's a reminder to us that God is not willing
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Speaker 3: that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance,
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Speaker 3: according to the scripture. He is always ready to forgive
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Speaker 3: when we turn our hearts to him. Today, we'll hear
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Speaker 3: about King Josiah, the grandson of Manasseh who lived as
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Speaker 3: a righteous man, a God-fearing king. Josiah would usher in
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Speaker 3: a new era of prosperity and faithfulness to God in Judah. So,
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Speaker 3: let's now turn to God's Word.
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Speaker 2: One afternoon, little Josiah was playing in the courtyards of
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Speaker 2: the palace. He chased butterflies and pretended to be a
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Speaker 2: mighty warrior. He was a mere boy of eight, filled
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Speaker 2: with laughter and joy. He had no idea that his
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Speaker 2: father was laying in his bed, assassinated only a few
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Speaker 2: yards away. King Amon's life had ended the night before,
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Speaker 2: along with Josiah's childhood. Later that morning, Josiah was swept
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Speaker 2: away in a flurry of meetings and ceremonies. Before the
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Speaker 2: day had ended, Josiah was crowned king over Judah. Eight-year-old
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Speaker 2: Josiah was now responsible for the entire well-being of God's people.
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Speaker 2: The title of king was daunting for any man, let
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Speaker 2: alone an eight-year-old boy. If Josiah was to lead, he
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Speaker 2: needed aid, not just from counselors and elders, but from God.
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Speaker 2: Josiah leaned on the wisdom of the Lord. In many ways,
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Speaker 2: Josiah was able to maintain a childlike faith towards God
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Speaker 2: because he was a child himself. The pride and lust
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Speaker 2: that gripped most kings' hearts had no effect on him.
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Speaker 2: He was a boy in need of love. and the
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Speaker 2: Lord provided it. Josiah pleased God with all he did.
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Speaker 2: He did not turn to the right or to the left.
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Speaker 2: When Josiah was 16, he began to dive deep into
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Speaker 2: the law and worship of God. He filled his mind
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Speaker 2: with useful philosophy and history. He sat in the presence
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Speaker 2: of the priests and learned about the ways of the Lord.
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Speaker 2: At age 20, Josiah began a purge of all the
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Speaker 2: idols erected by his father. He knew that it was
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Speaker 2: not enough to throw away these idols. He had to
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Speaker 2: make a statement. So Josiah chopped down the altars of
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Speaker 2: Baals and ground them into a powder. As a symbol
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Speaker 2: of their demise, he scattered the powder over the graves
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Speaker 2: of dead pagan priests and worshippers. Josiah went from city
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Speaker 2: to city, destroying every idol and false god he could find.
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Speaker 2: He did as his great-grandfather Hezekiah did. He knew that
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Speaker 2: the minds of the people were clouded with those idols.
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Speaker 2: In the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign, he had cleansed
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Speaker 2: the land of all its idols. He sent his governors
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Speaker 2: Shaphan and Maasiah to repair broken parts of the temples.
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Speaker 2: They hired stonemasons and carpenters to repair the shattered altars
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Speaker 2: and broken beams. The plan was to pay all the
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Speaker 2: workers with some of the wealth in the temple. So
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Speaker 2: Hilkiah the priest went deep into the temple to find
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Speaker 2: some of the gold stored down below. This part of
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Speaker 2: the temple was dusty and hidden. Some of the priests
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Speaker 2: had kept it secret while the wicked King Aman was
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Speaker 2: in power. As Hilkiah was collecting some coin to pay
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Speaker 2: the workers, he stumbled upon a large dusty scroll resting
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Speaker 2: on the edge of an altar. Hilkiah's eyes were fixed
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Speaker 2: on it and drawn to it. He walked slowly towards
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Speaker 2: it and loosened the bindings gently. The scroll was old
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Speaker 2: and had collected a large amount of dust. As Hilkiah
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Speaker 2: scanned the scroll's contents, his eyes lit up. Hilkiah rolled
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Speaker 2: up the scroll and ran up to Shaphan.' I have
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Speaker 2: found it!' Hilkiah yelled.' I have found the book of
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Speaker 2: the law written by Moses!' The entire sanctuary erupted in
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Speaker 2: gasps and applause. The scroll had been lost and forgotten
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Speaker 2: for a long time. In it was documentation of the
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Speaker 2: covenant between God and Israel in the wilderness— It was
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Speaker 2: one of the original documents preserved from Moses and a
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Speaker 2: precious reminder of God's love for his chosen people. Chaffin
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Speaker 2: brought the scroll to the king. Together they read it
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Speaker 2: in its entirety. Josiah's eyes glared at the pages with
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Speaker 2: curiosity and amazement. For decades the people had been without
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Speaker 2: this specific document. Josiah could hardly help but cry. Chaffin
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Speaker 2: looked at Josiah as he wept. At first, He thought
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Speaker 2: they were tears of joy, but soon realized they were
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Speaker 2: tears of sorrow. What troubles the king? Shaphan asked. Isn't
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Speaker 2: this a happy thing? Josiah shook his head. He placed
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Speaker 2: his hand on the written word and said, This book
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Speaker 2: speaks of promises unkept. The king looked at the governor intensely.
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Speaker 2: Our fathers made a covenant with God, a covenant that
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Speaker 2: God was faithful to keep. However, our fathers from Jerusalem
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Speaker 2: to Samaria have done nothing but disobey him. Josiah slid
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Speaker 2: his fingers across the words. He was troubled by Judah
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Speaker 2: and Israel's departure from God. We must repent before wrath
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Speaker 2: comes upon us. Lord knows we would deserve it. Quick,
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Speaker 2: go find someone in the land that can hear the
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Speaker 2: voice of God. We must have clarity. So Shaphan left
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Speaker 2: in search of a prophet. Days had passed and Josiah's
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Speaker 2: anxiety had increased. He wrestled in his heart regarding Judah's future.
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Speaker 2: He loved his country, but he also knew that they
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Speaker 2: had strayed from God far too many times to go
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Speaker 2: without consequence. If God would not punish them, certainly he
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Speaker 2: would at least allow for their past sins to catch
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Speaker 2: up to them. As Josiah paced in his chambers, the
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Speaker 2: doors opened. Shaphan entered the room with a woman by
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Speaker 2: the name of Huldah. She was a woman of God,
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Speaker 2: well-respected and a prophetess. Josiah had her sit and the
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Speaker 2: two spoke of what was to come. Josiah poured out
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Speaker 2: his heart before her. He spoke of his fear that
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Speaker 2: the Lord would punish Judah as he did Israel. Huldah
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Speaker 2: looked at her king with admiration and pity. Listen to
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Speaker 2: the word of the Lord, she said softly. Disaster will
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Speaker 2: come upon Judah because they have forsaken me. They continually
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Speaker 2: slip into idolatry and openly provoke me with their wickedness.
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Speaker 2: I will pour out my wrath like molten fire, and
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Speaker 2: it shall not be quenched. A chill shut up Josiah's spine,
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Speaker 2: and his heart began to break. However, she was not finished.
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Speaker 2: Because your heart was humble before God, and you have
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Speaker 2: done your best to reconcile the people to me, destruction
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Speaker 2: shall not come in your lifetime. Josiah raised himself up
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Speaker 2: and beckoned the elders of Israel to the temple. He
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Speaker 2: would not allow this word to quench his devotion to God.
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Speaker 2: He had the priests lay out the scroll before the
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Speaker 2: elders and read from it. The words danced out of
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Speaker 2: the priests' mouth. They filled the air like a sweet aroma.
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Speaker 2: The elders of Israel were enthralled by the word of
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Speaker 2: God pouring into their hearts. Then, Josiah led them in
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Speaker 2: a rededication to keeping the Lord's promises. Although the end
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Speaker 2: of Judah was near, God had a plan to redeem
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Speaker 2: his people. The old way was slowly passing and making
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Speaker 2: way for a new and better covenant. A covenant not
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Speaker 2: dependent on the obedience of man, but by the goodness
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Speaker 2: of God himself. Josiah's new promise to God was a
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Speaker 2: mere image of good things to come. However, this new
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Speaker 2: plan would not come without struggle, and there was still
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Speaker 2: much pain to endure.
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Speaker 3: In today's scripture, we meet another young king, crowned as
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Speaker 3: ruler of Judah at just, amazingly, eight years of age.
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Speaker 3: Though he was very young, Josiah did not exhibit the
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Speaker 3: immaturity of many young people. Josiah sat with priests and
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Speaker 3: absorbed everything that he could. At an early age, he
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Speaker 3: was well-studied in God's law, and his heart was fastened
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Speaker 3: onto the ways of God. There's no better way for
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Speaker 3: a young person to begin their life than this. The
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Speaker 3: Bible says, Remember your Creator in the days of your youth.
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Speaker 3: When he was just 20 years of age, Josiah began
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Speaker 3: the task of undoing so much of what his father
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Speaker 3: Amon had done in defiling God's land and his people.
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Speaker 3: So Josiah tore down the altars of sin and wickedness.
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Speaker 3: But this was just the beginning. He symbolically crushed the
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Speaker 3: idols into dust and burned the bones of the pagan priests.
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Speaker 3: Josiah meant business. He was cleansing the land of evil
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Speaker 3: in God's name, and the Lord blessed him for it.
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Speaker 3: In the 18th year of his reign, Josiah began to
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Speaker 3: repair God's temple. Like his ancestor David, Josiah knew that
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Speaker 3: although no structure could contain the Lord God, The Lord
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Speaker 3: desired and deserved a place of honor and praise and
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Speaker 3: recognition in the great city of Jerusalem. The temple would
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Speaker 3: call people to worship their God and the one who
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Speaker 3: is always faithful to his own. As the temple was
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Speaker 3: being cleansed and repaired, a priest named Hilkiah came upon
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Speaker 3: a treasure. It did not shine like gold or emeralds,
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Speaker 3: but it was a much greater treasure for God's people.
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Speaker 3: Hilkiah found a scroll containing the law of Moses. This
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Speaker 3: may not seem like a big deal to you and me,
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Speaker 3: but to the people of Judah, this was a reminder
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Speaker 3: of the trustworthiness of God and the generational connection they
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Speaker 3: had with their past and the great leader of the nation, Moses,
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Speaker 3: who delighted to deliver God's law and to keep God's law.
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Speaker 3: But as joyous as this discovery was, As the scroll
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Speaker 3: was read aloud, Josiah tore his clothes in a sign
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Speaker 3: of mourning. Hearing all that was in God's law, there
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Speaker 3: was no missing the fact that Judah had failed to
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Speaker 3: keep it, not once, but again and again. When confronted
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Speaker 3: with this fact, Josiah sought guidance from the Lord, saying
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Speaker 3: in 2 Chronicles 34-21, Go, inquire of the Lord for
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Speaker 3: me and for those who are left in Israel and
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Speaker 3: in Judah concerning the words of the book that has
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Speaker 3: been found. For great is the wrath of the Lord
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Speaker 3: that is poured out on us, because our fathers have
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Speaker 3: not kept the word of God to do according to
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Speaker 3: all that is written in his book. Josiah knew that
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Speaker 3: they must repent of all the wrong that they had done.
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Speaker 3: Repentance means that you're going in one direction the wrong way,
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Speaker 3: but you turn around and meet God and trust him
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Speaker 3: and go in a brand new direction with new convictions.
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Speaker 3: We may try to justify our sin or the way
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Speaker 3: that we're living our life, the direction we're going, but
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Speaker 3: it's always a mistake to run from God, to walk
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Speaker 3: away from God. And it's always the right thing to
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Speaker 3: do to return to him. Josiah sent Shaphan, one of
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Speaker 3: his governors, to find a prophet to inquire of the Lord.
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Speaker 3: Shaphan returned with a prophetess named Huldah. She heard Josiah's
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Speaker 3: words and his convictions and responded with the truth of
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Speaker 3: God's word. Judah had indeed been unfaithful and disobedient. And
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Speaker 3: for this, they would be judged and feel the wrath
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Speaker 3: of God. But because of Josiah's earnest attempts to make
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Speaker 3: things right, disaster would not come in his lifetime. Though
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Speaker 3: this may have brought some comfort, unlike Hezekiah before him,
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Speaker 3: Josiah was grieved at the eventual judgment that would come
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Speaker 3: upon his people. He called the priests and the people
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Speaker 3: to dedicate themselves to the Lord and not turn again
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Speaker 3: from him. Josiah was committed to keeping the Lord's commandments,
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Speaker 3: even though destruction was coming to Judah ultimately. And while
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Speaker 3: Judah would endure punishment and God's wrath, the Lord had
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Speaker 3: not abandoned his people. Rescue would one day come, and
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Speaker 3: God would send the ultimate answer to the problem of
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Speaker 3: sin and judgment in the world. He would send the Messiah,
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Speaker 3: the Savior. The Lord himself would come to be our Savior.
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Speaker 3: Dear God, Thank you for Josiah's example of goodness and faithfulness.
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Speaker 3: Thank you for the lesson that we've heard today on
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Speaker 3: repentance and seeking your face and turning from our evil ways.
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Speaker 3: Help us too to repent and not make excuses when
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Speaker 3: we sin. In Christ's name, amen. Thank you for listening
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Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Pastor Jack
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Speaker 3: Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app and make
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Speaker 3: prayer today. a priority along with Bible study in your life.
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Speaker 3: And if you enjoyed this podcast, be sure and share
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Speaker 3: it with someone you know because it can truly make
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Speaker 3: a difference in someone else's life. And if you want
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Speaker 3: more resources on how you can know the Bible and
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Speaker 3: live the Christian life, contact me at jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org
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Speaker 3: for many resources that will help you in your walk
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Speaker 3: with God.