Jehovah Hapi Long Hambol Man Josiah
PRINCE JOSIAH from Judah wea faev year hem mas fraet fogud. Mami bilong hem, Jedidah, hem krae. Jedidah garem reason for krae bikos grandadi bilong Josiah, King Manasseh, hem dae.—2 Kings 21:18.
Distaem dadi bilong Josiah, Amon, bae kamap king bilong Judah. (2 Chronicles 33:20) Tufala year bihaen (659 B.C.E.), olketa servant bilong Amon killim hem dae. Olketa pipol killim dae olketa rabis man wea planim disfala nogud samting and mekem young Josiah kamap king. (2 Kings 21:24; 2 Chronicles 33:25) Taem Amon hem rul, Josiah getius for smelem incense evriwea long Jerusalem bikos planti altar stap antap long ruf bilong olketa haos wea pipol baodaon long olketa giaman god. Iu savve lukim olketa heathen priest wakabaot nating, and olketa worshiper—nomata samfala wea sei olketa worshipim Jehovah—mekem promis long god Malcam.—Zephaniah 1:1, 5.
Josiah hem savve Amon duim wicked samting taem hem worshipim olketa giaman god. Young king bilong Judah start for minim gud tu toktok bilong profet bilong God, Zephaniah. Taem Josiah hem 15 year (652 B.C.E.), hem kasem mek-eit year long rul bilong hem and hem disaed strong for obeyim toktok bilong Zephaniah. Nomata hem smol boy yet, Josiah start for lukaotem Jehovah.—2 Chronicles 33:21, 22; 34:3.
Josiah Start for Duim Samting!
Fofala year go pas and Josiah start for aotem giaman religion from Judah and Jerusalem (648 B.C.E.). Hem distroem olketa idol, olketa holy post, and olketa incense altar wea pipol iusim for worshipim Baal. Olketa smasem image bilong olketa idol god go kasem taem olketa asis and then torowem antap grev bilong pipol wea offerim sakrifaes long olketa god hia. Olketa spoelem evri altar bilong worship wea no klin and then distroem evribit.—2 Kings 23:8-14.
Josiah go ahed for distroe taem Jeremiah, son bilong wanfala Levite priest, kasem Jerusalem (647 B.C.E.). Jehovah God appointim young Jeremiah olsem profet bilong hem, and hem barava talemaot strong olketa message bilong Jehovah againstim giaman religion! Josiah klosap sem age witim Jeremiah. Bat nomata Josiah strong for distroem olketa nogud samting and Jeremiah talemaot olketa strong message, pipol kwiktaem go bak long giaman worship.—Jeremiah 1:1-10.
Faendem Wanfala Spesol Samting!
Faevfala year go pas. Josiah wea 25 year hem rul for samting olsem 18 year finis. Hem kolem kam Shaphan, datfala secretary; Maaseiah, chief bilong taon; and Joah, datfala recorder. King hem komandim Shaphan: ‘Talem Hilkiah, hae priest, for tekem selen wea olketa doorkeeper bilong temple kolektem from olketa pipol and givim long olketa wakman mekem olketa savve wakem bak haos bilong Jehovah.’—2 Kings 22:3-6; 2 Chronicles 34:8.
Start long early morning, olketa wakman waka for repairim temple. Iumi sure Josiah thankiu long Jehovah from olketa wakman wakem bak samting wea olketa wicked laen dadi bilong hem duim for spoelem haos bilong God. Taem waka go ahed, Shaphan kam for reportim wanfala samting. Bat wanem nao hem holem? Tru nao, hem karem wanfala scroll! Hem sei Hae Priest Hilkiah faendem “buk bilong law bilong Jehovah wea Moses hem raetem.” (2 Chronicles 34:12-18) Wanfala spesol samting nao olketa faendem—barava first copy bilong Law!
Josiah barava laek herem evri toktok insaed disfala buk. Taem Shaphan read, king hem trae for luksavve hao nao each komand fitim hem and olketa pipol. Hem barava tinghae long wei wea buk hia mekhae long tru worship, wea talem hao pipol bae kasem trabol and lusim kantri bilong olketa sapos olketa joinim giaman religion. From hem luksavve distaem hem no followim yet samfala komand bilong God, Josiah brekem kaleko bilong hem and givim order long Hilkiah, Shaphan, and samfala moa: ‘Askem Jehovah abaotem olketa toktok long disfala buk; bikos bigfala kros bilong Jehovah bae kam againstim iumi bikos olketa laen dadi bilong iumi nating lisin long toktok bilong disfala buk.’—2 Kings 22:11-13; 2 Chronicles 34:19-21.
Talemaot Toktok Bilong Jehovah
Olketa man for karem message bilong Josiah go long Huldah datfala woman profet long Jerusalem and tekem kam bak wanfala report. Huldah talemaot toktok bilong Jehovah, wea showim hao olketa trabol wea disfala buk wea olketa just faendem hem storyim bae kasem disfala apostate nation. Bat, from Josiah stap hambol front long Jehovah God, hem bae no kasem trabol. Hem bae stap witim laen dadi bilong hem and olketa bae tekem hem go long grev bilong hem long peace.—2 Kings 22:14-20; 2 Chronicles 34:22-28.
Waswe, profesi bilong Huldah hem tru, from Josiah dae long faet? (2 Kings 23:28-30) Yes, bikos “peace” wea hem kasem long grev bilong hem, hem barava difren from “trabol wea bae kasem Judah.” (2 Kings 22:20; 2 Chronicles 34:28) Josiah dae bifor datfala trabol long 609-607 B.C.E. taem olketa bilong Babylon raonem and distroem Jerusalem. And ‘wei for stap witim olketa laen dadi’ savve minim tu for dae long raf wei. Bible iusim semkaen toktok taem hem tok abaotem wei for dae long raf wei and tu wei for no dae long raf wei.—Deuteronomy 31:16; 1 Kings 2:10; 22:34, 40.
Tru Worship Muv Ahed
Josiah mekem pipol bilong Jerusalem hipap long temple and readim long olketa “evri toktok long buk bilong covenant” wea olketa faendem long haos bilong Jehovah. Then hem mekem wanfala covenant “for wakabaot followim Jehovah and for keepim olketa komandment bilong hem and olketa order bilong hem and olketa law bilong hem witim full heart and witim full soul taem hem followim toktok bilong disfala covenant wea stap insaed disfala buk.” Evri pipol promis for keepim disfala covenant.—2 Kings 23:1-3.
Then King Josiah duim nara samting moa wea hem strong samting for againstim idol worship. Olketa priest bilong Judah wea worshipim olketa nara god lusim bisnis. Olketa Levite priest wea join insaed worship wea no klin lusim privilege bilong olketa for serve long altar bilong Jehovah, and olketa hae ples wea olketa buildim taem King Solomon rul kamap no fit for iusim long worship. Disfala klining waka kasem tu territory bilong ten-tribe kingdom bilong Israel bifor, wea Assyria tekovarem bifor (740 B.C.E.).
For fulfillim toktok wea wanfala “man bilong tru God” talem 300 year bifor diswan, Josiah bonem olketa bon bilong olketa priest bilong Baal long altar wea King Jeroboam I wakem long Bethel. Olketa daonem olketa hae ples long there and long olketa nara taon, and sakrifaesim olketa priest wea worshipim idol antap long sem altar wea olketa savve offerim sakrifaes.—1 Kings 13:1-4; 2 Kings 23:4-20.
Mekem Wanfala Big Passover
Jehovah saportim olketa samting wea Josiah duim for mekhae long klin worship. Long full laef bilong hem, king bae thankiu long God from olketa pipol “no tan difren from wei for followim God bilong laen dadi bilong olketa, Jehovah.” (2 Chronicles 34:33) And hao nao Josiah bae forgetim wanfala nambawan samting wea happen insaed mek-18 year wea hem rul?
King komandim olketa pipol: “Mekem wanfala passover long Jehovah God bilong iufala followim toktok wea stap insaed disfala buk bilong covenant [wea olketa just faendem].” (2 Kings 23:21) Josiah hapi for lukim pipol duim diswan. Hemseleva givim 30,000 animal for Passover and 3,000 buluka for disfala celebration. Barava bigfala Passover stret! Saed long olketa offering, olketa arrangement wea olketa planim gud, and haomas worshiper, hem winim eni nara Passover wea kamap bifor start long taem bilong profet Samuel.—2 Kings 23:22, 23; 2 Chronicles 35:1-19.
Bigfala Sorre Taem Hem Dae
Insaed 31 year wea Josiah hem rul (659-629 B.C.E.), hem rul olsem wanfala gud king. Long end bilong rul bilong hem, hem herem hao Pharaoh Necho plan for go thru long Judah for stopem olketa army bilong Babylon and long disfala wei for helpem king bilong Assyria long Carchemish long Euphrates River. Luk olsem ruler bilong Egypt hope for tekovarem samfala province anda long Rul Bilong Assyria wea no strong. From wanfala reason wea iumi no savve, Josiah go for faetem datfala man bilong Egypt. Necho sendem go samfala man for tekem message long hem, wea sei: “Iu no go for saed bilong iuseleva bikos long God, wea stap witim mi, and no letem hem duim nogud samting long iu.” Bat Josiah haedem hemseleva and trae for mekem olketa bilong Egypt tan go bak long Megiddo.—2 Chronicles 35:20-22.
Sorre long king bilong Judah! Olketa enemy wea iusim bow and arrow sutim hem, and hem talem olketa servant: “Daonem mi, bikos mi barava garekil nogud.” Olketa daonem Josiah from war chariot, putim hem long narawan, and go bak for Jerusalem. Long there or taem olketa gogo for datfala taon, Josiah tek wind for lastaem. Scripture sei: “Then hem dae and olketa berem hem long grev bilong olketa laen dadi bilong hem; and full Judah and Jerusalem krae for Josiah.” Jeremiah singsing sorre for hem, and start long datfala taem olketa sorre singsing abaotem disfala king savve kamap long olketa spesol taem.—2 Chronicles 35:23-25.
Tru nao, King Josiah mekem mistek taem hem faetem olketa bilong Egypt. (Psalm 130:3) Nomata olsem, hambol fasin bilong hem and wei wea hem strong for tru worship mekem God hapi long hem. Laef bilong Josiah barava showim klia hao Jehovah hem hapi long olketa loyal servant bilong hem wea garem hambol heart!—Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6.
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Young King Josiah strong for lukaotem Jehovah
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Josiah distroem olketa hae ples and mekhae long tru worship