2 Kings 23:28-37 - Regression of Sin Against the Lord

2 Kings 23:28-37

Josiah Dies in Battle (2 Chronicles 35:20—36:1)

28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 In his days Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went to the aid of the king of Assyria, to the River Euphrates; and King Josiah went against him. And Pharaoh Necho killed him at Megiddo when he confronted him. 30 Then his servants moved his body in a chariot from Megiddo, brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in his father’s place.

The Reign and Captivity of Jehoahaz (2 Chronicles 36:1–4)

31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 Now Pharaoh Necho put him in prison at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and he imposed on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 Then Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. And Pharaoh took Jehoahaz and went to Egypt, and he died there.

Jehoiakim Reigns in Judah (2 Chronicles 36:5–8)

35 So Jehoiakim gave the silver and gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give money according to the command of Pharaoh; he exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land, from every one according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Necho. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

Here the old pattern of sin comes creeping back in among the rulers of God’s people in Judah.  After many who did evil and led the nation astray and away from following the LORD, there was a bright spot of hope in Josiah who reformed and restored true worship during his reign.  Though he did well in his reforms, the people still had a history of being led into idolatry and its accompanying immorality, and the fate of the nation had already been marked out by the LORD for accountability in judgment by His wrath on their continuing sin, just as the whole world even now faces judgment day (Acts 17:31, Hebrews 9:27-28, 2 Peter 2:9, 1 John 4:17-18) for their inherited and ongoing sins.  Only the grace of God in the Lord Jesus Christ can deliver the few on that narrow road to Him through repentance and faith from the wrath (Romans 5:9, 1 Thessalonians 1:10, Revelation 11:18) to come.  After Josiah the reformer died, Jehoahaz his son took the reins and led the people once again into sin and kindled the burning wrath of God against him and them all.  He only lasted three months until imprisoned and was replaced by another son of Josiah named Jehoiakim, who also pursued evil instead of the word and will of the LORD as his father Josiah had done so well like a bright break in the clouds of an approaching storm of judgment.  This Jehoiakim repeated the same evil of the majority of his forefathers on this downward spiral trending towards the time of accountability for rejecting God and His words.  On top of that, he also heavily taxed the people to appease the Pharaoh of Egypt who had put him on the throne after his brother’s death.  This repeated pattern of corruption of the soul in the leaders of Judah followed that of the kings of the northern kingdom of Israel, a pattern that would ultimately bring destruction on them all except a faithful remnant as we see today in the remnant of all nations in Christ (Romans 11:5, 25, 30-31, 32, 9:6-7, 8, 25, 26) to be delivered from the wrath to come on all our sin since Adam.  The whole world around us is following this same pattern of regression into sin against the Lord as they reject Him and His gospel of hope and grace.  We who are now in the remnant of the nations in Christ are His heralds of that message (Romans 10:14, 16-17) that calls all who have been given ears to hear to turn from the sin reigning over them (Galatians 4:4, Romans 5:20-21) to Him who reigns over the just and unjust for deliverance from the consequences of sin to come.  Who reigns over you and who do you follow?  May we not regress into following sin against Him as the rules of Judah and Israel did, but progress into willing obedience to the gospel containing the (John 6:68, Acts 5:20) words of life.