Old Testament Wednesday

Scripture of the Day:

2 Kings 23:1-3

  1 And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem.

  2 And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he ^aread in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord.

  3 ¶ And the king stood by a ^apillar, and made a ^bcovenant before the Lord, to ^cwalk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and alltheir soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.

Historical Background:

Here is some historical background on King Josiah from the Bible Dictionary:

King of Judah, 641-610 B.C. (see 2 Kgs. 22 - 24; 2 Chr. 34 - 35). While still young, he made, under the guidance of Hilkiah, a thorough religious reformation, which extended to the northern tribes. He restored the temple, destroyed idolatrous images and the high places, put down the idolatrous priests, and celebrated a great Passover (2 Kgs. 23: 21-23). During this reformation a book of the law was found by Hilkiah (2 Kgs. 22: 8 f.; 2 Chr. 34: 15 f.). It made at once a great impression, and led to the centralizing of all sacrificial worship at Jerusalem and the abolition of local idolatrous sanctuaries in the war between Assyria and Egypt, and, though Pharaoh-Neco disclaimed enmity, Josiah met him in battle at Megiddo and was defeated and slain (2 Chr. 35: 20-25; see also 2 Kgs. 23: 29-30; Jer. 22: 10-12, 18; Zech. 12: 11).

Son of Zephaniah (Zech. 6: 10).

And the Guide to the Scriptures:

A righteous king of Judah from 641-610 B.C. (2 Kgs. 22-24; 2 Chr. 34-35). During his reign, the book of the law was found in the house of the Lord (2 Kgs. 22: 8-13).

Gospel Principles Outlined:

1) Seek out the scriptures, for they give great guidance for our lives.

2) Righteous leaders will restore the people to principles of salvation.

3) We should make personal covenants with the Lord based on what we are inspired to do from studying the gospel.

4) We cannot afford to let the scriptures out of our lives.

5) Help others to make and keep covenants.

What I Learned Today:

I was especially impressed by the king's desire to revolutionize his people based on the impact that the scriptures had on him.  We should allow the scriptures to guide and shape our lives so that we too can make saving covenants with the Lord.  We must consistently study and learn the gospel as contained in the scriptures.  It will bless us immeasurably.  The scriptures are one of our greatest tools in following the Savior.

Things I Will Implement:

I am excited to continue to improve the ways that I study the scriptures.  I also like the concept of making personal covenants with the Savior based on impressions we receive in our study.  I will try to implement that more in my life.