Royalty and Ruin

Josiah Resolves to Be True to His Trust

When Josiah came to the throne, where he was to rule for thirty-one years, the faithful people began to hope that they had seen the end of the kingdom’s downward course. The new king, though only eight years old, “did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.” 2 Kings 22:2. Warned by the errors of past generations, Josiah chose to do right. His obedience made it possible for God to use him as a “vessel for honor.” RR 138.2

At the time Josiah began to rule, and for many years before, the truehearted were questioning whether God’s promises to Israel could ever be fulfilled. The apostasy of former centuries had grown stronger; ten tribes had been scattered among the heathen; only Judah and Benjamin remained, and they seemed now to be on the verge of moral and national ruin. The prophets had begun to predict the destruction of their beautiful city, where the temple built by Solomon stood. Was God about to turn aside from His plan of bringing deliverance to those who put their trust in Him? Could those who had remained true to God hope for better days? RR 138.3

Habakkuk gave voice to such anxious questions: “O Lord, how long shall I cry, and You will not hear? even cry out to You, ‘Violence!’ and You will not save. ... Plundering and violence are before me; there is strife, and contention arises. Therefore the law is powerless, and judgment never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; therefore perverse judgment proceeds.” Habakkuk 1:2-4. RR 138.4

God answered His loyal children. Through His prophet He revealed His determination to punish the nation that had turned to serve heathen gods. Within the lifetime of some who were even then inquiring regarding the future, He would bring the Chaldeans upon the land of Judah as a divinely appointed scourge. The princes and the best of the people were to be carried captive to Babylon; the Judean cities, villages, and cultivated fields were to be laid waste. RR 138.5