From Splendor to Shadow

Josiah Resolves to Be True to His Trust

With the accession of Josiah to the throne, where he was to rule for thirty-one years, those who had maintained their faith began to hope that the downward course of the kingdom was checked; for the new king, though only eight years old, “did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not 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 unto honor. SS 201.3

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 gathered strength; ten tribes had been scattered among the heathen; only Judah and Benjamin remained, and these now seemed on the verge of moral and national ruin. The prophets had begun to foretell the destruction of their fair city, where stood the temple built by Solomon. Was God about to turn aside from His purpose of bringing deliverance to those who should put their trust in Him? Could those who had remained true to God hope for better days? SS 202.1

These anxious questions were voiced by Habakkuk: “O Lord, how long shall I cry, and Thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto Thee of violence, and Thou wilt not save! ... Spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.” Habakkuk 1:2-4. SS 202.2

God answered His loyal children. Through His mouthpiece He revealed His determination to bring chastisement upon the nation that had turned to serve the gods of the heathen. Within the lifetime of some who were even then making inquiry regarding the future, He would bring the Chaldeans upon the land of Judah as a divinely appointed scourge. The princes and fairest of the people were to be carried captive to Babylon; the Judean cities, villages, and cultivated fields were to be laid waste. SS 202.3