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2 Chronicles Chapter 35 (ESV)
16 So all the service of the Lord was prepared that day, to keep the Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of King Josiah. 17 And the people of Israel who were present kept the Passover at that time, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days. 18 No Passover like it had been kept in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as was kept by Josiah, and the priests and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 19 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this Passover was kept.
20 After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Neco king of Egypt went up to fight at Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to meet him. 21 But he sent envoys to him, saying, “What have we to do with each other, king of Judah? I am not coming against you this day, but against the house with which I am at war. And God has commanded me to hurry. Cease opposing God, who is with me, lest he destroy you.” 22 Nevertheless, Josiah did not turn away from him, but disguised himself in order to fight with him. He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God, but came to fight in the plain of Megiddo. 23 And the archers shot King Josiah. And the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am badly wounded.” 24 So his servants took him out of the chariot and carried him in his second chariot and brought him to Jerusalem. And he died and was buried in the tombs of his fathers. All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
REFLECTION:
Although King Josiah trusted God and led the people to keep the Passover and made burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, God did not remove the punishment for Judah because the people followed Manasseh’s sins with repentance on the surface but disobedience in secret. Josiah ignored the warning from Neco king of Egypt because he thought it was impossible for God to deliver the message of His great scheme through a pagan king. Such a wrong assumption costed Josiah his life. Although not all messages are true when people claim that they are originated from God, God’s message can be delivered in unexpected ways. Reflect how you will develop the wisdom of discernment in your faith and avoid not receiving God’s message because of prejudice and false assumption.
PRAYER:
Ask God to give you wisdom and develop your ability to discern so that you can hear God’s voice in this chaotic world and see His glory. Ask God to help you judge all things so that you can glorify God through obeying His will in your daily activities.
HYMN:
“Be Thou My Vision” – www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4YmRNTaSao
