20250215

keep listening

2 Chronicles 35:20-27

2 Chronicles 35:20 After all this that Josiah had prepared for the temple, King Neco of Egypt marched up to fight at Carchemish by the Euphrates, and Josiah went out to confront him.
2 Chronicles 35:21 But Neco sent messengers to him, saying, “What is the issue between you and me, king of Judah? I have not come against you today, but I am fighting another dynasty. God told me to hurry. Stop opposing God who is with me; don’t make him destroy you!”
2 Chronicles 35:22 But Josiah did not turn away from him; instead, in order to fight with him he disguised himself. He did not listen to Neco’s words from the mouth of God but went to the Valley of Megiddo to fight.
2 Chronicles 35:23 The archers shot King Josiah, and he said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am severely wounded!”
2 Chronicles 35:24 So his servants took him out of the war chariot, carried him in his second chariot, and brought him to Jerusalem. Then he died, and they buried him in the tomb of his fathers. All Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
2 Chronicles 35:25 Jeremiah chanted a dirge over Josiah, and all the male and female singers still speak of Josiah in their dirges today. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Dirges.
2 Chronicles 35:26 The rest of the events of Josiah’s reign, along with his deeds of faithful love according to what is written in the law of Yahveh,
2 Chronicles 35:27 and his words, from beginning to end, are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

keep listening

We should not be surprised that the great reforming king Josiah would end his life in such an ignominious way. His story is of one who dared to respond to the word of the LORD. His only failure is that he did not recognize that word when it came from the mouth of the king of Egypt. Had Josiah only been listening, as he had before, he would have been able to keep up his reforms, and might have spared his kingdom much misery. May this be a lesson for believers to keep listening. It might be that the next word from our LORD will come from an unexpected mouth.

LORD, keep us willing to hear what you want us to know.