2 Kings 25:8

 2 Kings 25:8 says, And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem:  In the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, Nebuzaradan came to Jerusalem.  The city of Jerusalem had not immediately been destroyed when the people finally surrendered, but Nebuzaradan came now about a month later to complete the destruction.  Of course, without God's people there, it was just buildings, except that God had made Jerusalem special to Himself.  If we as Christians are taken away captive, then our church buildings become just buildings, except for the fact that they were dedicated to God.  Verse nine adds, And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire.  Nebuzaradan burned God's Temple, the king's palace, the houses of the great men of Jerusalem, and all the houses of Jerusalem.  Nothing was spared.  Without God's protection and His people there, Jerusalem was defenseless, and so are we as Christians today.  Anytime we as individuals or as a nation turn away from God and His commandments, we become defenseless spiritually if not physically.  Verse ten continues, And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about.  After the buildings were burned, the walls of Jerusalem be broken down.  Matthew Henry points out the Temple had stood for 420 or 430 years according to who is counting them, but now God did not spare it.  If we as a nation turn away from God, we should not expect Him to continue to protect us, no matter how long He may have been doing so.  Verse eleven states, Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away.  Nebuzaradan then carried the rest of the people of importance away in captivity.  No one who was considered to be of importance was left.  If people considered to be of importance to God were carried away today, would we be carried away with them or would we be considered of no importance?  Verse twelve adds, But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.  The poor people were left to be vinedressers and husbandmen.  At least the poor people weren't carried away captive, even if they were left in positions of serving those who had defeated them.  We would be better off being poor and not carried away in captivity to some other force in the world and having to serve them physically than we would be if we were completely taken away from a place where God is known to be the ultimate power.  Verse thirteen continues, And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the Lord, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was in the house of the Lord, did the Chaldees break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon.  The Babylonians broke up all the things made of brass in the Temple and took the brass back to Babylon.  They had no fear of destroying the things dedicated to God and to His worship services, and people of the world today still have no fear of destroying things that are dedicated to God and our worship of Him.  Of course, if nearly all the Christians have been taken away captive, as the people of Israel were, then there wouldn't be much need of things that were dedicated to worshipping God.  Verse fourteen says, And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away.  Verse fifteen adds, And the firepans, and the bowls, and such things as were of gold, in gold, and of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away.  These two verses continue to list the things that had been made to be used in worshipping God that were taken away from Jerusalem.  In many places in the world today, those in power still attempt to take away anything that is associated with the worship of God, but they can never take away the Holy Spirit, so as long as we remain true to God, they may take away all our material possessions, but they can never take us away from Him.  Verse sixteen continues, The two pillars, one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the house of the Lord; the brass of all these vessels was without weight.  Verse seventeen concludes, The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the chapiter upon it was brass: and the height of the chapiter three cubits; and the wreathen work, and pomegranates upon the chapiter round about, all of brass: and like unto these had the second pillar with wreathen work.  Some of the brass in the Temple was too heavy to even be weighed.  Still, Matthew Henry points out that since the people had profaned the Temple, God no longer protected it and allowed it to be totally destroyed.  No matter how valuable our houses of worship to God may be today, if they are profaned, then they become of no value to God.  It really is the people and not the buildings that make up God's church, and if the people become profane, then we should not be surprised if destruction comes. 

2 Kings 25:1

2 Kings 25:1 says, And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about.  In the tenth year of his reign in Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar came with all his troops and besieged Jerusalem.  He came to stay as long as necessary it seems, since he had forts built around Jerusalem.  Those who oppose God and His people today are still willing to dig in and stay for as long as necessary to defeat them, but unlike Jerusalem, spiritually they never will.  Of course, we must remain faithful to God for this to be true, and the people of Jerusalem hadn't. Verse two adds, And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.  Jerusalem was besieged for about two years.  I have to wonder if the people inside had turned to God in true repentance and asked Him for deliverance if the siege would have gone on this long, but since they had rejected Him so many times, we will never know.  If we as followers of Christ are besieged by sinful forces in the world today, all we can do is repent of any sin in our life and ask God to deliver us.  Of course, spiritually, He already has.  Verse three continues, And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.  After being besieged for so long, the people of Jerusalem ran out of bread.  These were God's Chosen People that He had fed with bread from heaven in the wilderness, and now in the land flowing with milk and honey that He had given them, due to their disobedience they were starving.  We as Christians should never find ourselves spiritually starving because we have access to the Living Bread.  Verse four states, And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king's garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain.  The people inside, starting with all the men of war, slipped out of the city and Zedekiah the king did as well.  If we find ourselves spiritually starving because of being besieged by the power of evil in the world, we don't need to try and slip away, but we must stand firm in our faith in God.  Our King will never desert us.  Verse five adds, And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him.  Zedekiah and his army were not successful in getting away.  The army of the Chaldeans overtook the king in the plains of Jerico.  We are never going to be successful in trying to escape from the forces of evil by our own strength, but we must always look to God for deliverance.  Verse six adds, So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.  Zedekiah was brought to Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah, and judgment was passed on him.  The only judgment we should ever be concerned about as followers of Christ is God's judgment, and if we have truly accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we have already been pronounced not guilty.  Verse seven states, And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.  All of Zedekiah's sons were killed as he watched, then his eyes were put out, and he was put in brass fetters and carried to Babylon.  Think about the last thing that you see being your children put to death, and then you are left alive to remember it.  Zedekiah, due to his disobedience to God, was about as far removed from being a king as he could be and still be alive.  We need to acknowledge that the world can be a cruel place, sometimes especially to Christians, but we must never lose our faith in Jesus Christ.   

2 Kings 24:8

 2 Kings 24:8 says, Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.  Jehoiachin only ruled for three months, which was one of the shorter reigns.  We have no assurance of how long we will live, so we need to come to Christ for salvation as soon as we hear the gospel.  Putting it off might leave us forever lost.  Verse nine adds, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father had done.  Of course, Jehoiachin did not come to God at all, but did evil in His sights as his father had done.  People tend to follow the example of their parents, but not always.  Still, we as followers of Jesus Christ need to try to live our lives in a way that will point our children to Him.  There are plenty of people who will point them away from Him.  Verse ten continues, At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.  During Jehoiachin's brief reign, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.  This is where God's Chosen People lived, and yet they had failed to live up to their covenant with Him.  As Christians, we enter into a covenant relationship with God through our faith in Jesus Christ, and we need to live in obedience to that covenant through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Even if we do, we will likely be besieged by evil many times in our life.  Verse eleven states, And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it.  This verse repeats the fact that Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.  Verse twelve adds, And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign.  Jehoiachin, when he heard that the king of Babylon had himself come against Jerusalem, he immediately surrendered.  When we face evil in the world today, if we do not put our faith in God, we will never be able to stand against it.  Verse thirteen continues, And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, as the Lord had said.  Nebuchadnezzar took away all the treasures of the house of God and even cut in pieces the vessels of gold that Solomon had made under God's direction.  He had no respect for God nor fear of Him.  There are many countries today that try to remove even any reference to God from their culture, because they have no respect for or fear of Him, but we need to pray that we who call ourselves a Christian nation never become that way.  All this was happening because those who were called God's people had turned away from Him.  Verse fourteen declares, And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.  Nebuchadnezzar carried away all the people of Jerusalem, including what were referred to as their mighty men of valor, and left only the poorest sort of people in the land.  In this case, it would seem that being poor would have been a blessing, because the poorest weren't carried away captive.  People may think of themselves as mighty men of valor, but if they are not putting their faith in God, they may find themselves captive to someone who is more powerful.  Verse fifteen adds, And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.  Jehoiachin and all his family, officers, and mighty men were carried away to Babylon.  If we don't put our faith in Jesus Christ, we will always be a captive of sin, and we may lead others around us to be also.  Verse sixteen continues, And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.  Those who should have stood up and fought against Nebuchadnezzar surrendered without a fight.  I believe that too often as Christians we give up the fight against sin in the world.  Verse seventeen says, And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.  Nebuchadnezzar appointed Jehoiachin's uncle king of Jerusalem in place of him.  Matthew Henry said Jehoiachin was childless, so this was a further indication of how powerless he was.  The people of the world, those who do not believe in God, will always try to have people in power who do not believe in Him either.  The new kings name was changed to Zedekiah, Matthew Henry says to show Nebuchadnezzar's power over him.  Verse eighteen adds, Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.  Zedekiah reigned for eleven years, but he was still under the power of Nebuchadnezzar.  We are either going to be under the power of Satan or under the power of God.  Even if we reach great heights of power, we will still be under the power of one or the other of these two.  There really is no neutral ground.  Verse nineteen continues, And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.  Zedekiah continued to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord, even though he had seen the devastating effects of doing so.  Even as they see the devastating effects of sin ruling their lives, many people still choose to repent and turn to God for salvation.  Verse twenty concludes, For through the anger of the Lord it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.  Though he didn't repent and turn to God for help, Zedekiah eventually rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.  Unless we turn to God for salvation and deliverance from the power of sin, we may rebel against someone in power over us, but even if we are successful in defeating them, we are still lost and doomed spiritually.

2 Kings 24:1

2 Kings 24:1 says, In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him.  Jehoiakim became a servant of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, for three years, and then he rebelled.  Matthew Henry says that Jehoiakim had been subjected to Nebuchadnezzar for a period of time, then Nebuchadnezzar had restored him to power with a promise from Jehoiakim that he would be loyal to him, and then Jehoiakim rebelled.   No matter how powerful a ruler may be today, we as Christians cannot afford to become their servants instead of being God's servants.  We must always stand in opposition to anyone teaching something that is not in accordance with God's word, no matter what it may cost us, and we should never enter into pacts with them to start with just to give us more freedom or power.  Verse two adds, And the Lord sent against him bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by his servants the prophets.  We are told that God then sent several countries against Judah to destroy it as His prophets had said would happen.  Had he remained true to Nebuchadnezzar, he would have been better off than he was when he rebelled.  If we simply rebel against those who are in power in the world so that we may have freedom and power without turning to God for support, we may end up worse off than we were before. Verse three continues, Surely at the commandment of the Lord came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did;  We are the told that the commandment of the Lord came upon Judah to remove them because of the sins of Manasseh for his idolatry and the people following him in that idolatry.  It had been several years since this prophesy, and Josiah had been the best king at following God's commandments, but I don't believe that most of the people ever did.  What we can be sure of is that God's promised judgment is going to come, no matter how many years it takes, and we just have to be faithful to Jesus Christ as long as we live or until He returns.  We will never find assurance and security anywhere else but in our faith in Him.  Verse four states, And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord would not pardon.  There is then the added reason why God had pronounced His judgment on Manasseh, and that was because he had shed innocent blood.  I believe innocent blood would be the blood of those who were faithful to God or the very young, since we are only innocent until we know right from wrong and if we repent and put our faith in Jesus Christ once we do.  We will never be innocent in God's eyes any other way.  Verse five adds, Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?  As always with the kings of Israel and Judah, we are told that the rest of the works of Jehoiakim were recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings.  Verse six continues, So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.  After Jehoiakim died, his son Jehoiachin became king.   God's promise that Judah would be destroyed because of the sins of Manasseh and the people following him in those sins still had not totally come to pass, but that didn't make it less certain that it would happen.  No matter how long it may be before it happens, we can be certain that God's ultimate judgment is coming.  Verse seven concludes, And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt.  Judah didn't have to worry about Egypt at this time, nor could they enter into an agreement with him for protection, because the king of Babylon had taken all the land of Egypt near them.  Just because the threat from one powerful enemy may end, that doesn't mean we are safe, because a more powerful one may have taken his place.  The only way to have real security in this old sinful world is by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord.

2 Kings 23:21

2 Kings 23:21 says, And the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant.  Josiah then told the people to keep the Passover, as it was written in the book of the covenant.  We need to keep God's laws as they are written in the Bible, and we as followers of Christ should not need anyone to tell us to do this, nor should we allow anyone to keep us from doing so.  Matthew Henry says it wasn't enough to just cast out evil, but that it needed to be replaced by doing good.  We may be proud of not doing evil, yet at the same time do nothing good for God. Verse twenty-two adds, Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah;  This Passover was greater than any before, but I don't believe that Josiah was just having a great Passover observation so he could brag about it.  If we do some great thing for God, we should not do it just so we can be praised.  Verse twenty-three continues, But in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, wherein this passover was holden to the Lord in Jerusalem.  Josiah had been in power for eighteen years at this time but had never had a great Passover before evidently.  It may have been the discovery of the book of the covenant that led him to the knowledge that this needed to be done.  It doesn't matter how long we may have been worshipping God, until we follow His word as He preserved it for us in the Bible, we have been missing true worship.  Verse twenty-four states, Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord.  All forms of idolatry and the worship of other gods was done away with.  This was done so that Josiah might perform the words of God written in the book that Hilkiah found in the Temple.  We must get rid of all the things in our life that are not in accordance with God's written word, the Bible.  Verse twenty-five adds, And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.  Josiah was like no other king before him or after in being obedient to God's word as he worshipped Him with all his heart, his soul, and his might. He was even placed above David and Solomon for his obedience to God.  We may not be the most obedient to God of any Christians ever, but that should still be our goal, and not for our glory, but for God's.  Verse twenty-six continues, Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal.  God still didn't turn his wrath away from Judah because of the provocations of Manasseh.  This doesn't sound like the actions of a kind and loving God, but Matthew Henry says that the people probably didn't truly repent and turn to God but pretended to because they feared Josiah or wanted to seem obedient to him.  Appearances are not enough to make things right with God without true repentance and putting our faith in Him, starting with accepting Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord.  We can go through all the motions of being a Christian, but without that personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we are still doomed.  I do know that one day God's judgment is coming on the whole world, and I believe it will be a fair judgement.  Verse twenty-seven says, And the LORD said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.  God said He was going to remove Judah and cast-off Jerusalem and the Temple, or house which was called His, just as He had cast off Israel.  I believe that this was more His removing His protection from them because of their idolatry, but the results were the same either way.  I don't believe that once we are saved by our faith in Jesus Christ that we will ever be cast-off by God, but our actions can lead to our being defeated in this lifetime because God has removed His protection from us.  Verse twenty-eight adds, Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?  As with all the kings of Israel and Judah, we are told that the rest of his actions are recorded in the chronicles of the kings.  Verse twenty-nine continues, In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him.  When the king of Egypt went to war with Assyria, Josiah sided with Assyria and went against Egypt and was killed.  Matthew Henry says that Josiah had no mandate from God and should not have gotten involved in a war between two evil nations.  The more damage they did to each other, the better off Judah would be.  We really don't need to side with any evil nation today if they are fighting each other and not fighting us.  Verse thirty concludes, And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.  Josiah's servants brought his body by chariot back to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb and Jehoahaz his son was made king.  Life goes on, even with the death of one of the greatest kings in all of Israel that was more devoted to doing God's will.  When a great Christian leader dies today, life will go on and someone will replace him, and we need to pray that they are just as dedicated to God.

2 Kings 23:12

2 Kings 23:12 says. And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.  Josiah continued to purge the altars to false gods from Judah.  He even got rid of the altars that were made by Manasseh and brought into the Temple before being removed, supposedly to worship God but were not made at God's direction nor to really worship Him.  We need to rid ourselves of all worship of false gods, but also of false worship of the true God.  Verse thirteen adds, And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile.  There were still high places to worship false gods that had been built by Solomon and allowed to continue to exist all this time it would seem.  Solomon was noted for his wisdom, but his wisdom did not keep him from worshipping false gods at times.  Wisdom is not going to save us.  Only a childlike faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord will.  Verse fourteen continues, And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men.  Josiah continued to destroy the places of worship of false gods.  Matthew Henry said Josiah did all he could to defile these places of worship of false gods.  We need to do all that we can to make the worship of false gods unappealing today.  Sometimes, we look to incorporate practices that are not commanded by God into our worship services.  At times, church buildings can become almost more important than God Himself, I believe.  Verse fifteen states, Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the grove.  Josiah destroyed the altar and high place at Bethel and burned the grove.  The trees weren't really the problem, but the fact that they were being used to worship false gods was.  We may have things in our lives that are not a problem in and of themselves, but if they come between God and us, we need to get rid of them.  Verse sixteen adds, And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.  Matthew Henry says these were likely the bones of the priests of these false gods who had been buried close to the altars as a sign of respect, and Josiah did to their bones what he would have done to them had they been alive.  We are told he did this in accordance with the word of the Lord which the man of God had proclaimed.  We don't need to worship our ancestors and put them above God, and whatever we do should be done in accordance with God's word.  Verse seventeen continues, Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel.  Josiah then saw a tomb with a title over it and asked what it was.  He was told that it was the tomb of the man of God who had proclaimed that the things that Josiah was doing should be done.  This was the prophet who had prophesied about the destruction but then disobeyed God and was killed by a lion according to Matthew Henry.  God's displeasure with him did not last forever, though, and his remains were buried honorably.  Though we are not to worship our ancestors, we can bury them honorably, but we really worship the One Who left His tomb empty, Jesus Christ.  We can also be certain that if we do something to displease God in this world as followers of Christ, that even if He allows us to suffer defeat, it will not last beyond this lifetime.  We are forever His if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ.   Verse eighteen concludes, And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria.  Josiah told them to leave this prophets bones alone, and they did.  This was not done so that he could be worshipped, but simply as a sign of respect for him.  Even if we remember and honor great men of God who have died, we should never view them as anything more than faithful Christians,  Verse nineteen says, And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel.  Josiah continued to purge the nation of all the false places of worship, and we must remove everything from our lives as Christians that would lead us away from God.  Verse twenty adds, And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them, and returned to Jerusalem.  He not only destroyed the high places, but he killed all the priests who had served the false gods there.  I don't think we are called on to slay those who represent false religions today, but we do need to do everything we can to make their message ineffective.   God will deal with them ultimately, and I believe our calling is to always try to reach everyone with the gospel of Jesus Christ, even those who serve and proclaim false gods.

2 Kings 23:5

2 Kings 23:5 says, And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.  Josiah continued by removing the priests who worshipped idols from Jerusalem after receiving a message from God.  Matthew Henry says he was surprised that so much evil had gotten into God's people and that Jerusalem was still destroyed in spite of this great reform.  Of course, he also points out that most of the people didn't really want this reform.  I believe that God will let us know if we have allowed idolatry back into our life, and if we have, when He reveals this to us, we must remove whatever it is from our life.  Verse six adds, And he brought out the grove from the house of the Lord, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people.  Josiah removed the grove, or those things dedicated to the worship of Ashtaroth, the goddess of fertility, from the Temple and ground them to powder and sprinkled them on the graves of the children of the people of Jerusalem.  We need to utterly destroy any idol that comes between God and us.  Verse seven continues, And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the grove.  Josiah also broke down the houses of the sodomites, or those who were defying God's purpose in creating men and women.  He also got rid of the hangings that women there were making to honor other gods.  Matthew Henry says this was likely Venus.  We cannot be a Christian nation and engage in acts that God has called sins.  Verse eight states, And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba, and brake down the high places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand at the gate of the city.  Josiah also brought out all the false priests who had been leading the people of Jerusalem to worship false gods in the high places and groves.  We cannot serve God if we have not made Jesus Chrost our Savior and the only Lord of our life.  Verse nine adds, Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread among their brethren.  These priests of the high places, these false priests, did not come to God's altar, but they ate unleavened bread with their brethren.  They were keeping up an appearance of following God, and some people today come to God's house, the church building, to keep up the appearance of being a Christian, but they then go away to worship other gods.  Verse ten continues, And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.  Josiah also got rid of the places of the worship of Molech, which had caused them to have their children pass through the fire or burning them in a sacrifice to this false god. We can never justify sacrificing our children, born or unborn, to any idol, even if it is just the idol of selfishness on our part.  Verse eleven concludes, And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.  Josiah also took away the horses that had been dedicated to the god of the sun and placed at the entrance to the Temple.  He also destroyed the chariots that had been dedicated to the god of the sun.  We must remove anything and everything from our lives as Christians that comes between God and us.