Bookmark Daily Bible Reading Calendar By: Ehimwenma E. Aimiuwu – Please LIKE us on Facebook
2 Kings 20:
Hezekiah, king of Judah, got sick and was dying. Isaiah told him that God wanted him to put his house in order and die. Hezekiah then prayed to God about how faithful he had been and God gave him 15 more years to live. God also promised that he would defend Judah for his sake and David’s sake. The king of Babylon sent envoys to Judah and Hezekiah showed them all that he had. Isaiah then told Hezekiah that a time would come when Babylon will take all that Judah has along with his sons and make them slaves. Hezekiah replied that the word of God was good to him as long as there was peace and security in his lifetime. How pitiful!!! What a great king and father!!! Hezekiah started out as a good king and that was why he got 15 extra years, but how good is he really with such a statement for his own sons? I guess the difference between a good and bad man considering all our imperfections is quite slim.
2 Kings 21:
Manasseh, son of Hezekiah became king of Judah. This king rebuilt the altars of idols that his father tore down, sacrificed his son to idols, utilized divination and fortune-telling, built altar for all the hosts of heaven (sun, moon, & stars), and also built altars for many idols inside the temple of God. God said Manasseh had done more evil that all the nations around had ever done because he corrupted the whole of Judah to sin through idolatry. God promised that he was going to make Jerusalem and Judah prey to its enemies. Amon, Manasseh’s son, became king of Judah and was as terrible as his father. His servants killed him and the people destroyed those servants. Josiah, his son, became king. I wonder seriously about the Jews. Despite all the special attention from God and a king trying to set the path straight, they still rebel against God within a generation.
2 Kings 22:
Josiah, king of Judah, was 8 when he became king and did what was right in God’s eyes. Josiah sent his servant to the high priest to give the money of the temple of God to the builder so that they could repair the house of God. The high priest did so and also gave the book he had found to the king’s servant to give to the king. It was the book of Law. When Josiah heard the words of God’s laws, he was displeased with his ancestors and Judah for living a life of disobedience. So the king sent his servants to the prophetess to inquire from God and it was told that destruction was coming to Judah. As for king Josiah, he will die in peace and will not see the destruction because of how he humbled himself before God. No matter how few, God still singles out the good for special treatment. It pays to be good even when it is unpopular in the society.
2 Kings 23:
King Josiah of Judah gathered the people into the house of God and read the law of God to all. He then made a covenant with God to follow his ways. Josiah removed all the idols and the priest that served them. He got rid of the male prostitute cults that were in the house of God, got rid of the horses and chariots dedicated to heavenly host (moon, sun, stars, birds), and even the altars of idols for each king as far back as the time of king Solomon. What a shame!!! This meant a current king did not destroy or improve upon the altar or shrine of his father. Instead, he built his own altar for idols even in the house of God. Madness indeed!!! Josiah even re-introduced the Passover that was last celebrated in the time of the Judges. So from the time of King Saul till now, even King David and all the great prophets forgot to celebrate how the angel of death passed over the Jewish camp to go kill the Egyptians to set them free. What an ungrateful people!!! Pharaoh Neco of Egypt killed Josiah and his son, Jehoahaz, became king of Judah. Neco captured Jehoahaz and made him stay in Egypt. Neco then made his brother king of Judah instead and gave him the name Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim gave all that Judah has to Egypt as tribute and was a bad king. Why would an ungrateful people even against God ever have peace? So Egypt came to rule Jerusalem after freedom from slavery.