The Zeal of a King...Yet, the Captivity of a Nation

I finished reading 2 Kings this morning. My favorite part of the whole book is the account of Josiah, king of Judah, and how he very zealously followed the Book of the Law, which had been found by a priest in the Temple. After having been read the law by the priest, Josiah tore his clothes and lamented bitterly that they, the people of God, had abandoned His laws. Josiah then went all over Judah and completely destroyed all the pagan places of worship. He burned the pagan altars, idols, and he even executed pagan priests. He gathered all the people of Judah and made a covenant with God that they would worship and love none but Him. After reading this account, I thought, "Surely God will relent and his wrath will subside and He won't destroy this nation! Surely He will look on the great zeal and Godliness of Josiah and give Judah another chance." I was wrong. God did not relent. Judah continued to rebel and worship idols, and He allowed Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, to come into Jerusalem and take them captive. Jerusalem was the city where God would "put His name forever." How is God's name there forever if His people are taken captive by a pagan king? Did God really break His covenant with His chosen nation? The answer, of course, is no. God never breaks a promise; otherwise, He wouldn't be God. He had clearly told Moses and the Israelites that if they followed His commandments they would be blessed; and if they chose disobedience, they would be cursed. In a national sense, it didn't matter that Josiah (and others) were Godly kings that loved the Lord their God. God is still God, and He did what He said He would do if Israel disobeyed.


2 Kings has taught me several things:

1. Our God is FULL of great mercy. Way back in the book of Exodus, God told Moses that Israel would be cursed if they disobeyed and did not repent. Yet, they did not go into captivity until hundreds of years later. The Lord gave them chance after chance to repent.
2. God always has and always will keep His promises. He promised that He would bless them if they obeyed, and He did. He promised that He would curse them if they disobeyed, and He did.
3. Our sins have consequences, even when we repent. King Josiah repented of the sins of the nation, but Judah was still put under captivity.
4. What a treasure we have been given in Jesus Christ! In Him, Jews and Gentiles alike have a Redeemer that has paid the price to free us from the captivity of sin.