State five reforms carried out by King Josiah in the worship of Yahweh in Israel

reforms carried out by King Josiah in the worship of Yahweh in Israel

1. Repairing the temple so that it would be a place for worship.
2. Leading a national ceremony to renew the covenant faith.
3. Cleansing the temple of Jerusalem of idols and foreign objects of worship.
4. Ordering the destruction of high places and shrines where idols were worshipped throughout Judah.
5. He dismissed all priests associated with idolatry from serving in the temple.
6. Ordering for the celebration of the Passover during the year of his restoration in Jerusalem.
7. Humbling himself and showing true repentance when he was warned by prophet Hildah about God’s punishment.

Detailed response

Introduction

​King Josiah’s reforms are also called Deuteronomic Reforms. 
Josiah was king of Judah from 641 to 609 B.C. He ascended to the throne at the tender age of 8 and reigned for 31 years. The three decades of Josiah’s reign were characterized by peace, prosperity and reform; they were among the happiest years experienced by Judah. King Josiah devoted himself to pleasing God and reinstituting Israel’s observance of the Mosaic Law. 

The reforms were called Deuteronomic Reforms because the book of the Law found in the Temple of Jerusalem (c. 622 BC), which was the basis of the reform, is considered by scholars to be the same as the law code in the Book of Deuteronomy (chapters 12–26). The reform consisted of removing pagan altars and idols from the Temple, destroying rural sanctuaries and fertility cults, and centralizing worship at the Temple of Jerusalem.

Three Stages Of Reform

• ​A. At age 16, Josiah began to seek the Lord.
  • He was blessed with God-fearing advisors who resisted the idolatrous influence of his father (2 Chronicles 34:3a).
  • They would have taught him that the times of greatest national prosperity had been those of faithful and earnest allegiance to God and His service.

• B. At age 20, Josiah began to cleanse Jerusalem.
  • His reform was even more extensive than that of his predecessor, Hezekiah (cf. 2 Kings 18:4; 2 Chronicles 29:3-36).
  • Josiah extended the destruction of the altars of the Baals and the wooden, carved, and molded images as far north as the cities of Naphtali — at the time Israel was nominally controlled by Assyria (2 Chronicles 34:3b-7).
  • The Mount of Olives had been a “mount of corruption” because of the high places erected by Solomon, but Josiah restored it (2 Kings 23:13-14).
  • Josiah also uncovered the altar of wicked Jeroboam as well as the tomb of the prophet who had warned him; and thus Josiah fulfilled the prophecy of 1 Kings 13:1-5 (2 Kings 23:15-18).5. His efforts were aided by the death of the great Assyrian king, Ashurbanipal, which brought about a serious decline in Assyria’s power and allowed Josiah freedom to pursue his reforms.
• C. At age 26, Josiah ordered the temple repairs.
  • A copy of the book of the law was discovered (2 Chronicles 34:14-15). When it was read to Josiah, he was horrified to learn how far Judah had departed from the law.
  • This discovery provided a new momentum for the reformation that was already in progress (2 Kings 23:4-20).
  • He celebrated the Passover, hoping that this would remind the people of their obligation to God (2 Kings 23:21-23; 2 Chronicles 35:1-19).

• D. In 609 B.C., Josiah attempted to block Pharaoh Necho II of Egypt as he marched north to assist Assyria in her fight with Babylon.
  • Despite the Pharaoh’s assurance to the contrary, Josiah saw Necho’s northern campaign as a threat to Judah’s security.
    • Necho wanted Assyria as a buffer state between Egypt and Babylon. Had Necho’s plan been successful, the country of Israel could not have survived.
    • Josiah engaged him at Megiddo, and Necho was forced to lose valuable time besieging the city.
  • The archers shot at Josiah and seriously wounded him. He was returned to Jerusalem where he died. His death was followed by widespread lamentation (2 Chronicles 35:20-27; Jeremiah 22:10-12).