KING JOSIAH

His chief exploits are not given to battle with a physical enemy as such, he was more like we should be. He fought spiritual enemies. It was he who destroyed all the idols and idolatrous temples and shrines as prophesied 300 years earlier,Josiah by name I Kings 13:1-3.He defiled the high places by burning the bones and spreading the ashes over them. This would not in disrespect to the poor who was buried here but it made it unclean for worship to the jews and to the heathens also.The presence of a dead carcass made it unclean to both.It was defiling the very lands were they worshipped. There were houses of Sodomites next to the temple of God and the women were in the temple of God weaving baskets for other gods. These Asherah poles have changed throughout times,but in all they were fertility symbols.Horns[power], phallic images,or as today steeples, crosses and some churches just have a pole on the roof. It's strange how we do the same things these people did and not realize it,neither question were such customs and images come from.God constantly warned His people, follow not the ways or customs of the inhabitants of the land that He was displacing.The same would happen to us, as we defile the land. Most wealthy or prosperous religion's of today still have these practices.Praying to dead saints or angels for protection, wealth. Special blessings to receive wealth through incantations, such as money cometh or increase my borders through prayer of Jabez. Miracle works through portions(i.e. anoited oil)or other objects, such as hankerchiefs,prayer cloths,the appearing of some blessed imageof some dead biblical personage).All this in the notion as the Apostle Paul spoke of,"supposing that gain is godliness". In effect he was a man on a mission. He was more zealous for God in this than his father (great grandfather) Hezekiah. He did allow some of the priest of the high places to partake of Passover feast, as we should according to scripture. The apostle Paul said this was not discerning the Lord's body but as Jeremiah was told this was the cup of His wrath to His enemies that all nations would drink of. In the epistle of Jude, they were considered spots in the love feasts, men of old ordained unto this condemnation. Josiah was able to accomplish the reforms that he did,because God had weakened Assyria's power as a great nation. They were on their way out as a nation. They were at war with Pharoah Neco, and was soon to be annihilated by Babylon, as the prophet Nahum had declared in his prophecy.

Josiah and his nobles also kept the largest or most commendable passover feast in Israel. He provided out of his,and his nobles own funds the sacrifices for the passover. Probably because the people who were left in the land wwere not very wealthy, the King of Assyria had deported most of the people and nobles out of the land when he took Israel into captivity.Josiah had already committed the people anew to the covenant of God, when the Book of The Law was found while repairing the temple. It seemed thought more of a forced allegiance to God than at the time of Hezekiah's passover. In this passover unlike Hezekiah all the people were in their proper places, even though the priest of the high places of Judah were allowed to partake of it, they did not help in serving it. Only the priestly line of Aaron and the levites served it. This is very symbolic of the present day church age whereas everyone will partake of the wine or spirit of Christ, to some unto salvation, but yet to others it will be the cup of the wrath of His fury.The body of Christ are made up of members with each having their own place or calling. You are call in one hope of your calling, so make sure of the hope of it. Don't be like the angels who left their first estate to operate in places that you are not suppose to be in. The body of Christ is fitly joined together.

His final days were brought about by not taking heed to the word spoken by a pagan king. We should never doubt the ability of God to speak to us through many channels, as Baalim's ass,the cock crowing or many things God may choose.It could be a small still voice, the roar of the beast,we have to be discerning of the will of God and walk circumspectably in this world. Pharoh Neco told him that it was from God for him to attack Assyria, and that Josiah should not try to interfere to his own hurt(death).As reported in the new testament, we should be of a good report even from those that are without(not a christian). When Josiah did not listen but disguised himself, he was killed in battle. Sometimes we have to be whom we are and allow the Lord to fight all our battles. It is not known what Josiah was thinking about, because King Neco explained to him that his fight was not with him. In this day and time we as christians should not always rush to defend others or be in a hurry to crush satan, after all Jesus left satan here for a purpose.It was already ordained of God that evil was ordained for Judah, besides as the apostle Paul stated "save yourself from this untoward generation,and with fear and trembling work out your own salvaltion. God had told him through the Prophetess that he would go down to the grave in peace, but Josiah may have taken this to heart thinking himself to be invincible. Tempt not the Lord thy God, Christians shouldn't be fighting a physical battle, it's the Lord's battle. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but spiritual wickness.It is by My Spirit says The Lord, not by might, or power. As the wisest man ever lived stated in Proverbs, "He that meddle with strife that is not his, is like one who grabs a dog by the ears".

Josiah was a type and shadow of many characters in the bible and in the latter times of saints that will arise on the scene. We seen him as a type of Jesus, in that He was instrumental in trying to get the people fully committed in the Word of God. When they found the Book of The Law,He knew that the people were in grave trouble with God, because they had forsaken His Law.

As contemplatives, we have to be as John of The Cross, or Teresa of Avila,we have to start to contemplate on our lives not others and bring them into harmony with God. As we brgin to see ourselves as vile sinners,it creates a humility and poorness in spirit that God can enrich with the power of His spirit working mightily in us. But if through our thoughts and desires we attempt to conquer the world and every demon behind every bush we become and avenger and not a soldier for God,we should present our bodies daily as a living sacrifice for his services, thus we die daily.We begin to relate to others because we see we have done those same things, as Paul said in I corinthians and such were some of you before the Grace of God was shed upon us.After all his doings for the people only he was saved from the devastation to come, the Lord's fierce anger was not turned away from the peopl. As is today, the keeping of His word by some will not turn away the Day of The Lord that is coming upon this world. So with fear and trembling work out your own salvation.