Josiah Renews the Covenant

Title Ideas: The lost book [is found].Young king Josiah and the lost book. King Josiah removes idol worship from the land [country]. King Josiah turns his people back to the Lord.

Many years after the Assyrian army destroyed Israel Land in the north, there was a new king in Judah Land in the south. His name was Josiah. He became king at age eight years, when men killed his father.

When he was grown, Josiah wanted to repair the temple in Jerusalem. So he ordered the Jewish high priest: “Pay for repairs from the money that you have collected from the [Jewish] people!”

After [As] workers began making repairs to the temple, they found an old book [rolled paper / scroll]. It was [a copy of] God’s Law that the prophet Moses had written for the Israelite kings and people 900 [nine hundred] years before.

One day, an official reported to King Josiah on repairs made to the temple, and said, “Here is an ancient book [rolled paper scroll] that the workers found!” The king replied, “Read to me from the book!”

As Josiah was listening to the official read God’s Law book, he tore his clothes to show his sorrow [dismay], and said, “The Lord is angry with us, because our ancestors did not obey his laws! Let us go ask the Lord what we must do!”

So King Josiah sent the high priest to the Lord’s prophetess. She said, “Yes! The Lord will one day destroy Jerusalem. But he will not do so while King Josiah remains alive!”

Next, Josiah ordered the Judah [Judean] elders [leaders] and many people to come to the temple. There he read to them from the Lord’s Law Book [scroll / rolled paper]. All together, the king and all the other people prayed, “O Lord! We truly promise to obey you and your laws!”

Josiah ordered the priests, “Remove from the temple all idols that people have used to worship false gods and stars! Burn all those idols outside the city walls!”

Josiah also ordered, “Tear down [destroy] all the altars, [stone] pillars and [wooden] poles that King Solomon built for his wives who worshiped false gods and goddesses!”

In all Judah Land, Josiah’s soldiers removed [killed] priests who made sacrifices to false gods, and he destroyed every place where people used to burn their children as offerings to a false god.

Josiah also sent men to destroy all the idol worship places that kings had built in Israel [Land]. Next he sent them to tear down all the worship places in every town in Israel Land, [and to kill all who speak to dead spirits].

Lastly, Josiah ordered the people, “You must celebrate [keep / observe] the Passover feast to the Lord as Moses ordered us to do in the Lord’s laws!”

No other king had ever turned [gone /[come / came] back to the Lord in the way that Josiah did so. He obeyed the Lord’s Law book completely, in his heart [thoughts] and in his actions.