GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
2 CHRONICLES 34:20-22
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20 Then he commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, 21 “Go and inquire of the LORD for me and for those who remain in Israel and in Judah, about the words of the scroll that has been found; for great is the anger of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD; they have not done what is written in this scroll.” 22 So Hilkiah and those whom the king had sent went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter. They spoke to her about this.
King Josiah sent a delegation of five men to go and inquire of the Lord. The delegation is a remarkable group. Hilkiah was the high priest. Assuming that no names are missing from the list in 1 Chronicles 6, he was twenty-first high priest of Israel, going back to Aaron.
We also have Shaphan the king’s secretary and Asaiah “the king’s servant.” The inclusion of these two men seems practical; they would report back everything to Josiah.
The other two names require a little more thought; the reason for their inclusion is not evident right away. The man named Abdon was named after one of the Judges (Judges 12:13). But it is his father’s name that interests me more. He is called the son of Micah, and is it possible that he is the son of the Prophet Micah? Micah and Isaiah were contemporaries, and Isaiah had probably been murdered by Josiah’s grandfather, and therefore a son of the prophet Micah would fit perfectly into the chronology of our passage. Was he sent along because he was, as it were, the closest connection that the king had to any of Judah’s prophets?
The other man was Ahikam the son of Shaphan. Was he chosen because of his faith and wisdom? This is the only reference to Ahikam in Chronicles, but there are nineteen other mentions of this man’s name, three in 2 Kings and rest all in Jeremiah. Almost always described as “Ahikam son of Shaphan,” this man will show loyalty as the protector of the prophet Jeremiah (see Jeremiah 26:24). And it will be revealed in the book of Jeremiah that this man’s son was the Gedeliah who would become the governor of Judah after the last king was taken into exile (Jeremiah 40:7). He frequently quoted the messages of Jeremiah to the people to comfort all of the remnant that stayed behind after so many of the Jews were taken away into captivity (Jeremiah 40:9).
Now that we’ve given our five guys a once-over, we come upon a detail that leaves many heads scratching. The only prophet in town is a woman named Huldah. Female prophets (prophetesses) are not scarce in the Bible. To Huldah we can add the names of Miriam, Deborah and Anna, and also the wicked Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:14) and “that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess” in Jesus’ message to the church in Thiatira (Revelation 2:20). Was Abdon’s father Micah (if he was the prophet Micah) already dead? Isaiah was gone. Amos, Hosea, and others were long dead. Was Huldah the only prophet at this time? Perhaps. Certainly she was the only one in Jerusalem. The delegation went to her. They found her home in “the second district,” probably someplace west of the main city walls. I have to admit having some affection for this woman because my great-grandmother, who died when I was a very small boy, was also named Huldah.
The law in this passage is simple and clear: “Great is the anger of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD; they have not done what is written in this scroll.” The king had no doubt about the guilt of the nation, and this included himself. Not every sin that stains us was committed by us: this is the burden of original sin. And not every sin that condemns us is understood to be a sin: this is the burden of ignorance of the law of God. Inherited, original sin, and sins stemming from ignorance, are still sins. They still condemn. The king was right and wise to send a delegation to find out from one of the Lord’s prophets what should be done.
The word prophet in Hebrew means “a spokesman, a speaker; a go-between.” The prophet proclaims the word of God whenever the revealed word of God is unclear. Josiah might have studied the rediscovered scroll for years without understanding what truly needed to be done.
But was there anything to be done at all? Would a sacrifice appease God’s wrath over the sins of the past seventy-five years? Would the blood of lambs and bulls atone for the way that God’s people had simply turned away from God and embraced idolatry in the days of the king’s father and grandfather?
The gospel in this passage is presented in the faith of King Josiah. Knowing he was guilty, he sought the word of the Lord. He put his trust in God, preferring to fall into the hands of the living God rather than into the hands of some enemy, just as David had done three centuries before when the site for the temple was chosen. David had said: “I am in great distress. Please let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great, but do not let me fall into the hands of men” (1 Chronicles 21:13).
The mercy of God covers over the sins of those who repent. We confess our sins, knowing that we are guilty, but trusting the promises and in the blood of Jesus Christ for our forgiveness. And “the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him” (Daniel 9:9). So do not hide your sins from him. Who could ever hide their sins from God? Seek him, as Josiah did. Look to him for mercy and forgiveness. Even if our sins have consequences here in this brief lifetime, the eternal debt for those sins is already paid, and never needs to be paid again. Trust in the cross. Trust in the resurrection, trust in eternal life. For Christ our crucified. Lord is the resurrection and the life.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
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Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota
God’s Word for You – 2 Chronicles 34:20-22 The delegation