SERIES N --- THE EXILE --- LESSON 17

JOSIAH’S IMPACT

KING JOSIAH’S GREAT PASSOVER

From 2 Kings 23:21-23, 28-30; 2 Chronicles 35:1-27

During King Josiah’s eighteenth year as king, he arranged for a great Passover feast to be held on the fourteenth day of the first month, which was the first day of April. The lambs for the Passover were killed on the evening before the fourteenth. The king appointed the priests to their proper places and encouraged them to serve in the temple again. Josiah gave the following orders to the teaching Levites who were dedicated to Adonai, [Since you do not have the responsibility of carrying the Ark on your shoulders, for it is permanently placed in Solomon’s temple, you should organize yourselves by divisions, according to the directions of King David and King Solomon. Stand in the holy place according to the clans of Israel so that you may help the people as they bring their Passover lambs. Kill the lambs, sanctify yourselves, and prepare to help the people who come, according to the Word of Adonai which He gave through Moses.] King Josiah himself gave thirty thousand lambs and young goats for the Passover, and his officials also gave generously. The temple officials, Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, gave twenty-six hundred sheep and goats to the priests as well as three hundred oxen. The Levite chiefs, Conaniah, Shemaiah, Nethanel, Jeiel, Jozabad, and Hashabiah, gave five thousand sheep and goats and five hundred oxen to the Levites as Passover offerings. When all of the preparations for the Passover feast had been completed and the priests and Levites were all in their proper places as King Josiah had commanded, the Levites killed the Passover lambs, and when they had prepared the animals in the proper manner, the priests sprinkled the blood upon the altar. The Levites kept the animals for burnt offerings in separate places according to the different clans, so that each clan might offer its own sacrifices to Adonai, as required by the Law of Moses. They also followed the Law of Moses in roasting the Passover lambs over the fire and boiling the other consecrated offerings in pots, kettles, and pans, which they brought quickly to the people to eat. After the people had eaten, the Levites prepared the Passover meal for themselves and the priests, the descendants of Aaron, for the priests had been busy from morning till late afternoon with the burnt offerings and fat offerings. The singers, who had descended from Asaph, sang in their proper places as King David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the prophet had specified hundreds of years earlier. Since the Levites took care of the offerings for the gatekeepers, they did not need to leave their stations at the gates. The Passover feast was completed by the end of the day. Every burnt offering had been presented according to King Josiah’s instructions. The people who took part in the Passover stayed seven more days to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread. There had never been such a Passover celebration since the time of Samuel the prophet, for not one of the kings of Judah had planned one this great, with so many priests and Levites and people from all over the land taking part. All this took place in the eighteenth year of King Josiah’s reign. As time passed, Pharaoh Necho of Egypt went to war against the Assyrians at Carchemish on the Euphrates River. Josiah sided with Assyria and went to fight against Egypt. Pharaoh Necho, however, sent messengers to Josiah with this warning, [What are we doing, fighting each other? I do not want to fight you, but only the king of Assyria. Adonai has Commanded me to hurry. Stop interfering with Adonai’s plans, or He may destroy you.] Josiah would not retreat and go home; he did not believe that Adonai had truly sent Pharaoh Necho. Instead, he disguised himself and went to fight in the plain of Megiddo, thinking that he would not be recognized when he put aside his royal robes. Nevertheless, Egyptian archers mortally wounded Josiah. [Take me away from the battle, for I am wounded,] he told his men. The men removed him from his battle chariot and carried him to Jerusalem in another chariot. Soon after arriving at Jerusalem, King Josiah died and was buried in the royal tombs. A great funeral was held in his honour, for all the people mourned for him, including Jeremiah the prophet and the temple singers. Jeremiah composed a special lamentation for Josiah, and the men and women singers did likewise. These lamentations were preserved and were often used in Israel at special times of mourning in the years that followed. The rest of King Josiah’s life, including the many good deeds which he did and the ways he followed the Law of Adonai, is recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel and Judah. After his death, his son Jehoahaz ruled in his place over Judah.

COMMENTARY

THE PASSOVER

One of the most ancient Israelite customs was the Passover, which came to be the major feast of the year. It was a day set aside to mark the Israelites’ deliverance from Egyptian bondage. Twenty-four hours long, it began on the night of the full moon in the first month of the year, during spring. At twilight, the father killed a lamb and sprinkled its blood on the doorpost of his house. Then roasted, the lamb was eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Wearing clothes for a journey, the family ate quickly. Food left unfinished was burned; nothing remained for the next day. But the meal was a ritual, and it was conducted and explained in the following way. When all were assembled, the youngest son asked the father the meaning of the Passover meal. The story of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt was the reply, and it gave meaning to the elements of the feast. The blood stood for the lamb’s blood on the doorposts of the Israelite homes in Egypt. Adonai’s Angel of Death spared the firstborn sons only from homes marked in that way. The bitter herbs served as a reminder of the bitter life Israelites led as slaves in Egypt. Unleavened bread reflected the lack of time to let bread rise before the Exodus. Travel dress and haste also represented the Hebrews’ rapid exit from Egypt. The Feast of Unleavened Bread began the day after Passover. For seven days only unleavened bread was eaten with meals. This too commemorated the escape from Egypt. Eventually Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread became one. The entire festival season was called Passover, or [Pesach.] King Josiah brought about major changes in the celebration. The Passover meal had been a family feast, celebrated in the home, while the Feast of Unleavened Bread had been a pilgrim feast -- families and whole villages travelled to a sanctuary to celebrate and worship together. Josiah ruled that the Passover sacrifice be offered at the altar of the Jerusalem temple, and Passover became a pilgrim feast as well. The two feasts may have been combined at that time. The celebration at Jerusalem also brought other changes to the Passover ritual. Among them, the lamb’s blood was sprinkled upon the altar by temple priests. The centuries after Josiah brought many changes to the Passover feast. Today, the Passover feast -- changed even more, but once again celebrated in the home -- is called the [seder.] The entire festival lasts seven or eight days, during which time observant Jews eat the unleavened bread called [matzos.] The Passover has kept its meaning as a remembrance of Adonai’s actions in Israel’s past.