Study Desk

So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the woman prophet. Huldah was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, son of Harhas. He took care of the priests' clothes. Huldah was living in the second quarter in Jerusalem. They went and talked with Huldah.

"King Josiah of Judah sent you to ask advice from the Lord . Tell Josiah that this is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: ‘You heard the words I spoke against this place and those who live here. And when you heard those things, your heart was soft, and you showed your sorrow before the Lord . I said that terrible things would happen to this place. So you tore your clothes to show your sadness, and you began to cry. That is why I heard you.' This is what the Lord says.

‘I will bring you to be with your ancestors. You will die and go to your grave in peace. So your eyes will not see all the trouble that I am bringing on this place.'" Then Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah gave that message to the king.

Then the king went up to the Lord 's Temple. All the people of Judah and the people who lived in Jerusalem went with him. The priests, the prophets, and all the people—from the least important to the most important—went with him. Then he read the Book of the Agreement. This was the Book of the Law that was found in the Lord's Temple. Josiah read the book so that all the people could hear it.

Topheth was a place in the Valley of Hinnom's Son where people killed their children and burned them on an altar to honor the false god Molech. Josiah ruined that place so that no one could use it again.

Josiah said, "Leave the man of God alone. Don't move his bones." So they left his bones and the bones of the man of God from Samaria.

Josiah killed all the priests of the high places that were in Samaria. He killed the priests on those altars and burned men's bones on the altars so that they could never be used again. Then he went back to Jerusalem.

Pharaoh Neco put Jehoahaz in prison at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Jehoahaz could not rule in Jerusalem. Pharaoh Neco forced Judah to pay 7500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold.

Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh. But Jehoiakim made the common people pay taxes and used that money to give to Pharaoh Neco. So everyone paid their share of silver and gold, and King Jehoiakim gave the money to Pharaoh Neco.

The king of Babylon captured all the land between the Brook of Egypt and the Euphrates River. This land was previously controlled by Egypt. So the king of Egypt did not leave Egypt anymore.

The Lord became so angry with Jerusalem and Judah that he threw them away. Zedekiah rebelled and refused to obey the king of Babylon.

So King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and all his army came to fight against Jerusalem. This happened on the 10th day of the tenth month of Zedekiah's ninth year as king. Nebuchadnezzar put his army around Jerusalem to stop people from going in and out of the city. Then he built a wall of dirt around the city.

He let only the poorest of the common people stay there. He let them stay so that they could take care of the grapes and other crops.

So Nebuzaradan took the large bronze tank and the 2 bronze columns. (Each column was about 31 feet tall. The capitals on the columns were over 5 feet tall. They were made from bronze and had a design like a net and pomegranates. Both columns had the same kind of design.) He also took the carts that Solomon made for the Lord 's Temple. The bronze from these things was too heavy to be weighed.

The army captains were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth from Netophah, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite. These army captains and their men heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, so they went to Mizpah to meet with him.

Judah's daughter-in-law Tamar gave birth to Perez and Zerah. So Judah had five sons.

This happened during the time that Hezekiah was king of Judah. These men came to Gedor and fought against the Hamites. They destroyed the tents of the Hamites. They also fought against the Meunites who lived there. These men destroyed all the Meunites. There are no Meunites in this place even today. So these men began to live there. They lived there because the land had grass for their sheep.

Reuben was Israel's first son. Reuben should have received the special privileges of the oldest son. But he had sexual relations with his father's wife. So those privileges were given to Joseph's sons. In the family history, Reuben's name is not listed as the first son. Judah became stronger than his brothers, so the leaders came from his family. But Joseph's family got the other privileges that belong to the oldest son. Reuben's sons were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

Beerah was Baal's son. King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria forced Beerah to leave his home. So Beerah became the king's prisoner. Beerah was a leader of the tribe of Reuben.

The men from the tribes of Manasseh, Reuben, and Gad prayed to God during the war. They asked God to help them because they trusted him, so God helped them. He allowed them to defeat the Hagrites and those who were with the Hagrites.