The Discovery of the Book of the Law
In the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign, while the Temple in Jerusalem was being repaired, the High Priest Hilkiah discovered a scroll described as a 'scroll of the Teaching,' which is commonly identified with an early form of the book of Deuteronomy. When its words were read before the king, Josiah was moved to repentance over how far the people had departed from the commandments it contained.
Josiah sent to consult the prophetess Huldah, who confirmed the authenticity and authority of the scroll. This recovery of the Law became the catalyst for the king's covenant renewal and for the religious reforms by which his reign is chiefly remembered.
Covenant Renewal and Reforms
Following the discovery of the Law, Josiah entered into a renewed covenant with God and undertook a thorough reform of worship throughout his kingdom. He destroyed idols, dismantled the high places and sacred poles, removed the pagan priesthood, and purged the false religious practices that had taken root in the land. His reforms reached beyond the borders of Judah into territory that had formerly belonged to the northern kingdom of Israel.
As part of this restoration Josiah reinstituted the celebration of the Passover in Jerusalem. The reign is presented in scripture as the high point of faithful kingship, with Josiah uniquely carrying out the requirements of the Law in full.
Death at Megiddo
In 609 BC Josiah confronted Pharaoh Necho II of Egypt at Megiddo, as the Egyptian army advanced toward the territory of the collapsing Assyrian Empire. He was fatally wounded in the encounter and died, bringing his reign to an end. His death is mourned in the biblical record as a great loss for Judah.
Among the Forefathers of Christ
Josiah is numbered among the genealogy of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, and so among the ancestors of the Lord according to the flesh. The Orthodox Church commemorates him with the Holy Forefathers, the righteous men and women who lived before the Law and under the Law and whose faith prepared for the coming of Christ.
This commemoration is observed especially on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers, the Sunday falling between December 11 and 17 before the Nativity, when the Church remembers the ancestors of Christ together, particularly the Patriarch Abraham, to whom God promised that in his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed.
