2 Chronicles 35:1-27
35:1-6 Josiah reinstated the law of God in the land of Judah, and that called for the return of the Passover.
Initially, the Passover was a celebration which essentially symbolized the covenant the twelve tribes of Israel made with God. In Exodus 12, God informed the righteous that He would pass through the land of Egypt and eliminate the corruption within it. God's children put lamb's blood over their doors to signify their faith. In His sweep through the land, God passed over the homes which were marked by the lamb.
It was an act of foreshadowing. In the New Testament, to be marked by the lamb is to have put Jesus (and the word of God) over our door and heart. Jesus became the sacrificial lamb on the cross; thus the life of Jesus transformed the Passover celebration. Jesus became our Passover, 1 Corinthians 5-7. In the spring, we now celebrate Jesus' Resurrection as the Passover celebration.
35:7-15 Josiah followed the Book of the Law in the context of his time; he ensured that the Passover was celebrated precisely how the children of Israel, led by Moses, had first celebrated it. Sacrifice is now a defunct practice; in Isaiah 1:11, God declared the practice disused. But for the kingdom of Judah under Josiah's reign, it was celebrated in the spirit of Moses' obedience and David's joy for God.
35:16-19 Before Josiah, the last time the Passover was kept with such adherence and vigor was during the prophet Samuel's life! God and Samuel had warned the tribes of Israel and Judah that their life would decrease in quality under the leadership of kings. They refused to listen and steadily, the two kingdoms fell into spiritual disrepair.
35:20-24 Josiah was wounded and killed anonymously in a battle with the king of Egypt. He had been advised not to join it, and we are not given enough information to understand why he rejected the advice. God had postponed Judah's discipline because of Josiah's heartfelt commitment to righteousness, but eventually, Josiah's life ended and a new season began.
35:25-27 Josiah was the last righteous king of Judah; he lived and reigned in accordance with God's will as no king after him would. The Book of Chronicles was written to re-inspire God's people as they were released from the captivity the corruption in these chapters culminated in. The period of discipline and repercussion was over; it was time to spiritually recommit and rebuild.
