"and Amos the father of Josiah," - Matthew 1:10c

Years ago, as a little child, my brother and I went wandering through the attic, going through all the things that my parents had collected and stored over the years. We found hats and books, old builders magazines and box tops, and bottle caps, a wide variety of clothes and shoes. The list goes on. Then, we ran across an old chest. It wasn’t very large but to us it seemed massive. We wiped away the dust and cracked open the lid. As we slowly lifted the cover we found a wide variety of military items. For two young boys it was a treasure trove! We found old pictures of our dad in uniform, MRE’s (meals ready to eat), empty ammo boxes, and an old decorative bayonet. It was as if we discovered a new world that we had never known! We knew that our dad had served, but we were young and didn’t even really know what that meant. From there of course we had all sorts of questions. We learned about the Army and about other relatives that had served. It was an amazing find!

In 2 Kings 22, we see a similar story of young king, Josiah, with the help of the high priest Hilkiah, who comes across the Book of the Law as they are repairing the temple. The term “Book of the Law” is a phrase used to refer to the Pentateuch (GenesisDeuteronomy). As the King listened to the reading of this book, he was profoundly astonished at what it had to say and how far away from God the people of Israel had been led by former Kings. So, Josiah began to lead a massive reformation. Josiah used this turning point to lead the kingdom to repentance, and he ruled with righteousness and wisdom because he fully submitted himself to God. He abolished pagan worship and refurbished the temple of the Lord.

Just as in our day, Josiah and the kingdom of Judah had great need for repentance. Josiah's rule was a good rule, even following closer to God than his forefather David. However, as it does for all earthly kings, his reign would come to an end. As much reformation as Josiah was able to accomplish, the sin of the nation was still great and the wrath and justice of God was still poured out. This account further reveals the need Judah had for the Eternal King and his redeeming power to reign forevermore. It is only King Jesus who can avert the wrath of God kindled against the sin of mankind. He is the only one who will reign eternally, because HE is Emmanuel, God with us, God incarnate—the only one who could atone for the sins of the world.

This Advent season, let us set our eyes on Jesus, whose reign is eternal, good, holy, and pure. It is he alone who atoned for the sins of the world, and he alone we worship and adore. Let us see once again, through the lineage of Jesus, the need for repentance and God’s grace as we turn to him.