2 Kings 22

2 Kings 22 is the twenty-second chapter of the second part of the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of various annals recording the acts of the kings of Israel and Judah by a Deuteronomic compiler in the seventh century BCE, with a supplement added in the sixth century BCE. This chapter records the events during the reign of Josiah, the king of Judah, especially the discovery of the Book of the Law (Torah) during the renovation of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Text

This chapter was originally written in the Hebrew language. It is divided into 20 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Biblical Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Aleppo Codex (10th century), Codex Leningradensis (1008), and the Codex Cairensis (11th century).

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; $\mathfrak$^B; 4th century) and Codex Alexandrinus (A; $\mathfrak$^A; 5th century).

Old Testament references

*: 2 Kings 22, Berean Study Bible
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Analysis

A parallel pattern of sequence is observed in the final sections of 2 Kings between 2 Kings 11–20 and 2 Kings 21–25, as follows:

:A. Athaliah, daughter of Ahab, kills royal seed ( 2 Kings 11:1)
::B. Joash reigns ( 2 Kings 11– 12)
:::C. Quick sequence of kings of Israel and Judah ( 2 Kings 13– 16)
::::D. Fall of Samaria ( 2 Kings 17)
:::::E. Revival of Judah under Hezekiah ( 2 Kings 18– 20)
:A'. Manasseh, a king like Ahab, promotes idolatry and kills the innocence ( 2 Kings 21)
::B'. Josiah reigns (2 Kings 22– 23)
:::C'. Quick succession of kings of Judah ( 2 Kings 24)
::::D'. Fall of Jerusalem ( 2 Kings 25)
:::::E'. Elevation of Jehoiachin ( 2 Kings 25:27–30)

2 Kings 22–23:30 mainly contains the story of Josiah's actions of his eighteenth year (22:3; 23:23) and the discovery of the book of the law (22:8-10; 23:24) as grouped based on five royal initiatives (using distinct verbs "send" and "command"):

# Discovery of the book (22:3–11; "sent," 22:3)
# Inquiry about the book (22:12–20; "commanded," 22:12)
# Covenant and the book (23:1–3; "sent," 23:1)
# Reforms from the book (23:4–20; "commanded," 23:4)
# Passover from the book (23:21–24; "commanded," 23:21)

Josiah king of Judah (22:1–7)

The account of Josiah ben Amon as the king of Judah is bracketed by the introductory regnal form in 2 Kings 22:1–2 and the concluding regnal form in 2 Kings 23:28–30, as the body in 2 Kings 22:3–23:27 highlights the religious reform and national restoration. The life of Josiah shows some similarities to the life of Joash, king of Judah, in that:
*both ascended the throne at a very young age (Josiah was 8 years old, 2 Kings 22:1; cf. Joash/Jehoash was 7 years old, 2 Kings 11:21)
*at the age of 18, both repaired the Temple, reversing the acts of the last ruler before them (Joash replaced Athaliah; Josiah succeeded Manasseh).
*the key event in Josiah's reign was the discovery of the book of law (Hebrew: "book of the Torah") in the temple by Hilkiah the priest (2 Kings 22:8-13), a person with similar stature as Jehoiada, the priest in Joash's reign.

In 625 BCE Babylon achieved independence under Nabopolassar and in 612 BCE took the Assyrian capital Nineveh. This situation enables the kingdom of Judah, not under the threat of the Assyrians anymore, could make internal changes, including religious reforms.

records the instruction of Josiah, through the scribe Shaphan ben Azaliah ben Meshullam, to the high priest Hilkiah to lead the renovation of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Verse 3

:'' And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the , saying,''
* " Shaphan" (, which means " hyrax, rock badger, coney"), son of Azaliah, a scribe or secretary of Josiah's court who was mentioned several times in the Hebrew Bible