Josiah Josiah meaning "healed by Yah" or "supported of Yah; was a king of Judah (641–609 BC), who instituted major reforms. Josiah is credited with having established or compiled important Hebrew Scriptures during the Deuteronomic reform that occurred during his rule. became king of Judah at the age of eight, after the assassination of his father, King Amon, and reigned for thirty-one years, from 641/640 to 610/609 BC. He is also one of the kings mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.

Josiah Josiah was the son of King Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. His grandfather Manasseh was one of the kings blamed for turning away from the worship of Yahweh. Manasseh adapted the Temple for idolatrous worship. Josiah's great-grandfather was King Hezekiah who was a noted reformer. Josiah had four sons: Johanan, Eliakim (Jehoiakim) (born 634 BC) by Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah, Mattanyahu (Zedekiah) (618 BC) and Shallum (Jehoahaz) (633/632 BC) both by Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.

Josiah When Josiah became king of Judah in about 641/640 BC, the Assyrian Empire was beginning to disintegrate, the Babylonian Empire had not yet risen to replace it, and Egypt to the west was still recovering from Assyrian rule. In this power vacuum, Jerusalem was able to govern itself for the time being without foreign intervention

Josiah In 609 BC, Pharaoh Necho II led a sizable army up to the Euphrates River to aid the Assyrians. Josiah attempted to block the advance at Megiddo, where the fierce battle was fought and where Josiah was killed. (2 Kings 23:29, 2 Chronicles 35:20-24). Necho then joined forces with the Assyrian Ashur-uballit II and together they crossed the Euphrates and lay siege to Harran. The combined forces failed to capture the city, and Necho retreated back to northern Syria.

Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim After the setback in Harran, Necho left a sizable force behind, and returned to Egypt. On his return march, Necho found that Jehoahaz had been selected to succeed his father, Josiah. (2 Kings 23:31) Necho deposed Jehoahaz, who had been king for only three months, and replaced him with his older brother, Jehoiakim. Necho then took Jehoahaz back to Egypt as his prisoner, (2 Chronicles 36:1-4) never to return. Necho had left Egypt in 609 BC for two reasons: one was to relieve the Babylonian siege of Harran, and the other was to help the king of Assyria, who was defeated by the Babylonians at Carchemish. Josiah's actions suggest that he was aiding the Babylonians by engaging the Egyptian army.

Jehoiakim, Jehoiakin & Zedekiah Jehoiakim ruled (608) originally as a vassal of the Egyptians, paying a heavy tribute. To raise the money he "taxed the land and exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land according to their assessments. However, when the Egyptians were defeated by the Babylonians at Carchemish in 605 BC, Jehoiakim changed allegiances, paying tribute to Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. After three years, with the Egyptians and Babylonians still at war, he switched back to the Egyptians and ceased paying the tribute to Babylon. In 599 BC, Nebuchadnezzar II invaded Judah and laid siege to Jerusalem. In 598 BC, Jehoiakim died and his body was thrown out of the walls. He was succeeded by his son Jeconiah (also known as Jehoiachin). Jerusalem fell within three months. Jehoiachin (598/597) was deposed by Nebuchadnezzar, who installed Zedekiah (597), Jehoiakim's younger brother, in his place. Jehoiachin, his household, and many of the elite and craftsmen of Judah were exiled (597) to Babylon. while Zedekiah was compelled to pay tribute, and continued to be king of the devastated kingdom.

Jehoiakin However, while in captivity, the deported Jews still regarded Jeconiah (Jehoiakin) as their legitimate king. Jeconiah would later be regarded as the first of the exilarchs. Ezekiel refers to Jeconiah as king and dates certain events by the number of years he was in exile and he never mentions Zedekiah by name.

The Babylonian Exile The Babylonian exile (captivity) is the name generally given to the deportation and exile of the Jews of the ancient Kingdom of Judah (southern kingdom) to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar II. The Babylonian exile is distinguished from the earlier exile of citizens of the northern Kingdom of Israel to Assyria around 722 B.C.E. The exile in Babylon—which directly affected mainly those of the upper class of society—occurred in three waves as a result of Judean rebellions against Babylonian rule. The Bible portrays the internal cause of the captivity as the sins of Judah in failing to rid herself of idolatry and refusing to heed prophetic warnings not to rebel against Babylon.

The Babylonian Exile – cont. The Babylonian Period - B. C (70 Ys) – The prophecy of Jeremiah regarding captivity - Jer. 25:11-13; 29:10; 2 Chr. 36:19-21 – The three stages of captivity Under Jehoiakim (B.C = 9 years)-(2Chr.36:5-8; Dan.1:1-6) – Daniel was taken. Under Jehoiachin (B.C = 11 years)- (2Kings24:8-16) - Ezekiel was taken. Under Zedekiah (B. C = 50 years)-(2Chr.36:10- 21) – Jerusalem and the Temple were burned.

Time of Exile for Judah A.Under Babylon: 1. King Nebuchadnezzar ( BC) -(Dan.2:36-38; 4:30) 2. King Belshazzar ( ) -(Dan.5:1-2) History records that he was actually the grandson of Nebuchadnezzar and he reigned with his father Nabonidus. Nabonidus was gone most of the time on campaigns and his son reigned in his absence. [A grandfather is generally referred to as a father in scripture]

Time of Exile for Judah – cont. B. Under Persia: The Persian Period - B.C The fall of Babylon around 539 BC (Dan.5:22-30) – The four decrees Cyrus (B.C. 536) – (2Chr.36:22-23; Is.44:28; 45:1-4). Rebuilding of the temple (Ezra 1) ruled Persia BC. Darius I - Hystaspes (B.C. 520) - Completion of the temple (Ezra 4:5; 4:24; 6:1-15). ruled Persia BC Artaxerxes - Longimanus (B.C.458) - Beautifying the temple (Ezra 7:11-27) Artaxerxes - Longimanus (B.C. 445) - Rebuilding of the city (Dan. 9:25, Neh. 2:5) ruled Persia BC [Ahasuerus (Xerxes) BC – (Esther 1:1-3)]. – The three returns and the end of the Old Testament The first return under Zerubbabel (B.C ) - 2 Chron. 36:22-23; Ezra 1-6 The deliverance of the Jews under Esther (B.C ) - Esther The second return under Ezra (B.C ) - Ezra 7-10 An interval (B.C ) The third return under Nehemiah (B.C ?) - Nehemiah The final word of Malachi (B.C ?) - Malachi

Prophets at The Time of Captivity 1.Jeremiah (Jer.1:1-3). 2.Habakkuk (Hab.1:6). 3.Zephaniah (Zeph.1:1-2).

Prophets of The Exile 1.Daniel (Dan.1:1,6: 6:1-3). 2.Ezekiel (Ezek.1:1-3).