Annotations upon the remaining historicall part of the Old Testament. The second part. to wit, the books of Joshua, Judges, the two books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles, and the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther : wherein first, all such passages in the text are explained as were thought likely to be questioned by any reader of ordinary capacity : secondly, in many clauses those things are discovered which are needfull and usefull to be known ... and thirdly, many places that might at first seem to contradict one another are reconciled ... / by Arthur Jackson.

CHAP. XXII.

Vers. 2. ANd he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, &c.] Wherein doubtlesse he was much encouraged by the Prophet Ze∣phaniah, who prophecyed in his dayes, Zephan. 1.1. The word of the Lord came unto Zephaniah in the dayes of Josiah the sonne of Amon: but especially, by the prophet Jeremiah, of whom it is expressely noted, that he began to pro∣phecy in the thirteenth yeare of Josiahs reigne, Jerem. 1.1, 2. The words of Je∣remiah, to whom the word of the Lord came in the dayes of Josiah the sonne of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth yeare of his reigne: and this was that Josiah, who was by name mentioned by the Prophet that foretold the pol∣luting of Jeroboams altar, about three hundred years before he was borne, 1. Kings. 13.2. And he cryed against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord, Behold a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places, &c.

Vers. 3, And it came to passe in the eighteenth yeare of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan, &c.] That is, in the eighteenth yeare, not of his age, but of his reigne, for so it is expressed, 2. Chron. 34.8. Now in the eighteenth yeare of his reigne when he had purged the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the sonne of A∣zaliah, &c. Nor may we think that this was the first act of his piety, and that till he had reigned eighteen years he did nothing this way; for in the Chronicles we see (where his acts are related according to the order of time wherein they were done:) first, that in the eighth yeare of his reigne being then sixteen years old, he began to bend himself to seek information how he might serve God, as David had done: second∣ly, that in the twelfth yeare of his reigne, he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem

of all their idolatry, which he did also with a great deale of zeal, 2. Chron. 34.3. For in the eight yeare of his reigne, while he was yet young, he began to seek af∣ter the God of David his father: and in the twelfth yeare he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, &c. and then thirdly, that in the eighteenth yeare of his reigne, when he was twenty six years old, he set upon the work of repairing the temple, as is here also related.

Vers. 4. Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may summe the silver, &c.] The prophet Jeremiah was the sonne of Hilkiah a priest, Jer. 1.1. but whether he were the sonne of this Hilkiah the priest it is uncertain.

Vers. 5. And let them deliver it into the hand of the doers of the work, &c.] That is, into the hand of the overseers of the work, who were Levites, 2. Chron. 34.12. And the men did the work of the Lord faithfully, and the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadiah, &c.

Vers. 8. And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the Scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord.] That is, the authentick and originall copy of it, written by Moses, and delivered by him to the Levites, to be laid up in the side of the ark, Deut. 31.24, 25, 26. and thus did the Lord abun∣dantly recompence their zeal for the repair of his Temple, by bringing to their hands this precious jewell: though it be most probable which the Hebrew writers say, that Manasseh and Amon had endeavoured to burn up all the books of the law, and so this book was hid in some secret place in the Temple, by some faithfull priests that it might be preserved for future times; yet it is not likely, but that there were some transcripts of this sacred volume preserved amongst the people, at least some parcels of it, and that Josiah amongst others, had not been a mere stranger to the book of the law (for strange it were, that he should live till the eighteenth yeare of his reigne, and so piously reform what was amisse, and never see the law of God till now) rather because this was the originall book of the law which Moses him∣self had written, there was great joy at the finding of it, and to the king it was brought as a rare jewell: indeed Josiahs astonishment, vers. 11. And it came to passe, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes, makes it clear, that he had not formerly read or heard read those dreadfull threats of judgements against idolatry, Levit. 26. or Deut. 28. which now were read to him out of this book; but that might be though he had before seen many co∣pies of the law, his respect to this originall of Moses writing, might make him de∣sirous to heare it all read, and so he might heare those terrible passages now, which he had not read or heard before.

Vers. 12. Achbor the sonne of Michaiah, &c.] Or Abdon the sonne of Micah, 2. Chron. 34.20.

Vers. 14. Now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the colledge] Or as it is in the mar∣gin, in the second part; now if we read it so by the second part, we must under∣stand the second citie, or the suburbs of Jerusalem, which was encompassed with walls and gates severall from the citie: but however it may well be, that the rea∣son why this clause is added, is to intimate the reason why Hilkiah, and those that were sent with him to enquire of the Lord, went to Huldah the prophetesse, rather then to Jeremiah or Zephaniah, who at this time prophecyed in the land of Judah,

it was because she dwelt in Jerusalem, and so was near at hand, whereas they were at present in other parts of the kingdome; and indeed we read that Anathoth was the place of Jeremiahs usuall dwelling, Jer. 29.27.

Vers. 20. Thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace, &c.] That is, before these troubles and miseries fall upon this place and the inhabitants thereof, whilest the kingdome doth yet flourish in prosperity and peace; for though Josiah was slain by Pharaoh Necho, chap. 23.29. yet because he died before that desolation came up∣on the land, whereof Huldah had spoken, and died in the love and favour of God also, therefore she said that he should be gathered to his grave in peace.