The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Kings — Section 419

now broken down. 3. A cleansing away of the traces of swn--worship. To the worship of the sun and of the host of heaven belonged the sacred horses and chariots (ver. 11), probably ere this removed, and the chariots burned; and the altars on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which successive kings had set up. 'l'hese, like the altars of Manasseh, were broken down, and their dust scattered in the adjoining valley. Every vestige of idolatry was thus cleansed out of the house of which the Lord had said, "In Jerusalem will I put my Name" (eh. xxi. 4). III. lDoLATRY PUT AWAY. Judgrnent began at the house of God (1 Pet. iv. 17), but it spread thence throughout the whole land. 1. Degradation of the prusts. The land apparently had been already "purged" of the idols, Asherahs, and sun-images, which were worshipped at the high places (2 Chron. xx.xiv. 3, 4). Measures were now bken to degrade the priests who had ministered at these forbidden altars, and through whom, perhaps, the worship was still in many places carried on. These priests were of different kinds. (1) Some were" idolatrous priests "---chemarirn-after the fashion of the priests of the northern kingdom. They do not appear to have been of Levitical descent at all, but were ••ordained" of the kings of Judah to bum incense in the high places, and may have been drawn, like Jeroboam's chemari.m, from "the lowest of the people n (1 Kings xii. 31). Some of them were ostensibly priests of Jehovah, serving him, probably, with idolatrous symbols; others served Baal, and the sun, moon, and planets. The whole of this illegitimate class of priests Josiah put sternly down- suppressing their order as contrary to the Law of Moses. (2) The second clas~ of priests were true Levites, but they ministered at the high places. These were brought from their several cities to Jerusalem, and there provided for ont of the temple revenues. 'l'hey were not, however, permitted to minister at the altar of Jehovah, though, like the other priests, they received their support from the temple offerings. 'l'hese stringent regulations effectually broke the power of this class throughout the country. God must be served by a pure ministry. 2. Defilement of the high places. 'l'he next part of Josiah's policy was to destroy and defile the high places themselves. One way in which this was Joue was by covering them with dead men's bones, or burn- ing dead bones upon them. The high places were thus rendered unclean, and became hateful to the people. Two special acts of defilement are mentioned in addition to that of "the mount of corruption" next referred to, viz. (1) the defilement of the high places at the entrance of the gate of Joshua; and (2) the defilement of 'l'opheth in the valley of Hinnom. The real defilement was in the idolatrous and murderous rites with which these places were associated, but Josiah put a special brand of pollution on them, and stamped them as spots to be held in abhorrence for their vileness. 3. The defilement of "the mount of corruption." Such was the appropriate name given to the hill on which Solomon, long before, had reared altars to the heathen gods worshipped by his wives-Ashtoreth, Chemosh, Moloch, etc. The hiih places of that mount, which directly overlooked Jerusalem, did Josiah now defile. Idolatry is none the less pernicious that it has the sanction of a great name, and flaunts itself under the guise of a spurious toleration. Any spot where God is not worshipped, but idols are set up in his place, soon becomes a mount of corruption. Heathenism is a mount of corruptiou. Godless civilization will become a mount of corruption. Our very hearts will tum to mounts of corruption if we allow God to be dethroned in them. IV. LESSONS OF THE REFORMATION. 1. From what it did accomplish. Josiah's was a true" zeal for the Lord." He was actuated by a right motive, guided himself strictly by God's Word, and directed his efforts unswervingly to execute God's will. He wrought earnestly to purify his state from the evils that afflicted it, and to restore the influence of pure and undefiled religion. He deserves our highest admiration for the (1) determination, (2) energy, (3) method, and (4) thoroughness with which he did God's work. Externally, his work was a success. He cleansed the land from idolatry, We, too, have a call to labour for the purification of society, the dethronement of idols, and the spread of true religion. The age of idolatry is not past. Church, state, literature, science, art, have all their idols. There is self-idolatry, nature-idolatry, wealt.h-idolatry, art-idolatry, the idolatry of genius, and many more worships besides. Oiir own hearts are abodes of idols. We do well to imitate Josiah in the energy and thoroughness with which be laboured to uproot these false gods. We should be. wieparing in our judgment of whatever vice, error, evil lusts, or passions, or inclinations,  HO THE SECOND BOOR OF THE KINGS. [ou. XXIII. 1-31.