-were uaembled as participants In this high transaction (cf. eh. xv. 13; Deut.. I. 17). Ill. TBB PJIBLIIIOl'ARIU. 1. ~ reading of ,,,IJ oook of tM C011rna11I. The part; read most likely included Exod. xxiv., the readers being, not the king himself (.Adam Clarke), but others, presumably Shaphan, Hilkiah, Jeremiah, etc. The reading was "in their ears," from which may be inferred that it wu audible and distinct. 2. Thd standing of the king in hia plau. This wes the platform beside the brazen altar, upon which the sovereign was accll8tomed to stand in high religioll8 and national ceremonies ( eh. vi. 13 ; ll.iii. 13). IV. THE ENGAGEMENTS, 1. To walk after the L<n-d. The common phrase for observing the worship of Jehovah (eh. :x.i. 17; 2 Kings xvii. 8; ll.i. 22; Micah iv. 5; vi. 16). Distinguish the similar phrases," to walk before God" (eh. vi. 14; Gen. xvii. 1), and "to walk with God" (Gen. v. 24). The ideas in the first are perhaps those of imitation and obedience; in the second, those or sincerity and purity; in the third, thoea of communion and concord. 2. To keep his c<Ymmandments and hia tati=ies and his statutes. Explanatory of the foregoing; to walk after Jehovah, signifying to keep his co=andments, etc. The three terms----commandments, testimonies, statutes---occa- sionally occur together or in contiguity (Ps. xix. 7, 8; c:x.ix. 21, 22, 23), and though etymologically distinguishable, are practically synonymous. They are employed here perhaps for variety, but chiefly for emph811is (Eccles. iv. 12). The obedience required by Jehovah and promised by the people w811 not formal and superficial, but earnest and sincere-" with all the heart, and with all the soul." God for Christ's aake may accept less, but for his own sake he never can demand lesa, while God's people and Christ's should strive never to present less. 3. To perform the words of the covenant 'IDT'itten in the book of the Law. The ultimate standard of duty for king and people was to be the words of the book, and neither the opinions of others nor the imaginations of them- selves. So for Christians the supreme rule of faith and practice is the Holy Scriptures. V. THE RESULTS. 1. The people assented to the covenant. .At the king's co=and- whether with perfect free-will (2 Kings xxi.ii. 3) is not clear-they bound themselves to its observance (ver. 32). Without the concurrence of the will there can be no true religious service. 2. The king purged the land of Israel from abominations. He allowed no external observance of idolatry. To cleanse the hearts of his people from idol-worship was beyond his power. Human enactments, by whatever power promulgated, can only effect external reformation ; the regeneration of the heart and renewal of the mind are competent to God alone. 3. The nation kept true to the covenant whil.e Josiah lived. The practice of idolatry had ,been suppressed, but the spirit or idolatry had not been killed. .After Josiah's death it again raised it.s head (eh. xxxvi. 5; 2 Kings :n.iii. 32), o.s it had frequently done before after periods of reformation. LESSONS. 1. The Word of God the supreme directory to a Christian both for faith :md practice. 2. The prime duty of man to keep God's commandments and testimonies. 3. The highest evidence of piety in either individunl or nation is holiness.-W.
EXPOSITION. oumstanoes, the same d11y of the aeoond OHAPTER XXXV. month was authorized by "Hezekiah and Thie chapter of twenty-seven verses, occu- his princes " ( oh. xu. 2). pied with the account of Josiah'e great Ver. 2.-Comp. eh. vii. 6; xui. 2; 1 Chron. :r.x.iii. 32 ; and our notes in tl.toee Passover (vere. 1-19), and hie death in the places. battle of Megiddo, waged by Neoho King of Ver. 3.-That taught (see eh. xvii. 7, 9; Egypt with " Oarohemish by Euphrates " Deut. xuili. 8-10). Which were holy (so (vere, 20-27), is paralleled by the ten oh. :u:iil. 6). Put the holy ark . . . not to versos of 2 Kings uiii. 21-80. you a burden on the llhoulder. There is ll double diffioulty, tho11gb not of a very for- Ver~ 1.-They killed the Puaover on. the midable obaracter, lo lliis portion of the fourteenth .. , of the 1lr1t month ; i.e. on the verae. We cnn only conjecture why the day nppointed originally (Exod. xii. 6). H ark wns not in its proper place, prob1\bly wW be remombered that, under epooil\l oir- having ooen temporarily removed during 4-26 THE SEOOND BOOK OF '!'HE CHRONICLES. [01t. xxx1v. 1-38,