221 A son of eight years 'is' Josiah in his reigning, and thirty and one years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother 'is' Jedidah daughter of Adaiah of Boskath, 2 and he doth that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah, and walketh in all the way of David his father, and hath not turned aside—right or left.
3 And it cometh to pass, in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, the king hath sent Shaphan son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of Jehovah, saying, 4 'Go up unto Hilkiah the high priest, and he doth complete the silver that is brought into the house of Jehovah, that the keepers of the threshold have gathered from the people, 5 and they give it into the hand of the doers of the work, the overseers, in the house of Jehovah, and they give it to the doers of the work that 'is' in the house of Jehovah, to strengthen the breach of the house, 6 to artificers, and to builders, and 'to repairers of' the wall, and to buy wood and hewn stones to strengthen the house; 7 only, the silver that is given into their hand is not reckoned with them, for in faithfulness they are dealing. 8 And Hilkiah the high priest saith unto Shaphan the scribe, 'A book of the law I have found in the house of Jehovah;' and Hilkiah giveth the book unto Shaphan, and he readeth it. 9 And Shaphan the scribe cometh in unto the king, and bringeth the king back word, and saith, 'Thy servants have poured out the silver that hath been found in the house, and give it into the hand of the doers of the work, the inspectors, in the house of Jehovah.' 10 And Shaphan the scribe declareth to the king, saying, 'A book hath Hilkiah the priest given to me;' and Shaphan readeth it before the king.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 2 Kings 22:1-10
Commentary on 2 Kings 22:1-10
(Read 2 Kings 22:1-10)
The different event of Josiah's early succession from that of Manasseh, must be ascribed to the distinguishing grace of God; yet probably the persons that trained him up were instruments in producing this difference. His character was most excellent. Had the people joined in the reformation as heartily as he persevered in it, blessed effects would have followed. But they were wicked, and had become fools in idolatry. We do not obtain full knowledge of the state of Judah from the historical records, unless we refer to the writings of the prophets who lived at the time. In repairing the temple, the book of the law was found, and brought to the king. It seems, this book of the law was lost and missing; carelessly mislaid and neglected, as some throw their Bibles into corners, or maliciously concealed by some of the idolaters. God's care of the Bible plainly shows his interest in it. Whether this was the only copy in being or not, the things contained in it were new, both to the king and to the high priest. No summaries, extracts, or collections out of the Bible, can convey and preserve the knowledge of God and his will, like the Bible itself. It was no marvel that the people were so corrupt, when the book of the law was so scarce; they that corrupted them, no doubt, used arts to get that book out of their hands. The abundance of Bibles we possess aggravates our national sins; for what greater contempt of God can we show, than to refuse to read his word when put into our hands, or, reading it, not to believe and obey it? By the holy law is the knowledge of sin, and by the blessed gospel is the knowledge of salvation. When the former is understood in its strictness and excellence, the sinner begins to inquire, What must I do to be saved? And the ministers of the gospel point out to him Jesus Christ, as the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.