Josiah’s Reform
3 In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a youth, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David, 34:3 1Ch 28:9; 2Ch 11:16; 14:4; 15:12 and in the twelfth year he began to cleanse Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherah poles, the carved images, 34:3 2Ch 33:22 and the cast images. 4 Then in his presence the altars of the Baals were torn down, and he chopped down the shrines 34:4 Lit incense altars, also in v. 7 that were above them. He shattered the Asherah poles, the carved images, and the cast images, crushed them to dust, and scattered 34:4 Ex 32:20 them over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 34:4 2Kg 23:65 He burned the bones of the priests on their altars. 34:5 2Kg 23:5,8,16,20 So he cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. 6 He did the same in the cities 34:6 2Kg 23:15,19 of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naphtali and on their surrounding mountain shrines. 34:6 One Hb tradition reads Naphtali with their swords; alt Hb tradition, Syr, Vg read Naphtali, the ruins all around; Hb obscure7 He tore down the altars, and he smashed the Asherah poles and the carved images to powder. He chopped down all the shrines throughout the land of Israel and returned to Jerusalem. 34:7 2Ch 31:1