Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The pious Josiah reigns piously, and diligently reads through the discovered Deuteronomy, and hears from Huldah the prophetess that the punishments which God threatens against the wicked therein will come not upon himself, but upon his sons.
Vulgate Text: 4 Kings 22:1-20
1. Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Jedidah, daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. 2. And he did what was pleasing before the Lord, and walked in all the ways of David his father: he turned not aside to the right or to the left. 3. And in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe of the temple of the Lord, saying to him: 4. Go to Hilkiah the high priest, that the money which has been brought into the temple of the Lord, which the doorkeepers of the temple have collected from the people, may be melted down, 5. and given to the workmen through the overseers of the house of the Lord; who shall also distribute it to those who work in the temple of the Lord, for restoring the repairs of the temple, 6. namely to the carpenters and masons, and to those who mend what is broken: and that timber and stones from the quarries may be purchased, for restoring the temple of the Lord. 7. But let no accounting be required of them for the money they receive, but let them have it in their power, and on trust. 8. And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe: I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord: and Hilkiah gave the scroll to Shaphan, who also read it. 9. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and reported to him what he had commanded, and said: Your servants have melted down the money that was found in the house of the Lord: and they have given it to be distributed to the workmen by the overseers of the works of the temple of the Lord. 10. And Shaphan the scribe also told the king, saying: Hilkiah the priest has given me a book. And when Shaphan had read it before the king, 11. and the king had heard the words of the Book of the Law of the Lord, he tore his garments. 12. And he commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Micaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying: 13. Go and inquire of the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this scroll which has been found: for the wrath of the Lord is great that is kindled against us: because our fathers did not listen to the words of this book, to do all that is written for us. 14. So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asaiah, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum, the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe, who lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter: and they spoke with her. 15. And she answered them: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Say to the man who sent you to me: 16. Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will bring evils upon this place, and upon its inhabitants, all the words of the Law which the king of Judah has read: 17. because they have forsaken Me, and have sacrificed to foreign gods, provoking Me with all the works of their hands: and My indignation shall be kindled in this place, and shall not be extinguished. 18. But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall you say: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Because you have heard the words of the scroll, 19. and your heart was terrified, and you humbled yourself before the Lord, when you heard the words against this place and its inhabitants, that they would become a wonder and a curse: and you tore your garments, and wept before Me, I also have heard, says the Lord: 20. Therefore I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your tomb in peace, so that your eyes may not see all the evils which I will bring upon this place.
Verse 1: Josiah Was Eight Years Old When He Began to Reign
1. Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign. — This name was imposed on him by God and predicted 327 years before; for that many years passed from Rehoboam and Jeroboam to Josiah, 3 Kings 13:2. For Josiah in Hebrew is said as if ia seai, that is, a gift of God or an offering, or as if ia es, that is, the fire of God, on account of his zeal and fiery sacrifices, and because he burned idolaters with fire. Hear the Author of the Imperfect Work attributed to Chrysostom, homily 1 on Matthew: "Josiah is interpreted as a sacrifice to the Lord, or salvation to the Lord. And the providence of God, according to what Josiah was to be, ordained that the name be given to him, which means sacrifice to the Lord, or salvation of the Lord: because truly in him there was a sacrifice to the Lord. For he offered such a sacrifice to the Lord God, as no king before him, nor after him. And he himself was a sacrifice to God according to what the Apostle commands: That you may present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God. And he himself was the salvation of his people in his time from God." And further on: "For Josiah is the third whose name was prophesied before he was born. These three are: Samson, Josiah, John."
Verse 5: For Restoring the Repairs of the Temple
5. For restoring the repairs of the temple. — Josiah in the restoration of the temple imitated his ancestor Joash king of Judah, and followed his method in the restoration.
Verse 7: Let No Accounting Be Required of Them for the Money
7. Let no accounting be required of them for the money, — that is, let no account or reckoning be demanded of them, but let all money and expenditure be entrusted to their good faith, which Joash had commanded in other words in chapter 12, verse 15, saying: No account was taken of those men who received money to distribute it to the craftsmen, but they handled it in good faith.
Verse 8: I Have Found the Book of the Law in the Temple
8. I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord, — namely Deuteronomy, as Chrysostom says, homily 9 on Matthew chapter 2, St. Athanasius, letter to Marcellinus, and Abulensis; or the entire Pentateuch, as Josephus says, who adds that it was found in the treasury, while they were taking gold from it for the repairs of the temple roof. Indeed in the time of the impious Manasseh, who reigned for 55 years, through so many years the law had been so neglected, and the worship of God so profaned, that the "book of the law" was written about as if it were something newly discovered, says Cajetan. Lyranus adds from Rabbi Solomon that the impious Ahaz, who was the grandfather of Manasseh, had burned the books of the law, lest he be convicted of violating the law and of idolatry by them. Therefore the priests secretly hid the book of the law in a wall of the temple which they had pierced and sealed up: and the masons, while restoring the repairs of the temple at the command of Josiah, found the book, and brought it to the high priest, and he to King Josiah.
Verse 14: Hilkiah Went to Huldah the Prophetess
14. So Hilkiah the priest went, etc., to Huldah the prophetess, the wife (the Septuagint of Sixtus has "mother") of Shallum. — This "Shallum" the Hebrews relate was the uncle of Jeremiah's father. Why did they not go to Jeremiah, who was prophesying at that time? Perhaps because he was absent from the city. St. Jerome adds, book 2 Against the Pelagians, that in the fact that a woman was consulted there is a hidden reproof of the king, the priests, and all the men, that no holy man could be found who could predict the future. Finally this "Huldah" was celebrated and venerable among all for her old age, prudence, holiness, and oracles, just as Deborah, Judges chapter 4, and Hannah the mother of Samuel, 1 Kings chapter 2.
Who lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter, — namely in that part of the city which was called "the Second City," near the second wall (for there were altogether three walls) of the city, and near the second or middle gate, which was called "the Fish Gate," through which one went to the temple, whence through it the Chaldeans invaded Jerusalem and the temple. So St. Jerome, at the place already cited, Villalpandus, Ribera, Salianus, Serarius and others. See Adrichomius in his Description of Jerusalem. The Chaldean translates "Second" as "house of instruction," that is, a school; Vatablus, as the place of second dignity after the temple, in which place attention was given to learning and teaching. For in it lived prophets and teachers, and among them the Rechabites. Hence also the Talmud is divided into the Mishnah and the Gemara. For Mishnah signifies "second," as if the first is the law of Moses, and the second is the Talmudic repetition and explanation of the law.