So Josiah sent to a holy prophetess to ask her whether, if they left off their sins, and were very sorry, and prayed with all their might, God would still forgive them. But God told her to answer that the people had done so wrong, and grown so wicked, that now their punishment must come; but that, as Josiah's heart was tender, and he loved God, it should not happen in his time, and that he should be quietly buried with his fathers. And, after years of goodness, Josiah was killed in a battle, and all his people mourned over him.
But they had not been really good, they only pretended, just to please him, and went back to their wicked ways, in spite of all the pains he had taken with them; and his own sons were as bad as the rest. So the punishment was obliged to come.
THE BOOK OF THE LAW FOUND.—2 Kings 22:10, 11.
What I wish you to mind to-day is how these people lost their Book of the Law for want of attending to it. If you have not got a Bible of your own, I dare say you soon will have one. And then, pray, do not do like these people of Israel. Do not let it lie by till you forget to look at it, and forget what is in it, and then forget even where it is. If you do, you will grow as bad as these people were, and God will be forced to punish you as He was forced to punish them.
QUESTIONS.
1. Who was Josiah? 2. How many kings were there between him and Hezekiah? 3. What sort of kings were they? 4. What kind of person was Josiah? 5. How old was he when he began to reign? 6. What did he have cleaned out? 7. What did they find there? 8. Who gave the Law? 9. What was to happen if it was not kept? 10. How had it been lost? 11. What did Josiah cause the priests to do? 12. Why was he frightened? 13. What did he ask? 15. But why did the people deserve to be punished? 16. What did they do as soon as Josiah was dead? 17. What came of forgetting their Bibles? 18. Ought we to forget our Bibles? 19. If we never read them, can we be good? 20. And if we are not good, what must be done to us?
AN ASSYRIAN KING.