Turn Back

And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes. II Kings 22:11

King Josiah became king as a boy of eight years. He succeeded his father, Amon, and his grandfather Manasseh. They reigned for a total of 57 years, and both worshipped idols. But Josiah turned to God, and ordered that the Temple be cleaned and refurbished. In this clean-up, the book of the law was found, and read for the first time in decades.

Josiah was truly repentant when the book of the law was read to him. Although the lawbook had been lost for many years, Josiah recognized God’s Word in his ears. His reaction was to tear his clothes, a sign of distress or mourning. His reaction was mourning that he and all of Judah had departed so far from the will of God. But he did not stop at mourning and distress; he took steps to put himself into the right relationship with God. He turned back to God, and made a commitment to follow God’s commandments. As a result, the entire country was blessed and protected.

And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. II Kings 23:3

Repentance is a continual process. As our shortcomings are revealed to us, we should turn to God, and commit to follow God, in heart and soul, and to perform the will of God.