"*** NAHUM 01 ****" 
"Josiah only eight years old when made king Josiah was eight years old when he became king. He did"
"what was right in the eyes of theLord, walking in the ways of his forefather David . When 20 years old Josiah begins to purge Judah of idolatry In the eighth year of his reign he began to seek God , and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah of idolatry . Idolatrous articles removed from the Temple He ordered Hilkiah the high priest to remove from the Temple all articles used to worship thegods Baal , Asherah , and the sun , moon and stars . Hilkiah and the other priests did so and burned them in the Kidron Valley . But the Asherah pole they ground to dust and scattered it over the"
"graves of the common people . Male prostitute quarters torn down The king also ordered the rooms of the male prostitutes that were in the Temple of the Lord to be torn down . King Manassehs altars demolished Josiah demolished the altars that Manasseh had built in the courtyards of the Temple and threw the rubble into the Kidron Valley . Then he removed from the entrance to the Temple the horse images that had been dedicated to the sun . The Valley of Hinnom defiled He also defiled the Valley of Hinnom so that no man could use it to sacrifice his children by fire to the god Molech . The land"
"rid of mediums, sorcerers, household gods and hilltop shrines Josiah rid the land of mediums , sorcerers , household gods , and all other detestable things . He defiled the hilltop shrines that Solomon had built for his wives to worship their gods ; Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians , Chemosh the god of Moab and Molech the god of Ammon . He covered the sites with human bones . The calf altar at Bethel in Israel defiled then demolished Josiah then went to Bethel to demolish the calf altar made by Jeroboam , who first caused Israel to sin . When he arrived he saw tombs on the hillside"
"nearby , so he had the bones removed from them and burned on the altar to defile it , fulfilling the words of the prophet of God whohad foretold these things .  The tombs of the prophets left undisturbed Afterward the king asked , Whose tomb is this I see? The men of Bethel replied , It is the tomb of the prophet of God who came from Judah and prophesied against the altar of Bethel the verythings you have done to it . Josiah said , Let no one disturb his bones . So they spared his bones and those of theprophet from Samaria . Josiah also purged towns in Israel belonging to Manasseh , Ephraim"
"and Simeon , as far north as Naphtali . The Book of the Law found by the high priest in the Temple In the eighteenth year of his reign Josiah ordered Hilkiah the high priest to organiseworkmen to restore the Temple of the Lord , using money that had been collected by the Levites . While Hilkiah was doing this , he found a copy of the Book of the Law in the Temple and gave it to the Secretary to read . The Law read to Josiah the king The Secretary read the book and then took it to the king and read from it in his presence . King Josiah tears his robes and weeps When Josiah the king heard the"
"words of the Book of the Law he tore his robes and wept . Josiah asks Hilkiah the high priest to enquire of the Lord Then he summoned Hilkiah the high priest and said to him , Inquire of the Lord about what is written in this book . Great must be Jehovah s anger for our fathers have not obeyed all that is written here . Hilkiah goes to the prophetess Huldah So Hilkiah went to the prophetess Huldah , the wife of Shallum and she enquired of the Lord.The Lord affirms through Huldah the disaster coming upon Judah Huldah declared , Jehovah the God of Israel says, I am going to bring disaster on"
"Judah and its people, according to all that iswritten in the book the king of Judah has read. They have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and provoked me toanger with idols. Therefore my anger will burn against this land. The faithful Josiah to be spared witnessing the disaster But say to the king of Judah, Because your heart was responsive and you toreyour robes and wept when you heard what I had spoken against this nation, I will gather you to your fathers in peace. Your eyes shall not see the disaster I am going to bring. Josiah reads the Book of the Law to the people When the"
"king heard the words of this prophecy he summoned all the people of Judah to the Temple . There in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Law which had been found in the house of the Lord . Josiah and the people make a covenant to obey the Lords commandments Afterward Josiah made a covenant that he would follow the Lord and obey his command-ments with all his heart and soul . The people also covenanted with the Lord .  The Passover once again celebrated The king then commanded the people , Celebrate the Passover as it is written in the Book of the Law . To the Levites he"
"said , Place the holy Ark in the Temple . You do not need to carry it about on your shoulders any more . 31Then you are to purify yourselves and be ready to standin the holy place and skin the Passover lambs for the people as the Lord commanded through Moses . So in the eighteenth year of Josiah king of Judah , on the fourteenth day of the first month , the Passover was once again celebrated inJerusalem . Josiah and his officials provide the people ,400 animals to be sacrificed Josiah and his officials provided for the people 37 ,600 lambs and goats for the Passover offerings , and 3800"
"cattle for sacrifice . The priests, Levites and musicians perform their roles The lambs were slaughtered and the priests sprinkled the blood as it was handed to them , while the Levites skinned the animals . They roasted the animals over a fire as prescribed , and boiled the holy offerings in pots, then served them to all the people . The musicians were also in their places as prescribed by David . No Passover like this since Samuels day The Israelites celebrated the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days . The Passover had not been observed like this in Israel since the days"
"of the prophet Samuel . None of the kings of Israel had ever celebrated such a Passover as did Josiah."
"*** NAHUM 02 ****" 
"The word of the Lord comes to the prophet Nahum During the reign of Josiah , this word of the Lord came to the prophet Nahum concerning the Assyrian city of Nineveh . *28 From subsequent events recorded in the book of Jeremiah, it appears that the reforms that followed were due more to thezeal of king Josiah than to a genuine change in the hearts of the people (Jeremiah 3:4). *1 The city of Nineveh was the seat of the Assyrian empire and one of the largest and oldest"
"cities in the world. It was foundedby Nimrod (Genesis 7:11) the great-grandson of Noah and was located on the east bank of the Tigris river in what is today Iraq. The Assyrians were a war-like people, noted for their extremecruelty in battle. By aggressive warfare they had recently amassed a considerable empire, but within a few years of Nahums prophecy, their main city Nineveh was destroyed bythe Babylonians and the Medes and most of their conqueredThe Lord punishes the guilty but cares for those who trust in him Jehovah is slow to anger but great in power. He does not leave the"
"guiltyunpunished. The whole earth trembles at his presence. Who can endure his fierce anger? With an overwhelming flood he makes an end to his enemies. He pursues them into darkness. 4Whatever they plot against him he will bring to an end. They shall not do it a second time. Yet the Lord is good. He is a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him. The Assyrians will no longer afflict Judah From the city of Nineveh came one who plotted evil against the Lord. Therefore Jehovah says, Though the Assyrians have allies and are numerous, they will be cut offand pass away. I have"
"allowed them to afflict you O Judah, but now I will break their yoke fromyour neck. The Assyrian capital Nineveh to be destroyed I Jehovah have decreed concerning you Nineveh, you will have no descendants tobear your name, and I will destroy your carved images and cast idols that are in the temples of your gods. Celebrate your festivals O Judah. No more will this wicked nation invade you. They will be completely destroyed. Nahums vision of the invasion of Nineveh The warriors invading Nineveh are clad in scarlet, their spears are brandished and their chariots flash as they race through"
"thestreets and squares. They dart about like lightning. Nineveh to be plundered and the survivors exiled I see the river gates thrown open. The palace collapses. The city is doomed to exile. Slave girls moan like doves and beatupon their breasts. Nineveh is like a pool with its water draining away. Cease they cry, but no warrior turns back. Plunder the silver Plunder the gold The spoil is endless. Everywhere desolation and ruin. Hearts melt Knees give way Bodies tremble Every face grows pale. Dead bodies heaped up without number Woe to the city of blood, full of lies, full of captured spoil"
"The crack of whips The clatter of wheels Galloping horses Jolting chariots 15Charging horsemen Flashing swords and glittering spears Dead bodies land absorbed within the new Babylonian empire. The city of Nineveh was never rebuilt. The palace of Sennacherib, the king who lost 185,000 warriors by divine action when attacking Jerusalem (Isaiah chapters 18-19), has been located andexcavated. This magnificent building contains more than 70 rooms and over 3 km of walls sculptured with elegant designs. heaped up without number. Those who flee stumble over corpses. All this because of the lust of a"
"harlot. A mistress of sorceries who enslaved nations by her harlotry and witchcraft. Jehovah to shame Nineveh I Jehovah Almighty am against you Nineveh. I will lift your skirts over your face and let the nations see your nakedness to shame you. 18I shall treat you with contempt and make you a spectacle. All who see will shrink and say, Nineveh is in ruins. Who will mourn for her? Ninevehs wound fatal Save water for the siege O Nineveh. Strengthen your defences. Work your clay and repair your brick walls. But all in vain.Fire will devour you and the sword shall cut you down. You increased the"
"number of your merchants more than the stars of the sky,but now O king of Assyria your rulers are dead. Your nobles lie in the dust and your people are scattered with no one to gatherthem. Nothing can heal your wound, your injury is fatal. All nations to rejoice at Ninevehs fall All who hear about you rejoice, for who has not felt your cruelty?"