I found a book!

Then 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 book to Shaphan, and he read it… Then Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a book." And Shaphan read it before the king. Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he tore his clothes.. – 2 Kings 22v8-11

Early in Josiah’s reign he ordered repairs and renovation on the Temple. It had been ignored and neglected for years and he knew that it was time to do something about it.

While the work was going on a priest named Hilkiah found a book in the ruins and gave it to a scribe named Shaphan who took it and read it to the king. Apparently this is the first time anyone had read from what they had of the Bible in a long, long time.

It certainly caught the king’s attention. ‘When he heard the words of the Book of the Law he tore his clothes.’

How often does God’s word have that kind of impact on us? More often than not, if we are not careful, God’s word just rolls off our backs. We have heard it all before. Yeah, sure, it’s in the in the Bible, but does it really mean that much?

Why did God’s word have such an impact on Josiah and so little on our every day lives?

Perhaps the blessing of always having God’s word available makes it to ‘everyday.’ I think it is great that I never have to be away from my Bible. I have it in my pocket all the time now. I can look up any verse and any word anytime I want. As I sit here I have the Bible on my phone to my left, on the laptop in front of me, and the slide shelf under the top of my desk, and two copies on the desk to my right. I have more than a dozen translations on the bottom shelf of the bookcase within reach. I have many more translations at a moment’s access online.

That really is great, isn’t it? I love having all those tools.

But I have to ask myself how often God’s word impacts me like it did Josiah. When I read God’s word and He speaks to my heart does it cause me to have a ‘clothes rending’ attitude in response?

We don’t have to look for the Book. We have it. Are we willing to let it speak to our hearts as Josiah did?