“Biblical Knowledge”
Accountability for the Knowledge of
God
2 Kings 22 and 23
There are many things that are done
by society that conflict with what God expects from His people. Since we are unaware of the origin of many
things, we are not always aware of practices that may insult or offend God. We have incorporated many things in our
worship of God, and we have done so out of ignorance. As Hosea 4:6 informs us, God’s people are
destroyed for a lack of knowledge. The
“lack of knowledge” that Hosea is referring to is rejected knowledge, not
ignorance. The question may arise,
“where do we draw the line in what we alter in our lives that may be an offense
to God?” When we become aware or
knowledgeable that our way is in conflict with God’s way, we need to make the
necessary adjustments to ensure that we are following God’s plan. In 2 Kings 22:11 King Josiah discovered that Judah was in
opposition to God’s laws and his actions after that signaled that he was
repentant for the actions of the citizens of Judah, as well as the offensive deeds of his predecessors. In verses 22 and 23 he
sent men to inquire of God concerning the sins of Judah. In chapter 23 Josiah made a covenant with God
to obey His commands. Then he removed
and destroyed every image in God’s house that was built to honor a false god. He removed all of the idolatrous priests who
had taken up residence in the house of the Lord. Josiah destroyed every altar that was set up to worship a false
god. He removed the male and female
prostitutes from within the house of the Lord.
Everything that could be burned was burned. Everything that could be ground into powder
was ground. He completely destroyed everything
that was an offense to God. As a result
of Josiah humbling himself and repenting when he realized that he was in
error, God promised that He would not punish Josiah, but He would punish Judah for their many
offenses and rejection of God.
God has provided us with the Holy Bible
to teach us what He approves of and disapproves of. He has also gifted us with men who are
qualified to expound on His Word in order to gives us better understanding of
what God desires of us. Therefore, God
has eliminated every excuse that we could use to justify our actions when it
comes to doing things that He disapproves of. If we are repentant for our offenses against
God when we become aware of them, God is faithful and just to forgive us of all
of our sins.
