II Kings 22:8-10; 23:1-3, 21-23

The 22nd chapter of II Kings opens with the announcement that a boy of eight years was sitting upon the throne of Judah in Jerusalem. Scholars have determined the calendar date that Josiah began to reign to be 639 B.C. We find in verse 3 that eighteen years have passed since verse 1. Verse 2 states: “And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.” The narrative of II Kings does not include any examples of “that which was right in the sight of the Lord” that Josiah performed before the eighteenth year of his reign. II Chronicles 34:3-7 provides missing details concerning the “right” things which Josiah did between the eighth and the eighteenth year of his reign.