Good Kings of Ancient Judah and Today’s Realities

The world is, rightly I believe, horrified at the destruction of antiquities by the Islamic State and other radical Islamists. In order to address this with any hope of effectiveness, the West must understand that they see these things as snares of idolatry. They do not see themselves as destroying culture but as cleaning culture of pagan evil. I can’t help but remember being taught in Sunday school as a child about the “good kings of Judah” in the Old Testament who we saw as God’s heroes who destroyed the high places and idols. I am not suggesting an explanation, only inviting pondering. Here are some starter scriptures for exploration. I am not ready to write off ancient Israel nor to approve the destruction of antiquities today, but am listening for the voice of God in the uncomfortable spaces between these scriptures and today’s experiences.

Numbers 33.52: you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, destroy all their figured stones, destroy all their cast images, and demolish all their high places.

2 Kings 12.3: Nevertheless the high places were not taken away; the people continued to sacrifice and make offerings on the high places.

2 Kings 14.4: But the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places.

2 Kings 15.4: Nevertheless the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places.

2 Kings 15.35: Nevertheless the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. 

2 Kings 18.4: He removed the high places, broke down the pillars, and cut down the sacred pole. He broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it; it was called Nehushtan.

2 Kings 23.8: He brought all the priests out of the towns of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings, from Geba to Beer-sheba; he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on the left at the gate of the city.

2 Kings 23.13: The king defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of Destruction, which King Solomon of Israel had built for Astarte the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

2 Kings 23.19: Moreover, Josiah removed all the shrines of the high places that were in the towns of Samaria, which kings of Israel had made, provoking the Lordto anger; he did to them just as he had done at Bethel.

2 Chronicles 14.3: He took away the foreign altars and the high places, broke down the pillars, hewed down the sacred poles,

2 Chronicles 14.5: He also removed from all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom had rest under him.

2 Chronicles 17.6: His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord; and furthermore he removed the high places and the sacred poles from Judah.

2 Chronicles 31.1: Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke down the pillars, hewed down the sacred poles, and pulled down the high places and the altars throughout all Judah and Benjamin, and in Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had destroyed them all. Then all the people of Israel returned to their cities, all to their individual properties.

2 Chronicles 34.3: For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a boy, he began to seek the God of his ancestor David, and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the sacred poles, and the carved and the cast images.