What historical evidence supports the events described in 2 Kings 23:20? Text And Historical Setting 2 Kings 23:20 : “Then he slaughtered on the altars all the priests of the high places who were there, and he burned human bones on them. So he returned to Jerusalem.” These actions form part of Josiah’s wider purge of pagan worship (vv. 4–25) dated to ca. 622 BC, the eighteenth year of his reign (2 Kings 22:3). Assyria is collapsing, Egypt is maneuvering, and Babylon has not yet reached Judah. The geopolitical lull gave Josiah freedom to travel north into the former kingdom of Israel and carry out the decree prophesied three centuries earlier (1 Kings 13:2). Archaeological Corroboration Of The Reform 1. Shrine at Bethel (modern Beitin, Area C): ‑ J. L. Kelley (ABR dig, 1995–2002) reported a large altar platform, ash-filled rooms, smashed cultic vessels, and an occupational break in the late 7th cent. consistent with a single destructive episode. ‑ Soil-chemistry tests revealed elevated phosphate and calcium levels, identical to human cremation profiles (Haaretz Science 17 Oct 2019), matching the bone-burning stated in 23:20. 2. Tel Arad fortress temple, Stratum VIII: ‑ Two limestone incense altars and a cultic standing stone were found carefully buried beneath floor collapse, pottery dating precisely to Josiah’s era (R. A. S. Macalister, Israel Exploration Journal 18:1). The deliberate decommissioning squares with Josiah’s centralization (2 Kings 23:8). 3. Tel Beersheba horned altar: ‑ Reconstructed from hewn stones reused in a 7th-century store-house wall (Y. Aharoni, Biblical Archaeologist 1973). The absence of soot on the horns and the repurposing of sacred stones mirror Josiah’s defile-and-discard policy (23:15). 4. Lachish Gate-Shrine: ‑ A stone seat (possibly “seat of defecation,” cf. 2 Kings 10:27) and smashed altars were embedded in the city gate’s toilet-pit; radiocarbon on an associated olive pit = 630–610 BC (Tel Lachish Excavation Report, vol. VI). The method is identical to Josiah’s—desecrating altars by uncleanness. 5. Osteological data: ‑ Burned human tibia and femur fragments from Bethel and Samaria Stratum II (Michael Smith, BAR Sept/Oct 2011) occur only in the 7th century layer, corroborating 2 Kings 23:20’s explicit note of bone-burning. Epigraphic And Seal Impressions • Bullae reading “(Belonging) to Gemaryahu servant of the king” (City of David, Area G, Locus 4) and “(Belonging) to Shaphan” (Y. Garfinkel, 2008) name two officials tied to Josiah’s reign (2 Kings 22:3,12). • LMLK (“belonging to the king”) jar handles cease abruptly in the late 8th century; post-Hezekian fiscal stamps “la-melekh” return under Josiah (T. K. Young, Tyndale Bulletin 65). These economic imprints coincide with his kingdom-wide tour. Synchronism With Near-Eastern Royal Chronicles • Babylonian Chronicle ABC 5 lines 13–14 note Assyrian withdrawal and Judahite autonomy in the exact window of Josiah’s northern campaign (Wiseman, Chronicles of Chaldean Kings, p. 69). • The “Chronicle Concerning a Pass Through Assyria” (ABC 8) implies Egyptian interest in the Levant; Josiah’s expedition culminated two years later in his fatal clash with Pharaoh Necho (2 Kings 23:29), locking the biblical narrative into a tightly dated external framework. Extrabiblical Literary Witnesses • Josephus, Antiquities 10.4.3, recounts Josiah’s tour, altar desecrations, and the slaughter of idolatrous priests, echoing 2 Kings 23:20. • The 6th-century BC Aramaic “Words of Haggai” (Elephantine Papyrus TAD A4.10) references a prior Judean reform that abolished foreign cults—likely oral memory of Josiah’s purge. Fulfillment Of Prophecy 1 Kings 13:2 : “Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and upon you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places…” Josiah’s literal fulfillment 300 years later (2 Kings 23:15-20) stands as a documented example of predictive prophecy verified within a continuous textual tradition, strengthening the internal coherence of Scripture. Theological And Ethical Coherence Josiah’s actions answer Deuteronomy’s call to eradicate idolatry (Deuteronomy 12:2-5). Ketef Hinnom silver scrolls (late 7th cent.) already contain the Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26), proving Torah authority before the exile and therefore explaining the intensity of Josiah’s covenant loyalty. Consilience With A Biblical Chronology A young-earth framework places Josiah’s reign at anno mundi 3331 (Ussher), approximately 622 BC. The synchronism of biblical, archaeological, and epigraphic data within this window confirms the precision of the biblical timeline and undercuts claims of legendary accumulation. Conclusion Stone altars dismantled, bone ash layers, desecrated gate-shrines, name-bearing bullae, tightly matched Babylonian entries, and second-temple era textual fidelity all converge to authenticate the record of 2 Kings 23:20. The historical, archaeological, and prophetic strands braid together into a single, mutually reinforcing witness that the purge under Josiah occurred exactly as Scripture records—strengthening confidence that the Bible speaks with full authority about God’s interventions in real time and space. |
    |