Often, the Lord protects the righteous from death. But sometimes he allows them to be killed. Josiah is the one king of Judah that has no sins or character flaws mentioned. He is said to follow God with his whole heart. He destroys all the altars and priests of false gods, attempts to follow the Law and celebrates the Passover. Here is what it says about him:

²⁴ Josiah also got rid of the mediums and psychics, the household gods, the idols,^[j] and every other kind of detestable practice, both in Jerusalem and throughout the land of Judah. He did this in obedience to the laws written in the scroll that Hilkiah the priest had found in the Lord’s Temple. ²⁵ Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since. (2 Chron. 35:24-25)

And yet, he is killed in a battle and his army is defeated by Egypt. It seems odd that God would allow this to happen when Josiah has served him his whole life.

While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, went to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah and his army marched out to fight him, but King Neco killed him when they met at Megiddo. (2 Chron. 35:29)

We can probably think of other examples where God takes the life of a righteous person unexpectedly. Keith Green, an evangelist and singer/songwriter, who seemed to be at the peak of serving the Lord wholeheartedly with his music, was killed in a plane accident along with some of his family. And of course, my brother was killed in a car accident two weeks after arriving safely back from fighting in Iraq. To me, God’s timing seems to be off.

And yet, I know we don’t have the full picture. God tells us reasons for some of the events in the Bible and in our lives. But then sometimes, he only gives us part of the picture. With Josiah, I wonder if his death was the beginning of God’s judgment on Judah for the wickedness of the kings and people before him. God promised to wait until after Josiah was dead to bring on His wrath but maybe this defeat marked the beginning of it. What do you all think?

I know that is only part of the picture though. And sometimes, that is all that God gives us. It comes down to us trusting who He says He is even when we don’t understand.