23 King Josiah wanted to be a faithful follower of the Lord, so everything he did was pleasing to the Lord. 24 But the old historical records show that some of the people of Judah sinned worse and were more evil than any other nation. They were so disappointing to the Lord, that he had to punish the whole nation as he had threatened to do.

25 Several years after Josiah had done these things, the king of Egypt led his army to attack the city of Carchemish on the Euphrates River. And Josiah led his troops north to meet the Egyptians in battle. 26 The king of Egypt sent the following message to Josiah: 27 The Lord God did not send me to fight you. My enemies are at the Euphrates River, and the Lord will help me win. He wants me to get there quickly, so get out of my way! Don't try to stop the Lord!

28 Even the prophet Jeremiah told Josiah that the Lord wanted him to get in his chariot and go back home, but instead, Josiah decided to stay and fight. 29 He attacked the Egyptian army in the broad valley near Megiddo, but the Egyptian commanders counterattacked near him. 30 He told his servants, “Get me out of here! I'm badly wounded.” His servants quickly took him away from the fighting. 31 Josiah got into his spare chariot and was taken back to Jerusalem, where he died. He was buried in the family tomb.

32 Everyone in Judah mourned for Josiah. Jeremiah the prophet wrote a funeral song in honor of him, and it is still a custom in Israel for important men and their wives to sing sad songs about Josiah as they mourn his death.

33 All these things are recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. Josiah did many great things. He received many honors, and he understood the Law of the Lord very well. All these and other things that he did can be found in The Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version ®. Copyright © 1995 American Bible Society. Used by permission.