“And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, ‘I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.’ And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.” – 2 Kings 22:8
It’s nearly impossible for us to imagine God’s Word disappearing completely. We’re blessed to live in an era of mass printing and electronic publishing. Bibles are readily available in print and online in countless languages and formats. It would be difficult to conceive of the kind of global disaster necessary to cause God’s Word to disappear from memory. However, that hasn’t always been true. There was a time when Israel had fallen so far away from God that His Law was completely lost to them. It seems they still knew they were God’s people and understood they should do right and appropriate things for the Lord. But they didn’t actually know what those things were.
During restoration work on the Temple, a long-lost scroll of God’s Law was discovered. The King and all the people were shocked to learn all the ways they had fallen short of God’s standard. They repented, prayed, devoted themselves to the Lord, and were diligent to once again teach and pass on God’s Law. This was a turning point in history, because it doesn’t appear the Law was ever completely lost again.
We certainly hope and pray that we’ll never become so divorced from God that the Bible becomes essentially lost to us or our descendants. Nonetheless, this history is a reminder that even if one or more generations is completely lost, God’s Word will endure. And when the time is right, God will bring re-discovery, renewal, revival, and restoration. God’s will will be done!
So, never lose hope. Never grow too despondent over the spiritual condition of the world. Stay faithful. Be diligent in prayer. Share the Gospel. Make disciples. Trust that God will always make a way for His Word to be taught and obeyed and for people to be raised to new spiritual life in Christ. #FollowJesus