II Chronicles 35:25 · Bible study
2 Chronicles 35:25 Commentary: The Lost Lamentations for Josiah
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
What are 'the lamentations' in 2 Chronicles 35:25? Scholars debate whether this refers to Jeremiah's lost dirge or the canonical Book of Lamentations.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Jeremiah composed a formal lament for King Josiah, and the community established it as an annual ordinance, recorded in a lost collection of dirges.
- Key words: “lamented” (Hebrew qun, to chant a dirge), “singing men and women” (professional mourners), “ordinance” (choq, a statute), “lamentations” (Hebrew haqqinot, possibly a specific collection).
- Main debate: Whether “the lamentations” refers to the canonical Book of Lamentations or a now-lost anthology of national dirges; most scholars favor a lost collection.
- Theological theme: The sanctification of grief, how a community of faith can memorialize tragedy and righteous leadership through ritual lament.
- Best use: Teaching on the value of public mourning, the legacy of faithful leaders, and the role of music and liturgy in processing national or communal loss.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Then Jeremiah lamented over Josiah, and to this day all the choirs of men and women sing laments over Josiah. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Book of Laments.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Jeremiah lamented for Josiah, and all the singing men and singing women spoke of Josiah in their lamentations to this day; and they made them an ordinance in Israel. Behold, they are written in the lamentations.
KJV King James Version 1769
And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations unto this day; and they made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and Jeremiah lamenteth for Josiah, and all the singers and the songstresses speak in their lamentations of Josiah unto this day, and set them for a statute on Israel, and lo, they are written beside the lamentations.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah; and all the singing men and singing women spoke of Josiah in their lamentations to this day; and they made them an ordinance for Israel. And behold, they are written in the lamentations.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Particularly Jeremias: whose lamentations for Josias all the singing men and singing women repeat unto this day, and it became like a law in Israel: Behold it is found written in the Lamentations.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y endechó Jeremías por Josías, y todos los cantores y cantoras recitan sus lamentaciones sobre Josías hasta hoy; y las dieron por norma para endechar en Israel, las cuales están escritas en las Lamentaciones.
E lamentou Jeremias por Josias, e todos os cantores e cantoras recitam suas lamentações sobre Josias até hoje; e as deram por norma para lamentar em Israel, as quais estão escritas nas Lamentações.
Jérémie fit une complainte sur Josias; tous les chanteurs et toutes les chanteuses ont parlé de Josias dans leurs complaintes jusqu’ à ce jour, et en ont établi la coutume en Israël. Ces chants sont écrits dans les Complaintes.
Und Jeremia beklagte Josia, und alle Sänger und Sängerinnen redeten in ihren Klageliedern über Josia bis auf diesen Tag und machten eine Gewohnheit daraus in Israel. Siehe, es ist geschrieben unter den Klageliedern.
En Jeremia maakte een klaaglied over Josia; desgelijks alle zangers en zangeressen spraken in hun klaagliederen van Josia, tot op dezen dag; want zij gaven ze tot een inzetting in Israel; en ziet, zij zijn geschreven in de klaagliederen.
Geremia compose un lamento sopra Giosia; e tutti i cantori e tutte le cantatrici hanno parlato di Giosia nei loro lamenti fino al dì d’oggi, e ne hanno stabilito un’usanza in Israele. Essi si trovano scritti tra i lamenti.
Uczynił też i Jeremijasz narzekanie nad Jozyjaszem, które przypominają wszyscy śpiewacy, i śpiewaczki w lamentach swych o Jozyjaszu aż po dziś dzień, i wprowadzili to w zwyczaj w Izraelu; a zapisano te rzeczy w lamentach Jeremijaszowych.
Оплакал Иосию и Иеремия в песне плачевной; и говорили все певцы и певицы об Иосии в плачевных песнях своих, известных до сего дня, и передали их в употребление у Израиля; и вот они вписаны в книгу плачевных песней.
耶利米 為 約西亞 作哀歌。所有 歌唱的男 女 也唱哀歌，追悼 約西亞，直到 今日；而且在 以色列 中成了 定例。 這歌載 在 哀歌書上。
And Jeremiah made a song of grief for Josiah; and to this day Josiah is named by all the makers of melody, men and women, in their songs of grief; they made it a rule in Israel; and the songs are recorded among the songs of grief.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · II Chronicles 35:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Jeremiah composed a formal elegy for King Josiah after his death at Megiddo. The Hebrew verb lamented (from qun) suggests a crafted dirge, not merely spontaneous grief. Cambridge Bible notes this term is used elsewhere for composed laments (2 Samuel 1:17; Ezekiel 27:32). Professional male and female singers then took up the lament, and it became an “ordinance” (a prescribed statute) in Israel, observed annually.
Yet the phrase “they are written in the lamentations” sparks the central debate. Most commentators, Barnes, Gill, Keil & Delitzsch, and the Cambridge Bible, argue this refers to a now-lost collection of dirges, not the canonical Book of Lamentations. As Plumptre observed, the biblical Lamentations contains “not a single word distinctive of a funeral dirge over a devout and zealous reformer like Josiah.” The Targum claims Baruch wrote it down, but this tradition lacks textual support. What remains clear is that the community institutionalized grief for a righteous king, making remembrance a fixture of national life.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Canonical Book of Lamentations: Targum claims the lament was written by Baruch from Jeremiah's mouth; some early tradition identifies it with the biblical book.
- Lost collection of dirges: Barnes, Gill, Cambridge Bible, and Plumptre argue the canonical Lamentations lacks Josiah-specific content, pointing to a lost work.
What is clear: Jeremiah lamented for Josiah, and the community established this lament as an annual ordinance in Israel.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Identity of 'the lamentations' | All agree the phrase refers to a written collection of dirges. | Some early traditions (e.g., Targum) identify it with the canonical Book of Lamentations; most modern commentators argue for a lost collection. |
| Authorship of the lament | All agree Jeremiah composed the original lament for Josiah. | Whether any part of that lament survives in the canonical Book of Lamentations (e.g., 4:20 referencing Josiah) is disputed. |
| Nature of the ordinance | All agree the lament became an established custom (ordinance) in Israel. | Whether it was observed annually on a specific date (Tisha B'Av, per Jarchi) or more generally is uncertain. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Josiah’s death was a national trauma. After his reforms and a glorious Passover, he confronted Pharaoh Neco at Megiddo against prophetic warning (2 Chronicles 35:21, 22). He died of wounds, and “all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah” (v.24). This set the stage for Jeremiah’s lament.
Professional mourners were common in Israel. Jeremiah 9:17 calls for “mourning women” and “skillful women” to lead dirges. The Hebrew terms for singing men and women (hasharim and hasharot) indicate trained performers, not just any singers. Their inclusion shows the lament was formal, public, and enduring.
The phrase “to this day” suggests the chronicler is recording a tradition still observed when he wrote. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown connects this to Zechariah 12:11, where “the lamentation of Hadad-rimmon” in the valley of Megiddo became proverbial for great sorrow. Hadad-rimmon was near the battlefield, linking Josiah’s death to a lasting cultural memory.
Making the lament an “ordinance” (choq) elevated it to a statute. This word is used elsewhere for divine decrees or civil laws. Here, the community bound itself to annual remembrance, not as empty ritual but as a way to process grief and honor a righteous leader. Wesley noted that in all subsequent public calamities, Israel remembered Josiah’s death as “the first and fatal blow.” The ordinance ensured that the lesson of a faithful king’s tragic end was not forgotten.
The reference to “the lamentations” likely points to a collection of national dirges now lost. Such collections existed; the Book of Jashar and the Book of the Wars of Yahweh are similarly cited and lost (Joshua 10:13; Numbers 21:14). This fits the pattern of ancient Near Eastern literature, where elegiac works were compiled for communal use.
Textual Notes
The supplied commentaries note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts. The plural “lamentations” is consistent, though some English versions (e.g., BSB) capitalize it as a title (“Book of Laments”). This is an interpretive translation decision, not a manuscript variant.
Reception History
This verse has been read through different lenses across traditions. Jewish exegesis, reflected in the Targum, associated the lament with Baruch’s writing and connected it to Tisha B’Av (Jarchi, cited by Gill). Early Christian commentators often assumed the canonical Lamentations was Jeremiah’s work, using this verse as support. Reformation-era interpreters like Matthew Henry focused on the tragedy of Josiah’s death and the value of public mourning. Modern scholarship, following critics like Plumptre, generally concludes that the dirge is lost, distinguishing it from the book of Lamentations over Jerusalem. The verse remains a key text for understanding how ancient Israel institutionalized grief and commemorated righteous leadership.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Prophet’s Voice in Grief: Jeremiah’s lament shows that even faithful leaders face tragedy, and God’s servants give words to communal pain.
- The Community’s Role in Remembrance: Professional singers institutionalized the lament, teaching us to honor the legacy of the faithful through ritual and memory.
- The Ordinance of Lament: Making grief a statute underscores that processing loss is not optional for God’s people; it is a spiritual discipline.
Five-point outline
- Context: Josiah’s reforms and untimely death (vv.20, 24).
- Jeremiah’s response: prophetic lament as a model for expressing grief.
- The singers: the broader community takes up the lament.
- The ordinance: annual remembrance becomes a national statute.
- The written record: preserving the lament for future generations.
Illustration hooks
- A congregation that holds an annual service of remembrance for members who died in a tragic event, singing hymns that tell their story.
- The way communities plant trees or dedicate benches to honor fallen public servants, echoing the ordinance of remembrance.
- How a family continues to tell stories of a beloved grandparent years after their death, keeping their memory alive.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why did a good king like Josiah die so young if God honored his reforms?
- Does God give us permission to grieve publicly and repeatedly, not just privately?
- How do we balance lament with hope in our worship?
Leading a Discussion
This verse captures a moment when national grief was given structure and permanence. Jeremiah, the prophet who would later write Lamentations over Jerusalem’s fall, here mourns a king. The community responds by making his dirge an annual ordinance. As you discuss this passage, consider how your own community handles loss and remembrance, and what it means to give sorrow a place in the life of faith.
Discussion questions
- What does Jeremiah’s lament teach us about the role of prophets in times of national crisis?
- Why do you think the chronicler includes the detail about “singing men and singing women”? What does this say about the nature of this lament?
- The lament became an “ordinance”, a fixed tradition. In what ways can intentional remembrance strengthen a faith community?
- How does this passage connect to the broader theme of lament in Scripture, such as the psalms of lament or the Book of Lamentations?
- What losses in your own life or community might benefit from being grieved openly and regularly?
- Josiah’s death was a tragedy despite his faithfulness. How does this verse help us wrestle with the mystery of suffering? The world breaks even the best people. How do you process that?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Job 3:8 | Let them curse it who curse the day, who are ready to rouse up leviathan. |
| Ecclesiastes 12:5 | yes, they shall be afraid of heights, and terrors will be on the way; and the almond tree shall blossom, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail; because man goes to his everlasting home, and the mourners go about the streets; |
| Jeremiah 9:17 | Yahweh of Armies says, “Consider, and call for the mourning women, that they may come. Send for the skillful women, that they may come. |
| Jeremiah 9:21 | For death has come up into our windows. It has entered into our palaces to cut off the children from outside, and the young men from the streets. |
| Jeremiah 22:10 | Don’t weep for the dead. Don’t bemoan him; but weep bitterly for him who goes away, for he will return no more, and not see his native country. |
| Jeremiah 22:20 | “Go up to Lebanon, and cry out. Lift up your voice in Bashan, and cry from Abarim; for all your lovers have been destroyed. |
| Lamentations 4:20 | The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of Yahweh, was taken in their pits; of whom we said, under his shadow we will live among the nations. |
| Matthew 9:23 | When Jesus came into the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd in noisy disorder, |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that the lament for Josiah composed by Jeremiah is now lost, though a later tradition preserved in the Targum claims it was written down by Baruch from Jeremiah’s dictation and sung annually in Israel. He also observes that Hebrew poets regularly composed songs for great events, including funerals and triumphs.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes notes that most scholars believe the lament referenced here is lost, not preserved in Lamentations as some think. He also corrects the translation of "and made them an ordinance" to mean the authorities established these lamentations as a regular practice, not the minstrels.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible notes that the lamentations for Josiah were formal elegies, like those composed for Saul and Jonathan. However, the reference points to a lost work, not the canonical book of Lamentations, which contains no funeral dirge suited to a devout reformer like Josiah.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Notes emphasize that Jeremiah's lament for King Josiah became a lasting ordinance in Israel, with professional singers continuing the mourning tradition. They identify these laments as the ones recorded in the biblical book of Lamentations.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill clarifies that the lamentations mentioned here are not the biblical Book of Lamentations by Jeremiah, but a separate collection of mourning songs now lost. He notes that Jeremiah wrote a now-missing lament for King Josiah, while professional singers later made Josiah an annual memorial in their own laments.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB notes that Jeremiah's lost lament for Josiah became a lasting tradition, sung by professional mourners on solemn occasions. The sorrow was so intense and so closely tied to the battle site at Megiddo near Hadad-rimmon that it later became a proverbial expression for any overwhelming grief.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch argue that the God commanding Pharaoh Necho to make haste was the true God, not an Egyptian deity. Yet Pharaoh likely lacked a special revelation; he simply described his own resolution as coming from God. Josiah’s fight against this warning was therefore an act against God’s will, a “disguising” of his true character.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry draws attention to the thirteen-year silence between Josiah's famous passover and his death. He argues that Scripture skips these years because, for all Josiah's goodness and apparent religious revival, the people were not truly turned from sin and God's fierce anger remained.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley observes that in every later public mourning, the people traced their national disasters back to Josiah's death as the decisive breaking point. They saw that single event as the moment that opened the way for all the suffering that followed.