Tyndale Open Study Notes2 Chronicles 35

The holy ark might have been taken from the temple during the unfaithfulness of Manasseh or Amon.

The priests and Levites followed the instructions of David and Solomon (2 Chronicles 8:14–15; 1 Chronicles 24–26). Usually, the person offering the Passover animal would slaughter it (Deuteronomy 16:5–6). However, because the offerers did not have time to purify themselves, Josiah continued Hezekiah's practice of having the Levites slaughter the Passover animals (see 2 Chronicles 30:13–20). During Josiah’s time, the large number of participants might have also caused logistical problems.

The Passover sacrifice required lambs and young goats (Exodus 12:21). The cattle were an extra offering. The totals Josiah provided, along with others' contributions, were nearly double those in Hezekiah’s time (see 2 Chronicles 30:24). However, they were less than the offerings at the temple dedication (see 2 Chronicles 7:5).

The Levites quickly brought out the food, following the need for speed required during Passover (Exodus 12:11).

This Passover had more participants than the one Hezekiah observed. During this Passover, the priests and Levites played an important role, as Josiah specifically required (2 Chronicles 35:15–16; compare 30:3, 15).

The story skips from Josiah’s eighteenth year in 622 BC to the year he died in 609 BC. As the Assyrian Empire weakened, Egypt and Babylon, once under Assyrian control, clashed. King Neco of Egypt, who had allied with Assyria to resist Babylon's growth, asked Josiah to let his army pass freely. Josiah's decision to block them might have been due to an alliance with Babylon or his own effort to gain independence from Egypt. Josiah died because he ignored a divine message given by a non-Jewish king.

Jeremiah respected Josiah greatly (see Jeremiah 22:15–16; compare Jeremiah 22:10). The Book of Laments was lost and is not the same as the Book of Lamentations.