Huldah: The Prophetess the King Consulted
12 November 2025 · 2 min read · Understanding the Bible
Huldah appears in one scene, and it is a remarkable one. Workmen repairing the temple found the lost book of the law; young king Josiah, hearing it read, tore his clothes — and sent his highest officials to enquire of the LORD. They went to Huldah the prophetess.
So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.
A woman with the word
Jeremiah and Zephaniah were both active in those days, yet the delegation went to Huldah — evidently the recognised voice of God in Jerusalem. She answered without hesitation: Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me...
Her message was two-edged: judgment was truly coming on the nation's long idolatry, but because Josiah's heart was tender and he had humbled himself, he would be gathered to his grave in peace. Truth and tenderness, both delivered straight.
Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD.
The revival that followed
Huldah's confirmation launched one of history's great reformations: Josiah gathered the people, read them the book, renewed the covenant, and purged the land of idols. A found Bible, a tender king, and a faithful prophetess — revival has been made of such ingredients ever since.
Huldah's quiet fame says much: God gives his word to whom he pleases, and wisdom is proven by those who seek it out. May our generation have her kind — and consult them.
