2 Chronicles 35:18
And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
No Passover kept in Israel was like the one Josiah kept since the days of Samuel the prophet, and none of all the kings of Israel kept such a Passover as his. Those who kept it were Josiah together with the priests and the Levites and all Judah and Israel that were present and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, making it an exceptional national observance under his leadership. It belongs to the detailed account of Josiah's good reign, which ended in 607 BC, and he was the last king of Jerusalem who obeyed the Lord's commandments and kept His statutes.
The people's readiness to celebrate this Passover followed Josiah's reform, his removal of idolatry, and his efforts to spread knowledge of the law. It belonged to a prosperous season of thirty-one years when a good king legalized, protected, and encouraged good men and good principles to stem the torrent of wickedness overflowing the land and to check its tide. People from the tribes of Israel were present, including remnants of the ten tribes and those who wished to return and join with Judah, so Israel was represented alongside Judah as evidence that the ten tribes had not all disappeared or been permanently lost. Although the ten tribes were cast off as a nation, individuals from them were not cast off, and their presence proves that many from the northern tribes remained connected with the worship of God at Jerusalem.
The Passover was a revival that awakened better thoughts in the minds of a few who were as the salt of the earth, and those reached by it, like Daniel and his companions, treasured up warning, mingled their tears with Jeremiah's, and carried its fruit gloriously into after years. It brought a great revival of hope just before the people's final turn to idolatry and sin, and it illustrates how a great revival leads to missionary endeavor. The Passovers of Josiah and Hezekiah were occasions of blessing from God for His people, recalled by modest conduct and worship, and Josiah's Passover was an occasion of great joy that followed great trouble because trouble leads to repentance.
As part of the history of the kings of Israel and Judah, the verse widens the horizon, presents the setting for Bible events, and yields precious spiritual lessons, since it is directly connected with God's historical revelation culminating in Christ, who is the central light testifying through all Scripture.