in spite of some earlier attempts to contest the historical setting of the book which is offered in the book's superscription(Hyatt, L.P. Smith and Lacheman),there is a wide agreement among modern scholars in accepting the period of Josiah's reign (639-609). There remains some disagreement as to the exact period within his reign.generally the argument for the period before the reform in 621 has gained acceptance in the light of the description of the religious abuses in ch. 1.However, a few scholars have suggested a some-what later period on the basis of the phrase 'remnant of Baal' holding that the reform had already begun.The issue is not of great importance