The king went up to the House of GOD, together with the entire citizenry of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests and prophets—all the people, young and old.ayoung and old Or “from small to great.” And he read to them the entire text of the covenant scroll that had been found in the House of GOD.
The king stood by the pillarbby the pillar Or “on a platform,” cf. Targum. and solemnized the covenant before GOD: that they would follow GOD and observe God’s commandments, injunctions, and laws with all their heart and soul; that they would fulfill all the terms of this covenant as inscribed upon the scroll. And all the people entered intocentered into Cf. Targum. the covenant.
Then the king ordered the high priest Hilkiah, the priests of the second rank, and the guards of the threshold to bring out of the Temple of GOD all the objects made for Baal and AsherahdAsherah For this goddess, cf. 1 Kings 18.19; ordinarily ʼasherah is rendered “sacred post,” e.g., 2 Kings 17.16. and all the host of heaven. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fieldsefields Meaning of Heb. uncertain. of Kidron, and he removed the ashes to Bethel.
He suppressed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed to make offeringsfto make offerings Lit. “and he offered.” at the shrines in the towns of Judah and in the environs of Jerusalem, and those who made offerings to Baal, to the sun and moon and constellations—all the host of heaven.
He brought out the [image of] Asherah from the House of GOD to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem, and burned it in the Kidron Valley; he beat it to dust and scattered its dust over the burial ground of the common people.
He tore down the cubicles of the consecrated workersgconsecrated workers Or “retainers”; meaning of Heb. qedeshim uncertain. in the House of GOD, at the place where the women wove coveringshcoverings Meaning of Heb. uncertain. for Asherah.
He brought all the priests from the towns of Judah [to Jerusalem] and defiled the shrines where the priests had been making offerings—from Geba to Beer-sheba. He also demolished the shrines of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the city prefect—which were on the left as one [entered] the city gate.iwhich were on the left … gate Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
jThis verse may be understood in connection with vv. 21–23. The priests of the shrines, however, did not ascend the altar of GOD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread along with their kinsmen.
He did away with the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun, at the entrancekat the entrance Heb. “from entering.” of the House of GOD, near the chamber of the eunuch Nathan-melech, which was in the precincts.lprecincts Meaning of Heb. uncertain. He burned the chariots of the sun.
And the king tore down the altars made by the kings of Judah on the roof by the upper chamber of Ahaz, and the altars made by Manasseh in the two courts of the House of GOD. He removed them quickly from theremremoved them quickly from there Heb. “ran from there.” Emendation yields “smashed them there.” and scattered their rubble in the Kidron Valley.
The king also defiled the shrines facing Jerusalem, to the south of the Mount of the Destroyer,nMount of the Destroyer Heb. har ha-mashḥith: a derogatory play on har ha-mishḥah (“Mount of Ointment”); Mishnah Middoth 2.4. which King Solomon of Israel had built for Ashtoreth, the abomination of the Sidonians, for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom, the detestable thing of the Ammonites.othe shrines … which King Solomon of Israel had built … Ammonites Cf. 1 Kings 11.5, 7.
Word-by-Word Analysis
ואתהבמות
860
אשר
501
עלפני
240
ירושלם
586
אשר
501
מימין
150
להרהמשחית
998
אשר
501
בנה
57
שלמה
375
מלךישראל
631
לעשתרת
1400
שקץ
490
צידנים
204
ולכמוש
402
שקץ
490
מואב
49
ולמלכם
166
תועבת
878
בניעמון
228
טמא
50
המלך
95
II Kings 23:14
Gematria: 4410
ושבראתהמצבותויכרתאתהאשריםוימלאאתמקומםעצמותאדם
He shattered their pillars and cut down their sacred postspsacred posts See note at 13.6. and covered their sites with human bones.
As for the altar in Bethel [and] the shrine made by Jeroboam son of Nebat who caused Israel to sin—that altar, too, and the shrine as well, he tore down. He burned down the shrine and beat it to dust, and he burned the sacred post.qsacred post See note at 13.6.
Josiah turned and saw the graves that were there on the hill; and he had the bones taken out of the graves and burned on the altar. Thus he defiled it, in fulfillment of the word of GOD foretold by the agent of God who foretold these happenings.
He asked, “What is the marker I see there?” And the townspeople replied, “That is the grave of the agent of God who came from Judah and foretold these things that you have done to the altar of Bethel.”rCf. 1 Kings 13.1–3.
“Let him be,” he said, “let no one disturb his bones.” So they left his bones undisturbed together with the bones of the prophetstogether with the bones of the prophet See 1 Kings 13.31–32 and next note. who came from Samaria.tSamaria The prophet lived in Bethel, which, in Josiah’s time, was part of the Assyrian province of Samaria.
Josiah also abolished all the cult places that the kings of Israel had built in the towns of Samaria, vexing [GOD]. He dealt with them just as he had done to Bethel:
Now the passover sacrifice had not been offered in that manner in the days of the chieftains who ruled Israel, or during the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah.
Word-by-Word Analysis
כי
30
לא
31
נעשה
425
כפסח
168
הזה
17
מימי
100
השפטים
444
אשר
501
שפטו
395
אתישראל
942
וכל
56
ימי
60
מלכי
100
ישראל
541
ומלכי
106
יהודה
30
II Kings 23:23
Gematria: 3089
כיאםבשמנהעשרהשנהלמלךיאשיהונעשההפסחהזהליהוהבירושלם
Only in the eighteenth year of King Josiah was such a passover sacrifice offered in that manner to GOD in Jerusalem.
Josiah also did away with the necromancers and the mediums,uthe necromancers and the mediums Lit. “the ghosts and the familiar spirits.” the oracle idols and the fetishes—all the detestable things that were to be seen in the land of Judah and Jerusalem. Thus he fulfilled the terms of the Teaching recorded in the scroll that the priest Hilkiah had found in the House of GOD.
There was no king like him before who turned back to GOD with all his heart and soul and might, in full accord with the Teaching of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him.
GOD said, “I will also banish Judah from My presence as I banished Israel; and I will reject the city of Jerusalem that I chose and the House where I said My name would abide.”
In his days, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, marched against the king of AssyriavAssyria I.e., the Chaldean Empire; cf. Isa. 52.4 and note. to the River Euphrates; King Josiah marched toward him, but when he confronted him at Megiddo, [Pharaoh Neco] slew him.
His servants conveyed his body in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem, and they buried him in his tomb. Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz; they anointed him and made him king in place of his father.
Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem; his mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
Word-by-Word Analysis
בןעשרים
672
ושלש
636
שנה
355
יהואחז
37
במלכו
98
ושלשה
641
חדשים
362
מלך
90
בירושלם
588
ושם
346
אמו
47
חמוטל
93
בתירמיהו
673
מלבנה
127
II Kings 23:32
Gematria: 2195
ויעשהרעבעינייהוהככלאשרעשואבתיו
He did what was displeasing to GOD, just as his predecessors had done.
Pharaoh Neco imprisoned him in Riblah in the region of Hamath, to keep him from reigning in Jerusalem. And he imposed on the land an indemnity of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
Then Pharaoh Neco appointed Eliakim son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah, changing his name to Jehoiakim. He took Jehoahaz and brought himwbrought him So 2 Chron. 36.4; Heb. here “he came.” to Egypt, where he died.
Jehoiakim gave Pharaoh the silver and the gold, and he made an assessment on the land to pay the money demanded by Pharaoh. He exacted from the people of the land the silver and gold to be paid Pharaoh Neco, each [holding] according to its assessment.
Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; his mother’s name was Zebudah daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
Word-by-Word Analysis
בןעשרים
672
וחמש
354
שנה
355
יהויקים
181
במלכו
98
ואחת
415
עשרה
575
שנה
355
מלך
90
בירושלם
588
ושם
346
אמו
47
זבידה
28
זבודה
24
בתפדיה
501
מןרומה
341
II Kings 23:37
Gematria: 2195
ויעשהרעבעינייהוהככלאשרעשואבתיו
He did what was displeasing to GOD, just as his ancestors had done.