= 2 Kings 23 * Please see [[nsv:license|License]] for Copyright notice and Licensing information. * [ [[2_Kings_22|Previous]] | [[2_Kings_24|Next]] ] == 2 Kings 23 1 And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem. 2 And the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord. 3 And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant. 4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Bethel. 5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven. 6 And he brought out the grove from the house of the Lord, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people. 7 And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the grove. 8 And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba, and brake down the high places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand at the gate of the city. 9 Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread among their brethren. 10 And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech. 11 And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire. 12 And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron. 13 And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile. 14 And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men. 15 Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to powder, and burned the grove. 16 And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the Lord which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words. 17 Then he said, What title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Bethel. 18 And he said, Let him alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria. 19 And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel. 20 And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them, and returned to Jerusalem. 21 And the king commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of this covenant. 22 Surely there was not holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah; 23 But in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, wherein this passover was holden to the Lord in Jerusalem. 24 Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. 25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him. 26 Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal. 27 And the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there. 28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him. 30 And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead. 31 Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaohnechoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of an hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaohnechoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh: he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaohnechoh. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. == Notes == Cross Reference == Commentary == Rashi ==== Verse 3 At his place. The place where the king stands in the Beis Hamikdosh.1See above 11:14. It was a special place in the Beis Hamikdosh where the king would stand when addressing the people. ==== Verse 4 The kohanim of the second rank. The assistants of the priesthood,2The kohein who was anointed for war was also included in this group.—Metzudas Dovid who are second in rank3They would substitute for the kohein gadol in the event that he was incapacitated to perform the service in the Beis Hamikdosh.—Radak to the Kohanim Gedolim. And the gatekeepers. The supervisors in charge over all the necessities of the Beis [Hamikdosh], and the keys of the Temple's courtyard were in their charge.4See Rashi above, 12:10. In the plains of Kidron. In the plains of Kidron. And he carried their ashes to Beis Eil. To an unclean place, where he defiled the altar that Yorovom had made,5See v. 15 below. and he burned upon it the priests of the high places. ==== Verse 5 And who had burned incense on the high places. And those who burned incense on the high places in the cities of Yehudah. ==== Verse 7 The houses devoted to pagan worship. The houses of lewdness.6Alternatively, houses designated for those individuals who dedicated their lives to worship the asheiroh and lived in seclusion.—Metzudas Dovid Would weave coverings Curtains.7The curtains that they wove were used as enclosures for the asheiroh.—Metzudas Dovid ==== Verse 9 Were not permitted to ascend. The priests who burned incense on the high places to idols, were not permitted to ascend anymore to serve on the Altar of Adonoy. They would eat matzohs. I.e., but in this thing they would not be disqualified from their priesthood, that they are allowed to eat hallowed things. They are like blemished [kohanim] and they share and eat [of the sacrifice], but they may not offer [sacrifices].8See Maseches Menachos 109a. They would eat matzohs. Meal-offerings,9All meal offerings were prepared in an unleavened state [=matzohs]. See Vayikra 2:10-11. and similarly, all hallowed things. ==== Verse 10 The Tophes. This was the Molech, it is named [תפת] because priests would bang on drums [=תופים] so that the father should not hear the groans of the child when he was burned by the pagan image,10According to Ralbag, the service of Molech involved the passing of a child by priests between two fires. Molech, they called it Tophes. ==== Verse 11 The horses. Those [people] who prostrated themselves to the sun, had horses ready in the morning to go out toward the sun.11The idolatrous kings of Yehudah would ride these horses from the entrance of the Beis Hamikdosh to the chamber of Nesan Melech which was located to the east of the city.—Ralbag and Metzudas Dovid Nesan Melech. That was its name. In the outskirts. I do not know what they are.12”רורים are the open space areas located outside the city. In Yechezkeil 27:28 the verse states, “the surrounding areas [=מגרשות] will tremble,” and Targum renders “פרורים” for מגרשות.—Radak ==== Verse 12 He quickly removed them from there. And he eliminated them from there.13Alternatively, וירץ stems from רוץ [=to run], and the phrase means, “he quickly removed them,” or וירץ stems from רצץ [=to smash], and the phrase means, “and he smashed them,” i.e. after he demolished the altars he further smashed the pieces.—Radak ==== Verse 13 Of Har Hamashchis. [I.e.,] the Mount of Olives, which is known as the Mount of Oil. But because its name is mentioned in reference to idolatry, [Scripture] changed its name to a derogatory expression.14I.e., from הר המשחה [=Mount of Oil] to הר המשחית [=Mount of Destroyer]. ==== Verse 17 ”What is this marker?” He saw a grave, one side of which was overgrown with thorns and thistles, and whose other side was graced with myrtles and spices. He wondered about it and said, “What is this?”15Alternatively, he saw a grave with a large and distinctive marker that was unlike the markers of other graves. The old [=false] prophet was certain that the prophecy of the prophet from Yehudah would be fulfilled and that Yoshiyahu would spare the bones of that prophet. He hoped that his bones would also be spared because of their proximity and he therefore instructed that a large and distinctive marker be erected on that prophet's grave.—Radak And they replied. ”It is the grave of the man of God.” And the false prophet, who commanded his sons that they bury him next to him.16See I Melochim 13:31-32. Although they were buried over 350 years ago, the people knew about it by tradition handed down from father to son.—Radak ==== Verse 19 In the cities of Shomron. For Yeshayohu was king over all Yisroel, of those who returned from the ten tribes through Yirmiyohu. ==== Verse 22 Such a Pesach sacrifice had not been offered. So many people had not assembled at any Pesach sacrifice as had assembled at this one.17The magnitude of the participation by the vast number of people was unprecedented. Alternatively, since the time of the Judges, the people had never celebrated Pesach so devotedly.—Ralbag Since the time of the Judges. ”Since the time of Shmuel,”18II Divrei Hayomim 35:18. In Divrei Hayomim, it is written, because Shmuel, too, led Yisroel to improve their ways,19Alternatively, Shmuel is mentioned because he was the last of the Judges.—Metzudas Dovid and he assembled them to Mitzpoh. Alternatively, such a Pesach had not been offered to God in Yerusholayim, [i.e.,] (but) when the kings of Yisroel and the kings of Yehudah reigned, all Yisroel did not perform a Pesach sacrifice in Yerusholayim, because the kingdom had been divided in two since Yorovom, and they would go to the calf in Beis Eil and in Dan until now, that the ten tribes were exiled, and Yirmiyohu brought them back, and Yoshiyahu reigned over them, and they all came to Yerusholayim. ==== Verse 24 The teraphim. Images20In I Shmuel 19:16, Rashi described teraphim as being made in the likeness of a human figure. that speak through sorcery, and the one who make them must determine a certain time in the year, and a certain year that is appropriate for this. ==== Verse 30 Anointed. He did not require anointment,21Ordinarily, a king's son does not need to be anointed unless there is a dispute over his successor. See Maseches Kerisos 5b. nonetheless [he was anointed] because Yehoyakim his brother was two years older than he, as is explained in this section.22Verse 31 below states that Yehoachaz was twenty three years old when he became king and v. 36 states that his brother Yehoyakim was twenty-five years old when he became king. Being that Yehoachaz reigned for only three months as indicated in v. 31, it follows that there is a two year age difference between them. ==== Verse 35 Each one according to his assessment. According to his wealth.