Reforms under Josiah

Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, (A)the priests of the second order, and the [a]doorkeepers (B)to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the utensils that had been made for Baal, for [b]Asherah, and for all the heavenly [c]lights; and (C)he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley, and carried their ashes to Bethel. Then he did away with the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the surrounding area of Jerusalem, as well as those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the remaining (D)heavenly [d]lights.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 23:4 Lit keepers of the threshold
  2. 2 Kings 23:4 I.e., a wooden symbol of a female deity, and so throughout the ch
  3. 2 Kings 23:4 Lit host
  4. 2 Kings 23:5 Lit host

The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers(A) to remove(B) from the temple of the Lord all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel. He did away with the idolatrous priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem—those who burned incense(C) to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts.(D)

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11 And he did away with the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the (A)sun, at the entrance of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathan-melech the official, which was at the [a]covered courtyard; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 23:11 Meaning of the Heb uncertain

11 He removed from the entrance to the temple of the Lord the horses that the kings of Judah(A) had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court[a] near the room of an official named Nathan-Melek. Josiah then burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.(B)

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 23:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.