He pulled down the altars that the kings of Judah had set up on the roof near the upper chamber of Ahaz, and the altars that Manasseh had set up in the two courtyards of the house of the LORD. The king pulverized them there and threw their dust into the Kidron Valley. He pulled down the altarsThe phrase "He pulled down the altars" signifies a decisive action taken by King Josiah to eradicate idolatry from Judah. The Hebrew root for "pulled down" is "nathats," which means to break down or destroy. This action reflects Josiah's commitment to restoring true worship of Yahweh, as he actively dismantles the physical structures that facilitated idol worship. Historically, altars on rooftops were common in ancient Near Eastern cultures, used for astral worship. Josiah's reform was a direct challenge to these practices, emphasizing a return to monotheism and covenant faithfulness. that the kings of Judah had set up
This phrase highlights the complicity of previous Judean kings in promoting idolatry. The Hebrew word for "set up" is "nathan," meaning to give or place. It underscores the deliberate establishment of these altars by past rulers, contrasting with Josiah's reformative zeal. This historical context reveals a period of spiritual decline in Judah, where leaders led the nation away from God's commandments. Josiah's actions serve as a corrective measure, aiming to realign the nation with its divine heritage. on the roof near the upper chamber of Ahaz
The "roof" and "upper chamber" refer to specific architectural features of royal buildings. Roof altars were often used for worshiping celestial deities, indicating syncretism in Judah's religious practices. The mention of "Ahaz," a previous king known for his idolatrous practices, provides historical context. Ahaz's reign was marked by significant religious compromise, including the introduction of foreign altars. Josiah's reforms, therefore, are not just physical demolitions but symbolic acts of purifying the nation from the sins of its forebears. He smashed them to pieces
The phrase "smashed them to pieces" conveys the thoroughness of Josiah's reforms. The Hebrew root "shabar" means to break or shatter, indicating complete destruction. This act symbolizes the obliteration of idolatry's hold over Judah. Josiah's actions are reminiscent of Moses' destruction of the golden calf (Exodus 32), serving as a powerful statement against idolatry. It reflects a deep commitment to covenant renewal and the eradication of anything that stands against the worship of Yahweh. and threw their dust into the Kidron Valley
The "Kidron Valley" was a significant geographical location, often associated with cleansing and judgment. By throwing the dust of the altars into the Kidron Valley, Josiah was symbolically purging the land of its impurities. The act of reducing the altars to "dust" signifies total annihilation, leaving no trace of the idolatrous practices. This action aligns with the biblical theme of purification, where the Kidron Valley serves as a place of disposal for defiled objects, reinforcing the idea of spiritual renewal and dedication to God. Persons / Places / Events 1. JosiahThe king of Judah who initiated religious reforms to restore the worship of Yahweh and eliminate idolatry. 2. Kings of JudahPrevious rulers who had set up altars for idol worship, contributing to the spiritual decline of the nation. 3. AhazA former king of Judah known for his idolatrous practices, including setting up altars on the roof. 4. ManassehAnother king of Judah notorious for his extensive idolatry, including altars in the temple courtyards. 5. Kidron ValleyA location outside Jerusalem where Josiah disposed of the remnants of the destroyed altars, symbolizing the removal of sin and idolatry. Teaching Points Commitment to PurityJosiah's actions demonstrate a commitment to spiritual purity and obedience to God's commands. Believers are called to examine their lives and remove anything that hinders their relationship with God. Courage in LeadershipJosiah's reforms required courage to go against established practices. Christians are encouraged to stand firm in their faith, even when it means challenging societal norms. The Importance of RepentanceThe destruction of the altars symbolizes repentance and turning away from sin. Believers should regularly seek God's forgiveness and strive to live righteously. Legacy of InfluenceThe actions of past leaders like Ahaz and Manasseh had long-lasting negative effects. Christians should consider the legacy they are leaving for future generations. Symbolic Acts of FaithJosiah's physical destruction of idols serves as a powerful symbol of spiritual renewal. Believers can engage in symbolic acts that reinforce their commitment to God. Bible Study Questions 1. What motivated Josiah to take such drastic actions against idolatry, and how can we apply this motivation in our own lives? 2. How does the removal of idols in Josiah's time relate to the "idols" we face today, and what steps can we take to eliminate them? 3. In what ways can we demonstrate courage in our faith like Josiah, especially when facing opposition? 4. How does understanding the historical context of Josiah's reforms enhance our appreciation of his commitment to God? 5. What lessons can we learn from the legacy of past leaders, both positive and negative, in shaping our spiritual journey? Connections to Other Scriptures 2 Chronicles 34This chapter provides a parallel account of Josiah's reforms, emphasizing his commitment to purifying the land and the temple. Deuteronomy 12This passage outlines God's command to destroy places of idol worship, which Josiah faithfully follows. Jeremiah 3The prophet Jeremiah speaks against the idolatry of Judah, which aligns with Josiah's actions to eradicate it. Exodus 20The Ten Commandments, particularly the prohibition against idolatry, underscore the importance of Josiah's reforms. 1 Kings 15The account of Asa, another king who removed idols, providing a historical precedent for Josiah's actions. People Ahaz, Ammonites, Ashtoreth, Ben, Chemosh, Eliakim, Hamutal, Hilkiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jeremiah, Jeroboam, Joshua, Josiah, Manasseh, Melech, Milcom, Moabites, Molech, Nathan, Nathanmelech, Nebat, Pedaiah, Pharaoh, Pharaohnechoh, Sidonians, Sodomites, Solomon, Zebudah, ZidoniansPlaces Assyria, Beersheba, Bethel, Egypt, Euphrates River, Geba, Hamath, Jerusalem, Kidron, Libnah, Megiddo, Moab, Riblah, Rumah, Samaria, Topheth, Valley of HinnomTopics Ahaz, Altars, Beat, Bits, Brake, Break, Broke, Broken, Brook, Built, Cast, Chamber, Courts, Crushed, Dust, Erected, Judah, Kidron, Kings, Manasseh, Manas'seh, Outer, Pieces, Powder, Pulled, Removed, Removeth, Removing, Roof, Room, Rubble, Shattered, Smashed, Squares, Stream, Temple, Thence, Threw, Torrent, Upper, ValleyDictionary of Bible Themes 2 Kings 23:12 4290 valleys
5506 roof
7302 altar 2 Kings 23:1-20 7241 Jerusalem, significance 2 Kings 23:1-24 8466 reformation 2 Kings 23:1-25 5345 influence
7245 Judah, kingdom of 2 Kings 23:4-20 4906 abolition 2 Kings 23:8-20 7442 shrine 2 Kings 23:12-15 8799 polytheism Library Reformation Lessons
Eversley. 1861. 2 Kings xxiii. 3, 4, 25, 26. "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. 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 …
Charles Kingsley—All Saints' Day and Other SermonsWhether the Old Law was Suitably Given at the Time of Moses?
Objection 1: It would seem that the Old Law was not suitably given at the time of Moses. Because the Old Law disposed man for the salvation which was to come through Christ, as stated above ([2068]AA[2],3). But man needed this salutary remedy immediately after he had sinned. Therefore the Law should have been given immediately after sin. Objection 2: Further, the Old Law was given for the sanctification of those from whom Christ was to be born. Now the promise concerning the "seed, which is Christ" …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Whether Christ Should have Been Born in Bethlehem?
Objection 1: It would seem that Christ should not have been born in Bethlehem. For it is written (Is. 2:3): "The law shall come forth from Sion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem." But Christ is truly the Word of God. Therefore He should have come into the world at Jerusalem. Objection 2: Further, it is said (Mat. 2:23) that it is written of Christ that "He shall be called a Nazarene"; which is taken from Is. 11:1: "A flower shall rise up out of his root"; for "Nazareth" is interpreted "a flower." …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Whether Prophets Always Know the Things which they Prophesy?
Objection 1: It would seem that the prophets always know the things which they prophesy. For, as Augustine says (Gen. ad lit. xii, 9), "those to whom signs were shown in spirit by means of the likenesses of bodily things, had not the gift of prophecy, unless the mind was brought into action, so that those signs were also understood by them." Now what is understood cannot be unknown. Therefore the prophet is not ignorant of what he prophesies. Objection 2: Further, the light of prophecy surpasses …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Whether the Prophecy which is Accompanied by Intellective and Imaginative vision is More Excellent than that which is Accompanied by Intellective vision Alone?
Objection 1: It would seem that the prophecy which has intellective and imaginative vision is more excellent than that which is accompanied by intellective vision alone. For Augustine says (Gen. ad lit. xii, 9): "He is less a prophet, who sees in spirit nothing but the signs representative of things, by means of the images of things corporeal: he is more a prophet, who is merely endowed with the understanding of these signs; but most of all is he a prophet, who excels in both ways," and this refers …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica The Fall of Solomon
'For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6. And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father. 7. Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Rediscovered Law and Its Effects
'And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord: and Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the Lord. 10. And Shaphan the scribe shewed the king, saying, Hilkiah the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Entering the Covenant: with all the Heart
"And they entered into the covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart, and all their soul."--2 CHRON. xv. 12 (see xxxiv. 31, and 2 Kings xxiii. 3). "The Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul."--DEUT. xxx. 6. "And I will give them an heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God: for they shall turn to Me with their whole heart."--JER. xxiv. 7 (see xxix. 13). …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants How Shall one Make Use of Christ as the Life, when Wrestling with an Angry God Because of Sin?
That we may give some satisfaction to this question, we shall, 1. Shew what are the ingredients in this case, or what useth to concur in this distemper. 2. Shew some reasons why the Lord is pleased to dispense thus with his people. 3. Shew how Christ is life to the soul in this case. 4. Shew the believer's duty for a recovery; and, 5. Add a word or two of caution. As to the first, There may be those parts of, or ingredients in this distemper: 1. God presenting their sins unto their view, so as …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life The Sins of Communities Noted and Punished.
"Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation." This is predicated of the judgments of God on those who had shed the blood of his saints. The Savior declares that all the righteous blood which had been shed on the earth from that of Abel down to the gospel day, should come on that generation! But is not this unreasonable and contrary to the Scriptures? "Far be wickedness from God and iniquity from the Almighty. For the work of man shall be render unto him, and cause every …
Andrew Lee et al—Sermons on Various Important Subjects The Whole Heart
LET me give the principal passages in which the words "the whole heart," "all the heart," are used. A careful study of them will show how wholehearted love and service is what God has always asked, because He can, in the very nature of things, ask nothing less. The prayerful and believing acceptance of the words will waken the assurance that such wholehearted love and service is exactly the blessing the New Covenant was meant to make possible. That assurance will prepare us for turning to the Omnipotence …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
THE FALL OF NINEVEH AND THE RISE OF THE CHALDAEAN AND MEDIAN EMPIRES--THE XXVIth EGYPTIAN DYNASTY: CYAXARES, ALYATTES, AND NEBUCHADREZZAR. The legendary history of the kings of Media and the first contact of the Medes with the Assyrians: the alleged Iranian migrations of the Avesta--Media-proper, its fauna and flora; Phraortes and the beginning of the Median empire--Persia proper and the Persians; conquest of Persia by the Medes--The last monuments of Assur-bani-pal: the library of Kouyunjik--Phraortes …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8 Josiah, a Pattern for the Ignorant.
"Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before Me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place."--2 Kings …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII Kings
The book[1] of Kings is strikingly unlike any modern historical narrative. Its comparative brevity, its curious perspective, and-with some brilliant exceptions--its relative monotony, are obvious to the most cursory perusal, and to understand these things is, in large measure, to understand the book. It covers a period of no less than four centuries. Beginning with the death of David and the accession of Solomon (1 Kings i., ii.) it traverses his reign with considerable fulness (1 Kings iii.-xi.), …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links 2 Kings 23:12 NIV2 Kings 23:12 NLT2 Kings 23:12 ESV2 Kings 23:12 NASB2 Kings 23:12 KJV
2 Kings 23:12 Commentaries
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