2 Kings 23:2

2 The king went up to 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 1he read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant 2which was found in the house of the LORD.

2 Kings 23:2 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 23:2

And the king went up into the house of the Lord
To the temple, from his palace:

and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him:
they met him there:

and the priests, and the prophets;
the prophets Jeremiah, Zephaniah, and Uriah, who, though they might not be at Jerusalem when the book of the law was found, yet, upon this message of the king's, might come up thither from the countries where they were; the Targum interprets the word "scribes": and some take them to be the sons of the prophets, their disciples; in ( 2 Chronicles 34:30 ) they are called Levites:

and all the people, both small and great;
a very numerous assembly:

and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant
which was found in the house of the Lord:
that is, he caused it to be read by others, and perhaps by more than one, the congregation being so large.

2 Kings 23:2 In-Context

1 Then the king sent, and they gathered to him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem.
2 The king went up to 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 hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the LORD .
3 The king stood by the 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 his heart and all his soul, to carry out the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people entered into the covenant.
4 Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest and the priests of the second order and the doorkeepers, to bring out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel
5 He did away with the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah and in the surrounding area of Jerusalem, also those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and to the moon and to the constellations and to all the host of heaven.

Cross References 2

  • 1. Deuteronomy 31:10-13
  • 2. 2 Kings 22:8
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