ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for 2 Kings 23

2 Kings 23:2–3 the king went up to the house of the Lord. Since Josiah is a faithful king, Huldah’s message of doom does not keep him from pursuing religious reform in light of the Book of the Covenant. His first move is to organize a covenant-renewal ceremony.

2 Kings 23:4–9 The eastern slopes of the Kidron Valley had been associated with idolatry since the time of Solomon (1 Kings 11:7). It was a convenient place to destroy cult objects, thereby desecrating the valley itself as a religious site. On male cult prostitutes (2 Kings 23:7), see note on 1 Kings 14:24. The hangings for the Asherah (2 Kings 23:7) are probably ritual garments used in the worship of this goddess (compare 10:22).

2 Kings 23:8 defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings. These were local places of worship in various cities (see note on 1 Kings 3:2).

2 Kings 23:10 The Valley of the Son of Hinnom ran along the western and southern sides of ancient Jerusalem until it met the Kidron Valley running from north to south. It is associated with the worship of Molech (see note on 1 Kings 11:7–8) at the site named Topheth. “Hinnom Valley” is the short form of the name, transliterated into Greek as “Gehenna.”

2 Kings 23:11 horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. The practice of dedicating horses to the sun appears to have been an Assyrian custom.

2 Kings 23:12 altars on the roof. The roof is a natural location for worship of the stars (see 16:1–4).

2 Kings 23:13 Because idolatrous altars were there, the Mount of Olives is here called the mount of corruption. Ashtoreth is the biblical name for Astarte or Venus. On Chemosh and Milcom, see notes on 1 Kings 11:5; 11:7–8.

2 Kings 23:14 he broke in pieces the pillars. Josiah destroys all the buildings associated with idol worship.

2 Kings 23:15–20 altar at Bethel. Josiah not only destroys but also defiles (vv. 8, 10, 13) the altar by placing pagan religious objects close to graves and human bones (vv. 6, 14). This fulfills the prophecy of 1 Kings 13:2. See also 1 Kings 13:11–32 for the background to 2 Kings 23:17–18.

2 Kings 23:22 A Passover like this had not been observed since the days of the judges (see Josh. 5:10–12 for the last mention of Passover and Deut. 16:1–8, especially v. 6, for instructions for Passover).

2 Kings 23:24 Mediums and necromancers try to get information by inquiring of the dead. The household gods were images of deities that were either life-size (1 Sam. 19:13–16) or figurine-size (Gen. 31:19–35). They were usually made of wood and covered with metal and precious stones.

2 Kings 23:25 Despite several generations of idolatry and rebellion against the Lord, somehow Josiah was a righteous king who turned to the Lord with all his heart.

2 Kings 23:26 Though Josiah was righteous, this did not turn away God’s wrath from the nation. God will use exile to purify his people of deeply rooted unfaithfulness.

2 Kings 23:28–30 Pharaoh Neco killed him at Megiddo. This battle took place in 609 b.c. Pharaoh Neco II marched north for what was apparently the last joint Assyrian-Egyptian military effort against the Babylonians and their allies, the Medes. Megiddo controlled the main international highway running from Egypt to Damascus as it entered the Jezreel Valley. Josiah wanted to prevent Egypt’s strengthening of Assyria. On the Chronicles of the Kings, see note on 1 Kings 14:19.

2 Kings 23:31–25:30 The End of Judah. The story of 1–2 Kings now ends as Babylon becomes the great world power. The Babylonians destroy Jerusalem and carry its treasures and its people to Babylon. The survival of Josiah’s grandson Jehoiachin offers what little hope exists for the future of the “lamp” of David (1 Kings 11:36).

2 Kings 23:31–35 Jehoahaz. The new king of Judah is summoned to Neco’s temporary headquarters at Riblah, as the Egyptians return from their unsuccessful siege of Haran (609 b.c.). Neco removes Jehoahaz from power (see note on 2 Chron. 36:1–4.)

2 Kings 23:36–24:7 The Egyptians replace Jehoahaz with his brother Jehoiakim. He faces the armies of Babylon that have just defeated Assyria and are now invading Palestine on their way to Egypt. Babylon’s king Nebuchadnezzar was never able to defeat Egypt completely but he made certain that the king of Egypt did not come again out of his land. Jehoiakim first switched his allegiance from Egypt to Babylon (604 b.c.). Then in 601, after Nebuchadnezzar failed to invade Egypt (that is, after three years), Jehoiakim rebelled against Babylon and looked once again to Egypt for help (see Jer. 46:14–28).