2 Kings 23:4-5

Context

23:4 The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the high-ranking priests,¹ and the guards² to bring out of the Lord’s temple all the items that were used in the worship of³ Baal, Asherah, and all the stars of the sky.⁴ The king⁵ burned them outside of Jerusalem in the terraces⁶ of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel.⁷ 23:5 He eliminated⁸ the pagan priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed to offer sacrifices⁹ on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the area right around Jerusalem. (They offered sacrifices¹⁰ to Baal, the sun god, the moon god, the constellations, and all the stars in the sky.)

2 Kings 23:11

Context
23:11 He removed from the entrance to the Lord’s temple the statues of horses¹¹ that the kings of Judah had placed there in honor of the sun god. (They were kept near the room of Nathan Melech the eunuch, which was situated among the courtyards.)¹² He burned up the chariots devoted to the sun god.¹³

[23:4] ¹tn Heb “the priests of the second [rank],” that is, those ranked just beneath Hilkiah.

[23:4] ²tn Or “doorkeepers.”

[23:4] ³tn Heb “for.”

[23:4] ⁴tn Heb “all the host of heaven” (also in v. 5).

[23:4] ⁵tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:4] ⁶tn Or “fields.” For a defense of the translation “terraces,” see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 285.

[23:4] ⁷map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[23:5] ⁸tn Perhaps, “destroyed.”

[23:5] ⁹tn Or “burn incense.”

[23:5] ¹⁰tn Or “burned incense.”

[23:11] ¹¹tn The MT simply reads “the horses.” The words “statues of” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[23:11] ¹²tn Heb “who/which was in the […?].” The meaning of the Hebrew term פַּרְוָרִים (parvarim), translated here “courtyards,” is uncertain. The relative clause may indicate where the room was located or explain who Nathan Melech was, “the eunuch who was in the courtyards.” See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 288-89, who translate “the officer of the precincts.”

[23:11] ¹³tn Heb “and the chariots of the sun he burned with fire.”