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2 Kings 23:2

in 2 Kings 23

And he went up to the house of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as well as the priests and the prophets—all the people small and great—and in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And the king went up to the house of Jehovah, 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 ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of Jehovah.

KJV

And the king went up into 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 ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord.

This verse in 2 Kings 23

Commentary

8 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

The king went up into the house of the Lord - Here is another very singular circumstance. The high priest, scribes, priest, and prophets, are gathered together, with all the elders of the people, and the king himself reads the book of the covenant which had been lately found! It is strange that either the high priest, Jeremiah, Zephaniah, or some other of the prophets, who were certainly there present, did not read the sacred book! It is likely that the king considered himself a mediator between God and them, and therefore read and made the covenant.

This site's exposition

all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem

on 2 Kings 23:1-3

Josiah calls every elder to Jerusalem, then reads the whole book of the covenant aloud to the assembled nation. Standing by the pillar, he renews the covenant God cut with Israel at Horeb. Barnes reads the whole nation as pledged along with the king, not the king alone.

This site's exposition

he read all the words

Deuteronomy 31:10-11 required the law to be read to all Israel every seventh year, and Barnes reckons the reading had lapsed for about seventy-five years. Here the king reads it himself. Adam Clarke found it strange that the high priest and the prophets present left the reading to Josiah.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

), that the business might be done with the more solemnity, that they might all advise and assist in it, and that those who were against it might be discouraged from making any opposition. Parliaments are no diminution at all to the honour and power of good princes, but a great support to them.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

And the king went up into the house of the Lord,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

It is really the interest of princes to promote the knowledge of the scriptures in their dominions. If the people be but as stedfastly resolved to obey by law as he is to govern by law, the kingdom will be happy. All people are concerned to know the scripture, and all in authority to spread the knowledge of it.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders--This pious and patriotic king, not content with the promise of his own security, felt, after Huldah's response, an increased desire to avert the threatened calamities from his kingdom and people.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

The prophets - The suggestion to regard this word an error of the pen for “Levites,” which occurs in Chronicles (marginal reference), is unnecessary. For though Zephaniah, Urijah, and Jeremiah are all that we can name as belonging to the order at the time, there is no reason to doubt that Judaea contained others whom we cannot name. “Schools of the prophets” were as common in Judah as in Israel. He read - The present passage is strong evidence that the Jewish kings could read. The solemn reading of the Law - a practice commanded in the Law itself once in seven years Deu 31:10-13 - had been intermitted, at least for the last 75 years, from the date of the accession of Manasseh.

The words behind it

28 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וַיַּ֣עַלand he went up

    vaiyaalH5927 →890 times

  • הַמֶּ֣לֶךְthe king

    hamelekhH4428 →2525 times

  • בֵּית־[the] house of

    beit-H1004 →2046 times

  • יְהוָ֡הYahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • וְכָל־and every

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • אִ֣ישׁ<the> person of

    ʾishH376 →1663 times

  • יְהוּדָה֩Judah

    yehudahH3063 →819 times

  • וְכָל־and all

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • יֹשְׁבֵ֨י[the] inhabitants of

    yosheveiH3427 →1079 times

  • יְרוּשָׁלִַ֜םJerusalem

    yerushalimH3389 →643 times

  • אִתּ֗וֹwith him

    ʾitoH854 →929 times

  • וְהַכֹּֽהֲנִים֙and the priests

    vehakohanimH3548 →750 times

  • וְהַנְּבִיאִ֔יםand the prophets

    vehaneviimH5030 →314 times

  • וְכָל־and all

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • הָעָ֖םthe people

    haamH5971 →1873 times

  • לְמִקָּטֹ֣ן<to> from [the] small

    lemikatonH6996 →101 times

  • וְעַד־and unto

    vead-H5704 →1261 times

  • גָּד֑וֹל[the] great

    gadolH1419 →526 times

  • וַיִּקְרָ֣אand he read aloud

    vaiyikra'H7121 →733 times

  • בְאָזְנֵיהֶ֗םin ears their

    veazeneihemH241 →187 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • דִּבְרֵי֙[the] words of

    divreiH1697 →1440 times

  • סֵ֣פֶר[the] scroll of

    seferH5612 →186 times

  • הַבְּרִ֔יתthe covenant

    haberitH1285 →284 times

  • הַנִּמְצָ֖אwhich had been found

    hanimtza'H4672 →455 times

  • בְּבֵ֥יתin [the] house of

    beveitH1004 →2046 times

  • יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Revelation 20:12

    And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their…

    it leads to

    • 2 Corinthians 5:10

      For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad.

    • Matthew 16:27

      For the Son of Man will come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

    • Daniel 7:10

      A river of fire was flowing, coming out from His presence. Thousands upon thousands attended Him, and myriads upon myriads stood before Him. The court was convened, and the books were opened.

    • Ecclesiastes 12:14

      For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.

    • Revelation 2:23

      Then I will strike her children dead, and all the churches will know that I am the One who searches minds and hearts, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

  • Through

    2 Kings 22:8

    Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD!” And he gave it to Shaphan, who read it.

    it leads to

    • Deuteronomy 31:24–26

      When Moses had finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end,

    • 2 Chronicles 34:14–28

      While they were bringing out the money that had been taken into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the LORD written by Moses.

  • Through

    2 Chronicles 17:9

    They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the LORD. They went throughout the towns of Judah and taught the people.

    it leads to

    • John 5:46

      If you had believed Moses, you would believe Me, because he wrote about Me.

Where this verse is studied

About 2 Kings

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.