2Ki 23:1-25 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for 2Kgs 23:1-2: 23:1-2 In the spirit of the instructions of Deuteronomy (Deut 31:10-13 ) and like Joshua before him (Josh 8:34-35 ), Josiah summoned ... all the people to hear the reading of the entire Book of the Covenant .

Summary for 2Kgs 23:1-2: 23:1-2 ^a In the spirit of the instructions of Deuteronomy (Deut 31:10-13 ^b) and like Joshua before him (Josh 8:34-35 ^c), Josiah summoned ... all the people to hear the reading of the entire Book of the Covenant.
23:3 ^d The king ... renewed the covenant: Covenant renewal was observed at several critical points in the history of God’s people (see 11:12 ^e, 17 ^f; Josh 24:1-27 ^g; 1 Kgs 8:1-53 ^h).
23:4 ⁱ remove ... all the articles: Josiah eliminated from the Temple detestable items associated with pagan worship.

• terraces of the Kidron Valley: This area, near the Valley of Ben-Hinnom where the loathsome Molech rituals of child sacrifice had been carried out, became a place where ashes and dead bodies were taken (Jer 26:23 ^j).

• Taking the ashes away to Bethel, where Jeroboam had erected one of his cult altars (1 Kgs 12:28-29 ^k), would defile the site forever.
Summary for 2Kgs 23:5-7: 23:5-7 ^l Josiah stopped the idolatrous priests from officiating over pagan rituals. He also demolished the living quarters of the cult prostitutes. Manasseh and Amon apparently had allowed the prostitution carried over from Canaanite practices (see 1 Kgs 14:24 ^m; 15:12 ⁿ; 22:46 ^o) to be practiced within the Temple itself.
Summary for 2Kgs 23:8-9: 23:8-9 ^p The gate of Joshua is otherwise unknown; it might have been used by the city governor, a title known to refer to a city official in Samaria (1 Kgs 22:26 ^q; 2 Chr 18:25 ^r) and to Maaseiah in Jerusalem (2 Chr 34:8 ^s).
23:10 ^t Topheth was a precinct in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, which lay southwest of the city of David and led into the Kidron Valley. The detestable rite of child sacrifice had occurred there.

• Molech has been identified with a number of deities (see 1 Kgs 11:5 ^u, 7 ^v, 33 ^w) and with the name of a sacrifice offered to Baal (Jer 7:31-32 ^x; 19:5-6 ^y; 32:35 ^z).
23:11 ^aa The horse was used in sun worship in the ancient Near East. The Assyrian sun-god Shamash and other deities were depicted riding across the sky in horse-drawn chariots. Archaeological evidence suggests that a solar cult existed in Israel as early as the 800s BC. The cult’s popularity likely increased during the reigns of Manasseh and Amon, when it was sponsored by the crown (21:3-5 ^ab, 21-22 ^ac). Despite Josiah’s reforms, shortly after his death Ezekiel denounced the sun worshipers again for performing their rituals within the inner court of the Temple (Ezek 8:16 ^ad).

• the eunuch, an officer of the court: The term translated eunuch can refer not only to those who were physically eunuchs but also to high officials.
23:12 ^ae upper room of Ahaz: Roof-top altars were used for astral worship (Jer 19:13 ^af; Zeph 1:5 ^ag) and rituals associated with Baal (Jer 32:29 ^ah).
23:13 ^ai Solomon had erected the pagan shrines because of his many foreign wives (1 Kgs 11:5 ^aj, 7 ^ak, 33 ^al).
Summary for 2Kgs 23:15-17: 23:15-17 ^am Jeroboam had built the altar at Bethel to encourage Israelites to worship at centers closer to home rather than going to Jerusalem (1 Kgs 12:26-31 ^an). Josiah’s desecration of the site followed the stipulations of the law (Deut 7:5 ^ao; 12:3 ^ap) and fulfilled the earlier prophecy of the man of God who had denounced the altar (1 Kgs 13:1-3 ^aq).
Summary for 2Kgs 23:19-20: 23:19-20 ^ar pagan shrines ... of Samaria: Josiah’s religious purge extended throughout the former northern kingdom (see also 2 Chr 34:6-7 ^as). Josiah’s freedom to carry out such reforms testifies to his strength and Assyria’s growing weakness (see study note on 2 Kgs 23:29).
Summary for 2Kgs 23:21-23: 23:21-23 ^at Hezekiah had observed the Passover with modifications (2 Chr 30:1-4 ^au, 13 ^av, 23-27 ^aw). Josiah’s Passover was done in accordance with the strict standards of the law (2 Chr 35:1-19 ^ax).

• The eighteenth year was the same year in which the Book of the Law was found (2 Kgs 22:3 ^ay, 8 ^az).
Summary for 2Kgs 23:24-25: 23:24-25 ^ba Josiah’s commitment to the law brought reforms throughout Jerusalem and Judah. His attempts to eradicate every other kind of detestable practice and his strict observance of the Passover made Josiah greatest among the kings in obeying all the laws of Moses.