Keraia
2 Kings 23

2 Kings 23:11

Josiah Destroys Idolatry · 2 Kings 23:4–20
Read 2 Kings 23

Translations

Modern
And he removed from the entrance to the house of the LORD the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court near the chamber of an official named Nathan-melech. And Josiah burned up the chariots of the sun.
Traditional
And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathan–melech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
Literal
And he removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun from the entrance to the house of YHWH, by the chamber of Nathan-melech the officer, who was in the parbarim. And the chariots of the sun he burned with the fire.
Latin
Abstulit quoque equos quos dederant reges Juda soli in introitu templi Domini juxta exedram Nathanmelech eunuchi, qui erat in Pharurim: currus autem solis combussit igni.

Original

Hebrew
English
And he removed from the entrance to the house of the LORD the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court near the chamber of an official named Nathan-melech. And Josiah burned up the chariots of the sun.

Notes

2 Kings 23:11

  • In the ancient Near East, people often used the horse in ceremonies that honored the sun. The Assyrian sun-god Shamash and other gods were shown riding in horse-drawn chariots across the sky. Archaeological findings suggest that a solar cult (worship of the sun) existed in Israel as early as the 800s BC. This practice grew more popular during the reigns of Manasseh and Amon, when the royal court supported it (2 Kings 21:3–5, 21–22).

    King Josiah tried to end these practices with his reforms. But after his death, the prophet Ezekiel condemned people again for sun worship. He described them as bowing down to the sun in the inner court of the temple (Ezekiel 8:16).

  • an official: This word eunuch (translated official in the Berean Standard Bible) does not always mean a man who was physically made a eunuch. It can also mean a high-ranking court official who served the king.

Theme notes and profiles

Josiah The Collapse of Culture

Events

Parallels

1 Kings 13:1–10 2 Chronicles 34:3–7

People

Judah: Israelite tribe, kingdom, and province Nathan-melech: A court official during King Josiah's reign

Glossary

Book of the Covenant Chamberlain Hell Josiah Kidron Kings, Books of First and Second Kohath, Kohathites Manasseh (Person) Nathan-melech Temple

Topics

Chamberlain: An officer of a King Chariots: Consecrated to the Sun Church: House of the Lord Horse: Dedicated to Religious Uses Iconoclasm: Destroyed by Josiah Idolatry: Other Customs of Tithes and Gifts Josiah: King of Judah: Destroys the Altar and High Places of Idolatry Nathan-Melech: An Idolatrous Chamberlain Prophecies Concerning Israel: Josiah Succeeds Amon Prophecy: Miscellaneous, Fulfilled: The Birth and Zeal of Josiah Sun: Kings of Judah Dedicate Horses To the First Temple: Purified by Josiah The Horse: Dedicated to the Sun by Idolaters The Sun: The Jews: Consecrated Chariots and Horses, As Symbols of Zeal: should be Exhibited: Against Idolatry