2 Kings 23
1 The king sent, and they gathered to him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem. 2 The king went up to Yahweh’s house, 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. He read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in Yahweh’s house.
3 The king stood by the pillar, and made a covenant before Yahweh, to walk after Yahweh, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to confirm the words of this covenant that were written in this book. All the people stood to the covenant.
4 The king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the threshold, to bring out of Yahweh’s temple all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the Asherah, and for all the army of the sky; and he burned them outside of Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel.
5 He put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places around Jerusalem; also those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the army of the sky. 6 He brought out the Asherah from Yahweh’s house outside Jerusalem, to the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and beat it to dust, and cast its dust on the graves of the common people.
7 He broke down the houses of the male shrine prostitutes that were in Yahweh’s house, where the women wove hangings for the Asherah. 8 He brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba; and he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man’s left hand at the gate of the city.
9 Nevertheless the priests of the high places didn’t come up to Yahweh’s altar in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brothers.
10 He defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire to Molech. 11 He took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entrance of Yahweh’s house, by the room of Nathan-Melech the officer, which was in the precincts; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
12 The altars that were on the roof of the upper room of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of Yahweh’s house, the king broke down, and beat them down from there, and cast their dust into the brook Kidron. 13 The high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, the king defiled.
14 He broke in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Asherim, and filled their places with the bones of men. 15 Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, even that altar and the high place he broke down. He burned the high place, and beat it to dust, and burned the Asherah.
16 As Josiah turned himself, he spied the tombs that were there in the mountain; and he sent and took the bones out of the tombs, and burned them on the altar, and defiled it, according to Yahweh’s word which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these things. 17 Then he said, “What monument is that which I see?” The men of the city told him, “It is the tomb of the man of God, who came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that you have done against the altar of Bethel.” 18 He said, “Let him alone. Let no man move his bones.” So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came out of Samaria.
19 All the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke Yahweh to anger, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Bethel. 20 He killed all the priests of the high places who were there on the altars, and burned men’s bones on them; and he returned to Jerusalem.
21 The king commanded all the people, saying, “Keep the Passover to Yahweh your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.” 22 Surely there was not kept such a Passover from the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah; 23 but in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to Yahweh in Jerusalem.
24 Moreover Josiah put away those who had familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the teraphim, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might confirm the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in Yahweh’s house. 25 There was no king like him before him, who turned to Yahweh with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.
26 Notwithstanding, Yahweh didn’t turn from the fierceness of his great wrath, with which his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him. 27 Yahweh said, “I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off this city which I have chosen, even Jerusalem, and the house of which I said, ‘My name shall be there.’”
28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 In his days Pharaoh Necoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah went against him, and Pharaoh Necoh killed him at Megiddo, when he saw him.
30 His servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. The people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father’s place.
31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, according to all that his fathers had done.
33 Pharaoh Necoh put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of one hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold. 34 Pharaoh Necoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. He took Jehoahaz away; and he came to Egypt, and died there.
35 Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold from the people of the land, of everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Necoh.
36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, according to all that his fathers had done.
2 Kings 23 Commentary
Chapter Overview
Second Kings 22 ended with Josiah hearing the Book of the Law, humbling himself, and learning that judgment would eventually fall on Judah. Chapter 23 records his public response. He gathers the nation, reads the covenant, pledges obedience, removes idolatry, destroys Jeroboam’s altar at Bethel, and leads an extraordinary Passover.
Yet even Josiah’s wholehearted reform does not erase generations of rebellion, violence, and false worship. After his death at Megiddo, Judah quickly returns to evil and becomes subject to Egypt. The chapter celebrates courageous obedience without turning reform into a formula: God honors Josiah, but Judah still needs hearts permanently changed.
Key Themes
Josiah gathers elders, priests, prophets, and people “both small and great.” The covenant is not kept within a royal or priestly circle. God’s word is read publicly because the whole community is accountable to it. Renewal requires truth to reach the people whose worship and conduct it addresses.
The king stands by the pillar and makes a covenant “before Yahweh.” He is not inventing a new religion but renewing commitment to what God already gave. The language of heart, soul, commandments, and statutes recalls Deuteronomy 6. The people publicly accept the covenant’s obligations.
Josiah’s next actions show that covenant renewal cannot remain ceremonial. Objects devoted to Baal, Asherah, and the heavenly bodies are removed from Yahweh’s temple. Rival worship had entered the house bearing God’s name, so reform confronts what directly contradicts the allegiance just confessed.
The repeated burning, crushing, scattering, and defiling are deliberate. Josiah neither stores the idols nor preserves them as harmless artifacts. He prevents their reuse and exposes their impurity. In ancient Judah, idolatry was national betrayal of the God who had redeemed and established the people.
Verse 7 mentions houses connected with male shrine prostitutes and women weaving items for Asherah. The woven objects’ exact function is uncertain, and translations differ. The clear point is that sexualized and Asherah-related practices had become established within the temple precincts, and Josiah removes their supporting structures.
Josiah gathers priests from Judah’s local high places and destroys those sites from Geba to Beersheba, describing the kingdom north to south. Some may have used Yahweh’s name, but sacrifice outside the place God appointed still violated ordered worship. Sincerity does not make every religious practice faithful.
The former high-place priests cannot serve at Jerusalem’s altar, though they eat unleavened bread with fellow priests. The verse suggests consequence and provision: previous compromise restricts ministry, yet the men retain support. Restoration can include mercy while recognizing that choices affect qualifications.
Topheth in the Valley of Hinnom is defiled so that children cannot be passed through fire to Molech. Josiah’s reform protects future victims by disabling a place of atrocity. Repentance is not only sorrow over what happened; it removes arrangements that allow destructive practices to continue.
The horses and chariots dedicated to the sun show how deeply astral worship had entered royal and temple life. Roof altars also provided settings for celestial worship. Josiah removes symbols sponsored by earlier kings, including Ahaz and Manasseh. Royal tradition receives no immunity from God’s word.
Josiah even defiles high places east of Jerusalem that reached back to Solomon’s accommodation of foreign gods. Their age could have made them appear respectable, historic, or untouchable. Instead, the chapter measures tradition by covenant truth. A practice does not become faithful merely because generations have inherited it.
At Bethel, Josiah destroys Jeroboam’s altar, fulfilling the announcement made centuries earlier by the man of God in 1 Kings 13, which named Josiah. Long delay does not make God’s word ineffective or forgotten.
Josiah orders that the announcing prophet’s bones remain undisturbed, along with those of the old prophet from Samaria. The altar is dishonored with other remains, but the witness who foretold its judgment is respected. The scene distinguishes rejecting false worship from honoring a true prophetic word.
Josiah extends reform into the former northern kingdom. Assyria had already conquered Israel, but its old shrines remained. His authority there may have been aided by Assyria’s weakening control, yet Kings emphasizes theological completion: the system by which Jeroboam made Israel sin is finally dismantled.
Verse 20 records Josiah killing Samaria’s high-place priests. This belongs to Israel’s ancient covenant government and Bethel’s specific judgment. It does not authorize Christians to use violence against other religions. Christ’s kingdom advances through witness, teaching, suffering love, and spiritual weapons—not coercive execution.
Passover follows the removal of idols. Josiah does not define reform only by what he destroys; he restores God-commanded worship. The celebration, described more fully in 2 Chronicles 35, is governed by the covenant book and remembers God’s saving work.
The statement that no such Passover had been kept since the judges does not mean Israel observed none during those centuries; Scripture records one under Hezekiah. It points to the exceptional conformity, unity, preparation, or scale of Josiah’s observance.
Josiah also removes mediums, spiritists, household gods, and other abominations. His goal is “to confirm the words of the law,” meaning to put the written covenant into practice. He does not treat occult activity as a harmless supplement to worship. Seeking hidden power elsewhere contradicts trust in Yahweh.
Verse 25 says no king turned to Yahweh with heart, soul, and might according to Moses’ law like Josiah. Second Kings 18 says no king trusted Yahweh like Hezekiah. The descriptions emphasize different excellencies: Hezekiah’s trust and Josiah’s comprehensive covenant obedience.
Despite this praise, Yahweh’s anger does not turn away. Josiah’s reforms were neither insincere nor useless. Judgment reflects persistent idolatry and innocent blood, especially under Manasseh in 2 Kings 21, and Judah’s later return to evil. A leader can restrain public sin without producing repentance in every heart.
Kings narrates Josiah’s death briefly. Pharaoh Neco moves toward the Euphrates amid the struggle involving Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon. Second Chronicles 35 adds that Neco warned Josiah not to interfere and that Josiah ignored words from God. A faithful life can still include a serious final error.
Josiah’s death does not contradict Huldah’s promise that he would be gathered to his grave in peace. He is buried honorably and does not see Jerusalem and the temple destroyed. “Peace” concerned his removal before national disaster, not a guarantee against violence or tragic decisions.
The people make Jehoahaz king, but his reign lasts only three months. Neco removes him, imprisons him at Riblah, and takes him to Egypt. Jeremiah later refers to him as Shallum and laments that he will not return in Jeremiah 22. Judah’s independence is already collapsing.
Neco installs Josiah’s son Eliakim and renames him Jehoiakim. The change displays Egyptian authority, while tribute is extracted through taxes. Josiah had submitted the nation to God’s covenant; Jehoiakim begins under foreign appointment and does evil. The rapid reversal shows how much reform depended on Josiah rather than a transformed population.
Important Verse Questions
Did “all the people” sincerely renew the covenant? They publicly stood to it, and many may have responded genuinely, but later reigns show the nation was not permanently changed. Public agreement can be meaningful without proving lasting faith in every participant.
Why did Josiah use human bones to defile altars? Contact with the dead made a place ceremonially unclean and unfit for sacrifice. The act disgraced idolatrous sites. It belongs to the chapter’s judgment symbolism, not modern religious disagreement.
Why were priests treated differently in Judah and Samaria? The text does not provide every legal or biographical detail. Judah’s local priests lose altar service but receive food, whereas northern priests face execution with Bethel’s foretold judgment. Readers should not invent motives the passage does not state.
Why did God still judge Judah after its greatest reforming king? Josiah truly turned to God, but guilt had accumulated, shed blood remained an offense, and later rulers renewed rebellion. His obedience delayed calamity and honored God; it did not make unrepentant Judah innocent.
Was Josiah wrong to oppose Pharaoh Neco? Kings gives little explanation, but Chronicles criticizes him for refusing Neco’s warning from God. Political motives may be proposed, yet the lesson is clear: even a godly leader must listen and cannot assume every courageous action is obedient.
Practical Applications
Let public commitment produce concrete change. Josiah moves from reading and covenant promises to removing objects, ending practices, reorganizing worship, and celebrating Passover. Repentance becomes credible when conduct changes.
Do not preserve sin because it is old, artistic, profitable, or traditional. Josiah confronts practices inherited from Solomon, Ahaz, Manasseh, and Jeroboam. Every tradition remains accountable to God’s revealed truth.
Reform both structures and worship. Josiah removes places that enabled exploitation and child sacrifice, then restores Passover. Healthy renewal stops harm, removes access to recurring sin, and cultivates faithful alternatives.
Do not mistake strong leadership for inward transformation. Rules and courageous leaders can restrain evil, but they cannot substitute for personal faith. Parents, pastors, and institutions should seek understanding and conviction, not merely outward conformity.
Remain teachable after years of faithfulness. Josiah’s final battle warns that a strong record does not eliminate the need for present humility. Continue testing plans, motives, and apparent opportunities by God’s word, especially when confidence and urgency make caution feel unnecessary.