2 Kings 23 12

2 Kings 23:12 kjv

And the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.

2 Kings 23:12 nkjv

The altars that were on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, the king broke down and pulverized there, and threw their dust into the Brook Kidron.

2 Kings 23:12 niv

He pulled down the altars the kings of Judah had erected on the roof near the upper room of Ahaz, and the altars Manasseh had built in the two courts of the temple of the LORD. He removed them from there, smashed them to pieces and threw the rubble into the Kidron Valley.

2 Kings 23:12 esv

And the altars on the roof of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars that Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, he pulled down and broke in pieces and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron.

2 Kings 23:12 nlt

Josiah tore down the altars that the kings of Judah had built on the palace roof above the upper room of Ahaz. The king destroyed the altars that Manasseh had built in the two courtyards of the LORD's Temple. He smashed them to bits and scattered the pieces in the Kidron Valley.

2 Kings 23 verses

2 Kings 23 12 Meaning

King Josiah meticulously extended his cleansing reforms to specific, deeply defiled locations: altars located on the roof of the upper chamber, which had been erected by King Ahaz and other Judahite kings, likely for astral worship. He also targeted altars established by the intensely idolatrous King Manasseh within the sacred courts of the Temple of the LORD. Josiah not only tore these altars down but pulverized them into fine dust, subsequently casting these defiled remnants into the Brook Kidron, signifying a complete and irreversible removal of idolatry from both royal precincts and the very sanctuary of God.

2 Kings 23 12 Context

This verse is situated in the broader narrative of King Josiah's profound religious revival in Judah, predominantly detailed in 2 Kings 22 and 23. His reign, beginning around 640 BC, started a radical cleansing that followed the discovery of the Book of the Law during Temple repairs. Deeply convicted by the covenant curses threatened by disobedience, Josiah initiated an unparalleled purification campaign. Chapter 23 outlines the execution of these reforms, starting within Jerusalem's sacred spaces and expanding outward. The specific targets in verse 12—rooftop altars made by King Ahaz and altars in the Temple courts by King Manasseh—represent the zenith of royal apostasy and deliberate defiance of God's commands regarding exclusive worship. Ahaz had already introduced foreign idolatrous practices, even within the Temple framework, but Manasseh had outdone all predecessors, integrating astral worship and Baal altars directly into the holy courts of the LORD, making his defilements the most egregious against YHWH and His dwelling. Josiah's actions directly reverse these sins, demonstrating his zeal and commitment to restoring pure worship.

2 Kings 23 12 Word analysis

• And the altars (מִזְבְּחוֹת, mizbechot): Plural noun, denoting multiple places of sacrifice for foreign deities. This emphasizes the pervasive nature of idolatry that Josiah had to confront, underscoring its systematic rather than isolated presence.
• that were on the roof (גַג, gag): Literally "roof." In the ancient Near East, rooftops were often public or semi-public spaces used for cultic activity, particularly astral worship (worship of celestial bodies like the sun, moon, stars, "host of heaven"). This was a flagrant violation of God's command against such practices (Deut 4:19).
• of the upper chamber (עֲלִיַּת, aliyat): Refers to a roof-chamber or an upper story. Its association with Ahaz suggests a significant and prominent royal or palatial setting for idolatry, highlighting the king's active endorsement.
• of Ahaz (אָחָז, Achaz): King of Judah (circa 735-715 BC), remembered as one of the most ungodly kings. He notoriously sacrificed his son, built altars for foreign gods throughout Jerusalem, and even removed the LORD's brazen altar for a pagan design (2 Ki 16). His mention here links this defilement directly to his reign of deliberate apostasy.
• which the kings of Judah had made: A general statement indicating that this practice wasn't isolated to Ahaz but was a persistent pattern of defilement introduced or perpetuated by multiple previous monarchs, highlighting generations of unfaithfulness.
• and the altars which Manasseh (מְנַשֶּׁה, Menasheh) had made: Manasseh (circa 697-642 BC), Ahaz's grandson, was the most wicked king of Judah. His actions went beyond Ahaz's by deliberately setting up altars for Baal, an Asherah pole, and altars for the "host of heaven" within the very precincts of the Temple of the LORD (2 Ki 21:3-7). This specific act of defilement marked a peak of covenant rebellion and ultimately contributed significantly to Judah's judgment and exile.
• in the two courts (חַצְרוֹת, chatserot) of the house of the LORD (בֵּית יְהוָה, Beit YHWH): Refers to the sacred external areas of the Temple compound (likely inner and outer courts), not just outside the city. This signifies the profound depth of sacrilege; idolatry was brought into the sacred space dedicated exclusively to YHWH, directly challenging His sovereignty and purity in His own house.
• did the king break down (נָתַץ, natats): Signifies to tear down, throw down, or demolish. This denotes a forceful, structural dismantling, implying an intentional destruction of the altars.
• and beat them down from thence (כִּתֵּת, kitthet): This term implies a crushing, pounding, or pulverizing action. It signifies a more complete and thorough destruction than just breaking, reducing the altars to fine powder or dust, leaving nothing salvageable or recognizable as an altar.
• and cast the dust (עֲפָרָם, afaram) of them into the brook Kidron (נַחַל קִדְרוֹן, Nachal Qidron): This final action is highly symbolic. "Dust" indicates utter annihilation, leaving no physical trace. The Kidron Valley, east of Jerusalem, was traditionally a site for the disposal of ashes, refuse, and impure items, sometimes associated with judgment or rejection (e.g., disposal of detestable idols by Asa and Hezekiah in 1 Ki 15:13 and 2 Chr 29:16). This act publicly disgraced the idols and permanently expelled their remains from the holy city, demonstrating their utter worthlessness and impurity.

2 Kings 23 12 Bonus section

Josiah's meticulous destruction of the altars to dust and their disposal in the Kidron served as a powerful ritualized polemic. This act visually and experientially taught the impotence of these so-called gods; they could not protect their own places of worship from being utterly annihilated and discarded like mere refuse. This complete destruction, even to the level of dust, highlights Josiah's adherence to the Mosaic law which commanded such radical measures against idols, leaving no fragment that might later tempt restoration (Deut 7:5, 12:2-3). The cleansing of the Temple and its precincts was a crucial step towards spiritual restoration, signifying that YHWH alone was God in Israel and His dwelling place would no longer tolerate defilement by rival deities. Josiah's zeal reversed the trajectory of nearly a century of increasing apostasy and systemic defilement under kings like Ahaz and Manasseh.

2 Kings 23 12 Commentary

2 Kings 23:12 encapsulates the thoroughness and radical nature of King Josiah's reformation. Unlike previous attempts at reform, Josiah left no stone unturned in eradicating the idolatrous practices that had plagued Judah for generations, often stemming directly from royal apostasy. By targeting altars on Ahaz's rooftop and Manasseh's altars within the very courts of the Temple, Josiah directly confronted the most egregious sins committed by his royal predecessors. The rooftop altars represented Judah's engagement with forbidden astral worship, while the Temple court altars signified the profound sacrilege of polluting God's holy dwelling place with pagan deities. Josiah's actions were not merely ceremonial; he broke down the structures, pounded them into dust, and then publicly discarded the defiled remnants into the Kidron Valley, the city's literal "dumping ground" for impurities. This was a powerful demonstration of YHWH's absolute sovereignty and a declaration of the absolute worthlessness and impurity of the false gods. It was a visible manifestation of his commitment to purify the land and its worship according to the rediscovered law, striving to remove every obstacle to Judah's covenant faithfulness.