2 Kings 23:5-20 - LSB - Legacy Standard Bible

2 Kings 23:5-20

5 And he did away with the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed and who burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah and in the surrounding area of Jerusalem, as well as those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and to the moon and to the constellations and to all the ^ahost of heaven. 6 And he brought out the Asherah from the house of Yahweh outside Jerusalem to the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and ^aground it to dust, and ^bthrew its dust on the graves of the ¹common people. 7 He also tore down the houses of the ^amale cult prostitutes which were in the house of Yahweh, where ^bthe women were weaving ¹hangings for the Asherah. 8 Then he brought all the priests from the cities of Judah and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from ^aGeba to Beersheba; and he tore down the high places of the gates which were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the ruler of the city, which were on one’s left at the city gate. 9 Nevertheless ^athe priests of the high places did not go up to the altar of Yahweh in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brothers. 10 ^aHe also defiled ¹Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, ^bthat no man might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire for ^cMolech. 11 And he did away with the horses which the kings of Judah had given to the ^asun, at the entrance of the house of Yahweh, by the chamber of Nathan-melech the official, which was in the precincts; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. 12 ^aAlso, the altars which were on the roof, the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and ^bthe altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of Yahweh, the king tore down; and he ¹crushed them there and ^cthrew their dust into the brook Kidron. 13 And the high places which were before Jerusalem, which were on the right of ^athe mount of destruction which Solomon the king of Israel had built for ^bAshtoreth the detestable idol of the Sidonians, and for ^cChemosh the detestable idol of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the sons of Ammon, the king defiled. 14 ^aAnd he broke in pieces the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherim and ^bfilled their places with human bones.
15 Furthermore, ^athe altar that was at Bethel and the ^bhigh place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, had made, even that altar and the high place he tore down. Then he ¹^cdemolished its stones, ground them to dust, and burned the Asherah. 16 Then Josiah turned, and he saw the graves that were there on the mountain, and he sent and took the bones from the graves and burned them on the altar and defiled it ^aaccording to the word of Yahweh which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these things. 17 Then he said, “What is this monument that I see?” And the men of the city told him, “^aIt is the grave of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed these things which you have done against the altar of Bethel.” 18 And he said, “Let him alone; let no one move his bones.” So they ¹left his bones undisturbed ^awith the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria. 19 And also all the houses of the high places which were ^ain the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made provoking ¹Yahweh to anger, Josiah removed; and he did to them ²just as he had done in Bethel. 20 And all the priests of the high places who were there ^ahe ¹slaughtered on the altars and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.