II Kings 23:4 · Bible study
2 Kings 23:4 Commentary: Josiah's Ashes Sent to Bethel
Hebrew · 9 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why did King Josiah order the ashes of burned idolatrous vessels to be carried to Bethel? The answer reveals the depth of his reform.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Josiah commands the removal and burning of all idolatrous vessels from the temple, with the ashes taken to Bethel to defile the source of northern apostasy.
- Key words: priests of the second order (מִשְׁנֶה, mishneh, second rank); keepers of the threshold (שֹׁמְרֵי הַסַּף, gatekeepers); Asherah (אֲשֵׁרָה, Canaanite goddess/its symbol); Kidron (valley east of Jerusalem); Bethel (site of Jeroboam's golden calf).
- Main debate: Whether the "priests of the second order" refers to the deputy high priest (sagan) or to the heads of the priestly courses; the significance of Bethel as a place of contempt or for practical disposal.
- Theological theme: The necessity of radical purification from syncretism and the public repudiation of false worship's origins.
- Best use: As a sermon or study on the nature of true reform, that it must be thorough, public, and address not just the symptoms but the roots of spiritual compromise.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests second in rank, and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal, Asherah, and all the host of heaven. And he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel.
WEB World English Bible 2000
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, 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.
KJV King James Version 1769
And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beth–el.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the threshold, to bring forth out of the temple of Jehovah all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the Asherah, and for all the host of heaven, and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beth-el.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And the king commandeth Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the threshold, to bring out from the temple of Jehovah all the vessels that are made for Baal, and for the shrine, and for all the host of the heavens, and he burneth them at the outside of Jerusalem, in the fields of Kidron, and hath borne their ashes to Beth-El.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And the king commanded Hilkijah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to bring forth out of the temple of Jehovah all the vessels that had been made for Baal, and for the Asherah, and for all the host of the heavens; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them to Bethel.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And the king commanded Helcias, the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to cast out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels that had been made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burnt them without Jerusalem, in the valley of Cedron, and he carried the ashes of them to Bethel.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Entonces mandó el rey al sumo sacerdote Hilcías, y á los sacerdotes de segundo orden, y á los guardianes de la puerta, que sacasen del templo de Jehová todos los vasos que habían sido hechos para Baal, y para el bosque, y para toda la milicia del cielo; y quemólos fuera de Jerusalem en el campo de Cedrón, é hizo llevar las cenizas de ellos á Beth-el.
Então mandou el rei ao sumo sacerdote Hilquias, e aos sacerdotes de segunda ordem, e aos guardiões da porta, que tirassem do templo do SENHOR todos os vasos que haviam sido feitos para Baal, e para o bosque, e para toda o exército do céu; e queimou-os fora de Jerusalém no campo de Cedrom, e fez levar as cinzas deles a Betel.
Le roi ordonna à Hilkija, le souverain sacrificateur, aux sacrificateurs du second ordre, et à ceux qui gardaient le seuil, de sortir du temple de l’ Éternel tous les ustensiles qui avaient été faits pour Baal, pour Astarté, et pour toute l’ armée des cieux; et il les brûla hors de Jérusalem, dans les champs du Cédron, et en fit porter la poussière à Béthel.
Und der König gebot dem Hohenpriester Hilkia und den nächsten Priestern nach ihm und den Hütern an der Schwelle, daß sie sollten aus dem Tempel des HERRN tun alle Geräte, die dem Baal und der Aschera und allem Heer des Himmels gemacht waren. Und sie verbrannten sie außen vor Jerusalem im Tal Kidron, und ihr Staub ward getragen gen Beth- El.
En de koning gebood den hogepriester Hilkia, en den priesteren der tweede ordening, en den dorpelbewaarders, dat zij uit den tempel des HEEREN alle gereedschap, dat voor Baal, en voor het beeld van het bos, en voor al het heir des hemels gemaakt was, uitbrengen zouden; en hij verbrandde dat buiten Jeruzalem in de velden van Kidron, en liet het stof daarvan naar Beth-El dragen.
E il re ordinò al sommo sacerdote Hilkia, ai sacerdoti del secondo ordine e ai custodi della soglia di trar fuori del tempio dell’Eterno tutti gli arredi che erano stati fatti per Baal, per Astarte e per tutto l’esercito celeste, e li arse fuori di Gerusalemme nei campi del Kidron, e ne portò le ceneri a Bethel.
I przykazał król Helkijaszowi, kapłanowi najwyższemu, i kapłanom wtórego rzędu, i odźwiernym, aby wyrzucili z kościoła Pańskiego wszystko naczynie, które sprawione było Baalowi, i gajowi poświęconemu, i wszystkiemu wojsku niebieskiemu, i spalił je precz za Jeruzalemem na polu Cedron, a zaniósł popiół ich do Betela.
И повелел царь Хелкии первосвященнику и вторым священникам и стоящим на страже у порога вынести из храма Господня все вещи, сделанные для Ваала и для Астарты и для всего воинства небесного, и сжег их за Иерусалимом в долине Кедрон, и велел прах их отнести в Вефиль.
王 吩咐 大 祭司 希勒家 和 副 祭司，並 把 門的，將 那為巴力 和亞舍拉，並天上 萬 象 所造的 器皿，都從耶和華 殿裡 搬出來，在耶路撒冷 外 汲淪 溪旁的田間 燒了，把 灰 拿 到伯特利去。
Then the king gave orders to Hilkiah, the chief priest, and to the priests of the second order, and to the keepers of the door, to take out of the house of the Lord all the vessels made for Baal and for the Asherah and for all the stars of heaven; and he had them burned outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and took the dust of them to Beth-el.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · II Kings 23:4
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that this verse records the first concrete step in Josiah's sweeping reform following the covenant renewal (vv. 1, 3). The king commands the removal of all vessels made for Baal, Asherah, and the host of heaven from Yahweh's temple. These objects are burned outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, a site already associated with disposal of impurities (cf. 2 Chr 29:15, 16; 1 Kgs 15:13). The final act, carrying the ashes to Bethel, is widely understood as a deliberate defilement of the place where Jeroboam had set up the golden calf (1 Kgs 12:29), the origin of the northern kingdom's idolatry. Barnes notes that Bethel was 'an accursed place' just beyond Judah's border. The Cambridge Bible adds that the ashes were taken there so that 'the refuse of all these objects of idolatry might be cast away in the place whence the first step was taken.' Jamieson-Fausset-Brown observes that Josiah 'caused the ashes of the burnt wood and the fragments of the broken metal to be collected and conveyed to Beth-el, in order thenceforth to associate ideas of horror and aversion with that place.' Matthew Henry highlights that this act showed Josiah's 'detestation of idolatry.'
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Josiah commanded the removal and destruction of idolatrous vessels from the temple, with the ashes taken to Bethel as a deliberate act of defilement.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Identity of the priests of the second order | They are priests next in rank to the high priest, involved in the removal of idolatrous vessels. | Gill and the Targum interpret this as a single deputy high priest (sagan); Wesley and others take it as the heads of the twenty-four priestly courses. |
| Significance of the ashes being carried to Bethel | All major commentators agree this was a deliberate act to defile the ancient sanctuary of the northern kingdom where Jeroboam set up a golden calf. | Some emphasize the element of contempt for a place that had been a center of false worship (Matthew Henry, Barnes); others stress the practical need to dispose of polluted remains outside Judah (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, Cambridge). These are complementary, not contradictory. |
| The meaning of 'Asherah' in this context | The word refers to the Canaanite goddess Asherah or her cult symbol (a sacred pole or tree). | Some interpretations focus on the image of the goddess herself (Gill, Lange); others stress the wooden pole or grove that represented her (KJV's 'grove', Cambridge). The term likely combines both meanings. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Josiah's reform begins in the context of the discovery of the Book of the Law (2 Kgs 22) and the covenant ceremony in 23:1, 3. The temple had been polluted by idolatrous practices introduced under Manasseh and Amon, who had 'built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord' (2 Kgs 21:5). The 'priests of the second order' is a unique term; commentators differ whether it denotes the deputy high priest (Gill, citing the Targum's 'sagan') or the heads of the twenty-four priestly courses (Wesley). The 'keepers of the threshold' (or 'doorkeepers') were Levitical gatekeepers who had charge of access to the temple interior. The vessels 'made for Baal' indicate that the worship of Baal and his consort Asherah had been physically established within the holy precincts, alongside astral worship of 'the host of heaven', the sun, moon, and zodiacal signs (cf. 2 Kgs 23:5). Burning these objects outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron followed the law's command to destroy idolatrous items by fire (Deut 7:25). The Kidron valley was already a site for disposing of temple rubbish and idolatrous remains (1 Kgs 15:13; 2 Chr 30:14). The choice of Bethel for the ashes is deliberate. Bethel was the sanctuary where Jeroboam erected one of the golden calves (1 Kgs 12:29), and it had become the primary symbol of Israel's apostasy. By carrying the ashes there, Josiah not only removed the pollution from Jerusalem but also turned the origin point of northern idolatry into a monument of shame. The act was both pragmatic, avoiding further defilement of Judah, and powerfully symbolic, as the Geneva Bible notes: 'the refuse of all these objects of idolatry might be cast away in the place whence the first step was taken.'
Textual Notes
The consulted commentaries and source texts note no significant textual variants for this verse. The phrase 'priests of the second order' (כֹּהֲנֵי הַמִּשְׁנֶה) is a hapax legomenon in the Hebrew Bible, but its meaning is clear from context. The verse appears uniformly in the manuscript tradition.
Reception History
Eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Protestant commentators consistently read this verse as a demonstration of zeal for pure worship. Matthew Henry (1710) and John Wesley (1754) praise Josiah's thoroughness in purging the temple. Gill (1748) notes the symbolic meaning of carrying ashes to Bethel, echoing the Targum's understanding of the 'sagan' role. Later commentators like Barnes (1832) and the Cambridge Bible (1880) develop the historical significance of Bethel as the site of Jeroboam's idolatry. The verse has been used in sermon literature as a model for personal and corporate repentance that addresses root causes rather than surface behaviors.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Call for Complete Purification: Josiah involves all levels of temple personnel to ensure every trace of idolatry is removed, not just the obvious but the hidden.
- The Symbolic Location of Judgment: The burning in Kidron and the transport of ashes to Bethel show that reform must both remove sin and discredit its sources.
- The Cost of Reform: Josiah's actions were public, messy, and uncompromising, true reform requires public witness and personal cost.
Five-point outline
- Command: The king gives the order, showing leadership in spiritual reform.
- Removal: All vessels made for false gods are brought out of the temple.
- Burning: The objects are burned in a designated unclean area (Kidron).
- Transport: The ashes are carried to Bethel.
- Defilement: Bethel becomes a dumping ground for idolatrous remains, forever associated with the false worship it had fostered.
Illustration hooks
- Spring cleaning that goes beyond the surface: pulling out furniture to vacuum underneath, not just sweeping the floor.
- A community removing a statue that had been used in cultic worship and smashing it in the town square as a public repudiation.
- A person breaking an object tied to a past addiction and disposing of it far from home to avoid any chance of retrieval.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why did Josiah need to take the ashes to Bethel? Wasn't burning enough?
- How do we apply this today when we don't have physical idols in church?
- What does this say about dealing with past sin that has left a 'taste' or memory?
Leading a Discussion
This verse shows the beginning of Josiah's physical cleansing of the temple. But the act of carrying ashes to Bethel raises questions about the depth of reform. Read 2 Kings 23:1, 4 together and consider what it means to remove not just the objects of sin but also their memory.
Discussion questions
- Who does Josiah command to carry out this task? Why those specific groups?
- What items are listed as being removed from the temple? What does that tell you about the extent of idolatry?
- Why was it important to burn these items outside Jerusalem rather than inside the temple?
- What is the significance of taking the ashes to Bethel? How would that have been understood by the people of Judah?
- How does this action relate to the covenant renewal described in verses 1, 3?
- What 'vessels' or objects might we need to remove from our lives to follow God wholeheartedly?
- How can we take symbolic steps to break with past sin in a way that is public and decisive?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Judges 2:13 | They abandoned Yahweh, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth. |
| II Samuel 15:23 | All the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over. The king also himself passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over toward the way of the wilderness. |
| I Kings 12:29 | He set the one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. |
| I Kings 16:31 | As if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. |
| I Kings 18:19 | Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel to Mount Carmel, and four hundred fifty of the prophets of Baal, and four hundred of the prophets of the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.” |
| I Kings 18:26 | They took the bull which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, “Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice, and nobody answered. They leaped about the altar which was made. |
| I Kings 18:40 | Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Don’t let one of them escape!” They seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and killed them there. |
| I Kings 19:18 | Yet I reserved seven thousand in Israel, all the knees of which have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
8 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke explains that the priests of the second order likely served as substitutes for the high priest when needed. He also notes that Josiah destroyed all vessels once used for idolatry, not just because they were defiled, but to remove any future temptation to misuse them again.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This commentator highlights that the destruction of Baal worship objects followed Deuteronomy's commands, and the ashes were carried to Bethel because that was where idolatry first took root among God's people, symbolically returning the corruption to its source.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva annotators stress that Josiah did not merely remove the idolatrous vessels from the temple but burned them and carried even their ashes to Bethel. This act intentionally defiled Bethel, the site of Jeroboam's golden calf worship, showing the reform reached back to root out Israel's oldest idolatries.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill identifies the "keepers of the door" as treasurers, not porters, based on Jewish tradition. He highlights that Josiah burned the idolatrous vessels and carried their ashes to Bethel as a deliberate act of contempt, turning that site of Jeroboam's calf into a dunghill.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB emphasizes that Josiah surpassed earlier reformers by not only burning idolatrous vessels outside Jerusalem but also carrying the ashes and broken metal to Bethel. His intent was to link that place permanently with horror and aversion, making it odious as the site of the worst pollutions.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange insists the book found in the temple was the complete Pentateuch, not just Deuteronomy, rejecting claims it was a later forgery. He argues Josiah’s reformation failed not because of harsh methods but because the nation’s corruption under Manasseh was too deep for lasting change. The discovery itself displayed God’s providential care for His written word.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes Josiah's thoroughness in treating idolatry as utterly contemptible, not merely removing it but grinding it to powder and casting it onto graves. He notes that Josiah defiled the very places and objects of false worship, showing that sin must be detested and erased without a trace.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley explains that the grove refers to the idol's image, not the actual trees, and that the priests of the second order disposed of it along with the fields near Kidron. He sees the decision to send the ashes to Bethel as a deliberate act to defile that chief seat of idolatry and show utter contempt for the false worship.