EasyEnglish Bible 2018
2 Chronicles 34:3
3When Josiah had been king for eight years, he was still a young man. At that time he began to worship God, as his ancestor David had done. When he had been king for 12 years, he started to remove the places in Jerusalem and in all Judah where people worshipped false gods. He removed the altars on the hills, the Asherah poles, the idols and the images of false gods.
2 Chronicles 34:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images.
- New International Version (NIV)In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David. In his twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles and idols.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet a boy, he began to seek the God of David his father, and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherim, and the carved and the metal images.
- New King James Version (NKJV)For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David; and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the wooden images, the carved images, and the molded images.
Context of 2 Chronicles 34:3
1Josiah was eight years old when he became king. He ruled as king in Jerusalem for 31 years. 2Josiah did things that the Lord said were right. He lived in the good ways of his ancestor, King David. He did not turn away from the Lord's teaching in any way. When Josiah had been king for eight years, he was still a young man. At that time he began to worship God, as his ancestor David had done. When he had been king for 12 years, he started to remove the places in Jerusalem and in all Judah where people worshipped false gods. He removed the altars on the hills, the Asherah poles, the idols and the images of false gods. 4He told his men to knock down the altars where people worshipped the idols of Baal. He broke into pieces the altars for incense that were near the other altars. He destroyed the Asherah poles, the idols and the images. He broke them all into very small pieces. He threw the bits over the graves of the people who had offered sacrifices to those false gods. 5Josiah took the bones of the priests who had made sacrifices to the false gods. He burned the priests' bones on their own altars. That is how Josiah made Judah and Jerusalem clean again.
Read all of 2 Chronicles 342 Chronicles 34:3 word by word
וּבִשְׁמוֹנֶ֨ה שָׁנִ֜ים לְמָלְכ֗וֹ וְהוּא֙ עוֹדֶ֣נּוּ נַ֔עַר הֵחֵ֕ל לִדְר֕וֹשׁ לֵאלֹהֵ֖י דָּוִ֣יד אָבִ֑יו וּבִשְׁתֵּ֧ים עֶשְׂרֵ֣ה שָׁנָ֗ה הֵחֵל֙ לְטַהֵ֔ר אֶת־יְהוּדָה֙ וִיר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם מִן־הַבָּמוֹת֙ וְהָ֣אֲשֵׁרִ֔ים וְהַפְּסִלִ֖ים וְהַמַּסֵּכֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- For in the eighthשְׁמֹנֶהshemôneh shemôneh shemônâh shemônâh · eightH8083
- yearשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
- of his reignמָלַךְmâlak · to reignH4427
- while he was yet youngנַ֫עַרna‛ar · youthH5288
- he beganחָלַלchâlal · to profane/begin: beginH2490
- to seekדָּרַשׁdârash · to seekH1875
- after the Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- of Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
- his fatherאָב'âb · fatherH1
- and in the twelfthעָשָׂר‛âώâr · tenH6240
- and in the twelfthשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
- to purgeטָהֵרţâhêr · be pureH2891
- Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
- and Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
- from the high placesבָּמָהbâmâh · high placeH1116
- and the grovesאֲשֵׁרָה'ăshêrâh 'ăshêyrâh · AsherahH842
- and the carved imagesפָּסִילpesîyl · idolH6456
- and the molten imagesמַסֵּכָהmassêkâh · molten metalH4541
Cross-references for 2 Chronicles 34:3
- 1 Chronicles 22:5David said, ‘The Lord's temple must be great and beautiful. It must be famous, so that the people of every nation see how great it is. My son Solomon is young and he has no special skills. So I must prepare everything for him to build the temple.’ So before David died, he prepared all these things.
- 1 Chronicles 29:1Then King David spoke to all the people who were meeting together. He said, ‘God has clearly chosen my son Solomon to do this great work. But he is still young and he has no special skills. It is a very important work for him to build the temple. It will not be a palace for people, but for the Lord God himself!
- Psalms 119:9How can a young man live a clean life? He must be careful to obey your message.
- Ecclesiastes 12:1Remember to serve God while you are young. He is the one who made you. Your life will have many troubles in the future. During those years, you will say, ‘I do not enjoy my life any more.’
- 2 Timothy 3:15Even when you were a child, you already knew the message of the Bible. The Bible has taught you how you can be truly wise. You understand that God saves you because you believe in Christ Jesus.
- 2 Chronicles 15:2Azariah went to meet King Asa. He said to him, ‘Listen to me Asa and all you people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The Lord will be with you while you are faithful to him. If you ask him for help, he will answer you. But if you turn away from him, he will turn away from you.
- 1 Chronicles 28:9As for you, Solomon, my son, keep near to your father's God. Be happy to serve him faithfully in every way. The Lord knows what you are thinking. He understands all your thoughts. If you turn to him, you will find him. But if you turn away from him, he will leave you alone for ever.
- Proverbs 8:17I love those people who love me. Whoever looks for me will find me.
- Matthew 6:33Instead, always think about the things that are important in the kingdom of heaven. Always do what God shows you is right. Then he will also give you the things that you need each day.
- 2 Chronicles 33:17The people still offered sacrifices at the other altars in the country. But they only offered those sacrifices to the Lord their God.
- Leviticus 26:30The Lord will destroy the places where they worship false gods. He will destroy their very bad incense altars. He will put their dead bodies round their idols. He will hate them.
- 2 Kings 23:4Then the king gave a command to Hilkiah, the leader of the priests, and to the other priests and the temple guards. He told them to bring out from the Lord's temple everything that people used there to worship false gods. People used those things to worship Baal, Asherah and all the stars in the sky. King Josiah burned those things outside Jerusalem, in the fields of the Kidron Valley. Then he took all the ashes to Bethel.
- 2 Chronicles 30:14They removed the altars for false gods that were in Jerusalem. They also removed all the altars where people burned incense. They threw them into the Kidron Valley.
- 2 Kings 18:4He removed the altars on the hills. He knocked down the stone pillars that people worshipped and he cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake that Moses had made. Until then, the Israelites had burned incense as an offering to it. It was called Nehushtan.
Commentaries on 2 Chronicles 34:3
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3He began to purge Judah - Jeremiah‘s first prophecies Jeremiah 23 appear to have been coincident with Josiah‘s earlier efforts to uproot idolatry, and must have greatly strengthened his hands.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3When Josiah was sixteen, he started to seek the God of his ancestor David. At twenty, he began his own reforms.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. in the eighth year of his reign--This was the sixteenth year of his age, and, as the kings of Judah were considered minors till they had completed their thirteenth year, it was three years after he had attained majority. He had very early manifested the piety and excellent dispositions of his character. In the twelfth year of his reign, but the twentieth of his age, he began to take a lively interest in the purgation of his kingdom from all the…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Chronicles 34:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Chronicles 34
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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