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15 Furthermore, (A)the altar that was at Bethel and the (B)high 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 [a](C)demolished 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 (D)according 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, “(E)It 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 [b]left his bones undisturbed (F)with the bones of the prophet who came from Samaria. 19 And also all the houses of the high places which were (G)in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made provoking [c]Yahweh to anger, Josiah removed; and he did to them [d]just as he had done in Bethel. 20 And all the priests of the high places who were there (H)he [e]slaughtered on the altars and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 23:15 As in Gr; Heb burned the high place
  2. 2 Kings 23:18 Lit let his bones escape
  3. 2 Kings 23:19 As in ancient versions
  4. 2 Kings 23:19 Lit according to all the acts
  5. 2 Kings 23:20 Lit sacrificed

15 Even the altar(A) at Bethel, the high place made by Jeroboam(B) son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin—even that altar and high place he demolished. He burned the high place and ground it to powder, and burned the Asherah pole also. 16 Then Josiah(C) looked around, and when he saw the tombs that were there on the hillside, he had the bones removed from them and burned on the altar to defile it, in accordance(D) with the word of the Lord proclaimed by the man of God who foretold these things.

17 The king asked, “What is that tombstone I see?”

The people of the city said, “It marks the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced against the altar of Bethel the very things you have done to it.”

18 “Leave it alone,” he said. “Don’t let anyone disturb his bones(E).” So they spared his bones and those of the prophet(F) who had come from Samaria.

19 Just as he had done at Bethel, Josiah removed all the shrines at the high places that the kings of Israel had built in the towns of Samaria and that had aroused the Lord’s anger. 20 Josiah slaughtered(G) all the priests of those high places on the altars and burned human bones(H) on them. Then he went back to Jerusalem.

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