A third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation. All the people will be in the courts of Yahweh’s house. But let no one come into Yahweh’s house, except the priests and those who minister of the Levites. They shall come in, for they are holy, but all the people shall follow Yahweh’s instructions. The Levites shall surround the king, every man with his weapons in his hand. Whoever comes into the house, let him be slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”
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2 Chronicles 23:5-7 sits inside this longer paragraph.
In the seventh year, Jehoiada strengthened himself, and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son of Jeroham, Ishmael the son of Jehohanan, Azariah the son of Obed, Maaseiah the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat the son of Zichri, into a covenant with him. They went around in Judah, and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Judah, and the heads of fathers’ households of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. All the assembly made a covenant with the king in God’s house. He said to them, “Behold, the king’s son must reign, as Yahweh has spoken concerning the sons of David. This is the thing that you must do. A third part of you, who come in on the Sabbath, of the priests and of the Levites, shall be gatekeepers of the thresholds. A third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation. All the people will be in the courts of Yahweh’s house. But let no one come into Yahweh’s house, except the priests and those who minister of the Levites. They shall come in, for they are holy, but all the people shall follow Yahweh’s instructions. The Levites shall surround the king, every man with his weapons in his hand. Whoever comes into the house, let him be slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”
Parallel Translations
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A third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation. All the people will be in the courts of Yahweh’s house.
But let no one come into Yahweh’s house, except the priests and those who minister of the Levites. They shall come in, for they are holy, but all the people shall follow Yahweh’s instructions.
The Levites shall surround the king, every man with his weapons in his hand. Whoever comes into the house, let him be slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”
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And a third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation: and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.
But let none come into the house of the LORD, save the priests, and they that minister of the Levites; they shall go in, for they are holy: but all the people shall keep the watch of the LORD.
And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever else cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.
Show all 3 translations
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and a third part shall be at the king's house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation; and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.
But let none come into the house of the LORD, save the priests, and they that minister of the Levites; they shall come in, for they are holy; but all the people shall keep the charge of the LORD.
And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever cometh into the house, let him be slain; and be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.'
Cross-references (11)
- 1 Chronicles 23:28-32 (v6) For their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of Yahweh’s house, in the courts, and in the rooms, and in the purifying…
- Exodus 19:12-13 (v7) You shall set bounds to the people all around, saying, ‘Be careful that you don’t go up onto the mountain, or touch its border. Whoever…
- Exodus 21:14 (v7) If a man schemes and comes presumptuously on his neighbor to kill him, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.
- Numbers 3:10 (v7) You shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall keep their priesthood, but the stranger who comes near shall be put to death.”
- Numbers 3:38 (v7) Those who encamp before the tabernacle eastward, in front of the Tent of Meeting toward the sunrise, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his…
Show all 11 cross-references
- 2 Kings 11:5-6 (v5) He commanded them, saying, “This is what you must do: a third of you, who come in on the Sabbath, shall be keepers of the watch of the…
- 2 Kings 11:6-7 (v6) a third of you shall be at the gate Sur; and a third of you at the gate behind the guard. So you shall keep the watch of the house, and be…
- 2 Kings 11:8-9 (v7) You shall surround the king, every man with his weapons in his hand; and he who comes within the ranks, let him be slain. Be with the king…
- Ezekiel 44:2-3 (v5) Yahweh said to me, “This gate shall be shut. It shall not be opened, no man shall enter in by it; for Yahweh, the God of Israel, has…
- Ezekiel 46:2-3 (v5) The prince shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate outside, and shall stand by the post of the gate; and the priests shall prepare…
- Acts 3:2 (v5) A certain man who was lame from his mother’s womb was being carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv5, 7 Which was the chief gate of the Temple toward…
Which was the chief gate of the Temple toward the East.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv5–7 2Ch 23:5 And a third part [shall be] at…
2Ch 23:5 And a third part [shall be] at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation: and all the people [shall be] in the courts of the house of the LORD.
Ver. 5. At the gate of the foundation.] Called also the gate of Sur; and why, see on 2Ki 11:6. The Rabbis say that this gate had seven different names.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv5–6 At the gate of the foundation; at the east…
At the gate of the foundation; at the east gate, thought to be so called, because it stood lower than the rest of the doors, at the foot of the steps, by which they went up from the king’s house to the temple.
In the courts; either,
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1. In the two courts; and so by the people he understands as well the generality of the Levites, who had no particular stations allotted to them, as their brethren had, 2Ch 23:4,5, which were to be in the priests’ court, as the people, who were in the court of the people: or,
2. In the court of the people, which may be called courts, the plural number being put for the singular, in regard of great amplitude, and divers quarters and partitions, into which it was or might be divided; as the temple is called sanctuaries, because of its division into divers parts, Lev 26:31.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v5 Foundation - At the east gate, so called because…
Foundation - At the east gate, so called because it stood lower than the rest of the doors at the foot of the steps, by which they went up from the king's house to the temple.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v6 2Ch 23:6. Let none come into the house of…
2Ch 23:6. Let none come into the house of the Lord — Strictly so called, and distinguished from the courts just mentioned, namely, into the sanctuary, or holy place. Save the priests, and they that minister of the Levites — Who are to minister in course, or according to my present appointment. They shall go in, for they are holy — They have been consecrated to the service of God, and are bound to attend there. But all the people shall keep the watch of the Lord — That is, of the house of the Lord, as is expressed 2Ki 11:6. The meaning is, Let them stand in their court to prevent and oppose any person that shall endeavour violently to break into the house, to seize upon the king, or to oppose the present work, which he expected Athaliah and her accomplices would do.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv6–7 Keep the watch of the Lord - i. e.…
Keep the watch of the Lord - i. e. guard against any attempt that might be made by the Baal-worshippers to force their way through the courts into the temple.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv5, 7 To the sabbath. That is, to perform in your…
To the sabbath. That is, to perform in your weeks the functions of your office, or the weekly watches. Ch. --- Porters. Sept. "even to the entrance gates." --- House, where Athalia resided, or in the apartments of Joas in the temple. --- Foundation. Sept. "middle." Syriac, "of the cooks, or guards." H. --- It led from the palace up the steps, v. 21. M. --- Perhaps it was also called Sur, 4 K. --- But let. This seems to be transposed out of its place from v. 6.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–7 6. let none come into the house of the…
6. let none come into the house of the Lord] It is clear on the contrary from Kings (2Ch_23:11) that the royal guards (who were laymen) were brought into the Temple itself under Jehoiada’s directions. Ritual custom was broken through for such a crisis.
all the people] Not mentioned in Kings; but cp. 2Ki_11:14.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv5–7 (5) And a third part at the gate of…
(5) And a third part at the gate of the foundation.—2Ki_11:6 reads: “the gate Sûr,” which appears there as a gate of the palace. (LXX., “the middle gate;” Syr. and Arab., “the Butchers’ gate”)
And all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord.—This appears to be written from the point of view of a strict legalist, according to which none might enter the holy house itself save the priests. It looks like a protest against 2Ki_11:4, where it is said that Jehoiada brought the centurions of the royal guard into the house of the Lord.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv5–7 A third part at the king"s house. It seems…
A third part at the king"s house. It seems impossible to refer this to the royal palace, as some suppose from ver. 19 in the parallel. It probably designates the place where the child had been living in concealment. This portion of the description appears to correspond with the last clause of ver. 5 in the parallel. At the gate of the foundation. The Hebrew text here is dwOsy (Exo_29:12; Lev_4:7; Hab_3:13) in the parallel rWs, a name only found there, and unintelligible probably a corruption of the other word. The gate of the foundation is supposed to have stood at that corner of the area which was strengthened by additional works, where was the ravine separating Moriah and the hill to the south. All the people. Evidently the miscellaneous outside people are not here intended, who were not entrusted with the secret and the surprise that was to be, but the same all the people as are unmistakably designated in ver. 10; i.e. all who were appointed to officiate. The last clause in each of vers. 5, 6, 7 in the parallel go strongly to confirm the position that" the king"s house "so far does not intend the royal palace, but such part of the house of the Lord as had been, and then still was, "about the king" (ver. 7, parallel); in order to keep watch "about the king," they were set to keep watch of a certain part of "the house of the Lord."
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 Allow no one to come into the house of…
Allow no one to come into the house of Yahweh
"Do not allow anyone to come into the house of Yahweh"
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But all the other people must obey the commands of Yahweh
It may be helpful to state that command. AT: "All the others must remain in the courtyard, obeying what Yahweh has commanded" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
The Levites must surround the king on all sides
"The Levites must surround the king on all sides in order to protect him"
all sides, every man with his weapons in his hand
"all sides, and every temple guard should have his weapons and be ready to fight"
Whoever comes into the house, let him be killed
This did not include the temple guards and the priests. This can be stated explicitly and in active form. AT: "You must kill anyone except the temple guards and the priests who come into the temple" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information and Active or Passive)
when he comes in and when he goes out
Possible meanings are 1) "at all times" or 2) "wherever he goes." (See: Idiom)
translationWords
command
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 23:6-7 Because only the priests and Levites on duty…
23:6-7 Because only the priests and Levites on duty may enter the Temple, the Levites were required to prevent anyone else from doing so.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.