Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 28:2
Instead, he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and even made cast images of the Baals.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator describes Ahaz’s conduct during his sixteen-year reign in Jerusalem, immediately following a statement that he did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD.
The words — The text uses וַ/יֵּ֕לֶךְ (va/i.Ye.lekh), translated literally as “and he walked,” to describe Ahaz’s continuous conduct, and מַסֵּכ֛וֹת (ma.se.Khot), meaning “molten images,” to specify the objects of his idolatry.
The thread — This pattern of crafting molten images appears in Exodus 34:17 and Leviticus 19:4 as general prohibitions against making cast gods, while Judges 2:11 records the broader Israelite practice of serving the Baals.
Why it lands — The verse demands recognition that Ahaz’s reign actively mirrored the idolatrous practices of the northern kingdom, establishing a baseline of covenant failure before detailing his specific abominations in the following verse.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim.
Cross-references
- Exodus 34:17 You shall make no molten gods for yourselves.
- Judges 2:11 And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals.
- Leviticus 19:4 Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods. I am the LORD your God.
- Judges 2:13 for they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.
- 1 Kings 16:31 And as if it were not enough for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, he even married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and he then proceeded to serve and worship Baal.
- 2 Kings 10:26 They brought out the sacred pillar of the temple of Baal and burned it.
- 2 Chronicles 21:6 And Jehoram walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For he married a daughter of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the LORD.
- 2 Chronicles 22:3 Ahaziah also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in wickedness.
- Hosea 2:13 I will punish her for the days of the Baals when she burned incense to them, when she adorned herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers. But Me she forgot,” declares the LORD.
- Hosea 2:17 For I will remove from her lips the names of the Baals; no longer will their names be invoked.