Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 29:20
Early the next morning King Hezekiah gathered the city officials and went up to the house of the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — King Hezekiah acts immediately after the priests report the temple articles are consecrated and before the sin offerings are presented. He convenes the city officials to accompany him to the house of the LORD.
The words — וַיִּשְׁכֵּם (wa-yiškēm) literally means "he rose early," and שָׂרֵי הָעִיר (śārê hāʿîr) translates as "officials of the city." These terms anchor the narrative in immediate, deliberate action rather than routine duty.
The thread — The pattern of rising early to attend to sacred duties appears in Genesis 22:3, Exodus 24:4, and Joshua 6:12. Each instance marks a decisive moment of covenantal obedience or divine encounter.
Why it lands — The text records a king mobilizing civic leadership for temple restoration before any sacrifice is offered. It requires a reader to recognize that structural and administrative preparation precedes ritual atonement.
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
Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the Lord.
Cross-references
- Genesis 22:3 So Abraham got up early the next morning, saddled his donkey, and took along two of his servants and his son Isaac. He split the wood for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had designated.
- Exodus 24:4 And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Early the next morning he got up and built an altar at the base of the mountain, along with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.
- Joshua 6:12 Joshua got up early the next morning, and the priests took the ark of the LORD.
- Jeremiah 25:4 And the LORD has sent all His servants the prophets to you again and again, but you have not listened or inclined your ear to hear.