Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 5:11
Now all the priests who were present had consecrated themselves regardless of their divisions. And when the priests came out of the Holy Place,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The chronicler records the moment after the ark is placed in the Most Holy Place, describing the priestly assembly as they emerge from the Holy Place. The narrative focuses on the completed ritual state of the priests rather than a spoken address to a specific audience.
The words — The phrase בְּצֵאת הַכֹּהֲנִים מִן־הַקֹּדֶשׁ (be/tzet ha/ko.ha.nim min/ha/ko.desh) literally translates to "when the priests came out from the holy place." This temporal marker anchors the narrative sequence to the completion of their internal sanctuary service.
The thread — The requirement of priestly consecration and divisional service recurs in 2 Chronicles 29:5, 30:17, and 35:4, where leaders repeatedly command the Levites and priests to purify themselves and serve according to established families. These passages frame temple worship as a continuous standard for proper covenant service.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that ritual readiness precedes any subsequent worship activity, requiring readers to examine their own preparation before approaching sacred duties. It establishes that orderly consecration, not mere physical presence, qualifies one for temple service.
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
And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place: (for all the priests that were present were sanctified, and did not then wait by course:
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 29:5 “Listen to me, O Levites,” he said. “Consecrate yourselves now and consecrate the house of the LORD, the God of your fathers. Remove from the Holy Place every impurity.
- 2 Chronicles 30:17 Since there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves, the Levites were in charge of slaughtering the Passover lambs for every unclean person to consecrate the lambs to the LORD.
- 2 Chronicles 35:4 Prepare yourselves by families in your divisions, according to the instructions written by David king of Israel and Solomon his son.
- Job 1:5 And when the days of feasting were over, Job would send for his children to purify them, rising early in the morning to offer burnt offerings for all of them. For Job thought, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular practice.
- Exodus 19:10 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. They must wash their clothes
- Exodus 19:14 When Moses came down from the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes.
- 1 Chronicles 24:1 These were the divisions of the descendants of Aaron. The sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
- 2 Chronicles 29:15 When they had assembled their brothers and consecrated themselves, they went in to cleanse the house of the LORD, according to the command of the king by the words of the LORD.
- 2 Chronicles 29:34 However, since there were not enough priests to skin all the burnt offerings, their Levite brothers helped them until the work was finished and until the priests had consecrated themselves. For the Levites had been more diligent in consecrating themselves than the priests had been.
- 2 Chronicles 30:15 And on the fourteenth day of the second month they slaughtered the Passover lamb. The priests and Levites were ashamed, and they consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings to the house of the LORD.