Bible Strands
2 Kings 16:15
Then King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, “Offer on the great altar the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, and the king’s burnt offering and grain offering, as well as the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings of all the people of the land. Splatter on the altar all the blood of the burnt offerings and sacrifices. But I will use the bronze altar to seek guidance.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — King Ahaz commands Uriah the priest to direct all daily and national sacrifices to the newly constructed great altar while he reserves the relocated bronze altar for personal divination. This decree follows immediately after Ahaz moves the bronze altar to the north side of the temple courtyard.
The words — The Hebrew וַיְצַוֶּה (va/y.tza.vuh) translates literally as "and he commanded," marking a direct royal order. The phrase הַמֶּלֶךְ אָחָז (ha./Me.lekh 'A.choz) identifies the speaker as the reigning monarch, grounding the action in royal authority.
The thread — The prescribed morning and evening sacrifices parallel the daily ritual outlined in Exodus 29:39, while the king's provision of offerings mirrors the consecration recorded in 1 Kings 8:64. Ahaz's repurposing of the bronze altar for divination stands in direct contrast to Hezekiah's later demolition of unauthorized cultic objects in 2 Kings 18:4.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to note how royal preference can override established cultic boundaries. It demands recognition that when leadership substitutes personal divination for prescribed worship, it redefines access to the sacred without textual justification.
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 king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meat offering, and the king’s burnt sacrifice, and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by.
Cross-references
- Exodus 29:39 Offer one lamb in the morning and the other at twilight.
- 1 Kings 8:64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard in front of the house of the LORD, and there he offered the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, since the bronze altar before the LORD was too small to contain all these offerings.
- 2 Kings 18:4 He removed the high places, shattered the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles. He also demolished the bronze snake called Nehushtan that Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had burned incense to it.
- 2 Chronicles 29:21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And the king commanded the priests, the descendants of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of the LORD.
- Genesis 44:5 Is this not the cup my master drinks from and uses for divination? What you have done is wicked!’”
- Leviticus 4:13 Now if the whole congregation of Israel strays unintentionally and the matter escapes the notice of the assembly so that they violate any of the LORD’s commandments and incur guilt by doing what is forbidden,
- Numbers 28:2 “Command the Israelites and say to them: See that you present to Me at its appointed time the food for My food offerings, as a pleasing aroma to Me.
- 2 Samuel 6:17 So they brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
- 1 Kings 3:4 Now the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for it was the great high place. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on the altar there.
- 2 Kings 3:20 The next morning, at the time of the morning sacrifice, water suddenly flowed from the direction of Edom and filled the land.