Bible Strands
2 Kings 23:2
And he went up to the house of the LORD with all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as well as the priests and the prophets—all the people small and great—and in their hearing he read all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The king leads the people of Judah and Jerusalem, along with priests and prophets, to the house of the LORD. This gathering occurs immediately after he summons the elders to assemble for a public reading.
The words — וַיַּעַל (va.ya‘al) translates literally as “and he went up,” marking the king’s physical ascent to the temple. הַמֶּלֶךְ (ha.melekh) means “the king,” identifying the leader who guides the assembly rather than acting as its sole initiator.
The thread — The public reading of a discovered covenant book connects to the finding of the Book of the Law in 2 Kings 22:8 and anticipates the command in Deuteronomy 31:10 to gather all people for the law. The phrase “small and great” also appears in Revelation 20:12.
Why it lands — The text records the king reading the Book of the Covenant aloud to a unified assembly, establishing that covenant renewal begins with public proclamation. It requires the reader to acknowledge that obedience depends on collective hearing and response, not isolated discovery.
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 the king went up into the house of the Lord, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the Lord.
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 22:8 Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD!” And he gave it to Shaphan, who read it.
- Deuteronomy 31:10 Then Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of remission of debt, during the Feast of Tabernacles,
- Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And books were opened, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books.
- Genesis 19:11 And they struck the men at the entrance, young and old, with blindness, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the door.
- Deuteronomy 31:26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, so that it may remain there as a witness against you.
- 1 Samuel 5:9 But after they had moved the ark to Gath, the LORD’s hand was also against that city, throwing it into great confusion and afflicting the men of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors.
- 1 Samuel 30:2 They had taken captive the women and all who were there, both young and old. They had not killed anyone, but had carried them off as they went on their way.
- 1 Kings 8:9 There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the LORD had made a covenant with the Israelites after they had come out of the land of Egypt.
- 2 Chronicles 15:13 And whoever would not seek the LORD, the God of Israel, would be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman.
- 2 Chronicles 17:9 They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the LORD. They went throughout the towns of Judah and taught the people.