2 Kings 23:29

Contextual Overview

²⁵ Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since. ²⁵ And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him. ²⁵ And like him there was no king before him, that turned to Yahweh with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him did there arise any like him. ²⁵ There was no king like Josiah before or after him. He obeyed the Lord with all his heart, soul, and strength, following all the Teachings of Moses. ²⁵ No king before or after repented before the Lord as he did, with his whole heart, soul, and being in accordance with the whole law of Moses. ²⁵ And like him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there [any] like him. ²⁵ Like him was there no king before him, who turned to Yahweh with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him. ²⁵Before him there was no king like Josiah who turned to the LORD with all his heart and all his soul and all his might, in accordance with all the Law of Moses; nor did anyone like him arise after him. ²⁵ Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses, nor did any like him arise after him. ²⁵ No kyng bifor him was lijk hym, `that turnede ayen to the Lord in al his herte, and in al his soule, and in al his vertu, bi al the lawe of Moises; nether aftir hym roos ony lijk hym.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

am 3394, bc 610

Pharaohnechoh: Pharaoh-nechoh, called וךשע, Necos, the son of Psammiticus, by Herodotus, was now was now marching "to make war upon the Medes and Babylonians, who had dissolved the Assyrian empire," the king of the latter being the famous Nabopollasar, who had also become king of Assyria. 2 Kings 23:33-35; 2 Chronicles 35:20-24; Jeremiah 46:2

Euphrates: 2 Kings 24:7; 2 Chronicles 35:20; Jeremiah 46:2

Josiah went: 2 Chronicles 35:20-23

slew him: 2 Kings 22:20; Ecclesiastes 8:14, Ecclesiastes 9:1-2; Isaiah 57:1-2; Romans 11:33

Megiddo: Megiddo, called בדהןכןם, Magdolum, by Herodotus, was situated in the tribe of Manasseh, west of Jordan, in the valley of Jezreel, and not far fron Hadad-Rimmon, or Maximianopolis. This shews that Josiah reigned over the country formerly possessed by the ten tribes; and it is also probable, that Nechoh had landed his troops at or near Cesarea of Palestine. 2 Kings 9:27, Joshua 17:11, Judges 1:27, Judges 5:19, 1 Kings 4:12, Zechariah 12:11, Megiddon, Revelation 16:16, Armageddon

he had seen him: 2 Kings 14:8, 2 Kings 14:11

Reciprocal: Genesis 25:18 - toward Joshua 12:21 - Megiddo 1 Kings 9:15 - Megiddo 1 Chronicles 7:29 - Megiddo 1 Chronicles 10:2 - Jonathan Ezra 6:22 - the king Nehemiah 9:32 - on our kings Ezekiel 19:1 - the princes Ezekiel 19:12 - strong Zechariah 9:8 - because of him that passeth by

Gill's Notes on the Bible

In his days Pharaohnechoh king of Egypt,.... Who is called in the Targum Pharaoh the lame, because he was lame in his feet, perhaps gouty; Herodotus x also calls him Necos the son of Psammiticus; now it was in the last days of Josiah this king reigned in Egypt, or however that the following event was:

[that] he went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates; to Carchemish, a city situated upon it; see 2 Chronicles 35:26, the king he went against was the king of Babylon, who had conquered the Assyrian monarchy, and therefore called king of it; some take him to be Nabopolassar; according to Marsham y, he was Chyniladanus;

and King Josiah went against him; to stop him, that he might not pass through his country, and attack the king of Babylon, whose ally, perhaps, Josiah was; or, however, thought himself obliged to him by the privileges, power, and authority he allowed him to exercise in the land of Israel:

and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him; as soon as they came face to face, and engaged in battle, see 2 Kings 14:8 that is Pharaoh slew Josiah at the first onset. Megiddo was a city in the tribe of Manasseh, Joshua 17:11. Herodotus z calls it Magdolus, which seems to be a city on the borders of Egypt, the same with Migdol, Jeremiah 44:1 where he says Pharoahnechoh conquered the Syrians; in Josephus a it is called Mendes very wrongly. Josiah seems to have engaged in this action without consulting the Lord and his prophets.

x Euterpe, sive, l. 2. c. 158. y Chronic. Secul. 18. p. 568. z Ibid. c. 159. a Antiqu. l. 10. c. 5. sect. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Pharaoh-Nechoh - This king is well known to us both from profane historians, and from the Egyptian monuments. He succeeded his father Psammetichus (Psamatik) in the year 610 B.C., and was king of Egypt for 16 years. He was an enlightened and enterprising monarch. The great expedition here mentioned was an attempt to detach from the newly-formed Babylonian empire the important tract of country extending from Egypt to the Euphrates at Carchemish. Calculating probably on the friendship or neutrality of most of the native powers, the Egyptian monarch, having made preparations for the space of two years, set out on his march, probably following the (usual) coast route through Philistia and Sharon, from thence intending to cross by Megiddo into the Jezreel (Esdraelon) plain.

The king of Assyria - This expression does not imply that Nineveh had not yet fallen. The Jews, accustomed to Assyrian monarchs, who held their courts alternately at Nineveh and Babylon 2 Kings 19:36; 2 Chronicles 33:11, at first regarded the change as merely dynastic, and transferred to the new king, Nabopolassar, the title which they had been accustomed to give to their former suzerains. When, later on, Nebuchadnezzar invaded their country they found that he did not call himself “King of Assyria,” but “King of Babylon,” and thenceforth that title came into use; but the annalist who wrote the life of Josiah inmediately upon his death, and whom the author of Kings copied, used, not unnaturally, the more familiar, though less correct, designation.

Josiah went against him - Josiah probably regarded himself as in duty bound to oppose the march of a hostile force through his territory to attack his suzerain. For further details see the account in Chronicles (marginal reference). On Megiddo, see Joshua 12:21 note.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 29. In his days Pharaoh-nechoh — See the note on the death of Josiah, 2 Kings 22:20.

Nechoh is supposed to have been the son of Psammitichus, king of Egypt; and the Assyrian king, whom he was now going to attack, was the famous Nabopolassar. What the cause of this quarrel was, is not known. Some say it was on account of Carchemish, a city on the Euphrates, belonging to the Egyptians, which Nabopolassar had seized. See Isaiah 10:9.