King Ahaz of Judah began a wicked reign, engaging in idolatry and child sacrifice. Faced with an invasion from Syria and Israel, he sought aid from Tiglathpileser of Assyria, offering temple treasures. After Assyria conquered Damascus, Ahaz replicated a foreign altar in the Jerusalem temple and altered its sacred furnishings, further demonstrating his apostasy.
Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father.
But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel.
At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.
So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me.
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.
¶ And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.
And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus.
And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the LORD, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the altar.
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.
¶ And king Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones.
And the covert for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king's entry without, turned he from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria.
And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.
Study Notes for 2 Kings 16
Verse 2
Ahaz reigned during a period of intense pressure from the rising Assyrian empire. His failure to follow the ways of David established a pattern of apostasy that accelerated Judah’s decline.
Verse 3
The phrase 'made his son to pass through the fire' refers to the horrific practice of child sacrifice, typically associated with the worship of the pagan god Molech (cf. Lev. 18:21), marking the extreme depth of Ahaz's idolatry.
Verse 5
This attack refers to the Syro-Ephraimite War (c. 734 BC), where the kings of Syria (Rezin) and Israel (Pekah) attempted to overthrow Ahaz and install a puppet king in Judah to join their anti-Assyrian coalition.
Verse 6
Elath, a critical port city on the Gulf of Aqaba, was lost during this conflict. This was a significant strategic and economic blow to Judah.
Verse 7
By declaring, 'I am thy servant and thy son,' Ahaz formally submitted to Tiglath-pileser III, accepting vassal status. This act demonstrated a profound lack of faith, relying on a powerful foreign king rather than the LORD.
Verse 9
Assyria’s intervention saved Judah from Syria and Israel but resulted in Judah’s political and economic subjugation to the Assyrian empire. The historical record confirms Tiglath-pileser’s conquest of Damascus in 732 BC.
Verse 10
Ahaz traveled to Damascus to pay homage to his new overlord, Tiglath-pileser. The altar he saw was likely an impressive structure, possibly Assyrian or Syrian, which he sought to replicate as a sign of his loyalty to Assyrian culture.
Verse 11
Urijah the priest’s immediate and unquestioning obedience to the king’s idolatrous command represents a tragic failure of religious leadership, prioritizing political expediency over the covenant law.
Verse 14
The original bronze altar, established by Solomon for Yahweh worship, was moved from its central, sacred position. This physical displacement symbolized the official demotion of the covenant God in Judah.
Verse 15
Ahaz commanded that all traditional sacrifices be offered on the new, foreign altar. He relegated the legitimate bronze altar to personal use, perhaps for divination or consulting foreign deities, further desacralizing it.
Verse 17
The dismantling of the bronze ritual items (bases, laver, the Sea) served two primary purposes: providing tribute payments to Assyria, and systematically stripping the Temple of its unique, sacred Solomonic furnishings.
Verse 18
These architectural changes were likely made to placate the Assyrians, either by removing structures that might offend them or by ensuring that the king’s movements aligned with Assyrian protocol.
Verse 20
Although buried in the City of David, the Chronicler notes that Ahaz was not buried in the official tombs of the kings of Judah (2 Chr. 28:27), a significant mark of posthumous dishonor due to his wickedness.
Use ←→ arrow keys to navigate
Settings
Reading Style
Typeface
Font Size px
The Calling of Disciples
19And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
Options
Choose a Book
Study Note
Bible Version
Recent History
Get the App
Add TrulyRandomVerse to your home screen for instant access
TRV