But the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
Parallel translations
- WEB However the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.
- KJV But the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.
- BSB Nevertheless, the high places were not removed; the people continued sacrificing and burning incense there.
- NASB Only the high places did not end; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
- NLT Yet even so, he did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Despite his good reign, Joash leaves the high places standing, where people kept sacrificing. The reform of worship remains incomplete.
Overview
The persistent high places were unauthorized worship sites that competed with the temple. Like several good kings of Judah, Joash failed to remove them fully. This recurring shortfall shows how hard it was to root out entrenched practices and underscores the need for the perfect worship that Christ establishes.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 2 Kgs 14:4However the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.
- 2 Kgs 18:4He removed the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, because in those days the children of Israel burned incense to it; and he called it Nehushtan.
- 2 Kgs 15:35However the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. He built the upper gate of Yahweh’s house.
- 1 Kgs 22:43He walked in all the way of Asa his father. He didn’t turn aside from it, doing that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes. However the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
- 1 Kgs 15:14But the high places were not taken away. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect with Yahweh all his days.
- 2 Chr 31:4Moreover he commanded the people who lived in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might give themselves to Yahweh’s law.
- Jer 2:20“For long ago I broke off your yoke, and burst your bonds. You said, ‘I will not serve;’ for on every high hill and under every green tree you bowed yourself, playing the prostitute.
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 12:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.