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But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house.
2 Kings 12:6 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB But it was so, that in the twenty-third year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the damage to the house.
  • BSB By the twenty-third year of the reign of Joash, however, the priests had not yet repaired the damage to the temple.
  • NKJV Now it was so, by the twenty-third year of King Jehoash, that the priests had not repaired the damages of the temple.
  • NASB But it came about that in the twenty-third year of King Jehoash, the priests had not repaired any damage to the house.
  • NLT But by the twenty-third year of Joash’s reign, the priests still had not repaired the Temple.

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

By the twenty-third year of Joash, the priests still had not repaired the temple. The project stalls under the original plan.

Overview

After many years the needed repairs remain undone, exposing a failure in the collection system. The delay does not necessarily imply corruption but at least neglect or impracticality. The stalled work prompts the king to seek a better method, showing the importance of wise stewardship of resources dedicated to God.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Mal 1:10Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand.
  • Phil 2:21For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.
  • 2 Chr 29:34But the priests were too few, so that they could not flay all the burnt offerings: wherefore their brethren the Levites did help them, till the work was ended, and until the other priests had sanctified themselves: for the Levites were more upright in heart to sanctify themselves than the priests.
  • 1 Sam 2:29–30Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
  • Isa 56:10–12His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
  • 1 Pet 5:2Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (7)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 2 Kings videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 2 Kings 12:6YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 2 KingsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 12:6 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.