Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on 2 Kings 23:5
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
And he put down the idolatrous priests, etc.] The Cemarim, so called, because they wore black clothes, as Kimchi and others, whereas the priests of the Lord were clothed in white linen, (see Gill on “<360104>Zephaniah 1:4”). whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places, in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; for though those high places were destroyed by Hezekiah, they were rebuilt by Manasseh his son, and priests put in them to officiate there, whom Josiah now deposed, (<122103>2 Kings 21:3), them also that burnt incense unto Baal; in the same high places; these were the priests, and the others in the preceding clause are thought to be ministers unto them: to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets; the five planets besides the sun and moon, as Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, and Venus; or to the twelve celestial signs in the firmament, as some f263; though Theodoret takes it to be a single star, the evening star: and to all the host of heaven; or even to the host of heaven, all the stars thereof: this part of worship, burning incense, which was peculiar to the most high God, yet was frequently made by idolaters to their deities; and from the word f264 by which it is here and elsewhere expressed may “nectar” be derived, so much spoken of by the Heathen poets as of a sweet smell f265, and as delicious to their gods; and so Porphyry f266 represents the gods as living on smoke, vapours, and perfumes; and frankincense is said, by Diodorus Siculus f267, to be most grateful to them, and beloved by them; this therefore is a much better derivation of the word “nectar” than what Suidas f268 gives, that is, as if it was “nectar”, because it makes those young that drink it; or than the account Athenaeus f269 gives of it, that it is a wine in Babylon so called.
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