2 Kings 16:10-18

2 Kings 16:10-18

[10] And king  Ahaz  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. [11] 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.  [12] And when the king  was come  from Damascus,  the king  saw  the altar:  and the king  approached  to the altar,  and offered  [13] And he burnt  his burnt offering  and his meat offering,  and poured  his drink offering,  and sprinkled  the blood  of his peace offerings,  upon the altar.  [14] 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.  [15] 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. [16] Thus did  Urijah  the priest,  according to all that king  Ahaz  commanded.  [17] And king  Ahaz  cut off  the borders  of the bases,  and removed  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.  [18] 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. 

What does 2 Kings 16:10-18 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

As Ahab had imported Baal worship from Phoenicia, so Ahaz imported a foreign altar from Damascus (cf. Amaziah of Judah"s Edomite idols, 2 Chronicles 25:14; 2 Chronicles 25:20). As Judah"s king-priest, he led the nation in worshipping at an altar different from what Yahweh had specified ( Exodus 27:1-8). Furthermore, he removed the altar God had established from the place God had said it should occupy in the temple courtyard ( Exodus 40:6; Exodus 40:29).
"Readers could hardly miss the similarities between Jeroboam, the father of institutionalized idolatry in Israel, and Ahaz, the Judahite king who makes polytheism acceptable nationwide." [1]
Ahaz did not completely discard the worship God had prescribed, but he changed it according to his liking, thus claiming God"s authority ( 2 Kings 16:15). The high priest unfortunately cooperated with the king. Ahaz likewise changed the other temple furnishings to please the Assyrian king ( 2 Kings 16:18). [2]