2 Kings 16:1-4

2 Kings 16:1-4

[1] In the seventeenth  year  of Pekah  the son  of Remaliah  Ahaz  the son  of Jotham  king  of Judah  began to reign.  [2] Twenty  years  old  was Ahaz  when he began to reign,  sixteen  years  in Jerusalem,  and did  not that which was right  in the sight  of the LORD  his God,  like David  his father.  [3] 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.  [4] And he sacrificed  and burnt incense  in the high places,  and on the hills,  and under every green  tree. 

What does 2 Kings 16:1-4 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Pekah"s seventeenth year ( 2 Kings 16:1) was735 B.C. Ahaz did not follow David"s example of godliness ( 2 Kings 16:2). Rather he followed the kings of Israel and those of his pagan neighbors and went so far as offering at least one of his sons as a human sacrifice ( Leviticus 18:21; Deuteronomy 12:31; cf. Deuteronomy 3:27). [1] These sacrificial rites took place near the confluence of the Hinnom and Kidron valleys at a place called Topheth. This place developed a reputation for wickedness, and then filth, because it became a constantly burning garbage heap. Jesus compared it to the place of eternal punishment (Gehenna; cf. Matthew 5:22; Matthew 5:29-30; Matthew 10:28; et al).
". . . desperate to solve his political problems, Judah"s king becomes a dedicated polytheist in hopes that some god may deliver him from his trouble." [2]