2 Kings 22:14 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
2 Kings 22:14
So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Judges 4:4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.
2 Chronicles 34:22 And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah,…
Exodus 15:20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with danc…
2 Kings 10:22 And he said unto him that was over the vestry, Bring forth vestments for all the worshippers of Baal. And he brought them forth vestments.
Nehemiah 7:72 And that which the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand drams of gold, and two thousand pound of silver, and threescore and seven pri…
Micah 6:4 For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Mir…
Zephaniah 1:10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the se…
Luke 1:41-56 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on 2 Kings 22:11–end
We hear no more of the repairing of the temple: no doubt that good work went on well; but the book of the law that was found in it occupies us now, and well it may. It is not laid up in the king's cabinet as a piece of antiquity, a rarity to be admired, but it is read before the king. Those put the truest honour upon their Bibles that study them and converse with them daily, feed on that bread and walk by that light. Men of honour and business must look upon an acquaintance with God's word to be their best business and honour. Now here we have,
I. The impressions which the reading of the law made upon Josiah. He rent his clothes, as one ashamed of the sin of his people and afraid of the wrat…
Achbor--or Abdon (Ch2 34:20), a man of influence at court (Jer 26:22). The occasion was urgent, and therefore they were sent--not to Zephaniah (Zep 1:1), who was perhaps young--nor to Jeremiah, who was probably absent at his house in Anathoth, but to one who was at hand and known for her prophetic gifts--to Huldah, who was probably at this time a widow. Her husband Shallum was grandson of one Harhas, "keeper of the wardrobe." If this means the priestly wardrobe, [Harhas] must have been a Levite. But it probably refers to the royal wardrobe.
she dwelt . . . in the college--rather, "in the Misnah," taking the original word as a proper name, not a school or college, but a particular suburb of…
Went unto Huldah the prophetess - This is a most singular circumstance: At this time Jeremiah was certainly a prophet in Israel, but it is likely he now dwelt at Anathoth and could not be readily consulted; Zephaniah also prophesied under this reign, but probably he had not yet begun; Hilkiah was high priest, and the priest's lips should retain knowledge. Shaphan was scribe, and must have been conversant in sacred affairs to have been at all fit for his office; and yet Huldah, a prophetess, of whom we know nothing but by this circumstance, is consulted on the meaning of the book of the law; for the secret of the Lord was neither with Hilkiah the high priest, Shaphan the scribe, nor any other…
The Church Fathers
"They went to the prophet Huldah," and not to Jeremiah, even though he was already well known as a prophet, probably because Jeremiah was not there at the moment, or maybe because this woman surpassed him with the power of her gift of prophecy.
We need not wonder that Huldah, the prophet and wife of Shallum, was consulted by Josiah, king of Judah, when the captivity was approaching and the wrath of the Lord was falling on Jerusalem: since it is the rule of Scripture, when holy men fail, to praise women to the reproach of men.
"She who dwells in Jerusalem in the second district." [2 Kings 22:14] What is said about Huldah the prophetess: "She who dwells in Jerusalem in the second district"; what this means is explained in the book of Chronicles, where it is written about the aforesaid King Hezekiah: "He also built, with great earnestness, all the wall that had been broken down, and reared up towers on it, and another wall outside" (2 Chron. 32). Zephaniah mentions this place, saying: "A voice of crying from the Fish Gate, and a wailing from the Second Quarter" (Zeph. 1). For which the old edition translated it as a proper name of the place, in Masena. Masena indeed means Second Quarter. Therefore, what is said about the prophetess dwelling in the Second, understand it as part of the second wall.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Achbor — Gnawing = mouse. (1.) An Edomitish king (Gen. 36:38; 1 Chr. 1:49). (2.) One of Josiah’s officers sent to the prophetess Huldah to inquire regarding the newly-discovered book of the law (2 Kings…
Ahikam — Brother of support = helper, one of the five whom Josiah sent to consult the prophetess Huldah in connection with the discovery of the book of the law (2 Kings 22:12-14; 2 Chr. 34:20). He was the son…
Asahiah — (the Lord hath made), a servant of King Josiah, sent by him to seek information of Jehovah respecting the book of the law which Hilkiah found in the temple, (2 Kings 22:12,14) also called Asaiah. (2…
College — Heb. mishneh (2 Kings 22:14; 2 Chr. 34:22), rendered in Revised Version “second quarter”, the residence of the prophetess Huldah. The Authorized Version followed the Jewish commentators, who,…
College, The — In (2 Kings 22:14) it is probable that the word translated “college” represents here not an institution of learning, but that part of Jerusalem known as the “lower city” or suburb, built on the hill…
Colour — The subject of colours holds an important place in the Scriptures. White occurs as the translation of various Hebrew words. It is applied to milk (Gen. 49:12), manna (Ex. 16:31), snow (Isa. 1:18),…
Hasrah — Poverty, “keeper of the wardrobe,” i.e., of the sacerdotal vestments (2 Chr. 34:22); called Harhas 2 Kings 22:14. He was husband of the prophetess Huldah.
Huldah — Weasel, a prophetess; the wife of Shallum. She was consulted regarding the “book of the law” discovered by the high priest Hilkiah (2 Kings 22:14-20; 2 Chr. 34:22-28). She resided in that part of…
Hurhai — (very poor), an ancestor of Shallum the husband of Huldah. (2 Kings 22:14) (B.C. before 623.)
Isaiah — (Heb. Yesh’yahu, i.e., “the salvation of Jehovah”). (1.) The son of Amoz (Isa. 1:1; 2:1), who was apparently a man of humble rank. His wife was called “the prophetess” (8:3), either because she was…
So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went down to Huldah the prophetess,.... Such as were Miriam and Deborah; in imitation of those Satan had very early his women prophetesses, the Sibyls, so called from their being the council and oracle of God, and consulted as such on occasion, as Huldah now was; and the first of the Sibyls, according to Suidas (n), was a Chaldean or a Persian; and some say an Hebrew; and Pausanias expressly says (o), that with the Hebrews above Palestine was a woman prophetess, whose name was Sabba, whom some called the Babylonian, others the Egyptian Sibyl. Aelian relates (p) that one of them was a Jewess:
the wife of Shallum, the so…
Nothing further is known of the prophetess Huldah than what is mentioned here. All that we can infer from the fact that the king sent to her is, that she was highly distinguished on account of her prophetical gifts, and that none of the prophets of renown, such as Jeremiah and Zephaniah, were at that time in Jerusalem. Her father Shallum was keeper of the clothes, i.e., superintendent over either the priests' dresses that were kept in the temple (according to the Rabbins and Wits. de proph. in his Miscell. ss. i. p. 356, ed. 3), or the king's wardrobe. The names of his ancestors תּקוה and הרחס are written תּוקהת and חסרה in the Chronicles. Huldah lived at Jerusalem בּמּשׁנה, "in the second p…
The prophet Huldah . . . was the wife of Shallum: Some have suggested that this Shallum was related to Jeremiah (Jer 32:7-12). Huldah’s family relationships might have allowed her to serve as a sort of court prophet (see also 2 Chr 34:22-28).
Rashi on 2 Kings 22:14
To Chuldoh. Our Rabbis said that because a woman is more merciful than a man,4They therefore hoped she would beseech God for mercy, that He change the evil decree to a favorable one.—Maharsha in Maseches Megillah 12b he, therefore, did not send to Yirmiyohu [to inquire]. Others say that Yirmiyohu was not there because he went to bring back the ten tribes.5See Maseches Megillah 14b and Rashi there.
In the study house. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] in the study6שנה[=study] house. There is a gate in the Temple courtyard, named "the Gate of Chuldoh" [as stated] in Maseches Midos.71:3; according to that Mishnah the two Gates of Chuldoh led to the Temple Mount. Others interpret "במשנה" as "outside t…
Josiah — Healed by Jehovah, or Jehovah will support. The son of Amon, and his successor on the throne of Judah (2 Kings 22:1; 2 Chr. 34:1). His history is contained in 2 Kings 22, 23. He stands foremost among…
King — Is in Scripture very generally used to denote one invested with authority, whether extensive or limited. There were thirty-one kings in Canaan (Josh. 12:9, 24), whom Joshua subdued. Adonibezek…
Shallum — Retribution. (1.) The son of Jabesh, otherwise unknown. He “conspired against Zachariah, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead” (2 Kings 15:10). He reigned only “a…
Shaphan — A coney, a scribe or secretary of king Josiah (2 Kings 22:3-7). He consulted Huldah concerning the newly-discovered copy of the law which was delivered to him by Hilkiah the priest (8-14). His…
Tikvah — (hope).
Woman — Was “taken out of man” (Gen. 2:23), and therefore the man has the preeminence. “The head of the woman is the man;” but yet honour is to be shown to the wife, “as unto the weaker vessel” (1 Cor. 11:3,…
Women — The position of women in the Hebrew commonwealth contrasts favorably with that which in the present day is assigned to them generally in eastern countries. The most salient point of contrast in the…
Achbor · 2. Or ABDON. One of Josiah’s courtiers — 2. Or ABDON. One of Josiah’s courtiers
Ahikam · General references — General references
Asahiah · An officer of King Josiah — An officer of King Josiah
College · Second quarter of the city of — Second quarter of the city of
Harhas · Grandfather of the husband of Huldah, the prophetess — Grandfather of the husband of Huldah, the prophetess
Hilkiah · 2. High priest — 2. High priest
Huldah · Foretells the — Foretells the
Josiah · him — him
Kings · Officers of: Master of the wardrobe — Officers of: Master of the wardrobe
Prophetesses · Huldah — Huldah
Prophets · Mentioned in scripture: Huldah — Mentioned in scripture: Huldah
School · General references — General references
Scribe (S) · The king’ s secretary (official recordist) — The king’ s secretary (official recordist)
Secretary (Recordist) · 4:3; — 4:3;
Shallum · 2. The husband of Huldah, the prophetess — 2. The husband of Huldah, the prophetess
Shaphan · 1. A scribe of King Josiah — 1. A scribe of King Josiah
Tikvah · 1. Al — 1. Al
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
