Ver. 18-21. And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest The sagan, or deputy priest, who officiated for the high priest, when by any means he was rendered unfit and incapable; so Joseph, the son of Ellem, as Josephus F24 relates, officiated for Matthias, when defiled with a nocturnal pollution; and seven days before the day of atonement they always substituted one under the high priest, lest anything of this kind should happen to him F25. From hence, to the end of ( 2 Kings 25:21 ) the account is the same as in ( Jeremiah 52:25-27 ) , only here in ( 2 Kings 25:19 ) it is said, that five men that were in the king's presence were taken, there seven men; to account for which, (See Gill on Jeremiah 52:25).
FOOTNOTES:
F24 Antiqu. l. 17. c. 6. sect. 4. F25 Misn. Yoma, c. 1. sect. 1.
16
The amount of bronze they got from the two pillars, the Sea, and all the washstands that Solomon had made for The Temple of God was enormous - they couldn't weigh it all!
17
Each pillar stood twenty-seven feet high, plus another four and a half feet for an ornate capital of bronze filigree and decorative fruit.
18
The king's deputy took a number of special prisoners: Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the associate priest, three wardens,
19
the chief remaining army officer, five of the king's counselors, the accountant, the chief recruiting officer for the army, and sixty men of standing from among the people.
20
Nebuzaradan the king's deputy marched them all off to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.