2 Kings 22:13

2Ki 22:13 Go ye, enquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great [is] the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.

Ver. 13. For great is the wrath of the Lord.] A good heart trembleth at God’s judgments whilst they yet hang in the threatenings; {Isa 66:2} when carnal people put off all with a "God forbid," {Luk 20:16} and bless themselves, though God curse them. {Deu 29:19-20}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Meaning, to some Prophet whom God revealeth the knowledge of things unto, as Jer. 21:8, though at other times they inquired the Lord by Urim and Thummim.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(13) Enquire of the Lord.—Or, seek ye Jehovah. Josiah wished to know whether any hope remained for himself and his people, or whether the vengeance must fall speedily.

For the people.—Of Jerusalem.

Written concerning us.—Thenius conjectures written therein, a slight change in the Hebrew. But Josiah identifies the people and their fathers as one nation. (Comp. also Exo_20:5.) However Chronicles has “in this book,” and the Arabic here “in it.”

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13. our fathers have not hearkened] The two reigns of Manasseh and Amon had led the whole people away to idolatry. Of the former of these kings it is said (2Ki_12:11) ‘He hath made Judah also to sin with his idols’. For two generations at the least the retrospect of king Josiah was a very dark one.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Go ye, inquire of the Lord,.... Of some of his prophets, as Jeremiah, who began to prophesy in the thirteenth year of Josiah's reign, and had been a prophet five years, Jer 1:1,

for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found; for he observed that this book threatened and foretold not only the captivity of the ten tribes, but of Judah, and of their king; and Jarchi thinks, he had a particular respect to that passage:

the Lord shall bring thee and thy king, &c. Deu 28:36 and therefore was desirous of knowing what he and his people must do to avert those judgments:

for great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us; which he concluded from the threatenings denounced:

because that our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according to all which is written concerning us: he clearly saw that his ancestors more remote and immediate had been very deficient in observing the laws, commands, and ordinances enjoined them in that book; and therefore feared that what was threatened would fall upon him and his people, who, he was sensible, came short of doing their duty.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Enquire of the Lord - As inquiry by Urim and Thummim had ceased - apparently because superseded by prophecy - this order was equivalent to an injunction to seek the presence of a prophet (compare 2Ki 3:11; 1Ki 22:5).

Because our fathers have not hearkened - Josiah, it will be observed, assumes that preceding generations had had full opportunity of hearing and knowing the Law. He thus regards the loss as comparatively recent (compare 2Ki 22:8 note).

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Inquire of the Lord; either what he intends to do with us, or what we shall do to him, to appease his wrath.

Concerning the words of this book; whether the curses here threatened must come upon us without remedy, or whether there be hope in Israel concerning the prevention of them.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

13. Inquire of the Lord for me — He does not instruct them where to go, or say whether they shall inquire by urim or by the prophets. He assumes that they know better where to go than he.

Concerning the words of this book — Not whether it were really the book of the law of Moses, and its words to be credited, for he had no doubt of this when he rent his clothes, (2Ki_22:11; 2Ki_22:19,) but to know whether the words of the book are to be immediately fulfilled, and what he is to do and expect under the fearful state of things that has come upon the nation for its sins.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Go ye, inquire of the Lord for me. Inquiry of the Lord, which from the time of Moses to that of David was ordinarily "by Urim and Thummim," was after David"s time always made by the consultation of a prophet (see 1Ki_22:5-8; 2Ki_3:11 2Ki_8:8; Jer_21:2 Jer_37:7; Eze_14:7 Eze_20:1, etc.) The officers, therefore, understood the king to mean that they were to seek out a prophet (see ver. 14), and so make the inquiry. And for the people, and for all Judah the threats read in the king"s ears were probably those of Deu_28:15-68 or Lev_26:16-39, which extended to the whole people concerning the words of this book that is found. Not "whether they are authentic, whether they are really the words of Moses" (Duneker), for of that Josiah appears to have had no doubt; but whether they are words that are to have an immediate fulfillment, "whether," as Yon Gerlach says, "the measure of sin is already full, or whether there is yet hope of grace?" (compare Huldah"s answer in vers. 16-20, which shows what she understood the king"s inquiry to be). For great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us. Josiah recognized that Judah had done, and was still doing, exactly those things against which the threatenings of the Law were directed bad forsaken Jehovah and gone after other gods, and made to themselves high places, and set up images, and done after the customs of the nations whom the Lord had cast out before them. He could not, therefore, doubt but that the wrath of the Lord "was kindled;" but would it blaze forth at once? Because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us. Josiah assumes that their fathers have had the book, and might have known its words, either because he conceives that it had not been very long lost, or because he regards them as having possessed other copies.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Inquire - What we shall do to appease his wrath, and whether the curses here threatened must come upon us without remedy, or whether there be hope in Israel concerning the prevention of them.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

From the commission, "Inquire ye of Jehovah for me and for the people and for all Judah (i.e., the whole kingdom) concerning the words of this book of the law that has been found, for great is the wrath of the Lord which has been kindled against us, because our fathers have not heard ...," we may infer that the curses of the law upon the despisers of the commandments of God in Lev 26; Deu 28:1, and other passages, had been read to the king. את־יי דּרשׁ means to inquire the will of the Lord, what He has determined concerning the king, his people, and the kingdom. על שׁמע signifies here to hearken to anything, to observe it, for which אל is used elsewhere. על כּתב, to prescribe for performance. עלינוּ, "prescribed for us," is quite appropriate, since the law was not only given to the fathers to obey, but also to the existing generation-a fact which Thenius has overlooked with his conjecture עליו. To render the king's alarm and his fear of severe judgments from God intelligible, there is no need for the far-fetched and extremely precarious hypothesis, that just at that time the Scythians had invaded and devastated the land.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

Inquire of Adonoy on my behalf. He saw written, "Adonoy will lead you and your king."

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.