Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Chronicles 23:7
And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever [else] cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.
7. into the house ] 2 Kin. “within the ranges” (“within the ranks,” R.V.). Any one who should attempt to break through the ranks of the guard to get near to the king was to be killed. According to the Chronicler Jehoiada’s precaution would protect the sanctity of the Temple as well as the person of the young king.
he shall be put to death ] R.V. let him be slain (so 2 Kin.).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Compare 2Ki 11:8, 2Ki 11:11. The soldiers and the Levites in the temple were probably intermixed in about equal proportions.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
[See comments on 2Ch 23:1].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
“And the Levites shall compass the king round about, each with his weapons in his hand.” The Levites are the bodies of guards mentioned in 2Ch 23:4, 2Ch 23:5. If we keep that in view, then the following words, “every one who cometh into the house shall be put to death,” say the same as the words, “every one who cometh within the ranks” ( 2Ki 11:8). A contradiction arises only if we misinterpret , and understand it of the forming of a circle around the king; whereas , like (Kings), is to be understood, according to the context, of the setting of the guards both at the temple gate and in the courts, so that whoever entered the court of the temple came within the ranks of the guards thus placed.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(7) And the Levites shall compass.Kings, And ye (i.e., the centurions of the royal guard) shall compass. (See Note on 2Ch. 23:4.) The chronicler characteristically dwells on the share of the Levites in the matter; but he does not expressly exclude the royal guard; and it is utterly unfair to allege that he has metamorphosed the guardsmen of Kings into Levites, in order to divert to the priesthood the honour which properly belonged to the Praetorians (Thenius). The truth may perhaps be that the high priest Jehoiada brought about a combination of the royal guard with the Levitical warders of the Temple; and that the united body acted under the command of the five centurions of the guard.
Cometh into the house.2Ki. 11:8 has, into the ranks; a rare word (sedrth), occurring only four times, viz., in this narrative thrice, and once in 1Ki. 6:8 (in a different sense).
But be ye.So Kings. But some MSS. and the LXX., Vulg., Targ., and Arab. read here: and let them (i.e., the Levites) be. (See Note on 2Ki. 11:8.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2Ch 23:7 And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever [else] cometh into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.
Ver. 7. And the Levites shall compass the king. ] See 2Ki 11:8 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the Levites: 2Ki 11:8, 2Ki 11:9
whosoever: Exo 19:12, Exo 19:13, Exo 21:14, Num 3:10, Num 3:38
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
23:7 And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whosoever [else] cometh {d} into the house, he shall be put to death: but be ye with the king when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.
(d) Meaning to make any tumult, or to hinder their enterprise.