2 Raja-raja 16:3

16:3 He followed in the footsteps of ¹  the kings of Israel. He passed his son through the fire, ²  a horrible sin practiced by the nations ³  whom the Lord drove out from before the Israelites.

2 Raja-raja 18:24

18:24 Certainly you will not refuse one of my master’s minor officials and trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen. ⁴ 

2 Raja-raja 21:2

21:2 He did evil in the sight of ⁵  the Lord and committed the same horrible sins practiced by the nations ⁶  whom the Lord drove out from before the Israelites.

[16:3]  ¹ tn Heb “he walked in the way of.”

[16:3]  ² sn This may refer to child sacrifice, though some interpret it as a less drastic cultic practice. For discussion see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 266-67.

[16:3]  ³ tn Heb “like the abominable practices of the nations.”

[18:24]  ⁴ tn Heb “How can you turn back the face of an official [from among] the least of my master’s servants and trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?” In vv. 23-24 the chief adviser develops further the argument begun in v. 21. His reasoning seems to be as follows: “In your weakened condition you obviously need military strength. Agree to the king’s terms and I will personally give you more horses than you are capable of outfitting. If I, a mere minor official, am capable of giving you such military might, just think what power the king has. There is no way the Egyptians can match our strength. It makes much better sense to deal with us.”

[21:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[21:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “like the abominable practices of the nations.”