Lux Domini
So they feared the LORD, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.

What does 2 Kings 17:32 mean?

The terror of the Almighty will sometimes produce a forced or feigned submission in unconverted men; like those brought from different countries to inhabit Israel.

Key themes

HopeAnxiety and fearJustice and mercyTruthProphetic witness

Read with

Keep this verse inside 2 Kings 17:29-33 and alongside a few nearby related passages.

Commentary on 2 Kings 17:32

Of the lowest of them - Rather, "from all ranks." See marginal reference note.

Key words

feared

So they feared the Lord,.

LORD

So they feared the Lord,.

Context in 2 Kings 17

Show chapter context

2 Kings 17 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as decline of Judah. Second Kings follows the ministries of Elijah and Elisha, recounts the decline of both kingdoms, and ends with Jerusalem’s fall and a faint glimmer of Davidic continuity. Read this chapter with the wider themes of prophetic witness, judgment, and exile in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.

prophetic witnessjudgmentexileidolatry

Explore by topic

Bible verses about hope

A collection of passages on hope under pressure, future inheritance, resurrection expectation, and confidence in God’s final faithfulness.

Bible verses about anxiety and fear

Verses for readers searching for biblical language about fear, worry, troubled thoughts, and the call to trust God under pressure.

Bible verses about justice and mercy

Key texts on public righteousness, neighbor-love, social ethics, compassion, and the prophetic refusal to separate worship from justice.

Bible verses about truth

Passages on the nature of truth, honesty, deception, the word of God as truth, and Jesus' claim to be the truth.