2 Kings 22:6

ng justice. The preposition &b>nto" may be understood to mean, eitherthat the governor's house was built on the wall, and that the restoration mentioned in this verse reached this point; orthat the governor's -throne" was in the vicinity, and the restoration was carried on to a point over against it.

The chief objection to this rendering is the use of the word -throne." But it is more simple than the alternative rendering given below. And the supposition is very natural, that an official spot, close to the chief northern gate of the city (Nehemiah 3:6), should become a recognised landmark. The visit of the satrap of the country W. of the Euphrates to the provincial capitals would be a rare event; and the spot which symbolised his dignity would receive a distinctive name.

(b) According to the rendering of the R.V., the clause is added by way of limitation after the mention of Mizpah. Mizpah it is supposed was partly under Jewish rulers (Nehemiah 3:15; Nehemiah 3:19), partly under the rule of the Persian provincial governor. The boundary passed through the district of Mizpah. -The men of Mizpah," mentioned here, represented the portion under Persian rule, in which perhaps the village of Maronoth was included. By the indulgence of the Persian rulers (cf. Nehemiah 2:7) a contingent was permitted to render aid to their brethren.

The phrase -the throne of the governor beyond the river" will then be a technicalterm of authority in vogue among the Jews during the Persian supremacy. -Throne" in the sense of -rule" is poetical, cf. Psalms 89:29; Psalms 89:36.

There is nothing to be said in favour of another proposed rendering -in the name of the governor, &c." The Vulgate renders -pro duce," the LXX. ἕως θρόνου τοῦ ἄρχοντος.