2 Kings 12:20 - Exposition

And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy. By "his servants" officers of his household are probably intended, attendants whose position would give them ready access to his person. And slew Joash in the house of Millo. Joash had probably transferred his residence to "the house of Mille."—the great fortress built by David ( 2 Samuel 5:9 ) and Solomon ( 1 Kings 9:15 , 1 Kings 9:24 ) in Jerusalem—for greater security during the siege; and, being there prostrated by sickness, could not remove from it when the siege was over. Which goeth down to Silla. No commentator has succeeded in explaining this passage. There is no other mention of Silla; and it is difficult to understand how a fortress could be said to "go down" to any place. Our Revisers' conjecture—"on the way that goeth down to Silla"—may be accepted as a possible explanation; but it implies that a word ( בַּדֶּרֶךְ ) has dropped out of the text.