So as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering: The Hebrew text of this verse begins with the verbal transition that is sometimes rendered “And it happened” or “And it came to pass” (Jewish Publication Version). But it is ignored by most modern versions. The words as soon as translate the preposition “as,” which is followed by a form of the verb meaning “to cease” or “to finish.” So the first part of this verse might be translated “When Jehu had finished presenting the burnt offering” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). The Hebrew text does not have a clear subject at the beginning of the verse to indicate who presented the offerings. Most understand the subject to be Jehu, but it is possible that the sense is “As soon as someone had presented the offerings.” Or if the Hebrew text is followed in the previous verse, the sense may be that the worshipers of Baal entered the temple to offer sacrifices or began to offer sacrifices (verse 24), and then verse 25 still refers to these worshipers of Baal. If the worshipers of Baal are in view, the singular pronoun here in Hebrew may refer to the officiating priest. It is also possible that in the early Hebrew script, the third person masculine plural suffix m on the Hebrew verb rendered had made an end of could have been confused with the third person singular suffix w.

Offering the burnt offering may sound redundant if translated literally in other languages. Some languages will say simply “burning the offering” or “presenting the burnt offering” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh).

The guard: The singular form of Revised Standard Version is misleading. More than one guard was involved. Virtually all modern versions reflect the Hebrew plural here. The Hebrew word here is literally “the runners” (so Osty-Trinquet, La Bible Pléiade). See the comments on the activities of these guards in 1 Kgs 1.5 and 14.27.

Go in: New Revised Standard Version says “Come in,” since it assumes that Jehu was still inside the temple when he gave the orders.

Let not a man escape: As in verse 21, the word man should probably not be understood as referring exclusively to males. It will be better to say “do not allow anyone to get away.”

The order to the soldiers may again be made indirect if this sounds more natural in the receptor language. One possible model is “Jehu told the soldiers and their leaders to go in and kill every person, not letting anyone get away.”

They put them to the sword is an English idiom, but the text says more literally “they killed them with the mouth [edge] of the sword.” New International Version is more literal than Revised Standard Version in this case, saying “they cut them down with the sword.” Obviously the sword is collective, and in many languages it will be more natural to speak of “their swords.”

The guard and the officers cast them out; that is, the soldiers threw their bodies out of the temple after having killed them all. The pronoun them, which is not in the Hebrew, may therefore be better rendered as “their corpses” or “their dead bodies.” New Jerusalem Bible omits the words cast them out and explains in a note that the Hebrew text is obscure so the translators have corrected the text, but there is no need to do so.

The inner room of the house of Baal: Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, with an {A} rating, recommends the reading of the Masoretic Text and most ancient versions, which is “the citadel of the temple of Baal” (New Revised Standard Version) or, more literally, “the city of the house of Baal.” Some ancient Greek manuscripts do not have the word “city.” The Hebrew words here are taken by some interpreters to mean “the quarter of the city where the temple of Baal stood” (Slotki). But since Jehu’s soldiers were already in the temple of Baal killing the worshipers, this meaning is difficult to sustain.

For the last half of this verse, Parole de Vie says “Then they killed them and threw their bodies out of the city. Then they entered into the holy place of the temple of Baal.” It is doubtful, however, that the Hebrew should be translated this way since in the Hebrew “the city” goes with the verb went into and not with the verb cast … out.

Revised Standard Version has corrected the text to read inner room instead of “city.” However, some scholars hold that the word “city” can be understood in this context as having the meaning of Revised Standard Version (Cogan and Tadmor). Since this is true, it is sometimes difficult to determine which text is being followed by modern versions. But the meaning found in the following versions is recommended: “interior” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, American Bible), “inner rooms” (New Century Version), “inner shrine” (New American Bible, New International Version), and “sanctuary” (New Jerusalem Bible).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .