2 Chronicles 28

Notes on the verses

HAZ * was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: }& She did not that which was right in the sight She aor, like David his father: a 2 For he walk, “Thad Israel, and mp; My: * Baalim. Bist: 3 Moreover k?5 x eof the son of §, > heathen whor cast out before the children een tree. te 5 Wheref a2 Sis God delivered him into t s sng of Syria; and bi = med away a great > ge e Sand brought them to » Dama as also delivered kthey had 7 And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maaseiah the king’s son, and Azrikam the governor of the house, and Elkanah that was 1 next to the king. 8 J And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren ™ two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.

9 But a prophet of the Lord was there, whose name was Oded: and he went out before the host that came to Samaria, and said unto them, Behold, because the Lord God of your fathers was wroth with Judah, he hath delivered them into your hand, and “ye have slain them in a rage that reacheth ° up unto 10 And now ye purpose to keep under the children of Judah and Jerusalem for ? bondmen and bondwomen unto you: but are there not with you, even ‘with you, sins against the Lord your God ? 11 Now hear me therefore, and * deliver the Ver 7. Book of the kings, &c.—(There is not so much found in the book of Kings, which we have now, as here: counts; the larger histories having been lost. ]— Bagster. The greater part of the facts of this chapter have been an- (2 Chronicles 28)sts « ticipated in the 16th chapter of the 2d Book of Kings. er. 8. Carried away captive.—This act of taking captive 200,000 women and children, after slaying 120,000 of the men of Judah, reflects great disgrace upon the Israelites; and was directly in opposition to the law that forbade the reducing of their brethren into slavery, which was evidently the design of this capture; their conduct is described as an enormity reaching up to heaven. (See note of next verse.) Ver. 9. And said unto them.—{To this beautiful speech nothing can be added by the best comment: it is simple, humane, pious, and overwhelmingly convincing; and it is no wonder that it produced the effect here described.—That, there was much humanity, as well as firmness, 10 the heads of the children of Ephraim, who joined with the prophet.

of Jehovah on this occasion, cpg aequent conduct, as detailed in the fifteenth verse, sufficiently proves. did not barely dismiss these most unfortunate captives, but they took that very spoil which their victorious army had taken, and with it clothed, shod, fed, and the captives hither: for whereas we have f Le.18,21. offended against the Lord already, ye intend to add more to our sins and to our trespass: for our trespass is great. and there is fierce wrath against Israel. 14 So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the coni 2 Ki.15.27, s of the kings of j sons of 15 And the men which were expressed by lten images for k De.31.16, name trose up, and took the captives, and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among them, and arrayed them, and shod 1 the second.

them, and gave them to eat " and to drink, m ¢.11.4. and anointed them, and carried all the feeble n Ps,69,26. vof them upon asses. and brought them to arnt incense in the Jericho, the city * of palm trees, to their brethren: then they returned to Samaria. _ §, and under every 16 § At that time * did king Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him. o Ge.4.10. 17 For again the Edomites ¥ had come and smitten Judah, and carried away * captives. 18 The Philistines * also had invaded the y &e. 4 cities of the low country, and of the south of q Je.25.29. Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the vilr 1s.58.6. lages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof: and they dwelt there.

s Ja,2,13. 19 For the Lord brought Judah » low because t ver.12. of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah u 2 Ki.6.22. ‘naked, and transgressed sore against the 20 And Tilgath-pilneser ‘king of Assyria v Ro.15.1. came unto him, and distressed him, but w De.34.3. strengthened him not. 21 For Ahaz took away a portion out of the x 2 Ki.16.7. house of the Lord, and out of the house of y 0b.10,13, the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but he helped him not. 22 9 And in the time of his distress did he a Fize.16, trespass yet more against the Lord: this is b Ps.106.43. that king Ahaz. c Ex.32.25. 23 For he sacrificed unto the gods of * Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the king of Syria help them, A.

M. 3264. B. C. 740. therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they d 2Ki.15.29. may ‘help me. But they were the ruin & of him, and of all Israel. e Darmesek. 24 And Ahaz gathered together the vessels f Je.10.5. of the house of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up * the yi Ho. 13.9. doors of the house of the Lord, and he made h c.29.3,7. him altars in every corner of Jerusalem. anointed these distressed people, set the feeblest of them upon asses, and es- We can scarcely find a parallel to this in the corted them safely to Jericho ! in both places we have abridged acuniversal history of the wars which savage man has carried on against his fel- The compliance also of the whole lows from the foundation of the world.

army, in leaving both the captives and spoil to the disposal of the princes, was Both the princes and really wonderful; and perhaps unparalleled in history. i army are worthy to be held up to the admirat. on and imitation of mankind.}— Ver. 19. Ahaz king of Israel.—This seems a similar mistake to (2 Chronicles 21:2). also called king of “Israel:’’ though many manuwhere Jehoshaphat is scripts, here as well as there, and several versions, read Judah.—De Rossi. Ver. 21. He helped him not.—He helped him ius confederate kings often do. See expos. of the parallel by impoverishing him, and hastening on his ruin. chapter above referred to.; Ver. 23. To the gods of Damascus.—|This passage, says Hallet, greatly surprised me; for the sacred historian himself is here represented as saying, * The But it is impossible to suppose that an gods of Damascus had smitten Ahaz.”’ for the Scripture every where represents the inspired author should say this; heathen idols as nothing and vanity, and as incapable of doing either good or hurt.

All difficulty is avoided if we follow the old Hebrew copies, from which the Greek translation was made: “ And king Ahaz said, I will seek to the gods of Damascus which have smitten me.’’}—Bagster. Ver. 27. Kings of Israel.—tOr, “ the kings of Judah;” the name Israel being sometimes applied, by the writer of this book, in a general way to Judah The Hebrews were accustomed to honour the memory of those kings who had reigned well, by depositing their remains in the royal cemetery. On the contrary, those who died under the disapprobation of the people, as a mark of posthumous disgrace, were denied interment with their predecessors, and were buried in some other place in Jerusalem. So it was with Ahaz, who, though brought into the city, was not buried in the sepulchres of the kings of Judah.

It was doubtless with a design to make a suitable impression on the minds of their kings while living, that such distinctions were observed. They might thus restrain them from evil, or excite them to good, according as they were fearful of being execrated, or desirous of being honoured when dead.]—Bagster.