PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles
Philip Chapman Barker [d.1904] · 404,925 words · 452 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles — Section 241
apparent misnomers of our writer, e.e illue- Tarabieh. This clause, even if the text ie tmted by eh. xii. 6; xxi. 2, 4) very possibly not corrupt, yet cannot mean what it seems l,o ona with tha pare.llel, '' book of the to ae.y; but in tho word "to go" (HebrBW, chroniclos of the kings of Jude.h" (see our n?~~) muat mea…
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III. THE PROMISE, BY WHI0H THAT PR.AYER IS ANSWERED, IS TAKEN HOLD OF, IS GRATEF(TLLY GRASPED, IS UNFALTERINGLY BELIEVED. The promise is a very gracious Clne, a mClst liberal one, conveyed in a very inspiriting and encouraging mo.nner and ,Tehoshaphat is overwhelmed with the impression of it (ver. 18). ' IV. JEHOSH…
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his help. III. THAT WE MUST MAKE DIBECT AND EARNEST APPEAL TO HIM. Jehoshaphat took active measures to enlist the intervention of Jehovah; he" set himself to seek the Lord," etc. (vers. 3-6). It behoves us, in the day of our trial and our peril, to take active measures to secure the merciful and mighty succour of our …
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having eem him, but having understood his character and his disposition toward ua in ,Tesus ChrisL, having realized bow great and all-surpassing was his kindness toward us in him ('l'itus iii. 4), v;e love him in response (1 John iv. 19). .And in him in his fnitbfulnC'ss and in his wisdom and in his goodness, we have a…
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(var. 15). 2. That God's presence would be granted to them. "The Lord will be with you" (ver. 17). 3, Tho.t God had promised them his salvation, and would therefore work on their behalf. "The salvation of the Lord" (ver.17). This was enouo-h even for the timid o.nd the feo.rful-hearted. This should be enough for us. Co…
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own per~on, our own family, our own country, bas been preserved; we may much more rejoice when the cause e.nd kingdom of Christ has been greatly advanced. This should be the object of our solicitude and of our rejoicing. V. THAT REST IS THE nIGHTFUL PURCHASE OF LABOUR AND OF STRIFE, (Ver. 30.) Tbe country that has w…
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2. The combination of powers. It was three against one; yet ,Jehoshaphat had no scruples in combining formerly with Ahab against Benhadad, or afterwards with fsrael and Edom against Moab (2 Kings iii. 7). "With wbat measure ye mete," etc. (Matt. vii. 7), applies t-0 kingdoms and kings no Iese than to private individ…
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uocertain. 3. The suppliant. Jehoshaphat acted ae the mouthpiece for himself and hie people. Standing forth in the centre of the congregation, he offered "without form o_r any premeditation(?) one of the most sensible, pioll8, correct, and, ae to its composi- tion, one of the most elegant prayers ever offered under …
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a eimilar reaeon, the.t the battle wae Jehovah's more than theire, and he would fight with and for them (Exod. xiv. 14; 1 Sam. xvii. 47). The same iR true of the battle the Christian Church is summoned to maintain against the three powers of evil, known as the world, the flesh, and the devil (Matt. x. 28). (2) A comman…
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absolute fait,h in Jehovah as their covenant God, and perfect trust in his prophets as the bearers of his message. (2) Two things be promised-the permanent establishment of.their kingdom in spit~ of all attacks from without; its certain prosperity through bemg exempt from unbelief e. sure but fatal source of weaknes…
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Midianit~s ";eighe~ seventeen hundred shekels of gold (Judg. viii. 26); that obtained by Hanmbo.l e soldiers at the bo.ttle of Cannm was eo great" ut tree modios aureorum o.nnulorum Carthaginem mitteret, quos e mRnibus equitum Romanorum, senatorurn ot militum detraxerat" (' Eutropii Historia Romana,' xii.). IV. 'l'…
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proof that the promise of long life e.s a reward for piety was not intended even under the Old Testament, to be e.coepted universally and without exception. ' III. JEHOSHAPHAT's REALM. 1. Its ea::tent. He reigned over Judah, the southern kingdom. 2. Its conditioo. Quiet. With the exception just mentioned it had suf…
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EXPOSITION. OHAPTER XXI. Jehoshaphat here given, the Hebrew text shows iP!P/ in the one place e.nd 1;,;'.l!J/. in The me.tt.er of this che.pter mo.y be divided the other, Nothing is known of the previous into four pe.rts, The death e.nd burial of history: of these six, now so crucll y mur<lered Jehosho.phe.t, e.nd t…
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expn,ssion, " in his days," soaroely fails in- on the grounds that the Tishbite was trans- tendi11g t.o ncc;mtnate the mournful ohange lated in the time of Jeboram's father Jeho- now ns compnred with the state of things shaphat (2 Kings iii. 11); that his ephero depict,ed in onr eh. xvii. 5-11. was in the northern k…
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Out of the twenty-six ocourrences of this exact form, Judg. xv. 19; 2 Sam. xxiii. 16; worcl, it is rendered (Authorized Version) 1 Cbron. xi. 18; Isa. xlviii. 21). The twonty-thrce times l:>y the word "plague,'' elementary idea of the root is to divid.e; twice hy the word" slaughter'' (2 Sam. xvii. and it occurs in o…
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J. TIIE RARE VANITY OF BUMAN ENDEAVOUB TO l'ROVIDE DY ANY OONTRIVANOEB AGAINST _T!fE ooNSEQ~NOEs· o~ ITS OWN FAULTS AND srns. No disposition in his will, no d1spos1t10n of the gifts of bis property on the part of J eboshaphat, suflked to avert these in this instance (vers. 3, 4). II. THE IMMENSE ADDITION OF PAIN AN…
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,he part of one prominent life, the wandering from God of one strong human spirit, may have the effect of bringing to nought the labour of more than one lifetime. How true tho proverb," Ono sinner destroyeth much good" I There are amongst us the names of men who have reached that poor and most pitiful notoriety of not …
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therefore, the de11.d are distinctly dishonoured, when there le no one to pronounce a eulogiu!n or even to feel a lament, it is clear that their contempor~ries have decidedly and seriously condemned them. (3) It speaks of a deplorable failure, Excepting In those comparatively rare cases of the very best and greatest…
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Jchoram was not born good was no oxcuse, since Jehova.h's grace was ready to assist him in overcoming bis natural corruption (Deut. xxx, 6; 1 Kings viii. 58; Ps. ex. 3). (2) A bad wife. Atbaliab, though a king's daughter (ver. 6), was a wicked woman. Exalted in station, beautiful in person, gifted with high mental endo…
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of the princes of Isrnel, and for probably a similar reason, because they dis11pprovcd of h1~ conduct and sympathized with his brethren. Ill. A woRTm.Ess KING. 1 . .An apostate in ,·eligion. To be sure, he never had religion in reality. Yet, as Judah's sovereign and Jehoshaphat's son, he ought to havo upheld the tr…
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given announcement of his death this letter contains. The fact that Elisha accom- po.niod Jehoshaphat to the Moabitish war (2 Kings iii. 11) does not prove that Elijah had then been tmnelated, since Elijah was alive in the second year of the conjoint reign of Jehoram and Jehoshaphat his father (2 Kings i. 17; iii. 1). …
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EXPOSITION. CHAPTER XXII. ing which the Septuagint has translated "archers" ( -roto-rct1). This clmpter comprises the accession, briof Ver. 6. - Both plaoee (this 11nd the rei~, and death of Ahoziah (vers. 1-9); parallel) tell first that .A.hazie.h went with and the following murders and usurpation Joram against H…
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abowing thnt Jobu reokonetl on that steep "seed royal," whom the wicked Athalial1 hill to ennble bis pursuing warriors to over- had "destroyed." Gesenius says that the bike Ahazie.h: makes e. sufficiently possible words that wrap in them the slight amhi- harmony, to SBY the lenst, in respect of the guity, ri::i i~f,…
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tbe company in which they were found), in indiscriminate slaughter, but himselr, the King of Judah, hidden-hidden in Samaria, searched for, caught, taken. He with bis mother has been run to earta in a double sense, hounded to his miserable earthly end, his bones being honoured with decent burial only out of reverence f…
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'next generation. 4. Evil counsel may extenuate, but it will not excuse, our individual folly and wrong-doing. Not even a mother may lead us into paths of sin. I III. THAT FAVO"(TRABLE omoUMBTANOES WILL NOT GUARANTEE ANY MAN'S WELL- DEING, 1. Who so fortunate in Judah as Ahaziah? Heir to the throne and succeedin<> a…
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Vers. 5-12.-0ur friends and tkei,r fa,t,e, etc. These verses offer us a cluster of truths which we may gather. I. THAT OUR FATE IS COMMONLY BOID."D tJP WITH THAT OF OUR FRIENDS. .Ahaziah "went with Jehoram the son of Ahab" (ver. 5); and, allying himself with him in war, he visited him as a friend when he was at his…
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In many lands, has the house of God been a BIJ/Tl,ctuary, a. place where men ha.ve taken refuge o.nd he.ve bidden themselves from the wre.th of the pursuer. But there is a better wo.y in which God's house may be to us a sanctuary. We may go there to hide ourselves in him whose house it is. We may go there with our t…
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the annals of ShBlmaneser III. contains & similar statement, tb&t in the eighteenth year of his reign, after conquering H&zael of Damascus, he received the tl'ibute of tho Tyrian, the Sidonian, and of" Yahua the son of Khumri" (Schrader, • Keilinschriften,' p. 210). (2) His station. Originn.lly an officer, probably …
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(Keil). "In a well cloRe by, as at Cawnpore, they were all slaughtered" (Sbnley). 4. By whom they were killed. Jehu, whose motive may have been either (1) because ho regarded their death us embraced within the scope of his commission, or (2) because he feared the exaction by some of them of blood-vengeance, or (3) beca…
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.AJrnzi?h'11 elder bro~he;e had been ce.ptured e.nd ale.in by the Are.be (eh. xxi. 17), and 11.s their sons, Ahaz1ah s nephews, had been (in pa.rt at least) put to death by Jehu (eh. xxii. 8), it is possible tba.t the actual victims wcro not numerous, 2, The perpe- tro,i;or of th!,/j massacre. Atbaliab, the queen-mothe…
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EXPOSITION. CHAI'TER XXIII. ia anything known more to his honour than this-that hie name is here recorded. It is This chapter records first those careful said with the most perfect simplicity of even p1·epare.tions of Jehoie.da. whioh eventuated Hebrew language, that he took them with in the safe proclaiming of Joa.…
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,111d srrond vcr~cs state the part that•• the jurisdiction of the account in tho parallel. «-Rptnins of hundreds" were celled to per- The ezpi-ess caution of this clauso shows form in collecti"[J the requisite number of that there were others about, and others Lentcs from the provincial cities of J udall. officiating, …
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Jonah. It may be 1o.ken fnr granted that soldiera. The Vulgate (sepia tcmpli) line U10 teeLimony was put into his hands (Dent. understood them to mean the precincts ot xvii. 18-20; xxxi. 24-29). If something the temple. The indications of the remark- now and so out of the we,y as resting the able but not uncommon pr…
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L TnE PATIENT WAITING OF JEIIOIADA. To men of action, waiting is a hard task. Possibly simply the infancy and youngest childhood of Joash advised that waiting. How could the scene have been made one-half as effective as it was while Joash was but an infant? But there may have been other reasons, and some of them eas…
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it is boldly and effectively nccomplished, n. very great work of patriotism and philan- thropy is wrought; and it is not only man who is served, but God also. On the other hand, to undertake vuch an achievement without adequate cause and without sufficient means, is to plunge a country into civil strife and to ensure t…
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thi~; he thinks it is a proof that God is afar off or is quite indifferent; ho tnkes it as a ~ign that he me.y safely disregnrd the solemn warnings of God's Word, Dut he is fooliRh ; he cloe~ not understand the course of things. "\Vhen the wicked spring as the grass, e,nd when e.ll the workers of iniquity do flouris…
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Ver. 21.-First purity, then peace. "And the city was quiet, after that they bad slain Athaliah with the sword." We can conceive of many occasions when the "slaying of a woman with the sword" should not and would not lead to quietude, but to unrest, to turbulence, and to strife. But this "wicked woman," Atbaliah, was th…
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plllllB. In tbe seventh yeRr he judged that the hour had struck for an nttempt to liberate the country from the yoke of Atbaliah, and to restore the crown of David to its rightful heir. Many projects otherwise promising are lost by being launched forth rrematurely, and many fail through want of "striking while the i…
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II. PROCEEDINGS IN TIIE CEREMONY, (Vere. 8-11.) 1. The carrying out of the abo110 arrangements. When the sBhbBth fixed for the execution of the plot arrived, •• the Levites and 1111 the men of Judah did according to all things that Jehoiada. had commBndod. 11 Each priest, with his assistant Levites, went to his appo…
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when a most unwelcome spectacle met her gaze-a boy standing on a raised platform in front of the inner court, probably the brazen B<mlfold of Solomon (eh. vi. 13), his head encircled with a diadem, his hand grasping a roll of parchment as if it were a sceptre; beside him Jehoiada the priest, the princes of the peopl…
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temple, if not within its outer court (Thenine, Berthea11), rather than on a different elevation (Bahr). Its proximity to the temple would account for its havin" become so e:ion a prey to popular fury, as when building its vicinity to the temple ;uggested the idea of tearing down the temple walls for stones to construc…
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of which the fruit is joy (Gal. v. 22; Eph. v. 18, 19; Phil. iv. 4; 1 These. v. 16; 1 John i. 4). IV. KING-ENTHRONING. (Ver. 20.) 1. Led by the priest. Having completed his arrangements for the restoration of the temple service, Jehoia.cla proceeded with what was st.ill needful to pel'fect the revolution. Lifting t…
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1 Chron. xxi. 2); 11B II torminue of the divided this delay was, nor does the subsequent J mlnh, "Ileorahoba to Mount Ephraim" narrative seem to elucidate it, further than (oh. xix. 4), "Clobo. to :Beersheba." (2 King-a this-that the delay somehow seemed to rest xxiii. 8); o.nd o.a a terminus of this Judah with Jeho…
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delay in its execution, and how he finally of the eervioe; i.e. the persons responsible overcame the obstrnotive dele.y. for the work, or " tbtit had the oversight of Ver. 7.-The sona of Athe.lie.h. This it" (2 Kings xii. 11). Carpenters. It is verse's testimony against Athe.linh's sons preferable to render here lit…
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. wlmt his wife clid, end' wh11.t he did, on bought him off. Our next verse, however, belrn1£ of Joosh the infant 11,nd Joash shows to what end those worrls tended. the king for the goocl of the nation or Ver. 18.-Served groves; Revised Ver- Jdngdom of Judah. We soem to know sion, the Asherim, correctly (see note, e…
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bring it into compA.rieon with those divinest executed. judgmeut agaill.at Joe.ah. Tho pmyers of the SavioUT and of St. Stophrm. Hebrew ~ys litemll1,, "and 011 Jo~sh they· The words on dying Zeohmie.b's lips wore executed Judgments. What the juclgmouls perhe.ps rather the vi'l'id reminiscence of his were we do not r…
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HOMILETICS. Vers. 1-27.-The sad and strange unreliableness of human disposition and life here. One of the strangest of all the sadnesses of human life is the nncertainty and unreliable- ness of human disposition, which it is so constantly exposing to view. Not only has the fairest promise vanished (like the sun of man…
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HOMILIES BY V .ARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1, 2.-llforaZ weakness. The extremely interesting circumstances under which Joash came to the throne (eh. xxiii.) make us wish that there was something satisfactory to record of him when he sat upon it. Unfortunately, it is not so. One work in particular he wrought (see next hom…
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Vera. 4-14.-0hurch renovation. We have an interesting description of a very old' instance of- I. CHURCH RENOVATION. Here were all the elements that ordinarily occur. 1. Dilapidation, or the condition of being out of repair. In this case there had seen profanation, deliberate injury, spoliation (ver. 7); but always the…
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inspiration and guidance; (3) solemn renewal of first vows of dedication; (4) activo and energetic work. 4. Their reooneecration is crowned with BRCrcd joy, and with "' he.ppy restoration to the end for which they were oalled into existence (ver. 14). All this i~ be.sed upon- III. THE RENEWAL OF THE INDIVIDUAL HEAR…
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Vera. 17-25.-Bad successive stages. With the seventeenth verse of this chapter there commences a vory painful record. From one who had been so mercifully spared, so admirably trained, so bountifully blessed, as was King ,Joash, much better things might have been expected. It is the melancholy story of rapid de"eneracy,…
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IV. Hrs MARRIAGES. "Jeboied&. took for him two wives," one of whom wn11 Jehoarldan of Jerusalem (eh. xxv. 1). Perb&.ps: 1. Good policy, to ensure & succession to the throne. But: 2. Bad moraUty, 11nd against the Law of God, though recom- mended by 11 pious priest, and sanctioned by the example of godly kings, Joesh'e 1…
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house of tho Lorcl," i.e. the free-will offerings of the people. Accorrli □~ to another interpretation (Rii.hr), only the two last sorts were intended, and the phrase, "money of the numbered," should be rendered "in current money" (Revised Version)--the reason for this instruction that the contributions should be in…
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III. THE WORK EXECUTED. From the money thus collected : 1. Tha cost of materiol.s was defrayed. "Timber and hewn stone," at least, had to be bought (2 Kings xii. 12). 2. Th~ wages of workmen were paid. Masons, carpenters, and workers in iron and brass were hired. 3. The necessary vessels were constructed. The surplus m…
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•• buried him in the city of David among the kings "-as it were reco!mizin" 0 0 in him a sovereign greater than many, and equal to the best. IV. JEHOIADA'B El'ITAPH, 1. Short. One sentence of three clauses: "He did good in Israel, both toward God, and towards his house." Nothing'.more offensive to good taste and ref…
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xx. 14), Elijah (:u:i. 12)-were the recognized medium of communication between God nod the people. The prophets at this time sent to testify for Jehovah against the people are not named, with one exception; which may suggest that one may be an honoured, true, and faithful servant of God in Church or state, and may r…
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lived; that under which Zechnriah lived, e. dispensation (I) of law and penalty, (2) of wrath and condemnation; that under which Stephen flourished, a dispensation (1) of grace and mercy, and (2) of forgiveness and justification (2 Cor. iii.. 7-11). LESSONS. 1. 'fhe danger of listening to flattery; it °;lakes men, eve…
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II. JoABH BLAIN DY ooNSrIRATORS. (Ver. 25,) 1. When, "After the Syrians had departed from him." Though he had escaped the doom which sought him on the battle- field, it seemed as if justice would not suffer him to live (cf. Acts xxviii, 4). Scarcely bad the Syrians departed than the sleuth-hound of retribtttion was …
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Kings xiv. 5). The hiph., to" make strong," of the northern kingdom (Ie11. ix. 8; xvii. or "oonflrm," ne it ie rendered here, is 3 ; xxviii. 3 ; Bll't/eral time• in almost e11ery found in 2 Kings xv. 19. Ago.in and a.go.in chapter of Hoeea, and for a t11pical instance, the disorders of the kingdom and the violent cf. H…
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graph here thrown off, and that it is a faithful Sele.h, or rather endeavoured to oho.nge it, to one. of hard fscts that have met together Joktheel, which Gol!Oniue trl\nelatee "sub- di•Ratrously times without number in men's jugated of God." Thie no.me ha.cl l\lready Jives. The Bum, then, of the ro1ttter of our occ…
1,030 wordsSource & rights
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.