The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles — Section 181

divinest instruction o.nd imggestion are of these verses present and future re.the? ministered. The Lord ie with you . . . will the.n past and "present perfect." But, in forsake you. The original occasion of the fact, no doubt the history of Israel since the beautiful lo.ngunge and word of covenant dee.th of Moses illustrated the language of in the henrt of this second part of the verse Azarie.h pa,rim to e. degree beyond e.11 "the.t is enshrined in Deut. iv. 29 (see also 1 Chron. is written" or the.t we know. And then we xxviii. 9; oh. xxiv. 20; Jer. xxix. 11-H). may certe.inly consider that the expression It is just conceivable that these words by chosen," many days" (which some translate themselves are what are designated "the "many a day," "m9;ny a time"), even the prophecy" (and" the prophecy") in ver. 8. word" years" not bemg employed, leaves it They may be in the fuet place regarded as open to us to go to short episodes of e.n irre- ancient quotations. They a.re also charac- ligious and disastrous che.racter in the his- terized by a certain self-cont.ainedneas e.nd tory of Israel Lastly, the long stretch of weightiness of matter as compared with the fullythree hundred yee.rs,extending through- historic il111Btrations of the following four out the Book of Judges (its last five chapters verses. No corroborative e:iternal evidence in right order or wrong) into the opening of this conjecture, however, is forthcoming. seven chapters of 1 Samuel, pro,ides one Ver. 8.-Now for a long see.son. This running comment, superabundant e.lmost to translation is wrong: translate rather first, repetitiousness, for the illustration of our And many the day, to Israel to not have true vers. 3-7; in many cases absolutely picking God, and to nat have teaching priest, and to out the very colours to match (e.g. Jndg. not have Law. So far no tense is limited, v. 6: x:x. 29, 81, compared with onr ver. 5). however naturally through the very drift of To distinguish and separate the very nnmer- the passage it may seem that ezperience is OllB references that might be made is merely being challenged, and so necesse.rily the past supererogatory, and spoils the unmatched tense desiderated, not, however, in aori8t mosaic work of the history (Jndg. ii 15, 18, shape, but in whe.t some Frc;nch gre.m- 19; iii 12-15; iv. 1-3; v. 6, 19-21, 31; me.rie.ns call present perfect. For Aza.rie.h vi. 1-5, 7-10; ix. 32-37; x. 6-16; may well contemplate his illustration as xi. 19, 20: :xii. 5, 6 ; xvii. 5, 6, 13 ; u.. 29, good from .long of old, to the very moment 31 ; 1 Sam. ii. 30-35; iv. 9-22; vii. 3, 8; he was spea.king. The unfortunate wee.Ith :xiii. 19-22). It is a long-stretched-<mt of illustration to hand of his position me.y history of e. practically atheistic, priest- pardon the doubtfulness of commentators as less, lawless life; divided into no.natives of to the source from which it me.y be supposed inve.sion, oppression, servitude (sevenfold, he would he.ve drawn his most effective the Mesopotamian, Moe.bite, Ce.naa.niti;h, instances. It will not be the unlikeliest Midianitisb, Ammouitieh, Philb'ti.ne, and, it guide to follow the triple description of the me.y be e.dded, in order to comprehend all alleged apostasy, misfortune, or iniquity "of internal strife, Ishmaelitish le.rger and Iarael," e.g. (say) it happened to them to not lesser, yet s11.rprisingly general), smart, cry have the true God; happened to them to for help manifestly more the cry of pa.in e.nd not have tee.ohing priest; happened to them cowardice than of penitence e.nd repentance, to not he.ve the Le.w (this meaning, to not he.ve resolution and vow, and-for e.nother trial it authoritatively proclaimed, taught, minis- and still another-of Divine pity, forbear- tered). When did these three things happen ance, and deliverance ! altogether most notoriously? They describe, Ver. 6.-Among other pa.tent instu.nces, not the transgressions of an individual king, not tb.e lee.et remarkable a.re found in Judg. but the state of the people and kingdom as xx:. 85-45; ix. 44-47; these forecast e.nd a whole. If it were possible to conceive heralded that fine.I rupture of Behoboe.m the description e.s a fie.grant e.ne.chronism, a and J eroboe.m, which showed the "holl88 retrospective post-Captivity e.mplification, divided age.inst itself," and the sure conse- which the writer (in his glow of work and quences thereof. thought) was unconsciously e.nd inesistibly Ver. 7,-Work. , . rewarded (so Jer. betrayed into putting into the lips of the xxxi. 16; Eccle~. iv. 9; Prov. xi. 18; and Prophet Aze.riah, all doubt would end; for compare with them the crown of e.11 the rest, the desoription would suit no state of things Gen. xv. 1). e.nd no period better than that of the divided Ver. 8.-Theae words e.nd the prophsoy. kingdoms, espeoie.Ily applying to the ce.reer In addition to whe.t is said under ver. 1 on of the separate kingdom of Israel. Our ac- the question of the occurrence here of the oount, unfortunately, is uncheoked just here name Oded, where we should have looked by e. po.re.lie!. It is, however, impossible to for the no.me .Azariah, it may be noted that suppose this without any tittle of external it is open to possibility that " these words" authority for it, much less enough to proceed certainly referring to the le.ngue.ge of Aze.rie.h, upon. Some so crave the illustration that the "prophecy" me.y have in view some they are prepe.red to suppose all the tenses quotation more or less well known from Oded.  182 THE SECOND BOOK OF THE ClIRONICLES, Cea:. n. 1-10.