The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Chronicles — Section 254

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 kingdom, a.ud himself Ver. 9.-With his prinoes. The prtrallel, more of one who wrouglit mighty works o.nrl 2 Kings viii. 21, reads, "to Zair." Of any spoke otherwise than as e. prophet; and thnt Emch pla.ce nothing is known, and it 110.s been the designation " the prophet" need by no propo~ed to supersede the word there by means denote him exclusively. He a.dds that a. "Seir," wbiob II certain amount of similarity " writing" from a prophet is nothing strange, of the Hebrew obaracters might countenanoe. ~hich may be eo.sily conceded but poorly Possibly by some mishap, not so readily mstanced by 1 Chron. xxviii. 19 • better hv explainable by misoocurrence of clmracters Jer. xxxvi. 1, 2, 6. On the o'ther hr,nd, simply, our words," with his princes," should Grove (in article nbove quoted) and others stand in place of "to Zair." It muEt be fin~ no invincible difficulty in accepting this noted that the two first clauses of the verse EhJah for the famous prophet. His men- in the parallel become something inconse- ~ion here is, of course, exceedingly interest- q ueutial (which is not the case with the mg, as the only mention of him in Chro- reading of our text), in that it says, "The nicles-a fact which very remarkably falls king and chariots went forth to a place, and in with the abstinence as well as the fulness rose up by night," etc. The dislocation is, of the compiler of Ohronicles. ,Tosephus perhaps, not serious, but our text avoids it pronounces that the letter was sent during in reading, '' The king, princes, and chariots Elijah's life (' Ant.,' ix. 5. § 2), surmises tu went forth, and rose up by night and the contrary having been made. While smote," etc. Elijah's translation seems to ha.ve taken Ver. 10.-Libn&h ... beoanse he had for- place before Jebosba.phnt's death, from wba.t saken. The parallel states the revolt of we read of Elisha (2 Kings ill. 11), we may Libnah also, but does not make the closing well account that Elisha had begun his remark of our verse. ministry bejOTB his master's translation. Ver. 11.-Caused . . . to commit fornica- Not ouly the other passages that confirm, tion. Perhaps the meaning is exclusively but in especial the passage (2 Kings i. 17) here the in.fidelity of idolatry, but at any which tells of Jehoram's being, before his rate it includes this. father's death, on the throne of Judah at Ver. 12.-A writing. The Hebrew is the time of Elijab's interview with Aha.ziah :ir..:i~, noun, from verb :iro. This noun does (a ps.ssage that occurs immediately preceding n;t ~ccur very frequently~ hut is found in the the account of Elijah's last acts), might b,ave followin~ passages, viz. : Exod. xxxii. 16; led ns to suppose that Elijah's letter was mix. 30; Deut. x. 4: eh. mv. 4; mvi. 22; before Jehosbaphat's death, during the joint Ezra i. 1; Isa. xxxviii. 8. A note in Grove's reign, but for the mention of the slaying of interesting article," Elijah " (Smith's 'Bible his sons. Bertheau, in our text in his Dictionary,' vol. i. p. 5::l0), says that the word 'Chronik,' points out the resemblance which is almost identical with the Arabic word of the "writing" shows to the matter of the the present day, while the ordinary Hebrew speeches of Elijah, w bile in certain respects word for a " letter " is i!l9., oftener rendered of style, and the very insulated sort of intro- "book." There came. • That this is the duction it ha.s here, it greatly di1fers from precise language used rather helps the per- the narrative in which it is now set. Al- su&Eion that it waa the well-known Prophet though the calculation may seem rather 11, Elijah of l&rael, who, not resident in Judah, fine one, the circumstances described accu- and perhaps very near the end of his life, rately point to the " writing" of Elijah and in sight of his translation, WW! taught reaching J ehoram before the chronologically and directed divinely to send this message misplaced translation of Elijah a.e given in of rebuke and terror for Jeboram. Elijah 2 Kings ii. 1-11. This question ma.y be the prophet. Some hold that it certainly instanced as one of the interesting moot was not the well-known prophet of the points by no means compassed with insuper- northern kingdom who is here intended. able difficulty, but challenging careful study •• Time, place, and circumstance," says Pro- and patient comparison of chronological e,nd fessor Dr. James G. Murphy, of Belfu.st historical passages. (' Handbook to the Booka of Chronicles,' Ver. 13.-See note in previous verse on p. 127), difference him "from the Tbhbite." Jehornm's s'laying of Ms b'l'ethren, and the And he confidently considers him (with conclneive proof this statement a.Howe tha.t Cajetan) another :Elijah (Ezra x. 21), or Elijah's letter must have been subsequent to Eli.ah ( l Cliron. viii. 27; Ezra. L 26; for the death of Jehoshaphat. The better than the form rendered so), or Eliyabu, in which thyself probably points to the fact that they form ihe Hebrew name appears (il,'~t:l, or had not fallen into idolatrous practices. \;,;?I;\, being the forms of the name found), Ver. 14.-A great plague; Hebrew, n~.~~ on. xx1. 1-20.J THE SECOND BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES. 255