2 Chronicles 13:14 kjv
And when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind: and they cried unto the LORD, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.
2 Chronicles 13:14 nkjv
And when Judah looked around, to their surprise the battle line was at both front and rear; and they cried out to the LORD, and the priests sounded the trumpets.
2 Chronicles 13:14 niv
Judah turned and saw that they were being attacked at both front and rear. Then they cried out to the LORD. The priests blew their trumpets
2 Chronicles 13:14 esv
And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was in front of and behind them. And they cried to the LORD, and the priests blew the trumpets.
2 Chronicles 13:14 nlt
When Judah realized that they were being attacked from the front and the rear, they cried out to the LORD for help. Then the priests blew the trumpets,
2 Chronicles 13 14 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Exod 14:10 | When Pharaoh drew near... Israel cried out to the LORD. | Cry out in distress |
| Exod 14:14 | The LORD will fight for you; you have only to be silent. | God fights for His people |
| Num 10:9 | When you go to war... you shall sound an alarm... and you will be remembered before the LORD. | Trumpets in warfare for divine remembrance |
| Deut 1:30 | The LORD your God who goes before you will Himself fight for you. | God's divine fighting |
| Deut 20:4 | For the LORD your God is He who goes with you to fight for you. | God accompanies in battle |
| Judg 7:20-22 | The three companies blew the trumpets... And the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow. | Trumpets and divine confusion of enemy |
| 1 Sam 7:10 | While Samuel was offering the burnt offering, the LORD thundered... and routed the Philistines. | God intervenes with overwhelming power |
| 1 Sam 17:47 | For the battle is the LORD's, and He will give you into our hand. | Battle belongs to God |
| 2 Chr 20:12 | We are powerless against this great multitude... But our eyes are on You. | Helplessness and turning to God |
| Neh 4:20 | In whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us. | Trumpets as signal for God's fight |
| Psa 3:6 | I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me. | Not fearing encirclement with God's help |
| Psa 18:6 | In my distress I called upon the LORD... He heard my voice. | Calling in distress and God's response |
| Psa 20:7 | Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD. | Trust in God over human might |
| Psa 33:16-17 | A king is not saved by his great army... A war horse is a false hope for salvation. | Human strength is vain; salvation from God |
| Psa 50:15 | Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me. | Promise of deliverance upon calling |
| Psa 107:6, 13, 19, 28 | Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. | Pattern of crying out and God delivering |
| Isa 31:1 | Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses! | Warning against relying on earthly power |
| Joel 2:1 | Blow a trumpet in Zion... for the day of the LORD is coming. | Trumpet as warning/call to action for God's day |
| Zech 4:6 | Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. | God's Spirit is the source of victory |
| Phil 4:6-7 | Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication... | Releasing anxiety through prayer |
| Heb 4:16 | Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy. | Bold access to God in time of need |
2 Chronicles 13 verses
2 Chronicles 13 14 Meaning
This verse captures a critical moment of profound peril for the army of Judah during their conflict with Jeroboam's forces. Realizing they were completely surrounded by their enemy, trapped both ahead and behind, Judah responded to their dire situation by immediately appealing to the LORD for help. Simultaneously, the priests accompanying the army fulfilled their designated role by sounding the trumpets, a divinely commanded action signaling an alarm, calling upon God for intervention, and often preceding a divine act of salvation or battle.
2 Chronicles 13 14 Context
2 Chronicles 13 recounts the pivotal conflict between King Abijah of Judah and King Jeroboam of Israel, mere generations after the kingdom split. Jeroboam, with his larger army, strategically outmaneuvered Judah, leading them into an ambush. Abijah, before the battle, delivered a powerful sermon affirming Judah's loyalty to the true God and the Abrahamic covenant, in stark contrast to Jeroboam's idolatrous practices and unauthorized priesthood. This speech framed the battle not merely as a clash between two human armies but as a divine judgment against Jeroboam's rebellion against the LORD. Verse 14 specifically highlights the immediate military predicament Judah found itself in and their Spirit-prompted, desperate response, which sets the stage for the miraculous divine intervention detailed in the following verses. This moment of extreme vulnerability was critical in demonstrating God's faithfulness to Judah because of their turning to Him.
2 Chronicles 13 14 Word analysis
- And when Judah looked back (וַיִּפְנוּ יְהוּדָה֙ - wa-yip̄nū Yəhūḏāh): The verb pana means "to turn," "to face," or "to turn around." Here, it signifies Judah's army collectively realizing their position, physically or mentally, by turning their attention to the overwhelming odds. It indicates a moment of sobering awareness and dire assessment of their circumstances, recognizing the trap they had fallen into. This act of "looking back" also emphasizes a strategic survey of their entrapment.
- behold (וְהִנֵּ֨ה - wəhinneh): This interjection introduces a dramatic, startling, or sudden revelation. It highlights the stark and unavoidable reality that confronted Judah, emphasizing the immediacy and totality of their encirclement.
- the battle was before and behind them (לָהֶ֤ם הַמִּלְחָמָה֙ פָּנִ֣ים וְאָח֔וֹר - lāhem hammilḥāmāh pānîm wə’āḥôr): Literally "to them the battle front and back." This powerful phrase conveys absolute encirclement, a complete ambush, leaving no escape route. Their situation was militarily hopeless, entrapped on all sides, symbolizing a moment of ultimate human incapacity and need for divine aid.
- and they cried unto the LORD (וַיִּצְעֲק֣וּ אֶל־יְהוָה֮ - wa-yiṣ‘ăqū ’el-YHWH): The verb tsa’aq implies a desperate, urgent, loud cry of distress, appealing for help in a time of extreme danger or oppression. This was not a casual prayer but an agonizing outcry born of despair, directed specifically to the Covenant God, Yahweh. It demonstrates their immediate recourse to God as their only hope, mirroring a recurring pattern in Israelite history when facing overwhelming odds.
- and the priests sounded with the trumpets (וְהַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים מַחְצְרִ֣ים בַּחֲצֹצְרֽוֹת - wəhakkōhanîm maḥṣărîm baḥăṣoṣərôt): The "trumpets" (ḥaṣoṣrot) refers specifically to the silver trumpets prescribed by Moses (Num 10:2). These trumpets had both a military and liturgical function: to signal for assembly, to direct movements, and critically, "when you go to war... you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets... that you may be remembered before the LORD your God; you shall be saved from your enemies" (Num 10:9). The priests' action was thus a deliberate act of obedience to divine command, an invocation of God's covenant promise, and a ritualistic plea for divine remembrance and intervention, transforming a desperate human act into a faith-filled religious ceremony.
2 Chronicles 13 14 Bonus section
This verse encapsulates a recurring spiritual principle found throughout Scripture: God often allows His people to reach a point of absolute human weakness and desperation before delivering them. This ensures that the victory is undeniably attributed to Him alone, rather than to human ingenuity or might. This moment of dire entrapment served to humble Judah and clarify their sole source of help, preparing them to witness a clear demonstration of divine power and reinforcing their identity as a people who rely on their God. It demonstrates the significance of covenantal ritual (priests and trumpets) when enacted in faith.
2 Chronicles 13 14 Commentary
2 Chronicles 13:14 portrays a climactic moment where human military might fails, setting the stage for divine intervention. Judah's army, discovering themselves caught in a hopeless trap, immediately shifted their reliance from physical strength or strategic prowess to divine power. Their "cry to the LORD" was an unadorned expression of total dependence, while the priests sounding the sacred trumpets was not mere signaling, but an invocation of God's covenant promises related to warfare. This coordinated act of desperate supplication and ritual obedience underscored the theological premise of Chronicles: success and deliverance depend on faithful obedience and turning to God, especially when faced with insurmountable obstacles. It highlights that even in dire military circumstances, true victory originates not from human skill or numbers, but from the LORD Himself, who is called upon through prayer and consecrated acts of faith.