2 Chronicles 21:19 kjv
And it came to pass, that in process of time, after the end of two years, his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness: so he died of sore diseases. And his people made no burning for him, like the burning of his fathers.
2 Chronicles 21:19 nkjv
Then it happened in the course of time, after the end of two years, that his intestines came out because of his sickness; so he died in severe pain. And his people made no burning for him, like the burning for his fathers.
2 Chronicles 21:19 niv
In the course of time, at the end of the second year, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great pain. His people made no funeral fire in his honor, as they had for his predecessors.
2 Chronicles 21:19 esv
In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor, like the fires made for his fathers.
2 Chronicles 21:19 nlt
The disease grew worse and worse, and at the end of two years it caused his bowels to come out, and he died in agony. His people did not build a great funeral fire to honor him as they had done for his ancestors.
2 Chronicles 21 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 28:59 | "Then the LORD will make your plagues dreadful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses..." | Sickness as long-term divine curse. |
| 2 Chr 21:14-15 | "...behold, with a great plague will the LORD smite thy people...and thou shalt have great sickness by disease of thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out." | Elijah's specific prophecy of this very illness. |
| Ps 78:49 | "He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them." | God's wrath bringing calamity and suffering. |
| Ps 38:5, 7 | "My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness...my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh." | Sickness often linked to personal sin in Psalms. |
| Lev 26:14-16 | "...if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments...I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart..." | Covenant curses including severe diseases. |
| Isa 1:5-6 | "Why should ye be stricken anymore? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores..." | Physical decay as a result of spiritual rebellion. |
| Acts 12:23 | "And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost." | God's direct judgment leading to a gruesome death (Herod). |
| Dan 4:33 | "The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen..." | God's humbling of proud rulers with severe affliction. |
| Jer 14:12 | "When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence." | God's various methods of judgment. |
| Am 4:10 | "I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have carried away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD." | Pestilence as divine corrective judgment. |
| Gal 6:7-8 | "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption..." | Spiritual principle of reaping what is sown. |
| Prov 1:31 | "Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices." | Consequences directly related to one's actions. |
| Job 10:20-22 | "Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little, before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death..." | Human mortality and suffering, even for the righteous. |
| Lam 3:37-38 | "Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the Most High proceedeth not evil and good?" | God's sovereign control over all events. |
| 1 Kgs 11:11-12 | "Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes...I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant." | Kingdom taken due to unfaithfulness (Solomon). |
| Num 16:31-33 | "...the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up...so they, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished..." | Immediate, devastating divine judgment for rebellion (Korah). |
| Exod 9:10-11 | "And they took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast." | Disease as a specific plague from God. |
| Rev 16:2 | "And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast..." | Grievous sores as a sign of judgment in Revelation. |
| Judg 3:21-22 | "And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly: And the haft also went in after the blade; and the dirt came out." | Another instance of a graphic physical end (Eglon). |
| Heb 12:5-6 | "And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth." | Divine discipline for God's children. |
2 Chronicles 21 verses
2 Chronicles 21 19 Meaning
2 Chronicles 21:19 describes the climactic, gruesome end of King Jehoram of Judah's life. After two years of suffering from a severe, incurable illness, his internal organs, specifically his bowels, prolapsed or were expelled due to the disease. This resulted in his death from grievous and painful afflictions. The verse explicitly states the culmination of the sickness and highlights the intensely painful and ignominious nature of his demise.
2 Chronicles 21 19 Context
2 Chronicles 21 records the exceedingly wicked reign of King Jehoram of Judah, son of the righteous King Jehoshaphat. Upon ascending the throne, Jehoram murdered all his brothers and some leading officials to solidify his power (v. 4). He then walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, particularly mirroring the house of Ahab (likely due to his marriage to Athaliah, Ahab's daughter), leading Judah astray into idolatry (v. 6, 11). As a result of his grave unfaithfulness and cruelty, Jehoram suffered both national decline (Edom and Libnah revolted, vv. 8-10) and personal calamity. Prophet Elijah delivered a prophetic letter (vv. 12-15), condemning Jehoram's actions and foretelling a severe plague upon his people, family, possessions, and, most specifically, a dreadful, incurable bowel disease that would ultimately cause his bowels to fall out. The fulfillment of this prophecy begins in verse 16 with incursions from the Philistines and Arabs, who plundered Jerusalem and carried away all his sons except the youngest (Ahaziah, v. 17). Verse 18 then states that "after all this, the LORD smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease." Verse 19 details the culmination of this judgment, describing the gruesome, prolonged suffering that led to his death after a two-year period, specifically highlighting the bodily corruption as predicted.
2 Chronicles 21 19 Word analysis
And it came to pass (וַיְהִי - vayhi): A common Hebrew transition indicating a subsequent event or the fulfillment of what has been spoken. Here, it marks the consummation of Elijah's prophecy.
in process of time (לְיָמִים מִיָּמִים - layamim miyamim): Literally "from days to days." This phrase suggests a prolonged or gradual period rather than an instantaneous occurrence. It indicates the chronic nature of the illness and Jehoram's extended suffering, reinforcing that this was not a quick mercy but a drawn-out judgment.
after the end of two years (מִקֵּץ יָמִים שְׁנַיִם - miqetz yamim shenaim): Specifically marks the duration from when the "incurable disease" struck (v. 18) until its gruesome climax. This precise timeline emphasizes the sustained suffering Jehoram endured as a consequence of his rebellion, rather than a swift, decisive judgment. It underlines the detail of divine prophecy and its fulfillment.
his bowels fell out (וַיֵּצְאוּ מֵעָיו - vayatz'u me'ayw): "Me'ayw" (מעיו) refers to the intestines or inner parts. "Vayetzu" (ויצאו) means "and they went out" or "fell out." This is a stark, graphic description, likely indicating severe dysentery or a similar internal affliction causing intestinal prolapse, internal hemorrhaging, or the expulsion of severely diseased intestinal contents. It points to extreme physical decomposition and suffering. This detail was part of Elijah's precise curse.
by reason of his sickness (מֵחֳלִיו - mecholiyw): "Machaleh" (מחלה) signifies a disease or illness. This phrase confirms that the bowel failure was a direct result of the preceding grave sickness, attributing the physical manifestation to the declared malady, which was itself divinely ordained.
so he died (וַיָּמֹת - vayamat): A concise and definitive statement of his death. It marks the ultimate consequence of his protracted suffering.
of sore diseases (מַכְאוֹבִים רָעִים - makh'avim ra'im): "Mak'avim" (מכאבים) means pains, sorrows, or grievous afflictions. "Ra'im" (רעים) means evil, bad, or severe. This phrase emphasizes that his death was not just from one ailment but a culmination of multiple, intensely painful and evil diseases, further highlighting the severity and divine nature of the judgment.
"in process of time, after the end of two years": This phrase highlights the protracted nature of Jehoram's suffering and emphasizes that the judgment was not immediate but unfolded over a specific, extended period. It underscores God's sustained wrath and the cumulative consequences of his prolonged wickedness, contrasting with an instant death.
"his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness: so he died of sore diseases": This segment connects the gruesome physical manifestation directly to the cause of death. It illustrates the precise, retributive nature of divine judgment, where the inner corruption of the king was made manifest through a physically devastating and humiliating end. This form of suffering would have symbolized a king eaten from within, much as his spiritual decay had consumed his reign.
2 Chronicles 21 19 Bonus section
- The Chronicler's emphasis on Jehoram's ignominious death (vv. 19-20), contrasting it with his father Jehoshaphat's honored end, serves as a powerful theological lesson on immediate retribution for unrighteous kingship within the Davidic covenant.
- Medical interpretations of "bowels fell out" often point to a severe case of amoebic dysentery or cholera, leading to extreme diarrhea, dehydration, and potentially rectal prolapse or massive internal bleeding causing expulsion of intestinal matter. Such a condition would indeed lead to agonizing, prolonged "sore diseases" and death.
- This particular affliction served not only as punishment but also as a public warning to Judah, vividly demonstrating the consequences of abandoning the Lord.
2 Chronicles 21 19 Commentary
2 Chronicles 21:19 is the final, brutal punctuation mark on Jehoram's wicked reign. It details the fulfillment of Elijah's prophecy, confirming that God's Word does not return void and that severe unfaithfulness brings severe consequences. The verse is not merely a medical description but a theological statement: Jehoram's excruciating, protracted death, particularly the vivid detail of his bowels falling out from "sore diseases," serves as a testament to divine justice. His internal moral corruption and leading Judah astray were externalized through a horrific, internally consuming illness. This prolonged suffering over two years demonstrates that divine judgment is not always a swift eradication but can be a drawn-out process, marked by agony and ignominy. The Chronicler emphasizes that this ignominious death—unlike the respectful burials of righteous kings—was a direct result of his rebellion against God, underscoring the foundational principle that obedience brings blessing, and disobedience brings curses. The graphic details reinforce the idea that God's justice is perfect and penetrates to the core of one's being.