2 Chronicles 28:5 kjv
Wherefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter.
2 Chronicles 28:5 nkjv
Therefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria. They defeated him, and carried away a great multitude of them as captives, and brought them to Damascus. Then he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who defeated him with a great slaughter.
2 Chronicles 28:5 niv
Therefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hands of the king of Aram. The Arameans defeated him and took many of his people as prisoners and brought them to Damascus. He was also given into the hands of the king of Israel, who inflicted heavy casualties on him.
2 Chronicles 28:5 esv
Therefore the LORD his God gave him into the hand of the king of Syria, who defeated him and took captive a great number of his people and brought them to Damascus. He was also given into the hand of the king of Israel, who struck him with great force.
2 Chronicles 28:5 nlt
Because of all this, the LORD his God allowed the king of Aram to defeat Ahaz and to exile large numbers of his people to Damascus. The armies of the king of Israel also defeated Ahaz and inflicted many casualties on his army.
2 Chronicles 28 5 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 28:15 | "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice..." | Consequences of disobedience |
| Lev 26:17 | "And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before..." | God setting His face against the disobedient |
| 1 Kgs 11:14 | "And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite..." | God raising adversaries as judgment |
| 1 Kgs 14:26 | "He took away the treasures of the house of the Lord..." | Punishments for idolatry in Judah's past |
| 2 Kgs 16:5-6 | "Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel..." | Parallel account of the Syro-Ephraimite War |
| 2 Kgs 16:7 | "So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria..." | Ahaz seeking foreign help instead of God |
| Isa 7:1-2 | "When Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel..." | Prophetic context of the Syro-Ephraimite War |
| Isa 7:13 | "And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing..." | Ahaz's wearying God |
| Psa 75:7 | "But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another." | God's sovereignty over kings and nations |
| Psa 119:155 | "Salvation is far from the wicked: for they seek not thy statutes." | Lack of salvation for the wicked |
| Prov 13:15 | "Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard." | The path of transgressors is difficult/punishing |
| Jer 25:9 | "Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north..." | God using foreign nations for judgment |
| Hab 1:6 | "For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation..." | God raising up nations as instruments of judgment |
| Zec 8:14 | "For as I thought to do unto you, when your fathers provoked me..." | God's determined judgment for provoking Him |
| Rom 1:24 | "Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts..." | God delivering over those who reject Him |
| Rom 1:28 | "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge..." | God giving people up to a depraved mind |
| Eph 4:18 | "Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life..." | Consequences of spiritual alienation |
| Heb 12:6 | "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son..." | Divine discipline (even severe) |
| Dan 9:11 | "Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing..." | Fulfillment of covenant curses upon Israel/Judah |
| Hos 8:4 | "They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes..." | Establishing kings without God's will |
| 2 Chron 12:2 | "And it came to pass, that in the fifth year of king Rehoboam..." | Another instance of Judah's king being delivered due to sin |
| 2 Chron 28:1 | "Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign..." | Context of Ahaz's wickedness starts earlier |
| 2 Chron 28:3 | "Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom..." | Ahaz's specific idolatries listed before judgment |
2 Chronicles 28 verses
2 Chronicles 28 5 Meaning
This verse details the initial and severe consequences of King Ahaz's wickedness and unfaithfulness towards the Lord. It states that the Lord, who remained "his God" despite Ahaz's apostasy, delivered him into the hands of two adversaries: the king of Syria (Rezin) and the king of Israel (Pekah). This divine action resulted in a crushing defeat, the capture of a large number of Judeans who were taken to Damascus, and a further immense slaughter at the hands of Israel, underscoring the severity of God's judgment upon a disobedient king and nation.
2 Chronicles 28 5 Context
This verse occurs within the narrative of King Ahaz's reign (2 Chron 28:1-27), one of the most ungodly kings of Judah. Having earlier indulged in severe idolatry, including sacrificing his own sons to false gods like Molech and worshipping Baal (2 Chron 28:2-4), Ahaz had provoked the Lord greatly. Verse 5 specifically describes the immediate divine judgment that fell upon Judah through their regional adversaries: Aram (Syria) and Israel (the Northern Kingdom of Samaria). Historically, this refers to the Syro-Ephraimite War (c. 735 BC) where Syria and Israel allied against Judah, seeking to depose Ahaz and install a puppet king to force Judah into their coalition against the rising power of Assyria. This defeat, instigated by God, serves as a direct consequence of Ahaz's profound apostasy and rejection of the Lord.
2 Chronicles 28 5 Word analysis
- Therefore (עַל־כֵּן֙ - ‘al-ken): Signifies a direct consequence or result. It links the judgment that follows directly to Ahaz's previous wickedness (2 Chron 28:1-4). This is a strong indicator of divine causation.
- the Lord his God (יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהָ֗יו - YHWH Elohav):
- Lord (YHWH): The covenant name of God, emphasizing His unchanging, faithful nature.
- his God (Elohav): Despite Ahaz's blatant apostasy, the narrative continues to call YHWH "his God." This highlights God's continuing ownership and sovereign claim over Ahaz and Judah, underscoring that the judgment is a direct action from their rightful God, not some external force or arbitrary fate. It implies covenant accountability.
- delivered him (נְתָנ֛וֹ - nethanoh): From the root נָתַן (nathan), meaning "to give, to put, to hand over." This word clearly attributes the surrender of Judah to its enemies not to geopolitical maneuvering or military failure alone, but to the direct, sovereign will of the Lord. God actively handed Ahaz over.
- into the hand of the king of Syria (בְּיַד מֶלֶךְ אֲרָ֑ם - bəyad meleḵ Aram):
- hand (יָד - yad): A common biblical idiom for power, authority, or control. "Into the hand of" means "under the power/control of."
- Syria (אֲרָם - Aram): Refers to the kingdom of Aram-Damascus, led by King Rezin. This was Judah's geopolitical rival, and this delivery signified military defeat.
- smote him (וַיַּכּֽוּהוּ - vayyakuhuhu): From נָכָה (nakah), meaning "to strike, smite, defeat, wound." Implies a decisive and painful military defeat.
- carried away (וַיִּשְׁבּ֣וּ - vayyishbū): To take captive, to lead into exile. This points to a mass deportation, a severe consequence of defeat.
- a great multitude (הָמ֥וֹן רָב֙ - hamon rav): Signifies a very large number of people. This emphasizes the devastating scale of the defeat.
- captives (שְׁבִ֖י - shəvî): Prisoners of war taken into bondage.
- brought them to Damascus (וַיָּבִ֤אוּ דַמֶּ֙שֶׂק֙ - vayyāvîʾū Dammeśeq): Damascus was the capital of Syria (Aram), the destination for the captured Judeans, solidifying their enslavement.
- also delivered (וְגַ֖ם נִתַּ֣ן - vəgam nitan): The "also" (gam) indicates an additional layer of judgment, demonstrating that God's hand was working through multiple channels, intensifying the calamity. The passive voice ("was delivered") still implies God's underlying action.
- into the hand of the king of Israel (בְּיַד מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל - bəyad meleḵ Yisrael): This refers to Pekah, king of the Northern Kingdom, which was religiously apostate itself but still related ethnically to Judah. The conflict was especially poignant as it was "brother" fighting "brother."
- who smote him with a great slaughter (וַיַּכֵּ֣הוּ מַכָּה־גְדוֹלָֽה - vayyakkēhū makkaṯ gədôlāh):
- smote him (וַיַּכֵּהוּ - vayyakēhū): Repetition of the root "nakah" to emphasize the hitting/defeat.
- great slaughter (makkah-gedolah): Literally "a great blow" or "a great defeat/killing." This implies an even more extensive and devastating loss of life and military destruction than the one by Syria, further detailed in the subsequent verses. This points to the immense loss of Judean lives.
2 Chronicles 28 5 Bonus section
- Polemics against contemporary beliefs: This verse implicitly discredits the effectiveness of foreign gods and political alliances, which Ahaz later relied upon (e.g., calling on Assyria in 2 Chron 28:16-21). It powerfully asserts that only the God of Israel holds ultimate control over nations and their destinies, irrespective of other military or spiritual powers.
- God's discipline: While it's a severe judgment, in the broader biblical narrative, God’s discipline is often a form of chastisement aimed at correction. For Ahaz and Judah, this was a stark warning of their covenant infidelity.
- Internal conflict: The defeat by Israel, their northern kin, emphasizes the tragic fragmentation of the people of God and the devastating results when one part sins grievously against the Lord, prompting even kin to become instruments of judgment.
- Narrative Flow: This verse initiates the "curse" fulfillment side of the Deuteronomic covenant, directly flowing from Ahaz's preceding abominable practices mentioned in the chapter's initial verses. It sets the stage for the dramatic events and further judgments (and mercies, as seen in Oded’s intervention) that follow.
2 Chronicles 28 5 Commentary
2 Chronicles 28:5 serves as a clear theological statement: God’s justice is precise and His sovereignty absolute. Despite Ahaz’s comprehensive rejection of the Lord, God’s judgment arrived through external adversaries, specifically Syria and Israel. The phrasing "the Lord his God delivered him" powerfully attributes the defeats directly to divine agency, not merely geopolitical circumstances. It reveals that the covenant relationship, while broken by Ahaz, still entails divine accountability. The dual nature of the defeat by both Syria (taking captives) and Israel (inflicting a massive slaughter, further detailed in 2 Chron 28:6-8) highlights the multifaceted nature of God's displeasure and the severity of the consequences for abandoning Him. This act of judgment was intended to bring Judah to repentance, though Ahaz unfortunately persisted in his ungodliness. It illustrates the consistent biblical principle that sowing disobedience reaps calamitous consequences.