2 Chronicles 34:28 kjv
Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of the same. So they brought the king word again.
2 Chronicles 34:28 nkjv
"Surely I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity which I will bring on this place and its inhabitants." ' " So they brought back word to the king.
2 Chronicles 34:28 niv
Now I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here.'?" So they took her answer back to the king.
2 Chronicles 34:28 esv
Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place and its inhabitants.'" And they brought back word to the king.
2 Chronicles 34:28 nlt
So I will not send the promised disaster until after you have died and been buried in peace. You yourself will not see the disaster I am going to bring on this city and its people.'" So they took her message back to the king.
2 Chronicles 34 28 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 15:15 | "And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace..." | Promise of a peaceful death before major events. |
| Gen 25:8 | "Abraham...died...gathered to his people." | Idiom for peaceful death, joining ancestors. |
| Num 20:24 | "Aaron shall be gathered unto his people..." | Moses told Aaron of his impending death. |
| Deut 32:50 | "Aaron...was gathered unto thy people..." | Echoes of gathering to one's ancestors. |
| 1 Kgs 2:10 | "So David slept with his fathers..." | Common biblical phrase for dying. |
| 2 Kgs 22:20 | "I will gather thee unto thy fathers...in peace; neither shall thine eyes see all the evil..." | Direct parallel to 2 Chron 34:28, Huldah's prophecy. |
| Isa 57:1-2 | "The righteous perisheth...taken away from the evil to come...enter into peace..." | Thematically, righteous taken before disaster. |
| 2 Chron 35:23-24 | "Archers shot at king Josiah...and he died..." | Josiah's death in battle; "peace" meaning pre-catastrophe, not necessarily peaceful demise. |
| 2 Kgs 23:29-30 | "Pharaoh-nechoh king of Egypt went...Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo..." | Further details of Josiah's death, confirming "peace" not as serene death. |
| Deut 28:15 | "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken...that all these curses shall come upon thee..." | The 'evil' foretold aligns with Mosaic covenant curses for disobedience. |
| Lev 26:14-39 | Details of covenant curses if Israel disobeys, specifying forms of "evil." | Extensive description of "evil" to come. |
| 2 Kgs 22:16-17 | "Behold, I will bring evil upon this place...because they have forsaken me..." | Huldah's prophecy of destruction due to idolatry. |
| Jer 19:15 | "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil..." | Prophetic warning of destruction to Jerusalem. |
| Jer 25:9-11 | "I will bring them against this land...I will utterly destroy them..." | God raising Babylon for the destruction. |
| Lam 2:1-5 | Describes the horrors of Jerusalem's destruction. | Illustrations of the "evil" Josiah was spared seeing. |
| Eze 7:23-27 | Prophecy of Jerusalem's fall due to violence and idolatry. | Further depiction of the severe judgment ("evil"). |
| 2 Chron 34:27 | "Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God...I have even heard thee, saith the Lord." | Reveals the reason for God's gracious promise to Josiah. |
| Jon 3:10 | "God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil..." | Repentance can affect or defer judgment, but here it grants personal mercy. |
| Exo 32:14 | "And the Lord repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people." | God's willingness to change course in response to humility. |
| Isa 46:10 | "Declaring the end from the beginning..." | Illustrates God's foreknowledge, evident in Huldah's prophecy. |
| Amos 3:7 | "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." | Huldah as God's channel for revealing future judgment. |
| Matt 23:37-38 | "O Jerusalem...behold, your house is left unto you desolate." | Later judgment echoing historical destruction due to sin. |
2 Chronicles 34 verses
2 Chronicles 34 28 Meaning
This verse conveys God's specific promise to King Josiah through the prophetess Huldah, acknowledging Josiah's humble heart and repentance. Despite the severe judgment pronounced upon Judah and Jerusalem for their persistent idolatry, God assured Josiah that he would die and be laid to rest peacefully with his ancestors before the catastrophic divine judgment —the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, and the exile of the people—would fall upon the land and its inhabitants. He would be spared the grievous sight of that "evil."
2 Chronicles 34 28 Context
The verse is a pivotal part of the message delivered by the prophetess Huldah to King Josiah's officials. It follows Josiah's deep remorse and humility upon hearing the words of the newly discovered Book of the Law, which revealed God's anger against Judah for their prolonged disobedience and idolatry (2 Chron 34:19-21). Shocked by the severity of the covenant curses, Josiah sought the Lord through Huldah (2 Chron 34:22). Huldah first confirmed the imminent comprehensive "evil" upon Jerusalem and Judah (2 Chron 34:24-25), aligning with the curses in Deuteronomy and Leviticus. However, in this specific verse (34:28) and the preceding one (34:27), Huldah delivers a divine message of personal grace to Josiah. His "tender heart," humility, and repentance, expressed through his tearing of clothes and weeping, prompted God to show him mercy, sparing him from witnessing the full horror of the impending destruction of his kingdom.
2 Chronicles 34 28 Word analysis
- Behold, therefore: Signals a crucial consequence or announcement. It connects Huldah's prior pronouncements of impending judgment to God's specific promise of grace for Josiah.
- I will gather thee unto thy fathers: (Hebrew: asaf el avot - אָסַף אֵל אָבֹת) This is a common Hebrew idiom for dying and joining one's ancestors in the realm of the departed. It indicates that Josiah's death would not be an extinction but a transition to be with those who have died before him.
- and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace; (Hebrew: ne'esaf el-q'vurotekha b'shalom - נֶאֱסַף אֶל־קְבֻרֹתֶיךָ בְּשָׁלֹום)
- "gathered to thy grave": Reinforces the reality of his physical death and burial.
- "in peace": (Hebrew: shalom - שָׁלֹום) This term does not necessarily imply a serene, natural death (Josiah famously died in battle, 2 Chron 35:20-24). Instead, shalom here signifies that Josiah would die before the catastrophic "evil" —the full brunt of the Babylonian invasion, the destruction of Jerusalem, and the exile—fell upon his kingdom. His death, even in battle, effectively removed him from the scene of national devastation, thus giving him "peace" in contrast to the future suffering of his people.
- and thine eyes shall not see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof.
- "thine eyes shall not see": (Hebrew: lo' tir'enah 'eyneykha - לֹא תִרְאֶינָה עֵינֶיךָ) This is the core of God's compassionate promise. Josiah's physical departure ensures he avoids witnessing the national tragedy.
- "all the evil": (Hebrew: kol-hara'ah - כָּל־הָרָעָה) This refers to the comprehensive and severe divine judgment. This "evil" includes war, famine, plague, destruction of the city and Temple, and the exile to Babylon, as described in prophetic books like Jeremiah and Lamentations. It's divine calamity, not moral evil.
- "upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof": Clearly identifies Jerusalem and Judah as the recipients of the judgment, emphasizing the widespread nature of the impending disaster.
- And they brought the king word again. This brief concluding clause confirms that the delegates Josiah sent to Huldah faithfully delivered her message back to the king, highlighting the divine message's reliable transmission.
2 Chronicles 34 28 Bonus section
The seemingly contradictory detail of Josiah's death in battle (2 Chron 35) against the "in peace" prophecy is not a biblical inconsistency but an intentional emphasis. The promise was not about the circumstances of his death, but the timing. God ensured Josiah would not live to witness the destruction of his beloved Jerusalem and Temple. This allowed Josiah to conclude his righteous reign without enduring the full trauma and desecration that followed just a few decades later. His burial with his fathers (2 Chron 35:24) also speaks to his proper rest and legacy, unmarred by the national collapse. The promise for Josiah stands as a testament to God honoring sincere devotion and distinguishing individual faithfulness from corporate sin.
2 Chronicles 34 28 Commentary
2 Chronicles 34:28 encapsulates God's paradoxical blend of severe judgment and individual mercy. The impending "evil" was not an arbitrary punishment but the direct, divinely orchestrated consequence of Judah's persistent covenant unfaithfulness. The words delivered by Huldah to Josiah highlight God's justice, emphasizing that idolatry and disobedience bring about severe national consequences. However, the unique aspect of this verse is God's profound compassion for a genuinely repentant heart. Josiah's singular devotion and humility, distinct from the generally superficial repentance of the nation, moved God to grant him personal reprieve. The "peace" granted to Josiah was not an exemption from the common human experience of death, but an assurance that his death would precede the unbearable national catastrophe. It serves as a powerful testament to God's readiness to extend grace and comfort to those who humble themselves before Him, even amidst broader corporate judgment.