2 Chronicles 28

Ahaz Reigns in Judah

1 ¹Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as his father David had done,

2 but he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. He even made ²metal images for ³the Baals,

3 and ⁴he made offerings in the ⁵Valley of the Son of Hinnom and ⁶burned his sons as an offering,^[a] according to ⁷the abominations of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel.

4 And he sacrificed and ⁸made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

Judah Defeated

5 ⁹Therefore 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.

6 For ¹⁰Pekah the son of Remaliah killed 120,000 from Judah in one day, all of them men of valor, because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers.

7 And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son and Azrikam the commander of the palace and Elkanah the next in authority to the king.

8 The men of Israel took captive 200,000 ¹¹of their relatives, women, sons, and daughters. They also took much spoil from them and brought the spoil to Samaria.

9 But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose name was Oded, and he went out to meet the army that came to Samaria and said to them, "Behold, because the LORD, the God of your fathers, ¹²was angry with Judah, he gave them into your hand, but you have killed them in a rage ¹³that has reached up to heaven.

10 And now you intend to subjugate the people of Judah and Jerusalem, male and female, as your slaves. Have you not sins of your own against the LORD your God?

11 Now hear me, and send back the captives ¹⁴from your relatives whom you have taken, for the fierce wrath of the LORD is upon you."

12 Certain chiefs also of the men of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who were coming from the war

13 and said to them, "You shall not bring the captives in here, for you propose to bring upon us guilt against the LORD in addition to our present sins and guilt. For our guilt is already great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel."

14 So the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the assembly.

15 And ¹⁵the men who have been mentioned by name rose and took the captives, and with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. They clothed them, gave them sandals, ¹⁶provided them with food and drink, and anointed them, and carrying all the feeble among them on donkeys, they brought them to their kinsfolk at Jericho, ¹⁷the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria.

16 ¹⁸At that time King Ahaz sent to the king^[b] of Assyria for help.

17 For the Edomites had again invaded and defeated Judah and carried away captives.

18 ¹⁹And the Philistines had made raids on ²⁰the cities in the Shephelah and the Negeb of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco ²¹with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages. And they settled there.

19 For the LORD humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had made ²²Judah act sinfully^[c] and had been very unfaithful to the LORD.

20 So ²³Tiglath-pileser^[d] king of Assyria came against him and afflicted him instead of strengthening him.

21 ²⁴For Ahaz took a portion from the house of the LORD and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him.

Ahaz's Idolatry

22 In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD--this same King Ahaz.

23 For ²⁵he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, ²⁶"Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me." But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel.

24 And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and ²⁷cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he shut up the doors of the house of the LORD, and he made himself ²⁸altars in every corner of Jerusalem.

25 In every city of Judah he made high places to ²⁹make offerings to other gods, provoking to anger the LORD, the God of his fathers.

26 ³⁰Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, from first to last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.

27 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem, for ³¹they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. And Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.

2 Chronicles 28 Commentary

Chapter 28

The wicked reign of Ahaz in Judah.

- Israel gained this victory because God was wroth with Judah, and made them the rod of his indignation. He reminds them of their own sins. It ill becomes sinners to be cruel. Could they hope for the mercy of God, if they neither showed mercy nor justice to their brethren? Let it be remembered, that every man is our neighbour, our brother, our fellow man, if not our fellow Christian. And no man who is acquainted with the word of God, need fear to maintain that slavery is against the law of love and the gospel of grace. Who can hold his brother in bondage, without breaking the rule of doing to others as he would they should do unto him? But when sinners are left to their own heart's lusts, they grow more desperate in wickedness. God commands them to release the prisoners, and they obeyed. The Lord brought Judah low. Those who will not humble themselves under the word of God, will justly be humbled by his judgments. It is often found, that wicked men themselves have no real affection for those that revolt to them, nor do they care to do them a kindness. This is that king Ahaz! that wretched man! Those are wicked and vile indeed, that are made worse by their afflictions, instead of being made better by them; who, in their distress, trespass yet more, and have their hearts more fully set in them to do evil. But no marvel that men's affections and devotions are misplaced, when they mistake the author of their trouble and of their help. The progress of wickedness and misery is often rapid; and it is awful to reflect upon a sinner's being driven away in his wickedness into the eternal world.

Cross References

• 1. For ver. 1-4, see 2 Kings 16:2-4
• 2. [Exodus 34:17]
• 3. Judges 2:11
• 4. ver. 25
• 5. See Joshua 15:8
• 6. 2 Chronicles 33:6; [Leviticus 18:21]
• 7. 2 Chronicles 33:2; Deuteronomy 18:9
• 8. [See ver. 3 above]
• 9. Isaiah 7:1; [2 Kings 16:5, 6]
• 10. 2 Kings 15:27; 2 Kings 16:5
• 11. 2 Chronicles 11:4
• 12. Isaiah 47:6; Ezekiel 25:12, 15; Ezekiel 26:2
• 13. Ezra 9:6; Revelation 18:5
• 14. [See ver. 8 above]
• 15. ver. 12; [2 Chronicles 31:19; Numbers 1:17]
• 16. 2 Kings 6:22; Proverbs 25:21, 22; Romans 12:20
• 17. Deuteronomy 34:3; Judges 1:16
• 18. [2 Kings 16:7, 8]
• 19. [Ezekiel 16:27, 57]
• 20. See Joshua 15:33-36
• 21. [Numbers 21:25]
• 22. See 2 Chronicles 21:2
• 23. [2 Kings 15:29; 2 Kings 16:7]
• 24. 2 Kings 16:8, 9
• 25. [2 Chronicles 25:14]
• 26. [Jeremiah 44:17, 18]
• 27. [2 Kings 16:17]
• 28. [2 Chronicles 30:14]
• 29. ver. 3
• 30. For ver. 26, 27, see 2 Kings 16:19, 20
• 31. [2 Chronicles 21:20; 2 Chronicles 24:25]

Footnotes

• [a]. Hebrew made his sons pass through the fire
• [b]. Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate (compare 2 Kings 16:7); Hebrew kings
• [c]. Or wildly
• [d]. Hebrew Tilgath-pilneser

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CHRONICLES 28

This chapter contains the reign of Ahaz, and gives an account of the idolatry he was guilty of, 2Ch 28:1-4, what calamities came upon him and his people, being delivered up into the hands of the kings of Syria and Israel, who slew many, and carried others captives, 2Ch 28:5-8, though they that were taken captive by Israel, at the admonition of a prophet, were sent back again, 2Ch 28:9-15, how also he was distressed by the Edomites and Philistines, and not helped by the king of Assyria, he sent for and made presents to, 2Ch 28:16-21 and yet went into more and greater idolatries, 2Ch 28:22-25, and the chapter is concluded with his death and burial, 2Ch 28:26,27.

These verses are much the same with 2Ki 16:2-4, only in 2Ch 28:2 it is said,

\\he made also molten images for Baalim\\; the several Baals or idols of the nations round about, as well as served Jeroboam's calves; see Jud 2:11, and he is said in 2Ch 28:3,

\\to burn incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom\\; to Molech, the god of the Ammonites, who was worshipped there. \\See Gill on "2Ki 16:2"\\ \\See Gill on "2Ki 16:3"\\ \\See Gill on "2Ki 16:4"\\ 19724-950128-0841-2Ch28.2