9 And they teach in Judah, and with them `is' the Book of the Law of Jehovah, and they go round about into all cities of Judah, and teach among the people.
having gone, then, disciple all the nations, (baptizing them -- to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all, whatever I did command you,) and lo, I am with you all the days -- till the full end of the age.'
if any one doth speak -- `as oracles of God;' if any one doth minister -- `as of the ability which God doth supply;' that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom is the glory and the power -- to the ages of the ages. Amen.
and having appointed him a day, they came, more of them unto him, to the lodging, to whom he was expounding, testifying fully the reign of God, persuading them also of the things concerning Jesus, both from the law of Moses, and the prophets, from morning till evening,
for Moses from former generations in every city hath those preaching him -- in the synagogues every sabbath being read.'
and Philip was found at Azotus, and passing through, he was proclaiming good news to all the cities, till his coming to Cesarea.
for if ye were believing Moses, ye would have been believing me, for he wrote concerning me;
and there was given over to him a roll of Isaiah the prophet, and having unfolded the roll, he found the place where it hath been written: `The Spirit of the Lord `is' upon me, Because He did anoint me; To proclaim good news to the poor, Sent me to heal the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives deliverance, And to blind receiving of sight, To send away the bruised with deliverance, To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.'
`Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God `is' one Jehovah; and thou hast loved Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might, and these words which I am commanding thee to-day have been on thine heart, and thou hast repeated them to thy sons, and spoken of them in thy sitting in thine house, and in thy walking in the way, and in thy lying down, and in thy rising up, and hast bound them for a sign upon thy hand, and they have been for frontlets between thine eyes, and thou hast written them on door-posts of thy house, and on thy gates.
`Wherefore do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they do not wash their hands when they may eat bread.' And he answering said to them, `Wherefore also do ye transgress the command of God because of your tradition? for God did command, saying, Honour thy father and mother; and, He who is speaking evil of father or mother -- let him die the death; but ye say, Whoever may say to father or mother, An offering `is' whatever thou mayest be profited by me; -- and he may not honour his father or his mother, and ye did set aside the command of God because of your tradition. `Hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, This people doth draw nigh to Me with their mouth, and with the lips it doth honour Me, but their heart is far off from Me; and in vain do they worship Me, teaching teachings -- commands of men.'
And it came to pass, when Jesus ended directing his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.
`And whenever they may persecute you in this city, flee to the other, for verily I say to you, ye may not have completed the cities of Israel till the Son of Man may come.
And Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, giving the people understanding in the law, and the people, `are' on their station,
and saith to the Levites -- who are teaching all Israel -- who are sanctified to Jehovah, `Put the holy ark in the house that Solomon son of David king of Israel built; it is not to you a burden on the shoulder. `Now, serve Jehovah your God, and His people Israel,
`Only, be strong and very courageous, to observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded thee; thou dost not turn aside from it right or left, so that thou dost act wisely in every `place' whither thou goest; the book of this law doth not depart out of thy mouth, and thou hast meditated in it by day and by night, so that thou dost observe to do according to all that is written in it, for then thou dost cause thy way to prosper, and then thou dost act wisely.
in the coming in of all Israel to see the face of Jehovah in the place which He chooseth, thou dost proclaim this law before all Israel, in their ears. `Assemble the people, the men, and the women, and the infants, and thy sojourner who `is' within thy gates, so that they hear, and so that they learn, and have feared Jehovah your God, and observed to do all the words of this law; and their sons, who have not known, do hear, and have learned to fear Jehovah your God all the days which ye are living on the ground whither ye are passing over the Jordan to possess it.'
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on 2 Chronicles 17
Commentary on 2 Chronicles 17 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 17
2Ch 17:1-6. Jehoshaphat Reigns Well and Prospers.
1. Jehoshaphat … strengthened himself against Israel—The temper and proceedings of the kings of Israel rendered it necessary for him to prepare vigorous measures of defense on the northern frontier of his kingdom. These consisted in filling all the fortresses with their full complement of troops and establishing military stations in various parts of the country, as well as in the cities of Mount Ephraim, which belonged to Jehoshaphat (2Ch 15:8).
3-5. he walked in the first ways of his father David—He imitated the piety of his great ancestor in the early part of his reign before he made those unhappy lapses which dishonored his character.
and sought not unto Baalim—a term used for idols generally in contradistinction to the Lord God of his father.
4. and not after the doings of Israel—He observed with scrupulous fidelity, and employed his royal influence to support the divine institutions as enacted by Moses, abhorring that spurious and unlawful calf-worship that now formed the established religion in Israel. Being thus far removed, alike from gross idolatry and Israelitish apostasy, and adhering zealously to the requirements of the divine law, the blessing of God rested on his government. Ruling in the fear of God, and for the good of his subjects, "the Lord established the kingdom in his hand."
5. all Judah brought … presents—This was customary with the people generally at the beginning of a reign (1Sa 10:27), and with the nobles and high functionaries yearly afterwards. They were given in the form of voluntary offerings, to avoid the odious idea of a tax or tribute.
6. his heart was lifted up in the ways of the Lord—Full of faith and piety, he possessed zeal and courage to undertake the reformation of manners, to suppress all the works and objects of idolatry (see on 2Ch 20:33), and he held out public encouragement to the pure worship of God.
2Ch 17:7-11. He Sends Levites to Teach in Judah.
7-11. Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, … to teach in the cities of Judah—The ordinary work of teaching devolved on the priests. But extraordinary commissioners were appointed, probably to ascertain whether the work had been done or neglected. This deputation of five princes, assisted by two priests and nine Levites, was to make a circuit of the towns in Judah. It is the first practical measure we read of as being adopted by any of the kings for the religious instruction of the people. Time and unbroken opportunities were afforded for carrying out fully this excellent plan of home education, for the kingdom enjoyed internal tranquillity as well as freedom for foreign wars. It is conformable to the pious style of the sacred historian to trace this profound peace to the "fear of the Lord having fallen on all kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah."
9. the book of the law—that is, either the whole Pentateuch or only the book of Deuteronomy, which contains an abridgment of it.
11. Also some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents, and tribute silver—either they had been his tributaries, or they were desirous of securing his valuable friendship, and now made a voluntary offer of tribute. Perhaps they were the Philistines who had submitted to the yoke of David (2Sa 8:1; Ps 60:8).
the Arabians—the nomad tribes on the south of the Dead Sea, who, seeking the protection of Jehoshaphat after his conquest of Edom, paid their tribute in the way most suitable to their pastoral habits—the present of so many head of cattle.
2Ch 17:12-19. His Greatness, Captains, and Armies.
14. these are the numbers—The warriors were arranged in the army according to their fathers houses. The army of Jehoshaphat, commanded by five great generals and consisting of five unequal divisions, comprised one million one hundred and sixty thousand men, without including those who garrisoned the fortresses. No monarch, since the time of Solomon, equalled Jehoshaphat in the extent of his revenue, in the strength of his fortifications, and in the number of his troops.