For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. When they had finished the inhabitants of Seir, everyone helped to destroy each other.
Parallel Translations
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For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. When they had finished the inhabitants of Seir, everyone helped to destroy each other.
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For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
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For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them; and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
Cross-references (7)
Passages linked to 2 Chronicles 20:23 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Judges 7:22 They blew the three hundred trumpets, and Yahweh set every man’s sword against his fellow and against all the army; and the army fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.
- 1 Samuel 14:20 Saul and all the people who were with him were gathered together, and came to the battle; and behold, they were all striking each other with their swords in very great confusion.
- Genesis 36:8-9 Esau lived in the hill country of Seir. Esau is Edom. This is the history of the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir:
- Joshua 24:4 I gave to Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave to Esau Mount Seir, to possess it. Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
- Ezekiel 35:2-3 “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it, and tell it, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Behold, I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you. I will make you a desolation and an astonishment.
- Genesis 14:6 and the Horites in their Mount Seir, to El Paran, which is by the wilderness.
- Deuteronomy 2:5 Don’t contend with them; for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau for a possession.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (8 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Thus the Lord according to Jehoshaphat’s prayer declared his…
Thus the Lord according to Jehoshaphat’s prayer declared his power, when he delivered his by causing their enemies to kill one another.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 2Ch 20:23 For the children of Ammon and Moab…
2Ch 20:23 For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy [them]: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
Ver. 23. Every one helped to destroy one another.] Like so many Terrigenae fratres. "Who would not fear thee, O King of nations!"
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up…
For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir,.... Supposing that they had acted a treacherous part by them, and took on the side of their enemies:
utterly to slay and destroy them; as they did:
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and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir; so that there were none left of them:
everyone helped to destroy one another; in their confusion mistook one another, either for Edomites or Jews, like the Midianites in the times of Gideon.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain 2Ch 20:23-24. The children of Ammon and of Moab,…
2Ch 20:23-24. The children of Ammon and of Moab, &c. — These fell foul upon the Edomites, and cut them off; and then fell out with one another, and cut one another off. Thus God often makes wicked people instruments of destruction to one another. When Judah came toward the watch-tower — Which stood upon the cliff of Ziz, mentioned 2Ch 20:16, and looked toward the wilderness, where their enemies lay encamped, whose numbers, and order, and condition, they could descry from thence. They looked unto the multitude, and behold they were dead bodies — When they came to the view of this vast army, instead of finding living men to fight with, they found them all dead men, and their carcasses spread as dung upon the face of the earth. And none escaped — Or rather, none remained, because those who were not killed, made the best of their way home; for it cannot be supposed that they were absolutely all killed.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 23. Ammon and Moab stood up against… Seir —…
23. Ammon and Moab stood up against… Seir — The fight first turned almost wholly against the Maonites from the vicinity of Mount Seir, (note on 2Ch_20:1,) and when they were utterly cut off the Ammonites and Moabites went to destroying one another.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 23. For the children of Ammon] Render, And the…
23. For the children of Ammon] Render, And the children of Ammon. The sudden attack of the ambushed Judæans created a panic and a suspicion of treachery among the allies; so at Gideon’s surprise of Midian every man turned his sword against his fellow (Jdg_7:22).
utterly to slay] Lit. to devote; cp. Lev_27:28-29.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (23) Stood up against.—‘Amad ‘al, a late usage. (So…
(23) Stood up against.—‘Amad ‘al, a late usage. (So 1Ch_21:1.)
Utterly to slay.—To exterminate (hacharîm), devote to destruction.
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Made an end of.—Finished with. (See on 2Ch_20:22, “begin with,” and compare Gen_44:12.)
Every one helped . . . another.—Literally, they helped, each against (or, in the case of) his fellow, for destruction (mashchîth, 2Ch_22:4; Eze_5:16).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain This verse proceeds to explain how this resulted in…
This verse proceeds to explain how this resulted in a kind of triangular duel on large scale. Vers. 23-37.
At and after the battle: lessons.
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Armed with a holy trust in God, the king and his people advanced to meet their multitudinous enemies with bounding heart and tuneful lip. Nor were they unwarranted in so doing; the event completely justified their hopes. We learn
I THAT, OUR ENEMIES SOMETIMES DISPOSE OF ONE ANOTHER. (Ver. 23.) We sometimes find that the enemy is best "left well alone." Let Shimei "cast stones" at us; even though they be words of false accusation, they will do him much more harm than they will do us. Let the enemy blaspheme; his profanities will be a dead weight in his own balances. Let men make virulent attacks on our holy religion; they will answer one another; we can better spend our time (as a rule) in positive endeavours to build up the kingdom of God.
II That, under God"s hand, THE EVIL WE FEAR IS MORE THAN BALANCED BY THE GOOD WE GAIN. When the Jewish army returned from the wilderness of Tekoa, richly laden with spoil (ver. 25), they would doubtless have said that it was much better for them to have had their agitation followed by their success than not to have had any invasion of the enemy. They certainly congratulated themselves upon the entire incident, and, in their hearts, blessed those Moabites and Ammonites for giving them such an opportunity of enrichment. When God is on our side we may expect that our dangers will disappear, and that from the things that threaten us we shall ultimately derive blessing. Such is now and ever "the end of the Lord" ( (Joh_5:11; Job_42:10) Only we must make quite sure that God is on our side; and this we can only do by making a full surrender of ourselves to him and to his service, and by seeing to it that we choose the side of righteousness and of humanity, and not that of selfishness and of guilty pride.
III THAT GOODNESS OF HEART SHOULD FIRST TAKE THE FORM OF GRATITUDE. Whither but to "the house of the Lord" should that jubilant procession move? (ver. 28). Gladness finds its best utterance in sacred song, its best home in the sanctuary of God. Thus and there it will be chastened; it will be pure, it will be moderated, it will leave no sting of guilty memories behind. Moreover, if we are not first grateful to God for our mercies, but rather gratulatory of ourselves, we shall nurse a spirit of complacency that is likely to lead us astray from the humility which is our rectitude and our wisdom.
IV THAT IT IS WELL WHEN OUR TRIUMPH IS LOST IN THE FURTHERANCE OF THE CAUSE OF GOD. It was much that Jerusalem was safe; but it was more that "the fear of God was on all the kingdoms" (ver. 29). We may heartily rejoice that our own person, our own family, our own country, has been preserved; we may much more rejoice when the cause and kingdom of Christ has been greatly advanced. This should be the object of our solicitude and of our rejoicing.
V THAT REST IS THE RIGHTFUL PURCHASE OF LABOUR AND OF STRIFE. (Ver. 30.) The country that has won its religious liberty by heroic suffering and strife (as with Holland) may well settle down to a long period of rest and peace. The man who has gone through several decades of anxious and laborious activity may well enjoy a long evening of life when the burden is laid down and the sword is sheathed. The quieter service of the later years of life seems a fitting prelude to the peaceful and untiring activities which constitute the rest of immortality.
VI THAT THE WORTHIEST HUMAN LIVES DO NOT CORRESPOND TO OUR IDEAL. If we were to construct an ideal human life, we should not introduce another unwise combination (ver. 37)add a disastrous expedition to cast a shadow on its closing years. Yet this was the case with Jehoshaphat. Our lives, even at their best, do not answer to our conceptions of what is perfectly beautiful and complete. We must not look for this, for we shall very seldom find even the appearance of it. We must take the good man as God gives him to us, with a true soul, with a brave spirit, with a kind and faithful heart, with a character that is very fair and perhaps very fine, but that leaves something to be desired; with an ire that is very useful and perhaps very noble, but that bears marks of blemish even to the end. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.