*2 Kings 16:10-16 / *2 Kin. 16:10 -
(Re: Was not this, like what King Manasseh did, an abomination of desolation like what the future Antichrist will do?)
2 Kings 16:10-16 refers to King Ahaz replacing the original altar of Solomon's temple with another altar of a pagan design as the place where the Old Covenant Mosaic law animal sacrifices would be offered in front of the temple, with Ahaz reserving the original altar as the place where he would make inquiries to YHWH (2 Kings 16:15c). Although this was wrong to do, it is not referred to as being an abomination of desolation.
(See Daniel 11:31 below)
The pagan altars which King Manasseh later erected in the temple's courts (2 Kings 21:5), and even within the temple building itself (2 Kings 21:4,7), are called abominations (2 Kings 21:2,11). And because of them, God would later (in 586 BC, through Babylon) bring physical desolation to all of Jerusalem and Judah (2 Kings 21:12-14; 2 Kings 23:26-27, Jeremiah 15:4), despite God's acceptance of King Manasseh's personal repentance (2 Chronicles 33:12-13), his cleansing of the temple from all pagan altars and idols (2 Chronicles 33:15), and his restoration of the original altar and Old Covenant animal sacrifices (2 Chronicles 33:16).
But whereas King Manasseh had even placed a statue of the Phoenician goddess Asherah (Astarte) within the temple (2 Kings 21:7, "grove" in the original Hebrew is "Asherah"), the future Antichrist could place within a future, third Jewish temple in Jerusalem an image of himself to be worshipped (Revelation 13:14b-15, Daniel 11:31b, Matthew 24:15).
(See Revelation 13:14 below)
Also, what King Manasseh did in 2 Kings 21:4-7 was different from what the future Antichrist will do, insofar as the Antichrist will also sit himself (at least one time) in the temple and say that he himself is God (2 Thessalonians 2:4, Daniel 11:36).
So the future Antichrist will do more evil in God's temple than anyone has ever done in the past.
(See 2 Thessalonians 2:4 below, and section 3 of Daniel 9:27 below. Also, see Revelation 11:1 below)
But the future Antichrist will not (as is sometimes claimed) be a Jewish king, like King Manasseh and King Ahaz were Jewish.
(See the "Not Jew", "Not Christ", and "Druze" sections of Revelation 13:4 below)
--
*2 Kings 17:3-27 / *2 Kin. 17:3 -
2 Kings 17:3-5 refers to Shalmaneser V, an ancient king of Assyria, who succeeded Tiglath-Pileser III, and who died during his siege of the city of Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.
2 Kings 17:6 refers to Sargon II, king of Assyria, who succeeded Shalmaneser V, and who actually defeated Samaria and took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity in 722 BC.
2 Kings 17:24-27 probably refers to Sargon II.
--
*2 Kings 18:4 / *2 Kin. 18:4 -
"Nehushtan" (H5180) can mean: "That Copper Thing".
--
*2 Kings 18:5-13 / *2 Kin. 18:5 -
2 Kings 18:5-6 refers only to Hezekiah himself, not (as is sometimes claimed) to the nation of Judah, which could have been hypocritical at the subsequent time of Sennacherib's invasion (Isaiah 10:5-6, Isaiah 36:1).
2 Kings 18:7,9 refers to Shalmaneser V.
2 Kings 18:11 refers to Sargon II.
The people of the northern tribes of the kingdom of Israel who were taken into the Assyrian captivity (2 Kings 18:11) in 722 BC were considered lost to history because they never returned from that captivity, whereas the people of the kingdom of Judah who were taken into the subsequent Babylonian captivity (2 Kings 24:14-16; 2 Kings 25:11) in 586 BC were not considered lost to history, because they did return from that captivity (Ezra 2:1) in 538 BC.
2 Kings 18:13 to 20:6 refers to Sennacherib, king of Assyria, who succeeded Sargon II.
(See also the "Lost Tribes?" section of Romans 11:17 below)
--
*2 Kings 19:7 / *2 Kin. 19:7 -
The original Hebrew word (ruwach: H7307) translated as "a blast" can mean "a spirit", and so could refer to a demon (cf. 1 Samuel 16:15), or to a destroying angel (1 Chronicles 21:15, Psalms 78:49). For angels can be called spirits (Psalms 104:4). And it was a single angel who killed the army of the king of Assyria: 185,000 of his soldiers died in one night while they slept (2 Kings 19:35).
Herod was likewise killed by an angel (Acts 12:23).
But the death of the king of Assyria himself was not to be at the hand of an angel, but even worse: at the hands of his own sons (2 Kings 19:37; 2 Kings 19:7b). Thus can be the fate of those who rage against YHWH God (2 Kings 19:27). God can see to it that they are killed, at any time, in any place, whether by an invisible angel, or by evil people.
(See also 2 Chronicles 18:33 below)
But Christians are never to kill, or even harm, anyone, even in self-defense.
(See Matthew 5:39 below)
--
*2 Kings 20:1-7 / *2 Kin. 20:1 -
God's omniscient foreknowledge, His knowing beforehand everything (Colossians 2:3) that He will do and that we will do (Isaiah 46:10, Acts 2:23, Revelation 1:1), is not proven false by our prayers and His responses to them. For they are all included in His foreknowledge. That is, God already knew, even before Hezekiah prayed in 2 Kings 20:2-3 (indeed, even before the foundation of the world), that Hezekiah would employ his free will to pray that prayer, and that He (God) would grant him an extension of life in response.
--
*2 Kings 21:7 / *2 Kin. 21:7 -
(Grove)
See Deuteronomy 7:5 above.
--
*2 Kings 23:3 / *2 Kin. 23:3 -
The original Hebrew word (`amad: H5975) translated as "stood to" can mean "confirmed" (1 Chronicles 16:17).
--
*2 Kings 23:11 / *2 Kin. 23:11 -
The original Hebrew word (parbar: H6503) translated as "suburbs" referred to a part of Jerusalem just west of the western gate of Solomon's temple (which, like the second temple, was on Jerusalem's east side), and is transliterated as "Parbar" in 1 Chronicles 26:18.
--
*2 Kings 23:29 / *2 Kin. 23:29 -
This refers to a king of Assyria in the time of Necho, Pharaoh of Egypt. But if (as some historians claim) Necho did not become Pharaoh until 610 BC, shortly after the destruction of the Assyrian empire in 612 BC, then the "king of Assyria" could mean a king of Babylon who had recently taken over the territory of Assyria.
(Compare Ezra 6:22 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 5:26 / *1 Chr. 5:26 -
The tribes mentioned here were east of the Jordan river (Joshua 18:7b). Their captivity could have occurred in 734 BC, some twelve years before the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel/Samaria in 722 BC.
--
*1 Chronicles 15:20 / *1 Chr. 15:20 -
(Alamoth)
See Psalms 46 title below.
--
*1 Chronicles 15:21 / *1 Chr. 15:21 -
"Sheminith" (H8067) could refer a lyre with eight strings.
--
*1 Chronicles 17:11-12 / *1 Chr. 17:11 -
This is not a dual-fulfillment prophecy, because it was not fulfilled by Solomon. For Solomon's throne was not established forever. He died, and his dynasty died out as well. Jesus Christ is not going to sit on Solomon's throne, but on David's throne (Luke 1:32). Nor is Jesus the son of Solomon, but the son of David (Matthew 1:1), through David's son Nathan (Luke 3:31b), not David's son Solomon, whose kingly line became cursed so that no descendant of Jehoiachin (a descendant of Solomon) can ever sit on David's throne (Jeremiah 22:30).
Jesus Christ will fulfill 1 Chronicles 17:12 physically after His future, Second Coming, that is, during the future Millennium, when He will build a literal temple building in Jerusalem (Zechariah 6:12-13, Zechariah 14:20-21) and literally sit on David's throne and rule as King forever (Luke 1:32-33, Isaiah 9:7). Because the Millennium will not be forever, David's throne will continue on the subsequent New Earth (of Revelation 21:1), as in a new surface for the earth.
(See also Matthew 1:18 and Acts 1:6 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 25:5 / 1 Chr. 25:5 -
The original Hebrew word (qeren: H7161) translated as "horn" can refer to a ram's-horn trumpet (Joshua 6:5), elsewhere called a shofar (See 2 Chronicles 15:14 below).
The "lifting up" of this horn in 1 Chronicles 25:5 would then refer to the lifting up a shofar to one's mouth to blow through it to make a sound, as part of the "song", in the sense of worship music, in 1 Chronicles 25:6.
Also, 1 Samuel 2:10 uses qeren (H7161) in a figurative sense of exalting the power of the Messiah, the Christ, the "anointed" (mashiyach: H4899) in 1 Samuel 2:10.
Also, 2 Samuel 22:3 uses qeren (H7161) in a figurative sense to refer to how God is our salvation, in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:10-12).
Also, many Bible verses use qeren (H7161) to refer to the four horns (in the sense of the four corner projections) of the brass altar of the Old Testament tabernacle (e.g. Exodus 27:1-2), on which altar, animals were sacrificed (e.g. Exodus 29:11-13). There being four of these horns could have typified how there would be four Gospels in the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), each of which would show Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross for our sins (Matthew 27:35, Mark 15:24, Luke 23:33, John 19:16-18), the very core of the saving Christian Gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
--
*1 Chronicles 25:8 / 1 Chr. 25:8 -
The original Hebrew word (mishmereth: H4931) translated as a "ward" can mean a "watch" (2 Kings 11:5-7) in the sense of a group of people assigned to perform a certain duty in a certain place during a certain period of time (e.g. Nehemiah 7:3). In this case, it is used to refer to the 24 worship groups of 1 Chronicles 25:7-31.
This sense of a "watch" is still used today, for example in the U.S. Navy, where not long ago the failure of two ships' "watches" at night to detect nearby merchant ships resulted in unnecessary collisions and the deaths of sailors.
(See also Numbers 8:26 above)
~
The original Hebrew words (qatan: H6996; and gadowl: H1419) translated as both the "small" and the "great" can refer to both the "younger" (1 Chronicles 24:31) and the "elder" (1 Kings 2:22), both the unimportant (compare Jeremiah 6:13's "least") and the important (compare Jonah 3:7's "nobles").
~
The original Hebrew words (biyn: H0995; and talmiyd: H8527) translated as the "teacher" and the "scholar" can mean the "teacher" and the "pupil".
--
*1 Chronicles 26:18 / 1 Chr. 26:18 -
(Parbar)
See 2 Kings 23:11 above.
--
*1 Chronicles 28:18 / 1 Chr. 28:18 -
The original Hebrew word (merkabah: H4818) translated as "chariot" could sometimes refer to a "covering" (Song of Solomon 3:10).
--
*1 Chronicles 29:3 / *1 Chr. 29:3 -
The original Hebrew word (cegullah: H5459) translated as "proper good" can mean "wealth" (Strong's Hebrew Dictionary). That is, King David was willing to give massive amounts of his wealth toward the building of Solomon's temple. This was done from a proper heart (1 Chronicles 29:14).
(Compare Mark 12:43 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 29:11-12 / *1 Chr. 29:11 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
See Psalms 22:28 below.
--
*1 Chronicles 29:15-16 / *1 Chr. 29:15 -
Here King David was stating the same basic principle as would be stated later in 1 Timothy 6:7.
--
*1 Chronicles 29:18 / *1 Chr. 29:18 -
Here "Israel" is used in the sense of the new, proper name given by YHWH God to the individual man named "Jacob" (Genesis 32:28).
--
*2 Chronicles 4:12 / *2 Chr. 4:12 -
The original Hebrew word (gullah: H1543) translated as "pommels" could refer to bowls, or to globes, in this case possibly the shape of the chapiters themselves.
~
(Chapiters)
See 1 Kings 7:18 above.
--
*2 Chronicles 4:16 / *2 Chr. 4:16 -
(Huram his father)
This is sometimes translated as the name "Hiram Abi". For the original Hebrew word ('ab: H0001) translated as "father" can be transliterated as "Abi". But "Abi" can also mean "principal" (1 Chronicles 24:6). That is, Hiram/Huram was Solomon's principal craftsman (1 Kings 7:13-14). Note also that Hiram was from Tyre (1 Kings 7:13), and that he had descent from the tribe of Dan (2 Chronicles 2:14).
(See Ezekiel 28 below. Also, see paragraph 2 of the "Dan - tribe" section of Revelation 13:4 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 6:36-39 / *2 Chr. 6:36 -
The fulfillment of this would include the return of the Jews in 538 BC from their Babylonian captivity.
--
*2 Chronicles 6:37 / *2 Chr. 6:37 -
The original Hebrew words (shuwb: H7725; 'el: H0413; and lebab: H3824) translated as "if they bethink themselves" can mean "if their hearts turn back", in this case, to YHWH God, as in 2 Chronicles 6:38. The English word "bethink" means to "remember", or to "cause oneself to consider" (Webster's).
--
*2 Chronicles 7:13-14 / *2 Chr. 7:13 -
This does not refer to the eternal fate of individuals (Romans 9:11-23).
(See Romans 9:11 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 7:20 / *2 Chr. 7:20 -
The original Hebrew word (sheniynah: H8148) translated as "byword", like the English word, can mean a "taunt" (Jeremiah 24:9).
--
*2 Chronicles 9:2 / *2 Chr. 9:2 -
Here, the original Hebrew word (nagad: H5046) translated as "told" could mean "answered".
--
*2 Chronicles 12:3 / *2 Chr. 12:3 -
"Lubims" (H3864) can be "Libyans" (Daniel 11:43).
"Sukkiims" (H5525) could be a tribe of non-Egyptians who were allowed to live in Egypt, possibly in the "Succoth/Sukkoth" (H5523) of Exodus 12:37.
--
*2 Chronicles 14:6 / *2 Chr. 14:6 -
The original Hebrew word (metsuwrah: H4694) translated as "fenced" can mean "fortified".
--
*2 Chronicles 14:15 / *2 Chr. 14:15 -
The original Hebrew word ('ohel: H0168) translated as "tents" could sometimes refer more generally to any dwelling place, in this case possibly enclosures in which the cattle were kept.
Or, the cities about Gerar (2 Chronicles 14:14) could have made huge tents, like our circus tents today, to shield their cattle from the hot sun.
--
*2 Chronicles 15:14 / *2 Chr. 15:14 -
The original Hebrew word (shophar: H7782) translated as "cornets" refers to "shofars", which are ram's-horn trumpets.
--
*2 Chronicles 18:1 / *2 Chr. 18:1 -
The original Hebrew word (chathan: H2859) translated as "joined affinity" can mean to give a daughter in marriage (Genesis 34:9), such as to one of Ahab's sons. Jehoshaphat also took a daughter of Ahab in marriage to Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram (2 Chronicles 21:6). This daughter of Ahab was named Athaliah. For Jehoram (the father of Ahaziah) married Athaliah, a "daughter", in the sense of a granddaughter, of Omri (2 Chronicles 22:2), the father of Ahab (1 Kings 16:28). Through Athaliah the house of Ahab would plague with great wickedness not only Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram (2 Chronicles 21:6), but also his grandson Ahaziah (2 Chronicles 22:3-5).
--
*2 Chronicles 18:33 / *2 Chr. 18:33 -
The original Hebrew word (tom: H8537) translated as "at a venture" can mean "in simplicity", in the sense of not knowing something (2 Samuel 15:11). In this case, the archer did not know that his target was the king of Israel. For the king was disguised (2 Chronicles 18:29).
The king had thought that through his disguise he could thwart the will of YHWH God which had been prophesied in 2 Chronicles 18:16. But the king could not thwart it. For YHWH God can work His will even through unwitting people.
So evil rulers have no surety that they can defend themselves perfectly. YHWH God can kill them at any time, through anyone, even through people who do not realize the significance of what they are doing.
(See also 2 Kings 19:7 above)
But Christians are never to kill, or even harm, anyone, even in self-defense.
(See Matthew 5:39 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 19:7 / *2 Chr. 19:7 -
(Nor respect of persons)
See Acts 10:34 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 20:8-9 / 2 Chr. 20:8 -
Here Jehoshaphat is referring to a part of Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple (2 Chronicles 6:20-35).
--
*2 Chronicles 20:36 / *2 Chr. 20:36 -
Tarshish (H8659) could usually refer to a port in Spain. But in this case the ships were not built on the Mediterranean Sea, but in Ezion-geber, a port on the Red Sea, which connects with the Indian Ocean. So perhaps there was another port called Tarshish on that ocean. Or, perhaps there was an ancient way to transport ships from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.
--
*2 Chronicles 21:12 / *2 Chr. 21:12 -
The letter from Elijah was sent to Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 21:1-12). And 2 Kings 1:17 shows that Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat could have already been in the second year of his reign before Elijah's physical ascension into heaven in 2 Kings 2:11.
--
*2 Chronicles 21:19 / *2 Chr. 21:19 -
Here, they "made no burning for him" means that they made no honorific burning of funereal incense for Jehoram at his burial in 2 Chronicles 21:20b. Compare the funereal "burning of odours" in Jeremiah 34:5, and the "very great burning" and "sweet odours" which had occurred at the burial of the body of Asa (Jehoram's grandfather) in 2 Chronicles 16:14. So the burning does not refer to cremation, which has never been practiced by the Jews, and rightly so.
(See section 2 of Revelation 20:9 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 22:2 / *2 Chr. 22:2 -
Compare 2 Kings 8:26, which says that Ahaziah was 22 instead of 42. For he was the son of Jehoram, who had just died at the age of 40 (2 Chronicles 21:20). So the 42 in 2 Chronicles 22:2 is a copyist's error which is corrected by the Bible itself in another verse. Also, it could have been the same copyist who mistakenly referred to Ahaziah as Azariah in 2 Chronicles 22:6, which is easily corrected by the context, and by the parallel verse of 2 Kings 8:29.
~
Omri was the father of Ahab (1 Kings 16:28).
--
*2 Chronicles 23:14 / *2 Chr. 23:14 -
The original Hebrew word (sederah: H7713) translated as "ranges" could refer to "ranks" of soldiers (2 Kings 11:8).
--
*2 Chronicles 24:4-14 / *2 Chr. 24:4 -
While Joash the king of Judah did a good thing in ordering the repair of the temple after its damage under Athaliah (2 Chronicles 24:4-14), he subsequently fell into idolatry, and murdered a prophet of God (2 Chronicles 24:17-22). So both Judah and Joash shortly afterward suffered for it (2 Chronicles 24:23-25).
--
*2 Chronicles 24:6 / *2 Chr. 24:6 -
(The collection)
This could be a reference to Exodus 30:12-16.
--
*2 Chronicles 26:10 / *2 Chr. 26:10 -
The original Hebrew word ('ikkar: H0406) translated as "husbandmen", like the English word, refers to "farmers".
The Hebrew word ('adamah: H0127) translated as "husbandry" refers to "the soil".
--
*2 Chronicles 26:14 / *2 Chr. 26:14 -
(Habergeons / H8302)
See sentence 1 of Job 41:26 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 27:3 / *2 Chr. 27:3 -
"Ophel" (H6077) was the name of a ridge in Jerusalem.
--
*2 Chronicles 30:6 / *2 Chr. 30:6 -
This refers to those Israelites who escaped being taken into captivity by the Assyrian kings Shalmaneser V and Sargon II in 724-722 BC (2 Kings 17:3-6), and, even before that, by the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III in 734-732 BC (1 Chronicles 5:26; 2 Kings 15:29).
--
*2 Chronicles 30:12 / *2 Chr. 30:12 -
This refers only to the people in Judah obeying one command of King Hezekiah to keep the passover in the first year of his reign (2 Chronicles 29:3 to 30:13). By the time of Sennacherib's invasion of Judah in the fourteenth year of Hezekiah's reign (Isaiah 36:1), Judah could have become hypocritical (Isaiah 10:5-6).
Also, 2 Chronicles 30:12 does not say that the masses of Judah were not generally hypocritical toward God apart from that single observance. For even hypocrites today can go to a church meeting solemnly, one time, and still remain hypocrites.
--
*2 Chronicles 30:22 / *2 Chr. 30:22 -
The original Hebrew word (leb: H3820) translated as "comfortably" can mean "kindly" (Genesis 50:21).
--
*2 Chronicles 32 / *2 Chr. 32 -
See 2 Chronicles 30:12 above.
--
*2 Chronicles 33:1-11 / *2 Chr. 33:1 -
The punishment for the sins of Manasseh the King of Judah and those people in Judah during his reign (2 Chronicles 33:1-10) was mitigated so that it did not fully come upon subsequently-repentant Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33:12-19), or upon Judah right away. But the sins of Manasseh and Judah during his reign had been so great that God said that they would be the reason for the ultimate, total destruction of Judah by Babylon (Jeremiah 15:4, 2 Kings 21:11-16) in 586 BC, regardless of the complete purging of Judah from idolatry which King Josiah performed after the time of King Manasseh (2 Kings 23:24-27). Compare how we still die because Adam's sin made humans mortal (Romans 5:12), even though we have been purged from our sins as Christians (1 John 1:9).
--
*2 Chronicles 34:6 / *2 Chr. 34:6 -
The original Hebrew word (chereb: H2719) translated as "mattocks" refers to axes, with which the pagan altars were broken down (2 Chronicles 34:4,7).
--
*2 Chronicles 34:28 / *2 Chr. 34:28 -
(Thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace)
See 2 Chronicles 35:22 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 35:22 / *2 Chr. 35:22 -
This says that Necho's warning to Josiah was a warning from God. Josiah's rejection of God's warning partially vitiated God's promise to Josiah in 2 Chronicles 34:28, in that his disobedience caused him to die from war, not in peace.
Also, Josiah had "disguised himself" before going into battle (2 Chronicles 35:22), mistakenly thinking that this would protect him.
(Compare 2 Chronicles 18:33 above)
But no disguise can thwart God's will.
--
*Ezra 1:2 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
Ezra 1:2 refers to an ancient king of Persia, not to Jerusalem, ruling over the kings of the earth.
--
*Ezra 2:63 -
"Tirshatha" (H8660) can mean "Governor".
--
*Ezra 6:22 actually refers to the king of Persia (Ezra 6:14-15), who was the king of Assyria in the sense that he ruled over the former territory of the Assyrian empire.
(Compare 2 Kings 23:29 above)
--
*Ezra 7:15,23 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
See Psalms 22:28 below.
--
*Ezra 7:24 -
"Nethinims" (H5412) were hereditary temple servants, possibly descended from the Gibeonites of Joshua 9:27 (See Easton's).
--
*Ezra 8:26 -
(Talents)
A talent of silver was about 94 pounds, and a talent of gold was twice that (See Easton's), or about 190 pounds. So the 100 talents of gold in Ezra 8:26 would be about 19,000 pounds, or about ten tons of gold. And the 750 talents of silver and silver vessels in Ezra 8:26 would be about 35 tons.
--
*Ezra 8:27 -
(Drams)
The original Hebrew word (adarkon: H0150) translated as "drams" referred to a Persian gold coin called the daric, which weighed about 128 grains troy (See Easton's). Both a grain troy and a grain avoirdupois is 0.0648 grams (See Webster's "Weight" Table). So 128 grains troy would be about 8.29 grams. And there are 28.35 grams in an ounce avoirdupois. So 8.29 grams would be about 0.29 of an ounce avoirdupois. So the 1,000 drams of Ezra 8:27 would be about 290 ounces avoirdupois, which would be about 18 pounds avoirdupois. So the gold basins in Ezra 8:27 were quite large. And Ezra had 20 of them.
(The English word "dram" refers to a unit of weight of about 27 grains, or about a fifth of the weight of the daric.)
Also, it is interesting that the word adarkon is used in 1 Chronicles 29:7, which refers to the time of David about 1000 BC, centuries before the Persians came into power in the Middle East. This suggests that 1 Chronicles may have had an editor (not the original author) who lived during the rule of the Persians.
--
*Ezra 9:11-14 -
See the "enmity" section of Ephesians 2:15 below.
--
*Nehemiah 2:3 / *Neh. 2:3 -
(Live for ever)
Compare Daniel 3:9 below.
--
*Job should be looked to by obedient Christians as an example of patient endurance through suffering (James 5:11). For just as God allowed Satan to bring suffering to righteous Job (Job chapters 1-2), so God sometimes allows Satan to bring suffering to even obedient Christians (Revelation 2:10). And during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24, Satan will be allowed to unleash his wrath against even obedient Christians (not in hiding) in every nation (Revelation 12:9,17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Revelation 20:4-6, Matthew 24:9-13).
By the power of Satan working against Job (Job 1:12), Job first suffered the loss of his wealth and servants from murderous robbers (Job 1:14-15,17) and from a natural disaster (Job 1:16), and suffered the death of all of his children in a natural disaster (Job 1:18-19). Then, again by the power of Satan working against him (Job 2:6), Job suffered the loss of his health (Job 2:7). But he remained patient through all of his loss and suffering, never cursing God because of it (Job 2:9-10, Job 1:20-22), but wholly trusting in God through it all (Job 13:15).
Because of this, God greatly rewarded Job after his suffering was over, giving him twice as much wealth as he had before (Job 42:10,12, Job 1:3) and the same number of children as he had before (Job 42:13, Job 1:2), and giving him a very long life (Job 42:16), so that he lived to see his grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren (Job 42:16). While he was still suffering, Job mistakenly thought that his suffering was God's wrath against him (Job 19:11), when in fact God had no wrath against him, because he was righteous in God's eyes (Job 1:1,8, Job 2:3). Instead, Job was suffering from the hand of Satan (Job 1:12, Job 2:7). Similarly, during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24, the suffering of obedient Christians will not be God's wrath against them, but Satan's wrath against them (Revelation 12:9,17, cf. Revelation 2:10).
God allowed Satan to bring loss and suffering to Job to prove that Job did not love God just because God had made him wealthy and secure (Job 1:9-12) and healthy (Job 2:4-6), but that Job would continue to love and trust God even if all of his wealth, family, and health were stripped away from him. Indeed, Job would have continued to love God even if God had killed him (Job 13:15). This is the kind of love for God which Christians will need to have during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24. They will need to continue to love God even when He allows Satan (the dragon) and the future Antichrist (the individual-man aspect of Revelation's "beast") to make war against Biblical Christians (not in hiding) and to physically overcome them in every nation (Revelation 12:9,17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Matthew 24:9-13), stripping away all of their wealth and family, and leading them away to be beheaded (Revelation 20:4-6). Christians must so love God and so trust Him that they have no fear of suffering or death (Revelation 2:10, Hebrews 2:15), knowing that even death will only bring their still-conscious souls into the presence of Jesus Christ Himself in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:8, Luke 23:43, Revelation 6:9-10), which is far better than remaining in this fallen world (Philippians 1:21,23).
Christians must not love their mortal lives to where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep from getting killed (Mark 8:35-38, John 12:25, Revelation 12:11), just as Christians must not love their families to the point where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep their families from starving or getting killed (Matthew 10:37, Luke 14:26). And Christians must not love their wealth to the point where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep their wealth from being taken away (Matthew 6:24; 1 Timothy 6:9-10, Hebrews 10:34). Jesus Christ requires Christians to forsake everything, even their own lives, for His sake (Luke 14:33, Luke 9:23, Matthew 10:38-39), just as He forsook everything (2 Corinthians 8:9), even His own life, for their sake (Philippians 2:6-8; 2 Corinthians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 15:3).
[1 Peter 4:12-13]
~
(Re: Job's case was mitigated by the stipulation that Satan save his life. But in the future Tribulation, Satan will kill Christians. Why the change?)
The stipulation regarding Job was not universal at the time of Job. For Satan since the fall of mankind into sin has always had the power of death (when God allows) over all of mankind, whether Christians or not (Hebrews 2:14, Romans 5:12). And Satan has always had the power of death (when God allows) even over obedient Christians (Revelation 2:10, which refers to a first century AD Christian congregation). Nothing will change regarding this during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 (Revelation 12:17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Revelation 20:4-6, Matthew 24:9-13).
(Continued in Comments)
(Re: Was not this, like what King Manasseh did, an abomination of desolation like what the future Antichrist will do?)
2 Kings 16:10-16 refers to King Ahaz replacing the original altar of Solomon's temple with another altar of a pagan design as the place where the Old Covenant Mosaic law animal sacrifices would be offered in front of the temple, with Ahaz reserving the original altar as the place where he would make inquiries to YHWH (2 Kings 16:15c). Although this was wrong to do, it is not referred to as being an abomination of desolation.
(See Daniel 11:31 below)
The pagan altars which King Manasseh later erected in the temple's courts (2 Kings 21:5), and even within the temple building itself (2 Kings 21:4,7), are called abominations (2 Kings 21:2,11). And because of them, God would later (in 586 BC, through Babylon) bring physical desolation to all of Jerusalem and Judah (2 Kings 21:12-14; 2 Kings 23:26-27, Jeremiah 15:4), despite God's acceptance of King Manasseh's personal repentance (2 Chronicles 33:12-13), his cleansing of the temple from all pagan altars and idols (2 Chronicles 33:15), and his restoration of the original altar and Old Covenant animal sacrifices (2 Chronicles 33:16).
But whereas King Manasseh had even placed a statue of the Phoenician goddess Asherah (Astarte) within the temple (2 Kings 21:7, "grove" in the original Hebrew is "Asherah"), the future Antichrist could place within a future, third Jewish temple in Jerusalem an image of himself to be worshipped (Revelation 13:14b-15, Daniel 11:31b, Matthew 24:15).
(See Revelation 13:14 below)
Also, what King Manasseh did in 2 Kings 21:4-7 was different from what the future Antichrist will do, insofar as the Antichrist will also sit himself (at least one time) in the temple and say that he himself is God (2 Thessalonians 2:4, Daniel 11:36).
So the future Antichrist will do more evil in God's temple than anyone has ever done in the past.
(See 2 Thessalonians 2:4 below, and section 3 of Daniel 9:27 below. Also, see Revelation 11:1 below)
But the future Antichrist will not (as is sometimes claimed) be a Jewish king, like King Manasseh and King Ahaz were Jewish.
(See the "Not Jew", "Not Christ", and "Druze" sections of Revelation 13:4 below)
--
*2 Kings 17:3-27 / *2 Kin. 17:3 -
2 Kings 17:3-5 refers to Shalmaneser V, an ancient king of Assyria, who succeeded Tiglath-Pileser III, and who died during his siege of the city of Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.
2 Kings 17:6 refers to Sargon II, king of Assyria, who succeeded Shalmaneser V, and who actually defeated Samaria and took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity in 722 BC.
2 Kings 17:24-27 probably refers to Sargon II.
--
*2 Kings 18:4 / *2 Kin. 18:4 -
"Nehushtan" (H5180) can mean: "That Copper Thing".
--
*2 Kings 18:5-13 / *2 Kin. 18:5 -
2 Kings 18:5-6 refers only to Hezekiah himself, not (as is sometimes claimed) to the nation of Judah, which could have been hypocritical at the subsequent time of Sennacherib's invasion (Isaiah 10:5-6, Isaiah 36:1).
2 Kings 18:7,9 refers to Shalmaneser V.
2 Kings 18:11 refers to Sargon II.
The people of the northern tribes of the kingdom of Israel who were taken into the Assyrian captivity (2 Kings 18:11) in 722 BC were considered lost to history because they never returned from that captivity, whereas the people of the kingdom of Judah who were taken into the subsequent Babylonian captivity (2 Kings 24:14-16; 2 Kings 25:11) in 586 BC were not considered lost to history, because they did return from that captivity (Ezra 2:1) in 538 BC.
2 Kings 18:13 to 20:6 refers to Sennacherib, king of Assyria, who succeeded Sargon II.
(See also the "Lost Tribes?" section of Romans 11:17 below)
--
*2 Kings 19:7 / *2 Kin. 19:7 -
The original Hebrew word (ruwach: H7307) translated as "a blast" can mean "a spirit", and so could refer to a demon (cf. 1 Samuel 16:15), or to a destroying angel (1 Chronicles 21:15, Psalms 78:49). For angels can be called spirits (Psalms 104:4). And it was a single angel who killed the army of the king of Assyria: 185,000 of his soldiers died in one night while they slept (2 Kings 19:35).
Herod was likewise killed by an angel (Acts 12:23).
But the death of the king of Assyria himself was not to be at the hand of an angel, but even worse: at the hands of his own sons (2 Kings 19:37; 2 Kings 19:7b). Thus can be the fate of those who rage against YHWH God (2 Kings 19:27). God can see to it that they are killed, at any time, in any place, whether by an invisible angel, or by evil people.
(See also 2 Chronicles 18:33 below)
But Christians are never to kill, or even harm, anyone, even in self-defense.
(See Matthew 5:39 below)
--
*2 Kings 20:1-7 / *2 Kin. 20:1 -
God's omniscient foreknowledge, His knowing beforehand everything (Colossians 2:3) that He will do and that we will do (Isaiah 46:10, Acts 2:23, Revelation 1:1), is not proven false by our prayers and His responses to them. For they are all included in His foreknowledge. That is, God already knew, even before Hezekiah prayed in 2 Kings 20:2-3 (indeed, even before the foundation of the world), that Hezekiah would employ his free will to pray that prayer, and that He (God) would grant him an extension of life in response.
--
*2 Kings 21:7 / *2 Kin. 21:7 -
(Grove)
See Deuteronomy 7:5 above.
--
*2 Kings 23:3 / *2 Kin. 23:3 -
The original Hebrew word (`amad: H5975) translated as "stood to" can mean "confirmed" (1 Chronicles 16:17).
--
*2 Kings 23:11 / *2 Kin. 23:11 -
The original Hebrew word (parbar: H6503) translated as "suburbs" referred to a part of Jerusalem just west of the western gate of Solomon's temple (which, like the second temple, was on Jerusalem's east side), and is transliterated as "Parbar" in 1 Chronicles 26:18.
--
*2 Kings 23:29 / *2 Kin. 23:29 -
This refers to a king of Assyria in the time of Necho, Pharaoh of Egypt. But if (as some historians claim) Necho did not become Pharaoh until 610 BC, shortly after the destruction of the Assyrian empire in 612 BC, then the "king of Assyria" could mean a king of Babylon who had recently taken over the territory of Assyria.
(Compare Ezra 6:22 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 5:26 / *1 Chr. 5:26 -
The tribes mentioned here were east of the Jordan river (Joshua 18:7b). Their captivity could have occurred in 734 BC, some twelve years before the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel/Samaria in 722 BC.
--
*1 Chronicles 15:20 / *1 Chr. 15:20 -
(Alamoth)
See Psalms 46 title below.
--
*1 Chronicles 15:21 / *1 Chr. 15:21 -
"Sheminith" (H8067) could refer a lyre with eight strings.
--
*1 Chronicles 17:11-12 / *1 Chr. 17:11 -
This is not a dual-fulfillment prophecy, because it was not fulfilled by Solomon. For Solomon's throne was not established forever. He died, and his dynasty died out as well. Jesus Christ is not going to sit on Solomon's throne, but on David's throne (Luke 1:32). Nor is Jesus the son of Solomon, but the son of David (Matthew 1:1), through David's son Nathan (Luke 3:31b), not David's son Solomon, whose kingly line became cursed so that no descendant of Jehoiachin (a descendant of Solomon) can ever sit on David's throne (Jeremiah 22:30).
Jesus Christ will fulfill 1 Chronicles 17:12 physically after His future, Second Coming, that is, during the future Millennium, when He will build a literal temple building in Jerusalem (Zechariah 6:12-13, Zechariah 14:20-21) and literally sit on David's throne and rule as King forever (Luke 1:32-33, Isaiah 9:7). Because the Millennium will not be forever, David's throne will continue on the subsequent New Earth (of Revelation 21:1), as in a new surface for the earth.
(See also Matthew 1:18 and Acts 1:6 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 25:5 / 1 Chr. 25:5 -
The original Hebrew word (qeren: H7161) translated as "horn" can refer to a ram's-horn trumpet (Joshua 6:5), elsewhere called a shofar (See 2 Chronicles 15:14 below).
The "lifting up" of this horn in 1 Chronicles 25:5 would then refer to the lifting up a shofar to one's mouth to blow through it to make a sound, as part of the "song", in the sense of worship music, in 1 Chronicles 25:6.
Also, 1 Samuel 2:10 uses qeren (H7161) in a figurative sense of exalting the power of the Messiah, the Christ, the "anointed" (mashiyach: H4899) in 1 Samuel 2:10.
Also, 2 Samuel 22:3 uses qeren (H7161) in a figurative sense to refer to how God is our salvation, in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:10-12).
Also, many Bible verses use qeren (H7161) to refer to the four horns (in the sense of the four corner projections) of the brass altar of the Old Testament tabernacle (e.g. Exodus 27:1-2), on which altar, animals were sacrificed (e.g. Exodus 29:11-13). There being four of these horns could have typified how there would be four Gospels in the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), each of which would show Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the Cross for our sins (Matthew 27:35, Mark 15:24, Luke 23:33, John 19:16-18), the very core of the saving Christian Gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
--
*1 Chronicles 25:8 / 1 Chr. 25:8 -
The original Hebrew word (mishmereth: H4931) translated as a "ward" can mean a "watch" (2 Kings 11:5-7) in the sense of a group of people assigned to perform a certain duty in a certain place during a certain period of time (e.g. Nehemiah 7:3). In this case, it is used to refer to the 24 worship groups of 1 Chronicles 25:7-31.
This sense of a "watch" is still used today, for example in the U.S. Navy, where not long ago the failure of two ships' "watches" at night to detect nearby merchant ships resulted in unnecessary collisions and the deaths of sailors.
(See also Numbers 8:26 above)
~
The original Hebrew words (qatan: H6996; and gadowl: H1419) translated as both the "small" and the "great" can refer to both the "younger" (1 Chronicles 24:31) and the "elder" (1 Kings 2:22), both the unimportant (compare Jeremiah 6:13's "least") and the important (compare Jonah 3:7's "nobles").
~
The original Hebrew words (biyn: H0995; and talmiyd: H8527) translated as the "teacher" and the "scholar" can mean the "teacher" and the "pupil".
--
*1 Chronicles 26:18 / 1 Chr. 26:18 -
(Parbar)
See 2 Kings 23:11 above.
--
*1 Chronicles 28:18 / 1 Chr. 28:18 -
The original Hebrew word (merkabah: H4818) translated as "chariot" could sometimes refer to a "covering" (Song of Solomon 3:10).
--
*1 Chronicles 29:3 / *1 Chr. 29:3 -
The original Hebrew word (cegullah: H5459) translated as "proper good" can mean "wealth" (Strong's Hebrew Dictionary). That is, King David was willing to give massive amounts of his wealth toward the building of Solomon's temple. This was done from a proper heart (1 Chronicles 29:14).
(Compare Mark 12:43 below)
--
*1 Chronicles 29:11-12 / *1 Chr. 29:11 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
See Psalms 22:28 below.
--
*1 Chronicles 29:15-16 / *1 Chr. 29:15 -
Here King David was stating the same basic principle as would be stated later in 1 Timothy 6:7.
--
*1 Chronicles 29:18 / *1 Chr. 29:18 -
Here "Israel" is used in the sense of the new, proper name given by YHWH God to the individual man named "Jacob" (Genesis 32:28).
--
*2 Chronicles 4:12 / *2 Chr. 4:12 -
The original Hebrew word (gullah: H1543) translated as "pommels" could refer to bowls, or to globes, in this case possibly the shape of the chapiters themselves.
~
(Chapiters)
See 1 Kings 7:18 above.
--
*2 Chronicles 4:16 / *2 Chr. 4:16 -
(Huram his father)
This is sometimes translated as the name "Hiram Abi". For the original Hebrew word ('ab: H0001) translated as "father" can be transliterated as "Abi". But "Abi" can also mean "principal" (1 Chronicles 24:6). That is, Hiram/Huram was Solomon's principal craftsman (1 Kings 7:13-14). Note also that Hiram was from Tyre (1 Kings 7:13), and that he had descent from the tribe of Dan (2 Chronicles 2:14).
(See Ezekiel 28 below. Also, see paragraph 2 of the "Dan - tribe" section of Revelation 13:4 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 6:36-39 / *2 Chr. 6:36 -
The fulfillment of this would include the return of the Jews in 538 BC from their Babylonian captivity.
--
*2 Chronicles 6:37 / *2 Chr. 6:37 -
The original Hebrew words (shuwb: H7725; 'el: H0413; and lebab: H3824) translated as "if they bethink themselves" can mean "if their hearts turn back", in this case, to YHWH God, as in 2 Chronicles 6:38. The English word "bethink" means to "remember", or to "cause oneself to consider" (Webster's).
--
*2 Chronicles 7:13-14 / *2 Chr. 7:13 -
This does not refer to the eternal fate of individuals (Romans 9:11-23).
(See Romans 9:11 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 7:20 / *2 Chr. 7:20 -
The original Hebrew word (sheniynah: H8148) translated as "byword", like the English word, can mean a "taunt" (Jeremiah 24:9).
--
*2 Chronicles 9:2 / *2 Chr. 9:2 -
Here, the original Hebrew word (nagad: H5046) translated as "told" could mean "answered".
--
*2 Chronicles 12:3 / *2 Chr. 12:3 -
"Lubims" (H3864) can be "Libyans" (Daniel 11:43).
"Sukkiims" (H5525) could be a tribe of non-Egyptians who were allowed to live in Egypt, possibly in the "Succoth/Sukkoth" (H5523) of Exodus 12:37.
--
*2 Chronicles 14:6 / *2 Chr. 14:6 -
The original Hebrew word (metsuwrah: H4694) translated as "fenced" can mean "fortified".
--
*2 Chronicles 14:15 / *2 Chr. 14:15 -
The original Hebrew word ('ohel: H0168) translated as "tents" could sometimes refer more generally to any dwelling place, in this case possibly enclosures in which the cattle were kept.
Or, the cities about Gerar (2 Chronicles 14:14) could have made huge tents, like our circus tents today, to shield their cattle from the hot sun.
--
*2 Chronicles 15:14 / *2 Chr. 15:14 -
The original Hebrew word (shophar: H7782) translated as "cornets" refers to "shofars", which are ram's-horn trumpets.
--
*2 Chronicles 18:1 / *2 Chr. 18:1 -
The original Hebrew word (chathan: H2859) translated as "joined affinity" can mean to give a daughter in marriage (Genesis 34:9), such as to one of Ahab's sons. Jehoshaphat also took a daughter of Ahab in marriage to Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram (2 Chronicles 21:6). This daughter of Ahab was named Athaliah. For Jehoram (the father of Ahaziah) married Athaliah, a "daughter", in the sense of a granddaughter, of Omri (2 Chronicles 22:2), the father of Ahab (1 Kings 16:28). Through Athaliah the house of Ahab would plague with great wickedness not only Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram (2 Chronicles 21:6), but also his grandson Ahaziah (2 Chronicles 22:3-5).
--
*2 Chronicles 18:33 / *2 Chr. 18:33 -
The original Hebrew word (tom: H8537) translated as "at a venture" can mean "in simplicity", in the sense of not knowing something (2 Samuel 15:11). In this case, the archer did not know that his target was the king of Israel. For the king was disguised (2 Chronicles 18:29).
The king had thought that through his disguise he could thwart the will of YHWH God which had been prophesied in 2 Chronicles 18:16. But the king could not thwart it. For YHWH God can work His will even through unwitting people.
So evil rulers have no surety that they can defend themselves perfectly. YHWH God can kill them at any time, through anyone, even through people who do not realize the significance of what they are doing.
(See also 2 Kings 19:7 above)
But Christians are never to kill, or even harm, anyone, even in self-defense.
(See Matthew 5:39 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 19:7 / *2 Chr. 19:7 -
(Nor respect of persons)
See Acts 10:34 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 20:8-9 / 2 Chr. 20:8 -
Here Jehoshaphat is referring to a part of Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple (2 Chronicles 6:20-35).
--
*2 Chronicles 20:36 / *2 Chr. 20:36 -
Tarshish (H8659) could usually refer to a port in Spain. But in this case the ships were not built on the Mediterranean Sea, but in Ezion-geber, a port on the Red Sea, which connects with the Indian Ocean. So perhaps there was another port called Tarshish on that ocean. Or, perhaps there was an ancient way to transport ships from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.
--
*2 Chronicles 21:12 / *2 Chr. 21:12 -
The letter from Elijah was sent to Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 21:1-12). And 2 Kings 1:17 shows that Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat could have already been in the second year of his reign before Elijah's physical ascension into heaven in 2 Kings 2:11.
--
*2 Chronicles 21:19 / *2 Chr. 21:19 -
Here, they "made no burning for him" means that they made no honorific burning of funereal incense for Jehoram at his burial in 2 Chronicles 21:20b. Compare the funereal "burning of odours" in Jeremiah 34:5, and the "very great burning" and "sweet odours" which had occurred at the burial of the body of Asa (Jehoram's grandfather) in 2 Chronicles 16:14. So the burning does not refer to cremation, which has never been practiced by the Jews, and rightly so.
(See section 2 of Revelation 20:9 below)
--
*2 Chronicles 22:2 / *2 Chr. 22:2 -
Compare 2 Kings 8:26, which says that Ahaziah was 22 instead of 42. For he was the son of Jehoram, who had just died at the age of 40 (2 Chronicles 21:20). So the 42 in 2 Chronicles 22:2 is a copyist's error which is corrected by the Bible itself in another verse. Also, it could have been the same copyist who mistakenly referred to Ahaziah as Azariah in 2 Chronicles 22:6, which is easily corrected by the context, and by the parallel verse of 2 Kings 8:29.
~
Omri was the father of Ahab (1 Kings 16:28).
--
*2 Chronicles 23:14 / *2 Chr. 23:14 -
The original Hebrew word (sederah: H7713) translated as "ranges" could refer to "ranks" of soldiers (2 Kings 11:8).
--
*2 Chronicles 24:4-14 / *2 Chr. 24:4 -
While Joash the king of Judah did a good thing in ordering the repair of the temple after its damage under Athaliah (2 Chronicles 24:4-14), he subsequently fell into idolatry, and murdered a prophet of God (2 Chronicles 24:17-22). So both Judah and Joash shortly afterward suffered for it (2 Chronicles 24:23-25).
--
*2 Chronicles 24:6 / *2 Chr. 24:6 -
(The collection)
This could be a reference to Exodus 30:12-16.
--
*2 Chronicles 26:10 / *2 Chr. 26:10 -
The original Hebrew word ('ikkar: H0406) translated as "husbandmen", like the English word, refers to "farmers".
The Hebrew word ('adamah: H0127) translated as "husbandry" refers to "the soil".
--
*2 Chronicles 26:14 / *2 Chr. 26:14 -
(Habergeons / H8302)
See sentence 1 of Job 41:26 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 27:3 / *2 Chr. 27:3 -
"Ophel" (H6077) was the name of a ridge in Jerusalem.
--
*2 Chronicles 30:6 / *2 Chr. 30:6 -
This refers to those Israelites who escaped being taken into captivity by the Assyrian kings Shalmaneser V and Sargon II in 724-722 BC (2 Kings 17:3-6), and, even before that, by the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III in 734-732 BC (1 Chronicles 5:26; 2 Kings 15:29).
--
*2 Chronicles 30:12 / *2 Chr. 30:12 -
This refers only to the people in Judah obeying one command of King Hezekiah to keep the passover in the first year of his reign (2 Chronicles 29:3 to 30:13). By the time of Sennacherib's invasion of Judah in the fourteenth year of Hezekiah's reign (Isaiah 36:1), Judah could have become hypocritical (Isaiah 10:5-6).
Also, 2 Chronicles 30:12 does not say that the masses of Judah were not generally hypocritical toward God apart from that single observance. For even hypocrites today can go to a church meeting solemnly, one time, and still remain hypocrites.
--
*2 Chronicles 30:22 / *2 Chr. 30:22 -
The original Hebrew word (leb: H3820) translated as "comfortably" can mean "kindly" (Genesis 50:21).
--
*2 Chronicles 32 / *2 Chr. 32 -
See 2 Chronicles 30:12 above.
--
*2 Chronicles 33:1-11 / *2 Chr. 33:1 -
The punishment for the sins of Manasseh the King of Judah and those people in Judah during his reign (2 Chronicles 33:1-10) was mitigated so that it did not fully come upon subsequently-repentant Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33:12-19), or upon Judah right away. But the sins of Manasseh and Judah during his reign had been so great that God said that they would be the reason for the ultimate, total destruction of Judah by Babylon (Jeremiah 15:4, 2 Kings 21:11-16) in 586 BC, regardless of the complete purging of Judah from idolatry which King Josiah performed after the time of King Manasseh (2 Kings 23:24-27). Compare how we still die because Adam's sin made humans mortal (Romans 5:12), even though we have been purged from our sins as Christians (1 John 1:9).
--
*2 Chronicles 34:6 / *2 Chr. 34:6 -
The original Hebrew word (chereb: H2719) translated as "mattocks" refers to axes, with which the pagan altars were broken down (2 Chronicles 34:4,7).
--
*2 Chronicles 34:28 / *2 Chr. 34:28 -
(Thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace)
See 2 Chronicles 35:22 below.
--
*2 Chronicles 35:22 / *2 Chr. 35:22 -
This says that Necho's warning to Josiah was a warning from God. Josiah's rejection of God's warning partially vitiated God's promise to Josiah in 2 Chronicles 34:28, in that his disobedience caused him to die from war, not in peace.
Also, Josiah had "disguised himself" before going into battle (2 Chronicles 35:22), mistakenly thinking that this would protect him.
(Compare 2 Chronicles 18:33 above)
But no disguise can thwart God's will.
--
*Ezra 1:2 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
Ezra 1:2 refers to an ancient king of Persia, not to Jerusalem, ruling over the kings of the earth.
--
*Ezra 2:63 -
"Tirshatha" (H8660) can mean "Governor".
--
*Ezra 6:22 actually refers to the king of Persia (Ezra 6:14-15), who was the king of Assyria in the sense that he ruled over the former territory of the Assyrian empire.
(Compare 2 Kings 23:29 above)
--
*Ezra 7:15,23 -
(Re: Revelation 17:18)
See Psalms 22:28 below.
--
*Ezra 7:24 -
"Nethinims" (H5412) were hereditary temple servants, possibly descended from the Gibeonites of Joshua 9:27 (See Easton's).
--
*Ezra 8:26 -
(Talents)
A talent of silver was about 94 pounds, and a talent of gold was twice that (See Easton's), or about 190 pounds. So the 100 talents of gold in Ezra 8:26 would be about 19,000 pounds, or about ten tons of gold. And the 750 talents of silver and silver vessels in Ezra 8:26 would be about 35 tons.
--
*Ezra 8:27 -
(Drams)
The original Hebrew word (adarkon: H0150) translated as "drams" referred to a Persian gold coin called the daric, which weighed about 128 grains troy (See Easton's). Both a grain troy and a grain avoirdupois is 0.0648 grams (See Webster's "Weight" Table). So 128 grains troy would be about 8.29 grams. And there are 28.35 grams in an ounce avoirdupois. So 8.29 grams would be about 0.29 of an ounce avoirdupois. So the 1,000 drams of Ezra 8:27 would be about 290 ounces avoirdupois, which would be about 18 pounds avoirdupois. So the gold basins in Ezra 8:27 were quite large. And Ezra had 20 of them.
(The English word "dram" refers to a unit of weight of about 27 grains, or about a fifth of the weight of the daric.)
Also, it is interesting that the word adarkon is used in 1 Chronicles 29:7, which refers to the time of David about 1000 BC, centuries before the Persians came into power in the Middle East. This suggests that 1 Chronicles may have had an editor (not the original author) who lived during the rule of the Persians.
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*Ezra 9:11-14 -
See the "enmity" section of Ephesians 2:15 below.
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*Nehemiah 2:3 / *Neh. 2:3 -
(Live for ever)
Compare Daniel 3:9 below.
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*Job should be looked to by obedient Christians as an example of patient endurance through suffering (James 5:11). For just as God allowed Satan to bring suffering to righteous Job (Job chapters 1-2), so God sometimes allows Satan to bring suffering to even obedient Christians (Revelation 2:10). And during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24, Satan will be allowed to unleash his wrath against even obedient Christians (not in hiding) in every nation (Revelation 12:9,17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Revelation 20:4-6, Matthew 24:9-13).
By the power of Satan working against Job (Job 1:12), Job first suffered the loss of his wealth and servants from murderous robbers (Job 1:14-15,17) and from a natural disaster (Job 1:16), and suffered the death of all of his children in a natural disaster (Job 1:18-19). Then, again by the power of Satan working against him (Job 2:6), Job suffered the loss of his health (Job 2:7). But he remained patient through all of his loss and suffering, never cursing God because of it (Job 2:9-10, Job 1:20-22), but wholly trusting in God through it all (Job 13:15).
Because of this, God greatly rewarded Job after his suffering was over, giving him twice as much wealth as he had before (Job 42:10,12, Job 1:3) and the same number of children as he had before (Job 42:13, Job 1:2), and giving him a very long life (Job 42:16), so that he lived to see his grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren (Job 42:16). While he was still suffering, Job mistakenly thought that his suffering was God's wrath against him (Job 19:11), when in fact God had no wrath against him, because he was righteous in God's eyes (Job 1:1,8, Job 2:3). Instead, Job was suffering from the hand of Satan (Job 1:12, Job 2:7). Similarly, during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24, the suffering of obedient Christians will not be God's wrath against them, but Satan's wrath against them (Revelation 12:9,17, cf. Revelation 2:10).
God allowed Satan to bring loss and suffering to Job to prove that Job did not love God just because God had made him wealthy and secure (Job 1:9-12) and healthy (Job 2:4-6), but that Job would continue to love and trust God even if all of his wealth, family, and health were stripped away from him. Indeed, Job would have continued to love God even if God had killed him (Job 13:15). This is the kind of love for God which Christians will need to have during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24. They will need to continue to love God even when He allows Satan (the dragon) and the future Antichrist (the individual-man aspect of Revelation's "beast") to make war against Biblical Christians (not in hiding) and to physically overcome them in every nation (Revelation 12:9,17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Matthew 24:9-13), stripping away all of their wealth and family, and leading them away to be beheaded (Revelation 20:4-6). Christians must so love God and so trust Him that they have no fear of suffering or death (Revelation 2:10, Hebrews 2:15), knowing that even death will only bring their still-conscious souls into the presence of Jesus Christ Himself in heaven (2 Corinthians 5:8, Luke 23:43, Revelation 6:9-10), which is far better than remaining in this fallen world (Philippians 1:21,23).
Christians must not love their mortal lives to where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep from getting killed (Mark 8:35-38, John 12:25, Revelation 12:11), just as Christians must not love their families to the point where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep their families from starving or getting killed (Matthew 10:37, Luke 14:26). And Christians must not love their wealth to the point where they will deny Jesus Christ and the Bible to keep their wealth from being taken away (Matthew 6:24; 1 Timothy 6:9-10, Hebrews 10:34). Jesus Christ requires Christians to forsake everything, even their own lives, for His sake (Luke 14:33, Luke 9:23, Matthew 10:38-39), just as He forsook everything (2 Corinthians 8:9), even His own life, for their sake (Philippians 2:6-8; 2 Corinthians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 15:3).
[1 Peter 4:12-13]
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(Re: Job's case was mitigated by the stipulation that Satan save his life. But in the future Tribulation, Satan will kill Christians. Why the change?)
The stipulation regarding Job was not universal at the time of Job. For Satan since the fall of mankind into sin has always had the power of death (when God allows) over all of mankind, whether Christians or not (Hebrews 2:14, Romans 5:12). And Satan has always had the power of death (when God allows) even over obedient Christians (Revelation 2:10, which refers to a first century AD Christian congregation). Nothing will change regarding this during the future Tribulation of Revelation chapters 6 to 18 and Matthew 24 (Revelation 12:17, Revelation 13:7-10, Revelation 14:12-13, Revelation 20:4-6, Matthew 24:9-13).
(Continued in Comments)
