2 Chronicles Chapter 25

At a Glance

  • Amaziah becomes king of Judah at 25, inheriting a political landscape shaped by his father’s reign.
  • Amaziah’s military ambitions are bold.
  • Undeterred, Amaziah leads Judah into battle against the Edomites in the valley of salt, achieving victory.
  • Historical & Literary Context.
  • This chapter sits in a period where the Chronicler emphasizes obedience to the Law and the consequences of mixing political expediency with divine purposes.

Chapter Overview

Amaziah becomes king of Judah at 25, inheriting a political landscape shaped by his father’s reign. The chapter opens with a declaration that Amaziah did what was right in the sight of the LORD, but with a caveat: not with a perfect heart. The narrative quickly moves into a testing moment: the king executes the officers who had murdered his father, a righteous act in line with Mosaic law, yet he spares the offenders’ children, adhering to the same law’s prohibitions against punishing the innocents. This moral complexity reveals a king who is zealous for justice but not fully committed to the heart transformation the covenant demands.

Amaziah’s military ambitions are bold. He assembles a large Judahite force and even hires a considerable number of foreign troops from Israel, seeking to magnify his military power. A word from a man of God interrupts this plan, warning that the LORD is not with Israel’s army and urging trust in divine power rather than human might. Amaziah wrestles with the prophet’s counsel, ultimately choosing to proceed with the foreign contingent, which triggers internal strife—Israel’s anger and withdrawal from the alliance.

Undeterred, Amaziah leads Judah into battle against the Edomites in the valley of salt, achieving victory. The chapter ends with a form of moral victory: Amaziah experiences military success, but the price tag includes potential spiritual compromise and a growing distance from the LORD’s preferred path. The chapter’s arc probes the tension between political-military prowess and covenant trust, inviting readers to weigh the source of true strength.

Historical & Literary Context

This chapter sits in a period where the Chronicler emphasizes obedience to the Law and the consequences of mixing political expediency with divine purposes. Amaziah’s story is presented as a cautionary tale about zeal that lacks a refined heart and reliance on God. The narrative functions as a moral commentary within the larger arc—kings who align with the LORD’s law experience blessing, while those who bend the covenant for political gain risk disaster. The prose situates Amaziah’s decisions within a broader theological framework: human strategy without covenant trust leads to ambivalent outcomes, even in victory.

Key Themes

- The danger of zeal without wholehearted devotion: Amaziah’s outward piety masks a compromised heart.

- The moral enforcement of justice within the covenant: the king’s execution of killers aligns with Torah law, yet mercy toward criminals’ children reveals tensions.

- Reliance on God versus human alliances: the warning of the man of God underscores the primacy of divine guidance.

- The cost of ambition: political and military goals can yield dividends, but they can also invite divine judgment or the seeds of future downfall.

- The complexity of leadership: good intentions can coexist with flawed decision-making, challenging readers to pursue both justice and humility.

Modern Application

Amaziah’s story offers timely reflection on leadership today. It cautions against zeal that is untempered by spiritual discernment or personal integrity. The temptation to lean on impressive militaristic or political power—like foreign mercenaries—can mirror modern attempts to secure security through unsustainable means. The prophet’s warning invites contemporary leaders to prioritize divine guidance, seek counsel from trusted spiritual mentors, and measure success not only by outward victories but by the integrity of motives and alignment with the covenant. For individuals, the chapter invites introspection about the heart behind our actions: are we pursuing “right” appearances or genuine righteousness rooted in love for God and neighbor?

Cross-References

- 2 Chronicles 32 (Hezekiah’s reliance on God over military power)

- 1 Samuel 15 (submission to divine command versus human ambition)

- 2 Chronicles 13 (war, diplomacy, and covenant fidelity)

- Psalm 20 (trust in the LORD in war and power)

Recommended Personas

- Habakkuk (weighing divine purposes beyond human strength)

- Elijah (prophetic challenge against pagan alliances)

- David (military prowess tempered by covenant faith)

- Paul (spiritual discernment and the dangers of zeal without love)

- Amaziah’s inner critic (the heart’s wrestling with motive)

Chapter Text

1

Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.

2

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart.

3

Now it came to pass, when the kingdom was established to him, that he slew his servants that had killed the king his father.

4

But he slew not their children, but did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses, where the LORD commanded, saying, The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers, but every man shall die for his own sin.

5

Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together, and made them captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, according to the houses of their fathers, throughout all Judah and Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty years old and above, and found them three hundred thousand choice men, able to go forth to war, that could handle spear and shield.

6

He hired also an hundred thousand mighty men of valour out of Israel for an hundred talents of silver.

7

But there came a man of God to him, saying, O king, let not the army of Israel go with thee; for the LORD is not with Israel, to wit, with all the children of Ephraim.

8

But if thou wilt go, do it, be strong for the battle: God shall make thee fall before the enemy: for God hath power to help, and to cast down.

9

And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The LORD is able to give thee much more than this.

10

Then Amaziah separated them, to wit, the army that was come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: wherefore their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.

11

And Amaziah strengthened himself, and led forth his people, and went to the valley of salt, and smote of the children of Seir ten thousand.

12

And other ten thousand left alive did the children of Judah carry away captive, and brought them unto the top of the rock, and cast them down from the top of the rock, that they all were broken in pieces.

13

But the soldiers of the army which Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Bethhoron, and smote three thousand of them, and took much spoil.

14

Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.

15

Wherefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent unto him a prophet, which said unto him, Why hast thou sought after the gods of the people, which could not deliver their own people out of thine hand?

16

And it came to pass, as he talked with him, that the king said unto him, Art thou made of the king’s counsel? forbear; why shouldest thou be smitten? Then the prophet forbare, and said, I know that God hath determined to destroy thee, because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened unto my counsel.

17

Then Amaziah king of Judah took advice, and sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us see one another in the face.

18

And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle.

19

Thou sayest, Lo, thou hast smitten the Edomites; and thine heart lifteth thee up to boast: abide now at home; why shouldest thou meddle to thine hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?

20

But Amaziah would not hear; for it came of God, that he might deliver them into the hand of their enemies, because they sought after the gods of Edom.

21

So Joash the king of Israel went up; and they saw one another in the face, both he and Amaziah king of Judah, at Bethshemesh, which belongeth to Judah.

22

And Judah was put to the worse before Israel, and they fled every man to his tent.

23

And Joash the king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Bethshemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits.

24

And he took all the gold and the silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of God with Obededom, and the treasures of the king’s house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria.

25

And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years.

26

Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, first and last, behold, are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel?

27

Now after the time that Amaziah did turn away from following the LORD they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish: but they sent to Lachish after him, and slew him there.

28

And they brought him upon horses, and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.

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