2CH 21

2 Chronicles 21:15

WEB

and you will have great sickness with a disease of your bowels, until your bowels fall out by reason of the sickness, day by day.’”

BSB

And day after day you yourself will suffer from a severe illness, a disease of your bowels, until it causes your bowels to come out.’”

KJV

And thou shalt have great sickness by disease of thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out by reason of the sickness day by day.

Matthew Henry

Verses 12–20

2 Chronicles 21:12–20

Here we have, I. A warning from God sent to Jehoram by a writing from Elijah the prophet. By this it appears that Jehoram came to the throne, and showed himself what he was before Elijah's translation. It is true we find Elisha attending Jehoshaphat, and described as pouring water on the hands of Elijah, after the story of Elijah's translation (Kg2 3:11); but that might be, and that description might be given of him, while Elijah was yet on earth: and it is certain that that history is put out of its proper place, for we read of Jehoshaphat's death, and Jehoram's coming to the crown, before we read of Elijah's translation, Kg1 22:50. We will suppose that the time of his departure was at hand, so that he could not go in person to Jehoram; but that, hearing of his great wickedness in murdering his brethren, he left this writing it is probable with Elisha, to be sent him by the first opportunity, that it might either be a means to reclaim him or a witness against him that he was fairly told what would be in the end hereof. The message is sent him in the name of the Lord God of David his father (Ch2 21:12), upbraiding him with his relation to David as that which, though it was his honour, was an aggravation of his degeneracy. 1. His crimes are plainly charged upon him - his departure from the good ways of God, in which he had been educated, and which he had been directed and encouraged to walk in by the example of his good father and grandfather, who lived and died in peace and honour (Ch2 21:12) - his conformity to the ways of the house of Ahab, that impious scandalous family - his setting up and enforcing idolatry in his kingdom - and his murdering his brethren because they were better than himself, Ch2 21:13. These are the heads of the indictment against him. 2. Judgment is given against him for these crimes; he is plainly told that his sin should certainly be the ruin, (1.) Of his kingdom and family (Ch2 21:14): "With a heavy stroke, even that of war and captivity, will the Lord smite thy people and thy children," etc. Bad men bring God's judgments upon all about them. His people justly suffer because they had complied with his idolatry, and his wives because they had drawn him to it. (2.) Of his health and life: "Thou shalt have great sickness, very painful and tedious, and at last mortal," Ch2 21:15. This he is warned of before, that his blood might be upon his own head, the watchman having delivered his soul; and that when these things so particularly foretold, came to pass, it might appear that they did not come by chance, but as the punishment of his sins, and were so intended. And now if, as he had learned of Ahab to do wickedly, he had but learned even of Ahab to humble himself upon the receipt of this threatening message from Elijah - if, like (Kg1 21:27), he had rent his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted - who knows but, like him, he might have obtained at least a reprieve? But it does not appear that he took any notice of it; he threw it by as waste-paper; Elijah seemed to him as one that mocked. But those that will not believe shall feel.

II. The threatened judgments brought upon him because he slighted the warning. No marvel that hardened sinners are not frightened from sin and to repentance by the threatenings of misery in another world, which is future and out of sight, when the certain prospect of misery in this world, the sinking of their estates and the ruin of their healths, will not restrain them from vicious courses.

1. See Jehoram here stripped of all his comforts. God stirred up the spirit of his neighbours against him, who had loved and feared Jehoshaphat, but hated and despised him, looking upon it as a scandalous thing for a nation to change their gods. Some occasion or other they took to quarrel with him, invaded his country, but, as it should seem, fought neither against small nor great, but the king's house only; they made directly to that, and carried away all the substance that was found in it. No mention is made of their carrying any away captive but the king's wives and his sons, Ch2 21:17. Thus God made it evident that the controversy was with him and his house. Here it is only said, They carried away his sons; but we find (Ch2 22:1) that they slew them all. Blood for blood. He had slain all his brethren, to strengthen himself; and now all his sons are slain but one, and so he is weakened. If he had not been of the house of David, that one would not have escaped. When Jeroboam's house, and Baasha's, and Ahab's, were destroyed, there was none left; but David's house must not be wholly extirpated, though sometimes wretchedly degenerated, because a blessing was in it, no less a blessing than that of the Messiah.

2. See him tormented with sore diseases and of long continuance, such as were threatened in the law against those that would not fear the Lord their God, Deu 28:58, Deu 28:59. His disease was very grievous. It lay in his bowels, producing a continual griping, and with this there was a complication of other sore diseases. The affliction was moreover very tedious. Two years he continued ill, and could get no relief; for the disease was incurable, though he was in the prime of life, not forty years old. Asa, whose heart was perfect with God though in some instances he stepped aside, was diseased only in his feet; but Jehoram, whose heart was wicked, was struck in his inwards, and he that had no bowels of compassion towards his brethren was so plagued in his bowels that they fell out. Even good men, and those who are very dear to God, may be afflicted with diseases of this kind; but to them they are fatherly chastisements, and by the support of divine consolations the soul may dwell at ease even then when the body lies in pain. These sore diseases seized him just after his house was plundered and his wives and children were carried away. (1.) Perhaps his grief and anguish of mind for that calamity might occasion his sickness, or at least contribute to the heightening of it. (2.) By this sickness he was disabled to do any thing for the recovery of them or the revenge of the injury done him. (3.) It added, no doubt, very much to his grief, in his sickness, that he was deprived of the society of his wives and children and that all the substance of his house was carried away. To be sick and poor, sick and solitary, but especially to be sick and in sin, sick and under the curse of God, sick and destitute of grace to bear the affliction, and of comfort to counter-balance it - is a most deplorable case.

3. See him buried in disgrace. He reigned but eight years, and then departed without being desired, Ch2 21:20. Nobody valued him while he lived, none lamented him when he died, but all wished that no greater loss might ever come to Jerusalem. To show what little affection or respect they had for him, they would not bury him in the sepulchres of the kings, as thinking him unworthy to be numbered among them who had governed so ill. The excluding of his body from the sepulchres of his fathers might be ordered by Providence as an intimation of the everlasting separation of the souls of the wicked after death, from the spirits of just men. This further disgrace they put upon him, that they made no burning for him, like the burning of his fathers, Ch2 21:19. His memory was far from being sweet and precious to them, and therefore they did not honour it with any sweet odours or precious spices, though we may suppose that his dead body, after so long and loathsome a disease, needed something to perfume it. The generality of the people, though prone to idolatry, yet had no true kindness for their idolatrous kings. Wickedness and profaneness make men despicable even in the eyes of those who have but little religion themselves, while natural conscience itself often gives honour to those who are truly pious. Those that despise God shall be lightly esteemed, as Jehoram was.

Cross-references: 2Kgs 3:11 · 1Kgs 22:50 · 2Chr 21:12 · 2Chr 21:13 · 2Chr 21:14 · 2Chr 21:15 · 1Kgs 21:27 · 2Chr 21:17 · 2Chr 22:1 · Deut 28:58 · Deut 28:59 · 2Chr 21:20 · 2Chr 21:19

Hebrew interlinear

H859

אַתָּהʼattâh/at-taw'/

p — thou, thee, ye, you

Derivation: or (shortened); אַתָּ; or אַת; feminine (irregular) sometimes אַתִּי; plural masculine אַתֶּם; feminine אַתֶּן; or אַתֵּנָה; or אַתֵּנָּה; a primitive pronoun of the second person;

thou and thee, or (plural) ye and you

KJV: thee, thou, ye, you.

אַתְּ

pron. 2 s. f — thou

אַתְּ, אָ֑תְּ pron. 2 s. f. thou (fem.)

אַתָּ֫ה

pron. 2 s. m — thou

אַתָּ֫ה, אָ֑תָּה pron. 2 s. m. thou

אתי

thou

אתי, i.e. אתִּי, the older & more original form of אַתְּ thou (fem.)

אַתֶּם

pron. 2 m. pl — you

אַתֶּם pron. 2 m. pl. you (masc.)

אַתֵּן

pron. 2 f. pl — you

אַתֵּן pron. 2 f. pl. you (fem.)

H2483

חֳלִיchŏlîy/khol-ee'/

n-m — malady, anxiety, calamity

Derivation: from 2470;

malady, anxiety, calamity

KJV: disease, grief, (is) sick(-ness).

חֳלִי

n.m — sickness

חֳלִי n.m. sickness

H7227

רַבrab/rab/

a n-m — abundant

Derivation: by contracted from 7231;

abundant (in quantity, size, age, number, rank, quality)

KJV: (in) abound(-undance, -ant, -antly), captain, elder, enough, exceedingly, full, great(-ly, man, one), increase, long (enough, (time)), (do, have) many(-ifold, things, a time), (ship-)master, mighty, more, (too, very) much, multiply(-tude), officer, often(-times), plenteous, populous, prince, process (of time), suffice(-lent).

רַב

n.m — chief

רַב 49 n.m. chief

רַב

adj — much

רַב 429 adj. much, many, great

1. (oft. opp. מְעַט)

a.

(1). much: of substances

(2). esp. of collectives, numerous

b. pl. many

c. רַב as subst. coll. pers.

d. cstr. = abounding in

e. מִן comp. = more numerous than

f. רַב = abundant, enough

g. as adv. much, exceedingly

2. less oft. great

H4245

מַחֲלֶהmachăleh/makh-al-eh'/

n-m — sickness

Derivation: or (feminine) מַחֲלָה; from 2470;

sickness

KJV: disease, infirmity, sickness.

מַחֲלֶה

n.[m.] — sickness

[מַחֲלֶה] n.[m.] sickness, disease

מַחֲלָה

n.f — sickness

מַחֲלָה n.f. sickness, disease

H4578

מֵעֶהmêʻeh/may-aw'/

n-m — intestines, abdomen, sympathy, vest, stomach, uterus, heart

Derivation: from an unused root probably meaning to be soft;

used only in plural the intestines, or (collectively) the abdomen, figuratively, sympathy; by implication, a vest; by extension the stomach, the uterus (or of men, the seat of generation), the heart (figuratively)

KJV: belly, bowels, × heart, womb.

מֵעֶה

n.m — internal organs

[מֵעֶה] n.m. only pl. internal organs, inward parts (intestines, bowels), belly

H5704

עַדʻad/ad/

prep — as far, long, much, as, even unto, during, while, until, equally with

Derivation: properly, the same as 5703 (used as a preposition, adverb or conjunction; especially with a preposition);

as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)

KJV: against, and, as, at, before, by (that), even (to), for(-asmuch as), (hither-) to, how long, into, as long (much) as, (so) that, till, toward, until, when, while, ( as) yet.

עַד

prep — as far as

עַד, in poetry עֲדֵי prep. as far as, even to, up to, until, while

I. prep.

1. of space

2. Of time

3. Of degree

II. conj.

1. until

2. While

3. Of degree, to the point that, so that even (rare)

III. עַד לְ, a strengthened form for עַד. Thus

1. of space

2. Of time

3. Of degree

H3318

יָצָאyâtsâʼ/yaw-tsaw'/

v — go, bring, out

Derivation: a primitive root;

to go (causatively, bring) out, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively, direct and proxim.

KJV: × after, appear, × assuredly, bear out, × begotten, break out, bring forth (out, up), carry out, come (abroad, out, thereat, without), be condemned, depart(-ing, -ure), draw forth, in the end, escape, exact, fail, fall (out), fetch forth (out), get away (forth, hence, out), (able to, cause to, let) go abroad (forth, on, out), going out, grow, have forth (out), issue out, lay (lie) out, lead out, pluck out, proceed, pull out, put away, be risen, × scarce, send with commandment, shoot forth, spread, spring out, stand out, × still, × surely, take forth (out), at any time, × to (and fro), utter.

יָצָא

vb — go out

יָצָא 1068 vb. go or come out

Qal

1. go or come out or forth

a. from (מִן) a place

b. go forth from (the presence of) a person

c. in technical senses

d. of flight, involving escape

e. depart

f. of inanimate things

g. with especial emphasis on idea of origin, source

h. of children as going forth from loins (of father)

2.

a. go forth to a place

b. go forward, proceed to or toward something

c. come or go forth, with esp. ref. to purpose or result

3. of combinations

Hiph.

1. cause to go or come out, bring out, lead out

2. fig. obj. persons, bring out of (מִן) distress, etc.

3. bring out animals

4. inanimate obj.

5. fig. subj. י׳, bring forth from (מִן)

Hoph. be brought forth

H4480

מִןmin/min/

prep — part, from, out of

Derivation: or מִנִּי; or מִנֵּי; (constructive plural) (Isaiah 30:11); for 4482;

properly, a part of; hence (prepositionally), from or out of in many senses

KJV: above, after, among, at, because of, by (reason of), from (among), in, × neither, × nor, (out) of, over, since, × then, through, × whether, with.

מִן־

prep — out of

מִן־, and מִ, before יְ, prep. expressing the idea of separation, hence out of, from, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not

1. with verbs expressing (or implying) separation or removal

a. from, against

b. מן also, without a verb of similar significance, sometimes expresses the idea of separation, away from, far from

c. of position, off, on the side of, on

2. Out of, Gk. ἐκ, Lat. ex

3. Partitively

4. Of time

a. as marking the terminus a quo, the anterior limit of a continuous period from, since

b. as marking the period immediately succeeding the limit after

c. towards, to

5. (וְעַד) עַדמִן from … even to

6. In comparisons, beyond, above

7. מן is prefixed to an infin.:

a. with causal force, from, on account of, through

b. after verbs implying restraint, prevention, cessation, etc.

c. with a temporal force, since, after

8. Once as a conj. before a finite verb. that

9. In compounds:

מֵן

n. [m.] — portion

[מֵן] n. [m.] portion

H3117

יוֹםyôwm/yome/

n-m — day

Derivation: from an unused root meaning to be hot;

a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb)

KJV: age, always, chronicals, continually(-ance), daily, ((birth-), each, to) day, (now a, two) days (agone), elder, × end, evening, (for) ever(-lasting, -more), × full, life, as (so) long as (... live), (even) now, old, outlived, perpetually, presently, remaineth, × required, season, × since, space, then, (process of) time, as at other times, in trouble, weather, (as) when, (a, the, within a) while (that), × whole ( age), (full) year(-ly), younger.

יוֹם

n.m — day

יוֹם 2285 n.m. day

1. day, opp. night

2. Day as division of time

3. יוֹם י׳ day of Yahweh, chiefly as time of his coming in judgment, involving often blessedness for righteous

4. Pl. days of anyone

5. Days

6. יוֹם = time

7. Phrases

H5921

עַלʻal/al/

prep — above, over, upon, against

Derivation: properly, the same as 5920 used as a preposition (in the singular or plural often with prefix, or as conjunction with a particle following);

above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications

KJV: above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, × as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, × both and, by (reason of), × had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-) on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, × with.

כִּי עַל כֵּן

forasmuch as

כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as

עַל

subst — above

עַל, עָ֑ל

I. subst. height

II. As prep. upon, and hence on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against

1. Upon, of the substratum upon which an object in any way rests, or on which an action is performed

a.

(a). of clothing, etc., which any one wears

(b). With verbs of covering or protecting, even though the cover or veil be not over or above the thing covered, but around or before it

b. Of what rests heavily upon a person, or is a burden to him

c. Of a duty, payment, care, etc., imposed upon a person, or devolving on him

d. על is used idiom. to give pathos to the expression of an emotion, by emphasizing the person who is its subject, and who, as it were, feels it acting upon him

e. חָיָה עַל to live upon (as upon a foundation or support)

f. Of the ground or basis, on which a thing is done

2. It expresses excess

3. It denotes elevation or pre-eminence

4. It expresses addition

5. It expresses the idea of being extended, or suspended over anything, without however being in contact with it, above, over

6. From the sense of inclining or impending over, על comes to denote contiguity or proximity, Engl. by (or sts. on)

7. In connection with verbs of motion (actual or fig.)

8. By writers of the silver age, על is sts. used with the force of a dative

9. With other particles:

III. As conj.

a. עַל אֲשֶׁר because that

b. עַל כִּי similar in meaning, but less frequent

c. עַל alone:

(a). because

(b). notwithstanding that, although

IV. Compounds:

1. with כְּ (rare and late)

a. as concerning, as upon

b. the like of their deeds is the like of (that which) he will repay

2. מֵעַל from upon, from over, from by

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