2 Chronicles 12:7

7 And when the Lord had seen that they were meeked, the word of the Lord was made to Shemaiah, and said, For they be meeked, I shall not destroy them, and I shall give to them a little help, and my strong vengeance shall not drop upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. (And when the Lord had seen that they were humbled, the word of the Lord was made to Shemaiah, and said, For they be humbled, I shall not destroy them, and I shall give them a little help, and my strong vengeance shall not drop upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.)

2 Chronicles 12:7 Meaning and Commentary

2 Chronicles 12:7

And when the Lord saw that they humbled themselves
Though but externally; the Lord takes notice of external humiliation, as he did of Ahab's, ( 1 Kings 21:29 ) ,

the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying, they have humbled
themselves, therefore I will not destroy them;
not now, at least not altogether, ( 2 Chronicles 12:12 ) ,

but I will grant them some deliverance;
yet not a complete one, for they were brought into servitude by Shishak, ( 2 Chronicles 12:8 ) , or only for a short time:

and my wrath shall not be poured out against Jerusalem by the hand of
Shishak;
that is, to the uttermost; that was reserved to another time, and to be done by another hand, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

2 Chronicles 12:7 In-Context

5 And Shemaiah, the prophet, entered to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, which, fleeing from Shishak, were gathered together in Jerusalem. And he said to them, The Lord saith these things, Ye have forsaken me, and I have forsaken you in the hand of Shishak. (And the prophet Shemaiah went in to Rehoboam, and to the leaders of Judah, who, fleeing from Shishak, were gathered together in Jerusalem. And he said to them, The Lord saith these things, Ye have deserted me, and so now I have deserted you unto the power of Shishak.)
6 And the princes of Israel and the king were astonished, and said, The Lord is just. (And Israel's leaders and the king were astonished, but they said, The Lord is just.)
7 And when the Lord had seen that they were meeked, the word of the Lord was made to Shemaiah, and said, For they be meeked, I shall not destroy them, and I shall give to them a little help, and my strong vengeance shall not drop upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. (And when the Lord had seen that they were humbled, the word of the Lord was made to Shemaiah, and said, For they be humbled, I shall not destroy them, and I shall give them a little help, and my strong vengeance shall not drop upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.)
8 Nevertheless they shall serve him, that they know the diversity of my service, and of the service of the realm of lands. (But they shall still serve him, so that they know the difference between serving me, and serving the rulers of other lands.)
9 Therefore Shishak, the king of Egypt, went away from Jerusalem, after that he had taken away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king's house; and he took all things with him, and (even) the gold shields which Solomon had made,
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.