2 Kings 8:19

19 Yet for the sake of His servant David, the LORD was unwilling to destroy Judah, since He had promised to maintain a lamp for David and his descendants forever.

2 Kings 8:19 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 8:19

Yet the Lord would not destroy Judah for David his servant's
sake
Not for his merits, but for the mercy he assured him of:

as he promised him to give to him always a light, [and] to his
children;
or a kingdom, as the Targum; therefore he would not utterly destroy the tribe, nor suffer the sceptre or government to depart from it till the Messiah came, see ( Psalms 132:11 Psalms 132:17 ) .

2 Kings 8:19 In-Context

17 Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years.

18 And Jehoram walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For he married a daughter of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the LORD.

19 Yet for the sake of His servant David, the LORD was unwilling to destroy Judah, since He had promised to maintain a lamp for David and his descendants forever.

20 In the days of Jehoram, Edom rebelled against the hand of Judah and appointed their own king.

21 So Jehoram crossed over to Zair with all his chariots. When the Edomites surrounded him and his chariot commanders, he rose up and attacked by night. His troops, however, fled to their homes.