2 Chronicles 14:11

11 Then Asa cried out to the LORD his God, "LORD, only you can help the weak against the powerful. Help us, LORD our God, because we rely on you and we have marched against this multitude in your name. You are the LORD our God. Don't let a mere human stand against you!"

2 Chronicles 14:11 Meaning and Commentary

2 Chronicles 14:11

And Asa cried unto the Lord his God
Or prayed, as the Targum, with vehemence, being in distress; this he did before the battle began, at the head of his army, and for the encouragement of it:

and said, Lord, [it is] nothing with thee to help;
nothing can hinder from helping, his power being superior to all others, and even infinite, and none besides him could:

whether with many, or with them that have no power;
numbers make no difference with him, nor the condition they are in; whether numerous and mighty, or few and feeble; he can as easily help the one as the other, see ( 1 Samuel 14:6 ) ,

help us, O Lord our God;
who are few and weak in comparison of the enemy:

for we rest on thee;
trust in thee, and rely upon thee for help; the Targum is,

``on thy Word we lean:''

and in thy name we go against this multitude;
expressing faith in him, expecting help from him, encouraging and strengthening themselves in him, going forth not in their own name and strength, but in his; the Targum is,

``in the name of the Word of the Lord:''

O Lord, thou [art] our God:
and thou only we know, and serve no other, and we are thy people, called by thy name: let not man prevail against thee;
for should this enemy prevail against them, it would be interpreted prevailing against their God.

2 Chronicles 14:11 In-Context

9 Zerah the Cushite marched against him with an army of one million men and three hundred chariots. When he got as far as Mareshah,
10 Asa marched against him, setting up for battle in a valley north of Mareshah.
11 Then Asa cried out to the LORD his God, "LORD, only you can help the weak against the powerful. Help us, LORD our God, because we rely on you and we have marched against this multitude in your name. You are the LORD our God. Don't let a mere human stand against you!"
12 So the LORD struck the Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled.
13 Asa and his troops chased them as far as Gerar. The Cushites fell until there were no survivors. They were completely crushed by the LORD and his army, who carried off a huge amount of loot,

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Heb uncertain; or it is not with you to help between the many and the powerless.
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