2 Chronicles 13 Study Notes

13:9 Abijah combined Jeroboam, the instigator, and his soldiers a generation later in his accusation. Both they and their usurper king shared the guilt for having banished the true priests and substituting their own priesthood. The description of how one could become a priest by paying the going price of a young bull and seven rams was intended to raise doubts in the soldiers’ minds about the wisdom of this practice.

13:10-12 In contrast, Abijah pointed out that he and his kingdom had retained the true priests of God, the descendants of Aaron, and that they were worshiping the true God. He mentioned the rituals of the temple, hoping that these references would induce the soldiers to understand that by having discarded their true legacy in favor of Jeroboam’s contrivances, they were pursuing a lost cause.

13:13-18 While Abijah was attempting to persuade the northern army to abandon the fight, his enemies sent soldiers into the rear of his army to close the trap. The army of Judah cried out, fought with desperation, and God took it from there. They killed more than half of Jeroboam’s army, but the Chronicler makes it clear that it was the Lord who was responsible for the victory.

13:19-20 Abijah and his army not only routed Jeroboam, but they also captured the town of Bethel—the southern sanctuary for Jeroboam’s golden calves. For Jeroboam, this was the beginning of the end. God judged him severely, and after he died, his son Nadab was assassinated after only two years on the throne (1Kg 13-14; 15:25-28).

13:21 Abijah’s reign was brief as well, but he remained powerful.

13:22 The Writing of the Prophet Iddo is not known to us.