2 Chronicles 12:12

12 Because Rehoboam was repentant, God's anger was blunted, so he wasn't totally destroyed. The picture wasn't entirely bleak - there were some good things going on in Judah.

2 Chronicles 12:12 Meaning and Commentary

2 Chronicles 12:12

And when he humbled himself
That is, Rehoboam; or broke his heart, as the Targum, was of a contrite spirit seemingly, for it was merely external:

the wrath of the Lord turned from him;
which appeared by the departure of Shishak's army:

that he would not destroy him altogether;
or make an utter destruction of him and his people:

and also in Judah things went well;
prospered and succeeded after this affair of Shishak was over: or "in Judah there were good things" F16; there were some good men, priests, Levites, and many of the common people, that did good things, kept up and abode by the pure worship and service of God; and which was another reason why the Lord would not destroy them altogether now, see ( Genesis 18:31 Genesis 18:32 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F16 (Mybwj Myrbd) "opera bona", V. L. "res bonae", Tigurine version, Vatablus, Rambachius.

2 Chronicles 12:12 In-Context

10 King Rehoboam replaced the gold shields with bronze shields and gave them to the guards who were posted at the entrance to the royal palace.
11 Whenever the king went to God's Temple, the guards went with him carrying the shields, but they always returned them to the guardroom.
12 Because Rehoboam was repentant, God's anger was blunted, so he wasn't totally destroyed. The picture wasn't entirely bleak - there were some good things going on in Judah.
13 King Rehoboam regrouped and reestablished his rule in Jerusalem. He was forty-one years old when he became king and continued as king for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city God chose out of all the tribes of Israel as the special presence of his Name. His mother was Naamah from Ammon.
14 But the final verdict on Rehoboam was that he was a bad king - God was not important to him; his heart neither cared for nor sought after God.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.