2 Chronicles 18:18

18:18 Micaiah said, “That being the case, hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, with all the heavenly assembly standing on his right and on his left.

2 Chronicles 18:20

18:20 Then a spirit stepped forward and stood before the Lord. He said, ‘I will deceive him.’ The Lord asked him, ‘How?’

2 Chronicles 18:22

18:22 So now, look, the Lord has placed a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours; but the Lord has decreed disaster for you.”

2 Chronicles 20:4

20:4 The people of Judah assembled to ask for the Lord’s help; they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the Lord’s help.

2 Chronicles 24:19

24:19 The Lord sent prophets among them to lead them back to him. They warned the people, but they would not pay attention.

2 Chronicles 28:19

28:19 The Lord humiliated Judah because of King Ahaz of Israel, for he encouraged Judah to sin and was very 10  unfaithful to the Lord.

2 Chronicles 29:15

29:15 They assembled their brothers and consecrated themselves. Then they went in to purify the Lord’s temple, just as the king had ordered, in accordance with the word 11  of the Lord.

2 Chronicles 29:30

29:30 King Hezekiah and the officials told the Levites to praise the Lord, using the psalms 12  of David and Asaph the prophet. 13  So they joyfully offered praise and bowed down and worshiped.

2 Chronicles 32:25

32:25 But Hezekiah was ungrateful; he had a proud attitude, provoking God to be angry at him, as well as Judah and Jerusalem. 14 

2 Chronicles 33:2

33:2 He did evil in the sight of 15  the Lord and committed the same horrible sins practiced by the nations 16  whom the Lord drove out ahead of the Israelites.

2 Chronicles 34:15

34:15 Hilkiah informed Shaphan the scribe, “I found the law scroll in the Lord’s temple.” Hilkiah gave the scroll to Shaphan.

2 Chronicles 35:16

35:16 So all the preparations for the Lord’s service were made that day, as the Passover was observed and the burnt sacrifices were offered on the altar of the Lord, as prescribed by King Josiah.

2 Chronicles 36:7

36:7 Nebuchadnezzar took some of the items in the Lord’s temple to Babylon and put them in his palace 17  there. 18 


tn Heb “he”; the referent (Micaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

tn Heb “the spirit.” The significance of the article prefixed to רוּחַ (ruakh) is uncertain, but it could contain a clue as to this spirit’s identity, especially when interpreted in light of verse 23. It is certainly possible, and probably even likely, that the article is used in a generic or dramatic sense and should be translated, “a spirit.” In the latter case it would show that this spirit was vivid and definite in the mind of Micaiah the storyteller. However, if one insists that the article indicates a well-known or universally known spirit, the following context provides a likely referent. Verse 23 tells how Zedekiah slapped Micaiah in the face and then asked sarcastically, “Which way did the spirit from the Lord (רוּחַ־יְהוָה, ruakh-yÿhvah) go when he went from me to speak to you?” When the phrase “the spirit of the Lord” refers to the divine spirit (rather than the divine breath or mind, as in Isa 40:7, 13) elsewhere, the spirit energizes an individual or group for special tasks or moves one to prophesy. This raises the possibility that the deceiving spirit of vv. 20-22 is the same as the divine spirit mentioned by Zedekiah in v. 23. This would explain why the article is used on רוּחַ (ruakh); he can be called “the spirit” because he is the well-known spirit who energizes the prophets.

tn The words “the people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the people of Judah.

tn Heb “to seek from the Lord.” The verb here (בָּקַשׁ, baqash) is different from the one translated “seek” in v. 3 (דָּרַשׁ, darash).

tn Heb “to seek the Lord.” The verb here (ָָבּקַשׁ, baqash) is different from the one translated “seek” in v. 3 (דָּרַשׁ, darash).

tn Heb “and he sent among them prophets to bring them back to the Lord.”

tn Heb “testified among.”

tn Or “subdued.”

sn That is, “of Judah.” Frequently in 2 Chronicles “Israel” is substituted for “Judah.”

10 tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verbal form to emphasize the degree of Ahaz’s unfaithfulness.

11 tn Heb “words” (plural).

12 tn Heb “with the words.”

13 tn Or “seer.”

14 tn Heb “but not according to the benefit [given] to him did Hezekiah repay, for his heart was high, and there was anger against him and against Judah and Jerusalem.”

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15 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

16 tn Heb “like the abominable practices of the nations.”

17 tn Or “temple.”

18 tn Heb “in Babylon.” Repeating the proper name “Babylon” here would be redundant in contemporary English, so “there” has been used in the translation.