2-Chronicles - 13:12



12 Behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests with the trumpets of alarm to sound an alarm against you. Children of Israel, don't fight against Yahweh, the God of your fathers; for you shall not prosper."

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of 2-Chronicles 13:12.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
And, behold, God himself is with us for our captain, and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the LORD God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.
Therefore God is the leader in our army, and his priests who sound with trumpets, and resound against you: O children of Israel, fight not against the Lord the God of your fathers, for it is not good for you.
And behold, we have God with us at our head, and his priests, and the loud-sounding trumpets to sound an alarm against you. Children of Israel, do not fight with Jehovah the God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.
And lo, with us, at our head, is God, and His priests and trumpets of shouting to shout against you; O sons of Israel, do not fight with Jehovah, God of your fathers, for ye do not prosper.'
And now God is with us at our head, and his priests with their loud horns sounding against you. O children of Israel, do not make war on the Lord, the God of your fathers, for it will not go well for you.
Therefore, God is the commander of our army, with his priests, who sound the trumpets that ring out against you. O sons of Israel, do not choose to fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers. For it is not expedient for you."

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

God himself is with us - Ye have golden calves; we have the living and omnipotent Jehovah.
With - trumpets to cry alarm against you - This was appalling: When the priests sound their trumpets, it will be a proof that the vengeance of the Lord shall speedily descend upon you.

And, behold, God himself [is] (l) with us for [our] captain, and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the LORD God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.
(l) Because their cause was good and approved by the Lord, they did not doubt the success and victory.

And, behold, God himself is with us for our Captain,.... To go before our armies, and fight our battles for us:
and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you; which was one use of the trumpets, that the people might be remembered by the Lord, and saved from their enemies, Numbers 10:9, so that this circumstance was against Jeroboam and his army, and for Abijah and his:
O children of Israel, fight ye not against the Lord God of your fathers; for fighting against his people, that retained the pure worship of him, was fighting against him:
for you shall not prosper; he seems to be assured of victory.

Abijah draws from all this the conclusion: "Behold, with us at our head are (not the two calves of gold, but) God (האלהים with the article, the true God) and His priests, and the alarm-trumpets to sound against you." He mentions the trumpets as being the divinely appointed pledges that God would remember them in war, and would deliver them from their enemies, Numbers 10:9. Then he closes with a warning to the Israelites not to strive with Jahve, the God of their fathers.

Trumpets - Upon the sounding whereof God hath solemnly promised to assist his people, Numbers 10:9. The Lord - You have not only us for your enemies, but God, even the God whom your fathers served. It is folly to fight against the God of almighty power: but it is treachery and base ingratitude, to fight against your father's God.

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