And Pekah the son of Remaliah slew in Judah a hundred and twenty thousand in one day, all valiant men, because they had forsaken Jehovah the God of their fathers.
Ahaz had turned Judah to idols, and this verse records the cost: 120,000 fighting men killed in one day by Pekah of Israel. It also names the reason. The defeat was not a failure of strategy. It was a nation that had let go of the God of its fathers.
The dead were not raw recruits. One writer notes that Judah lost its best troops. The king escaped the battle, but he did not escape the blow:
The 120,000 killed in one day were the best of Ahaz's army, and they fell "because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers." Though the king himself escaped, God's rod reached him through his son: "And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son." He also killed the "commander of the palace" and "Elkanah the next in authority to the king." How, or where, we do not know. God can find the guilty where and when He will.
The sword that fell on Judah belonged to Israel — the northern kingdom, the same family. A commentator writing on Pekah's reign draws out what that means:
Though Pekah was unable to resist Assyria, he did have the more questionable distinction of killing … men of Judah in one day! How often it seems we do more damage to our own brothers than we do to the power of our enemies!
The killing was massive, yet Jerusalem never fell. One writer explains why, and what the attackers were really after:
The record here does not clash with 2 Kings 16:5, which says the allied kings could not overcome Ahaz. They could not get into the city, and they could not reach the king in person, though they entered the land. When Scripture says God handed him over and they struck him, it means his people and his kingdom. Their aim was to remove king Ahaz from the throne and set up "the son of Tabeel" in his place. (Tabeel was probably a Syrian; it is not a Hebrew name.) It was surely Satan's plot, if not man's, to destroy the line of David; and for this reason God did not give Jerusalem into their hands. But the killing and enslaving of the people across the whole kingdom was almost without parallel. That is why Isaiah took with him his son Shear-jashub (the remnant shall return) when he went out to meet king Ahaz.
The judgment was severe, but it had a limit.
The same reign that produced this massacre also produced one of the most famous promises in Scripture. A reference work on Ahaz puts the two side by side:
The house of David was ripening for judgment. Israel's army killed 120,000 in one day and carried 200,000 women and children off to Samaria. A prophet named Oded won their release. God's mercy still lingered over Judah. He gave Ahaz the sign that "the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Everything was failing in Judah as well as in Israel, yet God had One in view through whom blessing would finally be secured.
Defeat on this scale should have driven a king to his knees. It did the opposite. Summarising the whole chapter, one writer traces the pattern:
The reign of Ahaz forms a turning point. He forsakes Jehovah entirely and gives himself up wholly to idolatry. The more God strikes him, the more he sins against Him. He is handed over to the Syrians, and to Pekah, the king of Israel. In the second case, however, God steps in to rescue at least the captives. The Edomites, and afterwards the Philistines, invade Judah. All this distress leads Ahaz to seek help from the king of Assyria, who only brought him into greater trouble.
One writer follows Ahaz's slide to the end, then turns it on the reader:
He was handed over to the king of Syria and to the king of Israel. They struck him with a great slaughter, "because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers." He had turned away from Jehovah, and now he adds to his wickedness by looking to the world for help… How rapid the downward course! "And in the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD — this same King Ahaz." And this is the downward course of every heart that departs from the living God. Sin cannot be played with.
- Cause — The verse names the reason for the defeat, not just the body count. They had forsaken the Lord, and courage could not cover that gap.
- Sword — The blow came through Israel, their own kin. We often do more damage to our own brothers than to our enemies.
- Limit — Jerusalem did not fall. God would not let the line of David be destroyed, so the judgment had a limit.
- Mercy — In the same reign the captives went home and God gave the sign of Immanuel. Mercy still lingered over a guilty nation.
- Warning — Ahaz was struck and grew worse, not better. That is the road of any heart that walks away from the living God.
And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maaseiah the king's son, and Azrikam the governor of the house, and Elkanah the second to the king.
Ahaz had led Judah into open idolatry, and this verse records part of the cost. One raider from the northern kingdom killed three of the highest men in Judah — so why did God let the nation's leaders fall, and what was He saying to a king who would not listen?
The narrative does not treat this as bad luck in battle. It names a cause, and one writer traces it through the whole sequence of defeats Ahaz suffered.
Jotham dies, and Ahaz takes his place — a godless son who "walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made metal images for the Baals" (2 Chronicles 28). Not satisfied with that, he brought the pattern of a new altar down from Damascus into the very house of God. But God struck him.
Ahaz himself came out of the war alive. One writer shows where the blow landed instead.
"Pekah the son of Remaliah killed 120,000 from Judah in one day, all of them men of valor" — the best of Ahaz's army — "because they had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers." The king himself escaped. But God's rod reached him through his son: "And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son." He also killed the "commander of the palace," and "Elkanah the next in authority to the king." How, or where, we do not know. God can find the guilty where and when He will.
Three of the highest men in the kingdom fell to a single attacker. The one called governor of the house held a specific post in Ahaz's administration.
Governor of the house of king Ahaz: he was slain when the Israelites and Syrians invaded the land. 2 Chr. 28:7.
The death of the king's son was not just a private grief. The two attacking kings had a political aim, and one writer explains why they never took Jerusalem.
These statements do not clash with 2 Kings 16:5, which says these allied kings "could not overcome him." They could not get into the city, nor reach the king himself, though they did enter the land. "God delivered him," and "they struck him," means his people and his kingdom… The aim of "these two smoldering stumps of firebrands" was to dethrone king Ahaz and set up "the son of Tabeal" in his place… It was doubtless Satan's plot, if not man's, to destroy the line of David. For this reason God did not deliver Jerusalem into their hands.
God's answer to that plot went far beyond keeping one family on the throne.
Not only will a remnant return, but the promised Seed, the virgin's Son, will be born. Immanuel was an unfailing assurance that no alliance could ever put down David's house. Messiah, Son of David, is the divine guarantee. The virgin must bear Him from that family line. And the virgin's Son must also be, in some true though mysterious way, God Himself. Immanuel makes sure that God's purpose of blessing will stand and hold firm for ever.
Losses on this scale should have driven Ahaz to his knees. One writer puts the obvious question to him.
The damage done to Judah must have been staggering! Syria killed many men and carried off great numbers as captives. Then Israel killed 120,000 and took 200,000 captives. Why did Ahaz not realize that this was a judgment from God, and turn to the Lord in repentance? But his heart remained hard as a stone.
One writer sums up the whole reign in two lines.
The reign of Ahaz marks a turning point. He forsakes the Lord completely and gives himself up wholly to idolatry. The more God strikes him, the more he sins against Him.
- Cause — Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. God struck Ahaz for the idolatry he led them into.
- Rod — Ahaz escaped capture. The rod still reached him through his own son. God can find the guilty where and when He will.
- Reach — One raider killed the king's son, the palace commander, and the man next in authority. The judgment went straight to the top.
- Target — Behind the raid lay a plan to dethrone Ahaz and put the son of Tabeal in his place. God kept Jerusalem out of their hands, because the line of David was at stake.
- Guarantee — Immanuel, the virgin's Son, was God's answer. No alliance could ever put down David's house.
And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took away also much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.
Under Ahaz, Judah suffered a crushing defeat, and Israel marched 200,000 of its women and children off to Samaria, the northern capital. Judah's captors were its own kin — so why did God allow it, and what right had they to enslave their own people?
This defeat was not about Israel's military strength. One writer traces the loss to Judah's abandoning of the LORD, and notes that the blow reached the king's own family:
"Pekah the son of Remaliah killed 120,000 from Judah in one day, all of them men of valor" — the best of Ahaz's army — "because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers." The king himself escaped, but God's rod reached him through his son: "And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son." How, or where, we do not know. God can find the guilty where and when He will.
These captives were Israel's own relatives. The northern kingdom had already abandoned God, yet here Judah is the more ruined of the two:
It was the sin of Ahaz that made him prominent. Among the things that came out at that time was Judah's decline: "For the LORD humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, because he had made Judah open to attack and had been unfaithful to the LORD." The record calls Ahaz king of Israel — that was his position before God, for the ten tribes had abandoned God. Judah was the Israel of God, yet Judah was left open to attack, never so low as now, even lower than the Israel that had abandoned Him.
Winning the battle did not give Israel a free hand. God's law had already ruled out their plan. Oded's message named two angers — God's at Judah, and God's at Israel:
Israel had the upper hand, and they were bent on doing all they could to humiliate their brothers in Judah. But God sent the prophet Oded to the army of Israel with a solemn message. He told them that, because the Lord was angry with Judah, He had allowed Israel to crush them. But Israel's rage against Judah had reached up to heaven, and now they were planning to force the women and children into slavery. Israel's law had forbidden them to make slaves of other Israelites (Lev. 25:39). Did the Israelites think Judah's sin against the Lord made it right to enslave them? Oded answered by reminding Israel that they were guilty before God too (v. 10).
Being God's instrument of judgment is not a license.
Oded spoke at the worst possible moment for his message — in the middle of a victory celebration:
Chronicles alone records the prophet Oded, and who he was we do not know. He was a true and courageous prophet of the LORD in the middle of idol-worshipping Samaria, a place rushing toward the doom foretold for it. Only a true prophet clothed with the Spirit of power could deliver such a daring message. It came at a time of victory and excitement, and it was bound to humble the people.
The plunder carried to Samaria does not stay plunder. A few verses later, Israel spends it on the very people they stripped it from:
This is a noble example of the power of love in the most corrupt days of Judah. Instead of slavery, the moving appeals of the Lord's prophet set every captive free. And Israel did more than free them — they showed them every mark of tender affection: "with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. They clothed them, gave them sandals, provided them with food and drink, and anointed them, and carrying all the feeble among them on donkeys, they brought them to their kinsfolk at Jericho, the city of palm trees."
Ahaz had every reason to soften. He lost the war, and then the victors showed him mercy. Neither moved him:
The Lord dealt with Judah by letting Syria and Israel devastate them. Then Israel showed Judah kindness by returning the captives. Even so, Ahaz did not turn to the Lord. It seems he stayed as cold and hard as before. Some men are so completely sold to do evil that they only grow harder. God appeals to them again and again, patiently, and they still do not respond.
- Cause — Judah lost 120,000 men and 200,000 captives "because they had forsaken the LORD." God allowed the enemy's strength; the enemy never held the real power.
- Reversal — God brought Judah, the Israel of God, lower than the tribes that had abandoned Him. The record even calls Ahaz "king of Israel."
- Limit — God used Israel to discipline His people, but that gave Israel no right to enslave them. The law forbade making slaves of fellow Israelites, and their rage "reached up to heaven."
- Voice — God still had Oded inside idol-worshipping Samaria, brave enough to humble a nation in its hour of victory.
- Result — The spoil became clothing, food and donkeys for the captives. Ahaz saw both judgment and kindness, and hardened further still.
But a prophet of Jehovah was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out before the host that came to Samaria, and said unto them, Behold, because Jehovah the God of your fathers was wroth with Judah, he gave them into your hand, and ye have slain them in a rage that reaches up to heaven.
Israel's army has just killed 120,000 men of Judah in one day. It is marching home to Samaria with 200,000 women and children as prisoners, and a prophet named Oded steps out to meet the troops with God's verdict on their victory.
Samaria was the capital of a kingdom that had turned to idols. Even there, at the height of its triumph, God had a man ready to speak.
This interesting record of the prophet Oded appears only in Chronicles. Who Oded was we do not know. He was a true and courageous prophet of Jehovah in the middle of idolatrous Samaria. That city was moving fast toward the doom God had predicted for it. Only a true prophet clothed with the Spirit of power could deliver such a daring message. It was designed to humble the people at a moment of victory and excitement.
Oded's first word is "Behold" — and what he points to is not Israel's army but God's anger with Judah. God handed them the win, and it came with limits they had already broken.
Having the upper hand, Israel was bent on doing everything in their power to humiliate their brothers in Judah. But God sent the prophet Oded to the army of Israel with a solemn message. He told them that, because the Lord was angry with Judah, He had allowed Israel to defeat them soundly. But Israel's rage against Judah had reached up to heaven, and now they were planning to force the women and children into slavery. Israel's law had forbidden them to make slaves of other Israelites (Lev. 25:39). Did the Israelites think that because Judah had sinned against the Lord, it was therefore right to make them slaves? Oded answered that by reminding Israel that they were guilty before God too.
"A rage that has reached up to heaven" describes a punishment that outran its commission. God can use a nation without approving of that nation.
In God's governmental ways with nations He may use one as His rod to punish another. We see this again and again in Old Testament Scriptures. But woe to the nation so used if she becomes lifted up with pride over it. God rules with justice, and He will just as surely humble her in her turn, and rightly so. For of all alike it is true that there are "sins with you, even with you, against the Lord your God."
The prophet does not stop at Judah's guilt. He turns the victors around to face their own record, and one writer applies that to anyone who enjoys denouncing others.
It is pleasant and easy to sit in the judge's seat and denounce the vices of others. It is easy to wonder why God does not stop them, and even to criticise Him for seeming to do nothing, as though we were more righteous than He is. It is easy to point the finger at the enemy and cry, "You are the man." But what if some prophetic voice answered our accusation, as one did long ago: "Are there not with you, even with you, sins against the Lord your God?"
The same question reaches nations at war with each other.
He who sits on the throne judging righteously is displeased with them all. But suppose one nation — just one — would face up to its own condition in His sight. Suppose it admitted its many transgressions and its long contempt for the things of God. Then He would forgive, and peace and quiet would return. Mutual accusations lead nowhere. To nations inclined to accuse and destroy their neighbours, the prophet Oded's words in 2 Chron. 28:9-11 may well have a voice.
The prophet's appeal changed the conduct of a whole army.
Here is a noble example of the power of love in the most corrupt days of Judah. The prophet Oded met the children of Israel carrying into captivity two hundred thousand of their brothers... But instead of slavery, the moving appeals of the Lord's prophet set them all free. They were not only set free, but treated with every mark of tender affection... they clothed all who were naked among them, dressed them and gave them sandals. They gave them food and drink and anointed them. They carried all the feeble on donkeys and brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brothers.
- Handed over. Israel did not win by its own strength. God was angry with Judah and gave them into Israel's hand.
- Handed too far. The rod went past its orders. The slaughter became a rage that reached heaven, and the plan to enslave brothers broke God's own law.
- Hand turned back. God humbles in turn the nation He uses as His rod, if that nation grows proud.
- Held to the mirror. The prophet's question stops the accuser mid-sentence: the sins to deal with first are the ones "with you, even with you."
- Hands opened. Israel heard the word and acted. They fed the captives, clothed them and carried them home. Love took the place of mutual accusation.
And now ye think to subjugate the children of Judah and Jerusalem as your bondmen and bondwomen. Are there not with you, even with you, trespasses against Jehovah your God?
Israel's army had beaten Judah and was marching the captured women and children home as prizes of war. A prophet named Oded stepped into the road and stopped them with one question about their own sins.
Israel had just won a crushing battle. One commentator traces what Oded told the winning army about that victory.
Israel had the upper hand, and was set on doing all they could to humiliate their brothers in Judah. But God sent the prophet Oded to the army of Israel with a solemn message. He told them that the Lord was angry with Judah, and so had let Israel defeat them badly. Israel's rage against Judah had reached up to heaven. Now they were planning to force the women and children into slavery. Israel's law had forbidden them to make slaves of other Israelites (Lev. 25:39). Did they think that because Judah had sinned against the Lord, it was right to make them slaves? Oded answered that by reminding Israel that they too were guilty before God.
God had handed Judah over to Israel. But the handover had a limit. One writer describes the line God draws around any instrument He uses on His own people.
God will not allow the nations to treat His poor straying people outrageously. He will use them as His rod of discipline. But the moment they give way to their own bitter hatred and go past the limit He appointed, He will break the rod in pieces. He will make it plain to everyone that He Himself is dealing with His beloved but straying people, for their final blessing and His glory.
Another writer applies this to nations. He shows what happens when the nation God uses grows proud of being used.
In God's government of the nations He may use one nation as His rod to punish another. We see this again and again in the Old Testament. But it will go badly for the nation so used if she becomes proud of it. God rules with justice, and just as surely she will be justly humiliated in her turn. For of all alike it is true that there are "sins with you, even with you against the Lord your God" (2 Chr. 28:10).
Oded ends by asking about Israel's own sins. Older translations keep his repeated words: "Are there not with you, even with you, sins against the Lord your God?" That repetition turns the punishment back on the punishers. The same question, one writer says, still waits for anyone who enjoys passing sentence on someone else.
It is pleasant and easy to sit in the judge's seat and condemn the faults of others. It is easy to wonder why God does not stop them, and even to criticize Him for seeming to do nothing, as though we were more righteous than He. It is easy to point the finger at the enemy and cry, "You are the man." But what if, in answer to our accusations, a challenge rang out from some prophet's lips, as of old, "Are there not with you, even with you, sins against the Lord your God?"
Oded's words were not only a rebuke. They opened a door, and one writer shows where it leads.
He who sits on the throne and judges righteously is displeased with all the nations. But if any nation — even one — would face its own condition in His sight, and admit its many sins and its long contempt for the things of God, He would forgive, and peace and quiet would return. Nations trading accusations get nowhere. To nations disposed to accuse and destroy their neighbours, the prophet Oded's words in 2 Chron. 28:9-11 may well have a voice.
The word landed. Israel had turned from God altogether, yet some among them saw that keeping these captives would pile new guilt on old.
Israel had taken the place of those who had abandoned God. Yet it still had some righteous men who felt their position — men of weight and influence, who would not add to their trespass by keeping the captives from Judah. "Our trespass" was no doubt their great trespass in rebelling against the house of David. The rebuke from Oded and the protest of the four princes sent the captives home. Israel seemed more open to correction than Judah.
- Delivered — Israel won because God was angry with Judah and gave Judah into their hand. The win was a loan, not a verdict of approval.
- Exceeded — God uses a nation as His rod of discipline. He breaks the rod the moment it gives way to its own hatred and passes the limit He set.
- Even with you — the guilt of the punished never erases the guilt of the punisher. Oded's question denies Israel the judge's seat.
- Enslaved — the plan to hold brothers as slaves broke Israel's own law, so the punishment they planned was itself the next sin.
- Answered — a few men took the word to heart, refused to add to their trespass, and sent the captives home. The question can be answered, not just resented.
And now hear me, and send back the captives again, whom ye have taken captive of your brethren; for the fierce wrath of Jehovah is upon you.
The prophet Oded met an army flushed with victory and told them to hand back the 200,000 relatives they had just carried home as captives. He did not say Judah was innocent. He said Israel was guilty too, and that God's anger now rested on them.
Israel had won because God allowed it. Oded's message was about what they planned to do next.
The Lord stepped in to stop Israel from going too far in their harsh treatment of Judah. Israel had the upper hand, and they meant to humiliate their relatives in Judah in every way they could. But God sent the prophet Oded to Israel's army with a solemn message. He told them that, because the Lord was angry with Judah, He had allowed Israel to soundly defeat them. But Israel's rage against Judah had reached up to heaven, and now they were planning to force the women and children into slavery. Israel's law had forbidden them to make slaves of other Israelites (Lev. 25:39). Did the Israelites think that because Judah had sinned against the Lord, therefore it was right to make them slaves? But Oded answered this by reminding Israel that they also were guilty before God (v. 10). Therefore, he told them, return those captives to Judah, for the fierce wrath of God was against their plan to make slaves of them (v. 11).
The rescue is credited to God Himself, not to Israel's better feelings.
He is delivered into the hands of the Syrians, and into the hand of Pekah, the king of Israel. In the latter case, however, God interposes for the rescue at least of the captives.
Oded pressed the victors about their own sins before God. That question reaches beyond Israel.
He who sits on the throne and judges righteously is displeased with all the nations. But if any nation — even one — would face up to its own condition in His sight, and own its many transgressions and its long contempt for things divine, He would forgive. Peace and quietness would return. Trading accusations leads nowhere. To nations disposed to accuse and destroy their neighbours, the prophet Oded's words in 2 Chron. 28:9-11 may well have a voice.
It took nerve to say this to a celebrating army in Samaria, the capital of a kingdom that had abandoned God.
Only Chronicles gives this interesting record of the prophet Oded. Who Oded was we do not know. He was a true and courageous prophet of the LORD, while idolatrous Samaria rushed so quickly toward its predicted doom. Only a true prophet clothed with the Spirit of power could speak such a daring message. It came at a time of victory and excitement, and its aim was to humble the people.
Four leaders in Israel backed the prophet. Their concern was their own account with God, not Judah's.
Israel had taken the place of a nation that had turned away from God. Yet it still had some righteous men who felt their position. They were men of weight and influence, and they would not let Israel add to its trespass by keeping the captives from Judah. "Our trespass" was no doubt their great trespass in rebelling against the house of David. Oded's rebuke and the four princes' protest send the captives home. Israel seemed to be more open than Judah to correction.
Obedience went further than the prophet had asked.
The prophet Oded met the Israelites as they carried 200,000 of their relatives from Judah and Jerusalem into captivity, including women, sons, and daughters. But instead of slavery, the moving appeals of the Lord's prophet won them all their freedom. And not only freedom: they were treated with every mark of tender affection. "And the men who were mentioned by name rose up and took the captives, and with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. They dressed them, gave them sandals, and gave them food and drink. They anointed them, put all the weak ones on donkeys, and brought them to their relatives at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria."
Israel handed the captives back. That did not settle their account with God.
How many and how great were Israel's sins! "The fierce wrath of the LORD is upon you" — and within a few short years they themselves were carried captive beyond Babylon.
Judah, meanwhile, watched its own people come home fed and clothed and drew no lesson from it.
The return of the captives and the cause of it could have been no secret to Judah and Ahaz; but it had no effect on the dull hearts of the men of Judah. They were already feeling the judgment of God. They might not have noticed it, yet the judgment was just as visible. For the LORD was calling them to remember His goodness, by making the Israelites send the captives of Judah back fed and clothed.
- Wrath moves. God's anger handed Judah over to Israel. Then Israel's rage turned that same anger on the victors. The fierce wrath now rests on them.
- Your own sins. Oded does not deny Judah's guilt. But Israel carried sins against God too. A beaten brother's sin gave them no right to enslave him.
- Permission has limits. God allowed Israel to win. He did not allow their rage, and He did not allow their plan to enslave the women and children — their own law forbade enslaving fellow Israelites.
- Hear and release. Four leaders of weight and influence owned their own great trespass and sent the captives home — clothed, fed, and carried to Jericho. Obedience turned into kindness.
- Two hearers, two ends. Israel listened, yet went into captivity a few years later. Judah saw its own people come home and stayed unmoved. Mercy shown is not the same as mercy received.
And certain of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, and Hezekiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against them that came from the war,
Israel's army is marching home with 200,000 captives from Judah, and the prophet Oded has just told them to send the prisoners back. Verse 12 names four men of Ephraim who block the road — leaders of a kingdom that had turned away from God.
God sent the rebuke through a prophet. The question was who in Israel would answer it — the king, Pekah, or someone else.
The Lord sent the prophet Oded to rebuke the men of Israel and to tell them to send back their captives. We read of no response from Pekah. But four of the heads of the children of Ephraim publicly acknowledged their nation's guilt before the Lord... It is good to see, even at this low point in Israel's history, a remnant responding to the word of the Lord.
These men had no royal order behind them, and they did not send for one.
Pekah, the king of Israel, is not mentioned as having anything to do with the protest of these four men. It is good to see that they did the right thing without consulting the king. Their word had good effect on the warriors. The soldiers left the captives and the spoil for the leaders to do with as they saw fit.
Their argument is not that Judah is innocent. It is that Israel already owes more than it can pay. One writer traces that debt back to Israel's break with the house of David.
Israel had taken an apostate place before God. Yet Israel still had some righteous men who felt their position. They were men of weight and influence, and they would not add to their trespass by keeping the captives from Judah. "Our trespass" was no doubt their great trespass in rebelling against the house of David... Israel seemed to be more open to correction than Judah. With some of them, at least, memory drew out a confession. They remembered what they had been under David, and how they had sinned and forfeited every mercy promised in the covenant when they rebelled against Rehoboam. So they said, "for our trespass is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel."
Older translations read "trespass" here, where the ESV has "guilt."
Samaria was a city sunk in idol worship. That is what makes this scene surprising.
Here is faithfulness and denunciation of sin where one might least expect it — in the city of Samaria, and from leaders, heads of the people. There were not ten righteous men in Sodom; and Samaria, one might think, was not much better. But not everyone there had bowed the knee to Baal. These men speak for truth and right with boldness, right in the face of a returning, victorious army... The righteous Lord who loves righteousness has seen to it that these men of tender heart and upright conscience should be "mentioned by name." The God of Israel has placed this incident on eternal record, so that people might know that He never forgets a kindness done to His people, even while they suffer the just punishment of their sins.
Stopping the wrong was only half of it. The prophet's appeal changed what happened to the captives.
Here is a noble example of the power of love in the most degenerate times of Judah... But in place of slavery, through the touching appeals of the Lord's prophet, they were all set at liberty, and not only at liberty, but with every mark of tender affection.
God meant this kindness as a call to Judah. King Ahaz read nothing in it.
The return of the captives and the cause of it could have been no secret to Judah and Ahaz; but it had no effect on the dull hearts of the men of Judah, who were already feeling the judgment of God. They may not have realised it, but the judgment was plain. The LORD was calling them to remember His goodness. He did this by causing the Israelites to send Judah's captives home fed and clothed. Yet "At that time King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help."
- Warning — God sent Oded to a victorious army. The king gave no answer, so the word fell to others to obey.
- Standing — four heads of Ephraim did the right thing without asking the king, and the armed men handed over both captives and plunder.
- Trespass — their reason was not Judah's guilt but their own. Their debt was already great, and they would not add to it.
- Mercy — the protest did not stop at refusal. The captives went home clothed, fed and carried, with every mark of tender affection.
- Refusal — the same kindness left Ahaz unmoved. He sent to Assyria instead, while God kept these four names on eternal record.
and said to them, Ye shall not bring in the captives hither; because, for our guilt before Jehovah, ye think to increase our sins and our trespasses for our trespass is great, and fierce wrath is upon Israel.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
Then the armed men left the captives and the spoil before the princes and all the congregation.
An army of Israel had just crushed Judah and marched home with 200,000 captives. In this verse those soldiers set both prisoners and plunder down in front of their own leaders — so what changed their minds?
The rebuke that stopped this army came from inside the northern kingdom, not from Jerusalem.
Here is faithfulness, and open condemnation of sin, where one might least expect it — in the city of Samaria, and from leaders, heads of the people. There were not ten righteous men in Sodom; and Samaria, one might think, was not much better. But not all there had bowed the knee to Baal. These men speak for truth and right with boldness, straight in the face of a returning, victorious army. And their words have the effect they aimed at, because the wicked will sometimes listen to the words of the righteous in a most wonderful way.
The prophet was a man named Oded. His message landed while the army was celebrating a win.
Who Oded was we do not know. He was a true and courageous prophet of Jehovah in the middle of idolatrous Samaria, a city rushing toward the doom foretold for it. Only a true prophet clothed with the Spirit of power could speak such a daring message. It came at a time of victory and excitement, and its aim was to humble the people.
The leaders did not plead that the captives were innocent. They owned their own guilt. Their words about a great trespass reach back past this battle to the day the kingdom split.
Israel had taken a place of turning away from God. Yet it still had some righteous men who felt their position. They were men of weight and influence, and they would not add to their trespass by keeping the captives from Judah. "Our trespass" was no doubt their great trespass in rebelling against the house of David. The rebuke of Oded and the protest of the four princes send the captives home. Israel seemed to be more open to correction than Judah.
Nothing in the account says the king approved this.
Pekah, the king of Israel, is not mentioned as having anything to do with the protest of these four men. But it is good to see that they did right without consulting the king. Their word had a good effect on the warriors. The warriors then left the captives and the spoil for the leaders to handle as they saw fit.
The goods set down in this verse do not go back into Samaria's treasury. In the next verse they are spent on the very people they were stripped from.
We have another equally noble example of the power of love in the most degenerate times of Judah. 2 Chronicles 28:1-15. The prophet Oded met the children of Israel carrying two hundred thousand of their brothers into captivity — the people of Judah and Jerusalem, including women, sons, and daughters. But instead of slavery, through the moving appeals of the Lord's prophet, they were all set free, and not only set free, but treated with every mark of tender affection.
Scripture records these men by name, one by one. That was no accident.
Their conduct was morally beautiful. It looks even more beautiful against the dark background of the evil times and kingdom they lived in. And the righteous Lord who loves righteousness has made sure that Scripture names these men of tender heart and upright conscience. The incident is like a little gleam of light shining out of a darkness that was deepening fast. The God of Israel has placed it on eternal record and spread it far and wide. He did this so that men might know He never forgets a kindness done to His people, even when they are suffering the just punishment of their sins under His government.
The captives walked home. Ahaz, watching it happen, drew no conclusion from it.
The return of the captives, and the reason for it, could have been no secret to Judah and Ahaz. But it had no effect on the dulled hearts of the men of Judah. They were already feeling the judgment of God. They might not have noticed it, but the judgment was just as visible. The LORD was calling them to remember His goodness, as He made the Israelites send back the captives of Judah fed and clothed. He was also calling them to remember His just wrath, which let the Edomites and the Philistines strike and invade Judah. Yet "At that time King Ahaz sent to the kings of Assyria for help," and paid for it with the gold of the temple and of his palace.
- Voice. The rebuke came from the least likely place. Samaria had turned from God, yet a prophet and four named leaders there spoke it straight into a victorious army's face.
- Conscience. The soldiers moved because they owned their own guilt. Their great trespass reached back to their rebellion against the house of David.
- Release. That conscience produced this verse. The soldiers set down captives and plunder, and they never waited for the king to approve.
- Kindness. The leaders then spent the spoil on the captives. Plunder became clothing, food, and a ride home for the weak.
- Record. God had these kind men named in Scripture forever. He never forgets a kindness done to His people. Ahaz watched the whole mercy and still sent to Assyria for help.
And the men that have been expressed by name rose up, and took the captives, and with the spoil clothed all that were naked among them, and arrayed them, and shod them, and gave them to eat and to drink, and anointed them, and carried all the feeble of them on asses, and brought them to Jericho the city of palm-trees, to their brethren. And they returned to Samaria.
The king of Israel plays no part in this scene. The response comes from men who heard God's word and acted on it, and one writer notes how rare and welcome that is.
We do not read of any response from Pekah, but four of the leaders of the tribe of Ephraim openly acknowledged their nation's guilt before the Lord... It is good to see, even at this low point in Israel's history, a remnant responding to the word of the Lord.
These men did not wait for permission from the throne. They also faced battle-hardened soldiers who had every reason to keep their prize.
Pekah, the king of Israel, is not mentioned as having anything to do with the protest of these four men. But it is good to see that they did what was right without consulting the king. Their word had good effect on the warriors, who left the captives and the spoil for the leaders to do with as they saw fit. Then these men showed proper concern for the captives. They used the spoil to clothe and feed them, and even provided donkeys for those who were feeble. They brought them to Jericho, to return them to Judah.
The prophet's appeal was for the captives' freedom. The verse describes far more — clothing, sandals, food, drink, oil, and transport for those too weak to walk.
We have another noble example of the power of love in the most corrupt times of Judah. The prophet Oded met the people of Israel as they carried 200,000 of their brothers into captivity — the people of Judah and Jerusalem, including women, sons and daughters. But instead of slavery, the moving appeals of the Lord's prophet set them all free. And they were not only set free, but treated with every mark of tender affection.
Everything given to the captives came out of the plunder taken from them. The goods meant to enrich the victors were spent on the defeated instead.
The verse opens by pointing back to men listed by name in the previous verses. One writer takes that naming as God's own doing.
Their conduct was morally beautiful. It shines all the more against the dark background of the evil times and kingdom in which they lived. And the righteous Lord who loves righteousness has seen to it that these men of tender heart and upright conscience should be named. The incident is like a little gleam of light shining out of the fast-deepening darkness. The God of Israel has placed it on eternal record and made it widely known, so that people might know He never forgets a kindness done to His people — even when they are suffering the just punishment of their sins under His government.
The returned captives carried a message to Judah from God. King Ahaz turned elsewhere for help.
Israel seemed to be more open to correction than Judah... The LORD was calling Judah to remember His goodness. He did it by causing the Israelites to send back the captives of Judah fed and clothed. He was calling them to remember His just anger too, in allowing the Edomites and the Philistines to strike and invade Judah. Yet "At that time King Ahaz sent to the kings of Assyria for help," and paid for it with the gold of the temple and of his palace.
And the city of Jericho became "the city of palm trees" once more. There they clothed the naked, fed the hungry, and helped the feeble. There brothers long separated came together again, and the people obeyed the Word of God. So it shall be with every one of us who turn wholly to the Lord and hold to Him with purpose of heart. The grace that began with our salvation will not fail us; it is enough for our whole lives, in every phase of them.
- Word. A prophet's rebuke stopped an army at the height of its victory. Four leaders took it to heart and acted without waiting for their king.
- Conscience. They owned their nation's guilt before the Lord and gave back what their army had taken.
- Mercy. Release was not enough. The plunder itself became clothing, food, oil and transport for the very people it came from.
- Names. God put men of tender heart and upright conscience on record by name. He never forgets a kindness done to His people.
- Call. That kindness was God calling Judah to remember His goodness. Ahaz answered by sending temple gold to Assyria.