2 Chronicles — Chapter 27
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1Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother’s name was Jerushah daughter of Zadok.
2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Uzziah had done. In addition, he did not enter the temple of the LORD. But the people still behaved corruptly.
3Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the house of the LORD, and he worked extensively on the wall at the hill of Ophel.
4He also built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.
5Jotham waged war against the king of the Ammonites and defeated them, and that year they gave him a hundred talents of silver, ten thousand cors of wheat, and ten thousand cors of barley. They paid him the same in the second and third years.
6So Jotham grew powerful because he ordered his ways before the LORD his God.
7As for the rest of the acts of Jotham, along with all his wars and his ways, they are indeed written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years.
9And Jotham rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Ahaz reigned in his place.
1Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok.
2And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the LORD. And the people did yet corruptly.
3He built the high gate of the house of the LORD, and on the wall of Ophel he built much.
4Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.
5He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him the same year an hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. So much did the children of Ammon pay unto him, both the second year, and the third.
6So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.
7Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.
1Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and his mother`s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok.
2And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that his father Uzziah had done: howbeit he entered not into the temple of Jehovah. And the people did yet corruptly.
3He built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah, and on the wall of Ophel he built much.
4Moreover he built cities in the hill-country of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.
5He fought also with the king of the children of Ammon, and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him the same year a hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. So much did the children of Ammon render unto him, in the second year also, and in the third.
6So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before Jehovah his God.
7Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.
1Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok.
2He did what the Lord approved, just as his father Uzziah had done. (He did not, however, have the audacity to enter the temple.) Yet the people were still sinning.
3He built the Upper Gate to the Lord’s temple and did a lot of work on the wall in the area known as Ophel.
4He built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.
5He launched a military campaign against the king of the Ammonites and defeated them. That year the Ammonites paid him 100 talents of silver, 10,000 cors of wheat, and 10,000 cors of barley. The Ammonites also paid this same amount of annual tribute the next two years.
6Jotham grew powerful because he was determined to please the Lord his God.
7The rest of the events of Jotham’s reign, including all his military campaigns and his accomplishments, are recorded in the Scroll of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9Jotham passed away and was buried in the City of David. His son Ahaz replaced him as king.
1Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok.
2He did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, according to all that his father Uzziah had done. However he didn’t enter into Yahweh’s temple. The people still acted corruptly.
3He built the upper gate of Yahweh’s house, and he built much on the wall of Ophel.
4Moreover he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers.
5He also fought with the king of the children of Ammon, and prevailed against them. The children of Ammon gave him the same year one hundred talents of silver, ten thousand cors of wheat, and ten thousand cors of barley. The children of Ammon also gave that much to him in the second year, and in the third.
6So Jotham became mighty, because he ordered his ways before Yahweh his God.
7Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in David’s city; and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
Summary
Jotham becomes king at twenty-five and reigns sixteen years in Jerusalem, doing what is right before the Lord as his father Uzziah had done — but unlike Uzziah, he never enters the temple to burn incense, even though the people continue their corrupt ways (vv. 1-2). He builds the upper gate of the temple, does extensive work on the wall of Ophel, and constructs cities, forts, and towers throughout Judah's hill country and forests (vv. 3-4). He defeats the Ammonites in battle, and they pay him heavy tribute in silver, wheat, and barley for three years (v. 5). Jotham grows powerful because he orders his life before the Lord his God (v. 6), and the chapter closes noting his death and the succession of his son Ahaz (vv. 7-9).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Parallels 1-2 Kings but focuses exclusively on Judah (the southern kingdom). Jerusalem and the Temple are the theological center throughout.
- Key locations include various battle sites, reform locations, and high places destroyed or rebuilt by successive kings.
- The book ends with exile to Babylon (586 BC) and Cyrus's decree permitting return — the geographic arc moves from Jerusalem to Babylon and back.
Places on this map
- JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia
- Babylonnear Hillah, IraqOn the Euphrates about 55 miles south of modern Baghdad. Judah's exiles were marched roughly 900 miles to get here, the long way round the Arabian desert, which is why the journey took months and the return was a genuine undertaking rather than a short trip home. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik notes that Jotham's brief chapter demonstrates that faithfulness does not always produce dramatic narrative. The quiet, steady king receives less text than the dramatic sinner — yet his life was arguably more successful before God. Guzik emphasizes "he prepared his ways" as the key to Jotham's power — deliberate, ordered, consistent faithfulness rather than sporadic spiritual intensity.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of 2 Chronicles -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Learning From Another's Fall (v.2) — Jotham refuses to enter the temple to burn incense, having seen his father Uzziah struck with leprosy for that very presumption. What mistake have you watched someone else make that you're determined not to repeat?
- Serving According to Your Role (v.3) — Jotham can't perform priestly duties, but he builds and fortifies what supports worship, contributing in the way that's actually his to give. Are you trying to serve God in a role that isn't yours, instead of fully using the one that is?
- Quiet, Prepared Faithfulness (v.6) — Jotham becomes mighty not through some dramatic event but because he deliberately ordered his life before the Lord. Is your walk with God marked by intentional, steady preparation, or by drifting from one moment to the next?