2 Chronicles 17:19
in 2 Chronicles 17These were the men who served the king, besides those he stationed in the fortified cities throughout Judah.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
These were they that waited on the king, besides those whom the king put in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.
KJV
These waited on the king, beside those whom the king put in the fenced cities throughout all Judah.
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This verse in 2 Chronicles 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseThese waited on the king,.... Not this vast number of men at one time, but in course, as David's military men waited on him, 1Ch 27:1 or each of these captains, with a proper number of men under them detached from the body; and they were all ready to obey the king's orders whenever he should have occasion for them: besides those whom the king put into the fenced cities throughout Judah; and all together, the militia of the kingdom was very numerous and formidable.
This site's exposition
Eliada a mighty man of valour
on 2 Chronicles 17:17-19
Benjamin's contingent under Eliada carries bow and shield, the tribe's own weapon since 14:8, and Jehozabad closes the list at a hundred and eighty thousand. Gill sums Judah and Benjamin together at 1,160,000 men, roughly double the 580,000 Asa fielded at 14:8, and credits the growth to a long peace and to Israelites who had come over from the north. These waited on the king in Jerusalem besides the garrisons already posted in the fenced cities, and Henry's own summary of the chapter insists it was not this army that put fear into the neighboring nations but the fear of God that fell when Jehoshaphat reformed his kingdom and set a preaching ministry loose in it.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
But, lastly, observe, It was not this formidable army that struck a terror upon the neighbouring nations, that restrained them from attempting any thing against Israel, or obliged them to pay tribute, but the fear of God which fell upon them when Jehoshaphat reformed his country and set up a preaching ministry in it,
A vast number for so small a compass of ground, to furnish out and maintain. But we may consider, that God had promised to make the seed of Abraham like the sand of the sea for number; that there had now been a long peace; that many were come to them from the kingdom of Israel and that Jehoshaphat was under a special blessing of God.
Thus was his prosperity the reward of his piety and his piety the brightest grace and ornament of his prosperity. Jehoshaphat Succeeds Asa. 1 And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against Israel.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
These waited on the king - They were disposable forces, always at the king’s command; and were independent of those by which the cities of Judah were garrisoned. There is not a sovereign in Europe or in the world but might read this chapter with advantage. 1. It shows most forcibly that true religion is the basis of the state, and that, wherever it prospers, there the state prospers.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֵ֖לֶּה | ʾeleh | these | H428 → | 746 times |
| הַמְשָׁרְתִ֣ים | hamsharetim | [were] the [ones who] served | H8334 → | 97 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| מִלְּבַ֞ד | milevad | <from> <to> besides | H905 → | 200 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | [those] whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| נָתַ֥ן | natan | he put | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| בְּעָרֵ֥י | bearei | in [the] cities of | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| הַמִּבְצָ֖ר | hamivtzar | <the> fortification | H4013 → | |
| בְּכָל־ | bekhol | in all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| יְהוּדָֽה׃ פ | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
אֵ֖לֶּהthese
ʾelehH428 →746 times
הַמְשָׁרְתִ֣ים[were] the [ones who] served
hamsharetimH8334 →97 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַמֶּ֑לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
מִלְּבַ֞ד<from> <to> besides
milevadH905 →200 times
אֲשֶׁר־[those] whom
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
נָתַ֥ןhe put
natanH5414 →2011 times
הַמֶּ֛לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
בְּעָרֵ֥יin [the] cities of
beareiH5892 →1090 times
הַמִּבְצָ֖ר<the> fortification
hamivtzarH4013 →
בְּכָל־in all
bekholH3605 →5413 times
יְהוּדָֽה׃ פJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
2 Chronicles 17:12Jehoshaphat grew stronger and stronger, and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 32:5
Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Chronicles 18:1
Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honor in abundance, and he allied himself with Ahab by marriage.
- 2 Chronicles 8:2–6
Solomon rebuilt the cities Hiram had given him and settled Israelites there.
- 2 Chronicles 32:27–29
Hezekiah had very great riches and honor, and he made treasuries for his silver, gold, precious stones, spices, shields, and all kinds of valuable articles.
- 2 Chronicles 27:4
He also built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.
- 2 Chronicles 32:5
Through
2 Chronicles 17:2He stationed troops in every fortified city of Judah and put garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 15:8
When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the…
- 2 Chronicles 11:5
Rehoboam continued to live in Jerusalem, and he built up cities for defense in Judah.
- 2 Chronicles 15:8
Through
2 Chronicles 11:23Rehoboam also acted wisely by dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions and sought many wives for them.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 1:5–6
At that time Adonijah, David’s son by Haggith, began to exalt himself, saying, “I will be king!” And he acquired chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run ahead of him.
- 1 Kings 1:5–6
About 2 Chronicles

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
