2 Chronicles 19:5
in 2 Chronicles 19He appointed judges in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he set judges in the land throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city,
KJV
And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,
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This verse in 2 Chronicles 19
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,.... Inferior judges in lesser courts of judicature than that at Jerusalem, and that in every city, that judgment and justice might be executed everywhere; such were appointed by David, but had been neglected, and now restored, see 1Ch 26:29.
This site's exposition
throughout all the fenced cities of Judah
on 2 Chronicles 19:5-7
The king sets judges in the land, city by city through the fenced cities of Judah, restoring an office David had appointed that had lapsed. His charge to them states the judiciary's charter: ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is with you in the judgment, and its ground is stated just as plainly, there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts. A court answerable to God rather than to litigants is the reform's whole logic before a single case is heard.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The judges of these courts were to keep the people in the worship of God, to punish the violations of the law, and to decide controversies between man and man. Here is the charge he gave them (
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The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
What exact change Jehoshaphat made in the judicial system of Judah Deu 16:18; 1Ch 23:4, it is impossible to determine. Probably he found corruption widely spread 2Ch 19:7, and the magistrates in some places tainted with the prevailing idolatry. He therefore made a fresh appointment of judges throughout the whole country; concentrating judicial authority in the hands of a few, or creating superior courts in the chief towns (“fenced cities”), with a right of appeal to such courts from the village judge.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
he set judges in the land--There had been judicial courts established at an early period. But Jehoshaphat was the first king who modified these institutions according to the circumstances of the now fragmentary kingdom of Judah.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
And he appointed judges When the seer told him, “good things were found in you, for you abolished the asheroth,” he approached the Sepher Torah [to see] whether he had abolished them properly.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
for you do not judge for man The meaning is: Do not think in your heart: What difference does it make if we pervert the law to declare our friends innocent and pervert the rights of the poor and favor the rich?
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּעֲמֵ֨ד | vaiyaamed | and he appointed | H5975 → | 521 times |
| שֹֽׁפְטִ֜ים | shofetim | judges | H8199 → | 202 times |
| בָּאָ֗רֶץ | baaretz | in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| בְּכָל־ | bekhol | in all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| עָרֵ֧י | ʾarei | [the] cities of | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| יְהוּדָ֛ה | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| הַבְּצֻר֖וֹת | habetzurot | <the> fortified | H1219 → | 37 times |
| לְעִ֥יר | leir | for a city | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| וָעִֽיר׃ | vair | and a city | H5892 → | 1090 times |
וַיַּעֲמֵ֨דand he appointed
vaiyaamedH5975 →521 times
שֹֽׁפְטִ֜יםjudges
shofetimH8199 →202 times
בָּאָ֗רֶץin the land
baaretzH776 →2504 times
בְּכָל־in all
bekholH3605 →5413 times
עָרֵ֧י[the] cities of
ʾareiH5892 →1090 times
יְהוּדָ֛הJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
הַבְּצֻר֖וֹת<the> fortified
habetzurotH1219 →37 times
לְעִ֥ירfor a city
leirH5892 →1090 times
וָעִֽיר׃and a city
vairH5892 →1090 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 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 19:8Moreover, Jehoshaphat appointed in Jerusalem some of the Levites, priests, and heads of the Israelite families to judge on behalf of the LORD and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 17:8–9
accompanied by certain Levites—Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah—along with the priests Elishama and Jehoram.
- 1 Chronicles 23:4
“Of these,” said David, “24,000 are to oversee the work of the house of the LORD, 6,000 are to be officers and judges,
- Deuteronomy 25:1
If there is a dispute between men, they are to go to court to be judged, so that the innocent may be acquitted and the guilty condemned.
- Exodus 18:19–26
Now listen to me; I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their causes to Him.
- Deuteronomy 17:8–13
If a case is too difficult for you to judge, whether the controversy within your gates is regarding bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults, you must go up to the place the LORD your God will…
- 2 Chronicles 17:8–9
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; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.