2 Kings 14:5
in 2 Kings 14As soon as the kingdom was firmly in his grasp, Amaziah executed the servants who had murdered his father the king.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he slew his servants who had slain the king his father:
KJV
And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants which had slain the king his father.
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This verse in 2 Kings 14
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The phrase, “confirmed in his hand” 2Ki 15:19, usually expresses the authorisation of a new reign by an imperial superior (see 2Ki 15:19 note); but here it describes the result when the troubles consequent upon the murder of Joash had passed away. The new king’s authority was generally recognized by his subjects.
This site's exposition
the kingdom was confirmed in his hand
on 2 Kings 14:5-6
Amaziah executes the men who murdered his father but spares their children, and the text names its source outright, the book of the law of Moses, quoting Deuteronomy's rule that a man dies for his own sin and not his father's or his son's. The commentators call the restraint contrary to the customs of surrounding nations, where a conspirator's whole household commonly paid with him. Individual accountability under the law stands here as a deliberate choice a king could have set aside and did not.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"In the second year of King Joash son of Ahaziah of Israel, King Amaziah son of Joash of Judah began to reign," who avenged the death of his father, but with moderation, so that he spared the life of the relatives of the conspirators according …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was strengthened in his hand,.... That he was well settled on the throne, and had a share in the affection of the people, and the idolatry and murder his father had committed were worn off of the minds of the people, and the friends of the conspirators against him were become few or none: that he slew his servants that had slain the king his father; charged them with the murder in a court of judicature, obtained a sentence against them, and had them executed.
Justice strikes surely by striking slowly, and is often executed most prudently when it is not executed presently. Wisdom here is profitable to direct. According to the rule of the law, that ancient rule, that he that sheds man's blood by man shall his blood be shed.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
But it is evident that the two assassins must have possessed considerable weight and influence, as the king was obliged to retain them in his service, and durst not, for fear of their friends and supporters, institute proceedings against them until his power had been fully consolidated.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
As in the case of his father Joash, the early promise was belied by the devious course he personally followed in later life (see 2Ch 20:14), as well as by the public irregularities he tolerated in the kingdom.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
As soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand - No doubt those wicked men, Jozachar and Jehozabad, who murdered his father, had considerable power and influence; and therefore he found it dangerous to bring them to justice, till he was assured of the loyalty of his other officers: when this was clear, he called them to account, and put them to death.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְהִ֕י | vayhi | and it was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר | kaasher | just when | H834 → | 5497 times |
| חָזְקָ֥ה | chazekah | it was secure | H2388 → | 291 times |
| הַמַּמְלָכָ֖ה | hamamlakhah | the kingdom | H4467 → | 117 times |
| בְּיָד֑וֹ | beyado | in hand his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| וַיַּךְ֙ | vaiyakh | and he struck down | H5221 → | 499 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| עֲבָדָ֔יו | ʾavadav | servants his | H5650 → | 799 times |
| הַמַּכִּ֖ים | hamakim | who had struck down | H5221 → | 499 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַמֶּ֥לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| אָבִֽיו׃ | ʾaviv | father his | H1 → | 1212 times |
וַיְהִ֕יand it was
vayhiH1961 →3559 times
כַּאֲשֶׁ֛רjust when
kaasherH834 →5497 times
חָזְקָ֥הit was secure
chazekahH2388 →291 times
הַמַּמְלָכָ֖הthe kingdom
hamamlakhahH4467 →117 times
בְּיָד֑וֹin hand his
beyadoH3027 →1618 times
וַיַּךְ֙and he struck down
vaiyakhH5221 →499 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
עֲבָדָ֔יוservants his
ʾavadavH5650 →799 times
הַמַּכִּ֖יםwho had struck down
hamakimH5221 →499 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַמֶּ֥לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
אָבִֽיו׃father his
ʾavivH1 →1212 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
Genesis 9:6Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
it leads to
- Leviticus 24:17
And if a man takes the life of anyone else, he must surely be put to death.
- Matthew 26:52
“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “For all who draw the sword will die by the sword.
- Revelation 13:10
“If anyone is destined for captivity, into captivity he will go; if anyone is to die by the sword, by the sword he must be killed.” Here is a call for the perseverance and…
- Exodus 21:12–14
Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.
- Numbers 35:33
Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the…
- Leviticus 24:17
Through
Numbers 35:33Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the…
it leads to
- Luke 11:50–51
As a result, this generation will be charged with the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the foundation of the world,
- Psalms 106:38
They shed innocent blood— the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.
- Genesis 9:6
Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
- Luke 11:50–51
About 2 Kings
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 16:1; Jamieson Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.