How does 2 Chronicles 28:5 connect with Deuteronomy 28:15-25 on disobedience? Setting the Scene: Ahaz’s Crisis in 2 Chronicles 28:5 “Therefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Aram, who defeated him and took many captives and brought them to Damascus. He was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who inflicted heavy casualties on him.” (2 Chronicles 28:5) • King Ahaz has abandoned the LORD, embraced idolatry, and even sacrificed his own children (vv. 2-4). • In immediate response, God removes His protective hand. Two enemy nations strike, take captives, and spill Judah’s blood. Deuteronomy’s Covenant Warnings Summarized “But if you do not obey the LORD your God … all these curses will come upon you and overtake you.” (Deuteronomy 28:15) Key lines from Deuteronomy 28:15-25: • v. 20 – “The LORD will send upon you curses, confusion, and rebuke in everything you undertake…” • v. 22 – “He will strike you with wasting disease, fever, and inflammation…” • v. 25 – “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies; you will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.” • v. 25 also mentions Israel becoming “a thing of horror” among nations—exactly what happens as captives are hauled to Damascus and Samaria. Point-by-Point Connection Between the Texts • Military Defeat – Deuteronomy 28:25 predicts defeat; 2 Chronicles 28:5 records it: “delivered into the hand of the king of Aram … delivered into the hand of the king of Israel.” • Loss of Protection – Deuteronomy 28:20 warns of “rebuke in everything you undertake.” Ahaz’s campaigns collapse despite alliances (cf. 2 Kings 16:5). • Captivity and Plunder – Deuteronomy 28:25 anticipates being “an object of horror”; captives march to Damascus (2 Chronicles 28:5). • Multiplying Enemies – Deuteronomy 28:25 pictures enemies converging “in seven directions.” In Ahaz’s era, Aram, Israel, Edom (v. 17), Philistia (v. 18) all attack. • Divine Agency – Both texts stress “the LORD will cause” (Deut) and “the LORD … delivered” (2 Chr). The defeats are not random; they are covenant realities. Theological Takeaways • Covenant Consistency: God’s character is steady; centuries after Moses, He still honors His word—both blessings (Deuteronomy 28:1-14) and curses (vv. 15-25). • Sin’s Inevitable Harvest: “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, he will reap.” (Galatians 6:7) Ahaz’s idolatry invokes the exact consequences spelled out generations prior. • National Accountability: Leadership disobedience brings corporate fallout (cf. Proverbs 14:34; Hosea 10:13). Judah suffers because its king rebels. Personal Application Today • Scripture Is Literal and Reliable: What God promises, He performs—both mercy and judgment (Numbers 23:19). • Obedience Invites Protection; Disobedience Invites Discipline: “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) • Hope in Repentance: Later kings (e.g., Hezekiah, 2 Chron 29-31) reverse Ahaz’s trajectory by returning to covenant faithfulness; God’s mercy remains available to all who turn back (1 John 1:9). |
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