What is the meaning of 2 Kings 15:37? In those days • The phrase anchors us in the latter years of King Jotham’s reign in Judah (2 Kings 15:32–35; 2 Chronicles 27:1–5). • Jotham walked rightly, yet “the people still acted corruptly” (2 Chronicles 27:2), keeping idolatrous high places he never tore down. • God’s long-standing pattern is that persistent national sin draws national discipline (Leviticus 26:17; Deuteronomy 28:25). These are “those days.” the LORD • Scripture underscores that the covenant God Himself—not chance, politics, or military might—directed what happened next (Amos 3:6; Isaiah 45:7). • His personal involvement reminds Judah of the blessings-and-curses terms He had spelled out generations earlier (Deuteronomy 28:1–2, 15). • He remains faithful to His word, both to bless obedience and to chasten rebellion (Hebrews 12:6; 2 Kings 17:13-18). began to send • “Began” shows this was the opening round of discipline; heavier blows would come under Jotham’s son Ahaz (2 Kings 16:5-9). • God often starts with warning shots, granting space to repent (Jeremiah 18:7-8; Revelation 2:21). • The verb “send” portrays foreign armies as instruments in His hand (Isaiah 10:5-6; Habakkuk 1:6). Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah • Rezin ruled Aram (Syria) from Damascus; Pekah reigned over the northern kingdom of Israel. The two formed a coalition (Isaiah 7:1-2). • Earlier Pekah had struck Judah, killing 120,000 in one day and capturing 200,000 women and children before prophetic intervention stopped him (2 Chronicles 28:5-15). • Their partnership shows how far Israel had drifted: instead of standing with their Judahite kinsmen against pagan nations, they allied with one (Hosea 5:13; 2 Kings 15:29). against Judah • The target is the southern kingdom. God’s purpose is corrective, not vindictive (2 Chronicles 24:20). • The pressure exposes Judah’s vulnerability, driving the nation either toward humble reliance on the LORD or desperate human schemes. Sadly, under Ahaz the latter prevailed, leading him to appeal to Assyria and plunge Judah deeper into idolatry (2 Kings 16:7-12). • Yet even this hostility sets the stage for prophetic hope: Isaiah tells terrified King Ahaz that God will ultimately preserve David’s line, giving the sign of Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14). Discipline and promise run side by side. summary 2 Kings 15:37 records the moment God initiated chastening for Judah’s lingering sin. In Jotham’s days, though the king himself was upright, the people’s corruption prompted the LORD to start sending Syrian and Israelite forces against them. This was the covenant God personally acting, first with measured discipline, employing Rezin and Pekah as His instruments. The attacks were designed to turn Judah back to wholehearted faithfulness and to prepare the backdrop for messianic promise. |
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