Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Chronicles 32:21

Charles Ellicott Commentary

2 Chronicles 32:21

1819–1905
Anglican
Charles Ellicott
Charles Ellicott

Charles Ellicott Commentary

2 Chronicles 32:21

1819–1905
Anglican
SCRIPTURE

"And Jehovah sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty men of valor, and the leaders and captains, in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he was come into the house of his god, they that came forth from his own bowels slew him there with the sword." — 2 Chronicles 32:21 (ASV)

And the Lord sent an angel. — See 2 Kings 19:35 and following; Isaiah 37:36 and following. Hitzig thinks that Psalms 46-48 were composed by Isaiah to commemorate this great natural miracle, a hypothesis which is borne out by the similarity observable between the language and ideas of these psalms and those of Isaiah’s prophecies.

Which cut off ... valour. — Literally, and he hid (i.e., caused to disappear, destroyed; the Greek άφανίζειν; Exodus 23:23) every valiant warrior, and leader and captain. (Compare to Psalms 76:5, a psalm which in the Septuagint bears the title ᾠδὴ πρὸς τὸν Ἀσσύριον.) Kings gives the number of those who perished as 185,000.

With shame of face.Psalms 44:15, The shame of my face hath covered me. (Ezra 9:7.)

And when he was come ... with the sword.And he went into the house of his god, and certain of his own offspring there felled him with the sword. 2 Kings 19:37 gives the names of the parricides—namely, Adrammelech and Sharezer; and the name of the god—namely, Nisroch—which is probably corrupt. It is added that the assassins escaped into the land of Ararat. The chronicler as usual suppresses unfamiliar foreign names.

They that came forth. — Some of the issue (yâçî, a verbal noun only found here). (For the whole phrase, compare to Genesis 15:4; 2 Samuel 7:12.)