Page:The Books of Chronicles (1916).djvu/350

286 was Uzziah when he began to reign; and he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Jechiliah of Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. And he set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the vision of God: and as long as he sought the, God made him to prosper. And he went forth and warred against the Philistines, and brake down the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities

3. Jechiliah] so the Kethīb; the Ḳerī Jecoliah agrees with the parallel passage of Kings.

4. his father Amaziah] This verse suits its original context in Kings, for Kings records nothing against Amaziah; it is out of place in Chron., for according to xxv. 14 Amaziah was an idolater.

5—10 (not in Kings).&emsp;

5—10. It is probable that the Chronicler had old and genuine tradition to rely on for the account which he here gives of Uzziah's prosperity—his wars against neighbouring tribes (vv. 6—8), and his building activity (vv. 8—10). Doubtless in the earlier years of Uzziah's reign Judah was still suffering from the effects of the defeat inflicted by Joash of Israel. But the general accuracy of the picture of the reign is assured by such facts as (1) the stout resistance offered by Jerusalem to the Assyrians in Hezekiah's time as contrasted with its capture by the Israelites in Amaziah's reign (xxv. 23); (2) the frequency of metaphors from building implements and materials in the pages of the prophets of this period (e.g. Amos vii. 7 ff.); (3) the commercial activity and luxury of Jerusalem in the reign of Uzziah's successor Ahaz—witness the writings of Isaiah, passim.

5. Zechariah] Nothing is known (apart from this passage) of this Zechariah.

who had understanding] mg., "who gave instruction Heb. mēbhīn, a word applied to a leader of song (1 Chr. xv. 22, "skilful"; ib. xxv. 7, "cunning"; ib. ver. 8, "teacher").

in the vision of God] Read, in the fear of God (so LXX., Targ. Pesh.), making a slight correction of the Heb. text.

6. the Philistines] Cp. xvii. 11, xxi. 16, xxviii. 18; 2 Kin. xviii. 8; 1 Macc. v. 66—68, xiv. 34.

brake down the wall] See note on xxv. 23.

Jabneh] Mentioned only here in the O.T., but probably to be identified with "Jabneel" (Josh. xv. 11). At a later date it was called "Jamnia" (2 Macc. xii. 8), and, after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 ,