2 Chronicles 28 · Verse 23

2 Chronicles 28:23

For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.
2 Chronicles 28:23, King James Version

2 Chronicles 28:23 in other translations

BSBSince Damascus had defeated him, he sacrificed to their gods and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Aram have helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But these gods were the downfall of Ahaz and of all Israel.
WEBFor he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him. He said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them, that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel.
ASVFor he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him; and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.
YLTand he sacrificeth to the gods of Damascus--those smiting him, and saith, ‘Because the gods of the kings of Aram are helping them, to them I sacrifice, and they help me,' and they have been to him to cause him to stumble, and to all Israel.
DARBYAnd he sacrificed to thegods of Damascus, which had smitten him; and he said, Since thegods of the kings of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.
BBEFor he made offerings to the gods of Damascus, who were attacking him, and said, Because the gods of the kings of Aram are giving them help, I will make offerings to them so that they may give me help. But they were the cause of his downfall, and of that of all Israel.
WebsterFor he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.

What does 2 Chronicles 28:23 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 23 He sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him - "This passage," says Mr. Hallet, "greatly surprised me; for the sacred historian himself is here represented as saying, The gods of Damascus had smitten Ahaz. But it is impossible to suppose that an inspired author could say this; for the Scripture everywhere represents the heathen idols as nothing and vanity, and as incapable of doing either good or hurt. All difficulty is avoided if we follow the old Hebrew copies, from which the Greek translation was made, Και ειπεν ὁ βασιλεις Αχαζ, εκζητησω τους Θεους Δαμασκου τους τυπτοντας με, And King Ahaz said, I Will Seek to the Gods of Damascus Which Have Smitten Me; and then it follows, both in Hebrew and Greek, He said moreover, Because the gods of the king of Syria help them; therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. Both the Syriac and Arabic give it a similar turn; and say that Ahaz sacrificed to the gods of Damascus, and said, Ye are my gods and my lords; you will I worship, and to you will I sacrifice."

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

2 Chronicles 28:23 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיִּזְבַּ֗חvai.yiz.Bachand he sacrificedH2076
לֵֽאלֹהֵ֣יle.lo.Heito [the] gods ofH430
דַרְמֶשֶׂק֮dar.me.SekDamascusH1834
הַמַּכִּ֣יםha.ma.Kimwhich had defeatedH5221
בּוֹ֒bo<in> him
וַיֹּ֗אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
כִּ֠יkithatH3588
אֱלֹהֵ֤י'e.lo.Hei[the] gods ofH430
מַלְכֵֽי\־mal.khei-[the] kings ofH4428
אֲרָם֙'a.RamAramH758
הֵ֚םhemtheyH1992
מַעְזְרִ֣יםma'.ze.Rim[are] helpingH5826
אוֹתָ֔ם'o.Tam<obj.> themH853
לָהֶ֥םla.Hemto <the> them
אֲזַבֵּ֖חַ'a.za.Be.achI will sacrificeH2076
וְיַעְזְר֑וּנִיve.ya'.ze.Ru.niand they will help meH5826
וְהֵ֛םve.Hemand theyH1992
הָֽיוּ\־ha.yu-they becameH1961
ל֥וֹlofor him
לְהַכְשִׁיל֖וֹle.hakh.shi.Lo<into> causing overthrow hisH3782
וּלְכָל\־u.le.khol-and <to> allH3605
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל\׃Yis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 2 Chronicles 28:23

  • 2 Chronicles 25:14

    Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.

  • Jeremiah 44:20-28

    Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people which had given him that answer, saying, The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the Lord remember them, and came it not into his mind? So that the Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day. Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as at this day. …

  • Habakkuk 1:11

    Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god.

  • Hosea 13:9

    O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.

  • Isaiah 1:28

    And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the Lord shall be consumed.

  • Jeremiah 10:5

    They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

  • 2 Kings 16:12-13

    And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon. And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar.

  • Jeremiah 44:15-18

    Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying, As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
For he sacrificed.This passage, says Mr. Hallet, greatly surprised me; for the sacred historian is here represented as saying, "The gods of Damascus had smitten Ahaz." But it is impossible to suppose that an inspired author should say this; for the Scripture every where represents the heathen idols as nothing and vanity, and as incapable of doing either good or hurt. All difficulty is avoided if we follow the old Hebrew copies, from which the Greek translation was made: "And king Ahaz said, I will seek to the gods of Damascus which have smitten me."
25:14; 2Ki 16:12,13
Damascus. Heb. Darmesek. Because the gods.
Hab 1:11
sacrifice to them.
Jer 10:5; 44:15-18
But they were.
Isa 1:28; Jer 44:20-28; Ho 13:9

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 2 Chronicles 28:22

    And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz.

  • 2 Chronicles 28:23

    For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.

  • 2 Chronicles 28:24

    And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem.

Read all of 2 Chronicles 28

2 Chronicles 28:23 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Porque sacrificó á los dioses de Damasco que le habían herido, y dijo: Pues que los dioses de los reyes de Siria les ayudan, yo también sacrificaré á ellos para que me ayuden; bien que fueron éstos su ruina, y la de todo Israel.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		et il sacrifia aux dieux de Damas qui l’avaient frappé, et il dit: Puisque les dieux des rois de Syrie leur sont en aide, je leur sacrifierai, et ils me seront en aide. Et ils furent sa ruine et celle de tout Israël.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und er opferte den Göttern von Damaskus, die ihn geschlagen hatten, und sprach: Da die Götter der Könige von Syrien ihnen helfen, so will ich ihnen opfern, und sie werden mir helfen; sie aber dienten ihm und ganz Israel zum Fall.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		immolavit diis Damasci victimas percussoribus suis, et dixit: Dii regum Syriæ auxiliantur eis, quos ego placabo hostiis, et aderunt mihi: cum e contrario ipsi fuerint ruinæ ei, et universo Israël.