2 Kings 3
1 Chronicles 3 is a genealogical record about King David’s descendants and his family line (家系). Following the previous two chapters, it briefly tells how the succession of Israel’s royal authority centered on King David has continued, and it also conveys the lineage up to and including the period after the Babylonian exile. This chapter can be divided into three main parts. First, the children born to King David in Hebron and Jerusalem (verses 1–9). Second, the successors to the throne after Solomon (verses 10–16). Third, the descendants of David’s household after the Babylonian exile (verses 17–24). The way this genealogy continues suggests that the Israelite community was historically led according to God’s promises and covenant.
1verseNow Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years.
2verseHe did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight, but not like his father and like his mother, for he put away the pillar of Baal that his father had made.
3verseNevertheless he held to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin. He didn’t depart from them.
4verseNow Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder; and he supplied the king of Israel with one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.
5verseBut when Ahab was dead, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
6verseKing Jehoram went out of Samaria at that time, and mustered all Israel.
7verseHe went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me against Moab to battle?” He said, “I will go up. I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
8verseThen he said, “Which way shall we go up?” Jehoram answered, “The way of the wilderness of Edom.”
9verseSo the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom, and they marched for seven days along a circuitous route. There was no water for the army or for the animals that followed them.
10verseThe king of Israel said, “Alas! For the LORD has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.”
11verseBut Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?” One of the king of Israel’s servants answered, “Elisha the son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah, is here.”
12verseJehoshaphat said, “The LORD’s word is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13verseElisha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father, and to the prophets of your mother.” The king of Israel said to him, “No, for the LORD has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.”
14verseElisha said, “As the LORD of Armies lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I respect the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.
15verseBut now bring me a musician.” When the musician played, the LORD’s hand came on him.
16verseHe said, “The LORD says, ‘Make this valley full of trenches.’
17verseFor the LORD says, ‘You will not see wind, neither will you see rain, yet that valley will be filled with water, and you will drink, both you and your livestock and your other animals.
18verseThis is an easy thing in the LORD’s sight. He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.
19verseYou shall strike every fortified city and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all springs of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.’”
20verseIn the morning, about the time of offering the sacrifice, behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21verseNow when all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, they gathered themselves together, all who were able to put on armor, young and old, and stood on the border.
22verseThey rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone on the water, and the Moabites saw the water opposite them as red as blood.
23verseThey said, “This is blood. The kings are surely destroyed, and they have struck each other. Now therefore, Moab, to the plunder!”
24verseWhen they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and struck the Moabites, so that they fled before them; and they went forward into the land attacking the Moabites.
25verseThey beat down the cities; and on every good piece of land each man cast his stone, and filled it. They also stopped all the springs of water and cut down all the good trees, until in Kir Hareseth all they left was its stones; however the men armed with slings went around it and attacked it.
26verseWhen the king of Moab saw that the battle was too severe for him, he took with him seven hundred men who drew a sword, to break through to the king of Edom; but they could not.
27verseThen he took his oldest son who would have reigned in his place, and offered him for a burnt offering on the wall. There was great wrath against Israel; and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.
Meaning and Symbolism of the Main Topic
While this chapter is made up of lists of many names, the recording of such genealogies serves to emphasize the community’s historical continuity and identity. In particular, the reason it deals in detail with the genealogy of the Davidic dynasty is closely related to the theological background that God’s covenant (2 Samuel 7) would be fulfilled through David’s descendants. Also, carrying the genealogy forward up to the period after the Babylonian exile reminds the reader that even among those who were exiled, God’s promises had not disappeared.
The Significance of the Names and Genealogy in Chapter 3
- David’s many sons: Verses 1–9 record King David’s various children. It shows that many children were born to his various wives and concubines, but it stands out that all of them are recorded separately from the “succession of royal authority.”
- Solomon and the succession to the throne: Solomon is highlighted as the successor; even after the division into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah, the David–Solomon lineage supports the legitimacy of the southern kingdom’s royal rule.
- Descendants after the exile: Surprisingly, the record shows that although the kingdom of Judah was destroyed, some of David’s descendants continued on—like a thread of hope being carried forward.
Points for Reflection
- Let’s pay attention to the fact that the promise God made with one person (David) comes to pass beyond the passage of time.
- When you see each individual name recorded, you can also reconsider how each member of the community—each person’s very existence—is precious in the sight of God.
Try Applying It to Me
- Let’s trust that even in my own life, God has a providence and promises that continue unseen.
- In the family, community, and history that I belong to, I need to rediscover my role and identity before God.
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