2 Chronicles 14:9 - Meaning and Application

Here, first, the peace of Asa’s kingdom was disturbed by a powerful army from Ethiopia that invaded Judah (2 Chronicles 14:9, 10). Even though Asa and his people were still seeking God, this fear came on them so their faith would be tested and so God could show his power in a great way. The army was huge, one million men, and Asa now found the value of having his forces ready for a time of need. What once seemed unnecessary can quickly prove very useful.

Second, Asa turned to God when this threat hung over him (2 Chronicles 14:11). He had sought God during peaceful and prosperous days, so in trouble he could speak to God with holy confidence and call him his God. His prayer is short, but it says much.

He begins by giving God glory for his unlimited power and rule: “It makes no difference to you whether you help by many or by few, by the strong or by those with no power” (see 1 Samuel 14:6). God works by his own strength, not by the strength of tools or people (Psalm 21:13). In fact, it is his glory to help the weak and to show strength through children and those who seem small and powerless. Asa is saying, in effect, “Lord, we do not ask you to take our side because we have a strong army for you to use. We ask because without you we have no power.”

He also leans on their covenant relationship with God. “O Lord, our God,” he says, and again, “You are our God.” They had chosen him as theirs, held fast to him, and trusted his promise to be their God. Asa also speaks of their dependence on God and the eye they had kept on him in this campaign. He was well prepared, but he did not trust in those preparations. Instead he says, “Lord, we rely on you, and in your name we go against this great army. We go by your permission, for your glory, and trusting in your strength.”

He also puts God’s honor into the matter. “Let not man prevail against you,” he says. If the enemy wins over Judah, it will seem as if he has won against God, because Judah belongs to God, rests on him, and goes out in his name. The enemy is only mortal man. God should show how unequal the fight is between a mere man and the living God. Asa is asking God to defend his own honor and keep his name holy.

Third, God gave Asa a glorious victory over his enemies. First, God threw the enemy into confusion and broke their forces apart (2 Chronicles 14:12). The Lord struck the Ethiopians with terror, with a fear they could not explain, so they fled and did not know where to turn. Second, Asa and his men took advantage of the victory God had given them.

They destroyed the enemy, and the enemy fell before the Lord, for who can stand before him? They fell also before his host, meaning either the invisible army of angels God used against them, or the army of Israel, called God’s host because he owned and directed it. They also took much spoil from the enemy camp, gathering goods from the dead and from the baggage. Then they struck the cities that had joined with the Ethiopians and taken refuge there, and they carried away the spoil from those places too (2 Chronicles 14:14). Those cities could not resist, because the fear of the Lord came on them, meaning God put such terror into them that they had no courage to stand against Judah. Finally, they brought back cattle from the enemy’s land in very large numbers (2 Chronicles 14:15). In this way, the wealth of the sinner was laid up for the just.