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Thursday, April 9th, 2026
Thursday in Easter Week
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Read the Bible

Christian Standard Bible ®

2 Chronicles 12:8

However, they will become his servants so that they may recognize the difference between serving me and serving the kingdoms of other lands.”

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Egyptians;   Rehoboam;   Repentance;   Shishak;   War;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Egypt;   Shemaiah;   Shishak;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Rehoboam;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Herodians;   No;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Libya;   Service;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Chronicles, I;   Rehoboam,;   Shemaiah;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Egypt;   Rehoboam ;   Shemaiah ;   Shishak ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Judah the kingdom of;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Shi'shak,;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Jerusalem;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Kingdom of Judah;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Chronicles, Books of;   Shishak;   Temple;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
King James Version
Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
English Standard Version
Nevertheless, they shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."
New Century Version
But the people of Jerusalem will become Shishak's servants so they may learn that serving me is different than serving the kings of other nations."
New English Translation
Yet they will become his subjects, so they can experience how serving me differs from serving the surrounding nations."
Amplified Bible
"Nevertheless they will become his slaves, so that they may know [the difference between] My service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."
New American Standard Bible
"But they will become his slaves, so that they may learn the difference between My service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."
World English Bible
Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Neuerthelesse they shalbe his sernants: so shal they knowe my seruice, and the seruice of the kingdomes of the earth.
Legacy Standard Bible
But they will become his slaves so that they may know the difference between My slavery and the slavery of the kingdoms of the countries."
Berean Standard Bible
Nevertheless, they will become his servants, so that they may learn the difference between serving Me and serving the kings of other lands."
Contemporary English Version
he will conquer and rule them. Then my people will know what it's like to serve a foreign king instead of serving me.
Complete Jewish Bible
However, they will become his slaves, so that they will come to appreciate the difference between serving me and serving earthly kingdoms."
Darby Translation
Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Easy-to-Read Version
But the people of Jerusalem will become Shishak's servants. This will happen so that they may learn that serving me is different from serving the kings of other nations."
George Lamsa Translation
Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Good News Translation
but Shishak will conquer them, and they will learn the difference between serving me and serving earthly rulers."
Lexham English Bible
However, they shall be his servants, that they might know my service and the service of the kingdoms of other countries."
Literal Translation
But they shall become his servants, and they shall know My service, and the service of the kingdoms of the lands.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
for they shalbe subdued vnto him, yt they maye knowe what it is to serue me, & to serue the kyngdomes of the worlde.
American Standard Version
Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Bible in Basic English
But still they will become his servants, so that they may see how different my yoke is from the yoke of the kingdoms of the lands.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Neuerthelesse, they shalbe his seruauntes: to knowe what difference is betweene my seruice and the seruice of the kingdomes of the worlde.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know My service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.'
King James Version (1611)
Neuerthelesse they shalbe his seruants, that they may know my seruice, and the seruice of the kingdomes of the countreys.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Nevertheless they shall be servants, and know my service, and the service of the kings of the earth.
English Revised Version
Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Netheles thei schulen serue hym, that thei knowe the dyuersitee of my seruyce and of the seruyce of the rewme of londis.
Update Bible Version
Nevertheless they shall be his slaves, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Webster's Bible Translation
Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
New King James Version
Nevertheless they will be his servants, that they may distinguish My service from the service of the kingdoms of the nations."
New Living Translation
But they will become his subjects, so they will know the difference between serving me and serving earthly rulers."
New Life Bible
But they will be made to work for him. In this way they may learn the difference between My work and the work of the kings of the countries."
New Revised Standard
Nevertheless they shall be his servants, so that they may know the difference between serving me and serving the kingdoms of other lands."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Nevertheless they shall become his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
Douay-Rheims Bible
But yet they shall serve him, that they may know the difference between my service, and the service of a kingdom of the earth.
Revised Standard Version
Nevertheless they shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."
Young's Literal Translation
but they become servants to him, and they know My service, and the service of the kingdoms of the lands.'
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"But they will become his slaves so that they may learn the difference between My service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."

Contextual Overview

1When Rehoboam had established his sovereignty and royal power, he abandoned the law of the Lord—he and all Israel with him. 2Because they were unfaithful to the Lord, in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, King Shishak of Egypt went to war against Jerusalem 3with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 cavalrymen, and countless people who came with him from Egypt—Libyans, Sukkiim, and Cushites. 4He captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. 5Then the prophet Shemaiah went to Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who were gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak. He said to them: “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have abandoned me; therefore, I have abandoned you to Shishak.’” 6So the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.” 7When the Lord saw that they had humbled themselves, the Lord’s message came to Shemaiah: “They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them but will grant them a little deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. 8However, they will become his servants so that they may recognize the difference between serving me and serving the kingdoms of other lands.”9So King Shishak of Egypt went to war against Jerusalem. He seized the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the royal palace. He took everything. He took the gold shields that Solomon had made. 10King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and committed them into the care of the captains of the guards who protected the entrance to the king’s palace.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Nevertheless: Nehemiah 9:36, Isaiah 26:13

that they may: Deuteronomy 28:47, Judges 3:1, Jeremiah 10:24, Hosea 8:10

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 28:48 - serve Judges 3:2 - might know Job 36:15 - openeth

Cross-References

Genesis 4:26
A son was born to Seth also, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.
Genesis 12:12
When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me but let you live.
Genesis 12:14
When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful.
Genesis 12:15
Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh, so the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s household.
Genesis 12:16
He treated Abram well because of her, and Abram acquired flocks and herds, male and female donkeys, male and female slaves, and camels.
Genesis 13:4
to the site where he had built the altar. And Abram called on the name of the Lord there.
Genesis 21:33
Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beer-sheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God.
Genesis 28:19
and named the place Bethel, though previously the city was named Luz.
Genesis 35:3
We must get up and go to Bethel. I will build an altar there to the God who answered me in my day of distress. He has been with me everywhere I have gone.”
Joshua 7:2
Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and scout the land.” So the men went up and scouted Ai.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Nevertheless, they shall be his servants,.... tributaries to the king of Egypt:

that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries; the difference between them, how easy the one, which they might perform without taxes and tributes, and how hard and heavy the other, through the exactions and exorbitant demands of those to whom they became subjects.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

That they may know my service, and the service of the kingdom - i. e., that they may contrast the light burthen of the theocracy with the heavy yoke of a foreign monarch.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Chronicles 12:8. They shall be his servants — They shall be preserved, and serve their enemies, that they may see the difference between the service of God and that of man. While they were pious, they found the service of the Lord to be perfect freedom; when they forsook the Lord, they found the fruit to be perfect bondage. A sinful life is both expensive and painful.


 
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