Lectionary Calendar
Monday, April 6th, 2026
Monday in Easter Week
Attention!
Take your personal ministry to the Next Level by helping StudyLight build churches and supporting pastors in Uganda.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

2 Chronicles 13:10

"But for the rest of us in Judah, we're sticking with God . We have not traded him in for the latest model—we're keeping the tried-and-true priests of Aaron to lead us to God and the Levites to lead us in worship by sacrificing Whole-Burnt-Offerings and aromatic incense to God at the daily morning and evening prayers, setting out fresh holy bread on a clean table, and lighting the lamps on the golden Lampstand every night. We continue doing what God told us to in the way he told us to do it; but you have rid yourselves of him.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Decision;   Faith;   Faithfulness;   Levites;   Rebellion;   Reproof;   War;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Kings;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Abijah;   Jeroboam;   King, Kings;   Levites;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Abijah (abijam);   Jeroboam;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Chronicles, Theology of;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Zemaraim;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Israel;   Levites;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Abijah;   Chronicles, Books of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Chronicles, I;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Abijah ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Judah the kingdom of;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Kingdom of Judah;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Business;   Wait;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Abijah;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“But as for us, the Lord is our God. We have not abandoned him; the priests ministering to the Lord are descendants of Aaron, and the Levites serve at their tasks.
Hebrew Names Version
But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and [we have] Kohanim ministering to the LORD, the sons of Aharon, and the Levites in their work:
King James Version
But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, which minister unto the Lord , are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites wait upon their business:
English Standard Version
But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the Lord who are sons of Aaron, and Levites for their service.
New Century Version
"But as for us, the Lord is our God; we have not left him. The priests who serve the Lord are Aaron's sons, and the Levites help them.
New English Translation
But as for us, the Lord is our God and we have not rejected him. Aaron's descendants serve as the Lord 's priests and the Levites assist them with the work.
Amplified Bible
"But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not abandoned (turned away from) Him. The sons of Aaron are ministering to the LORD as priests, and the Levites attend to their service.
New American Standard Bible
"But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not abandoned Him; and the sons of Aaron are ministering to the LORD as priests, and the Levites attend to their work.
World English Bible
But as for us, Yahweh is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and [we have] priests ministering to Yahweh, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work:
Geneva Bible (1587)
But wee belong vnto the Lorde our God, and haue not forsaken him, and the Priestes the sonnes of Aaron minister vnto the Lord, and the Leuites in their office.
Legacy Standard Bible
But as for us, Yahweh is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and the sons of Aaron are ministering to Yahweh as priests, and the Levites are in their work.
Berean Standard Bible
But as for us, the LORD is our God. We have not forsaken Him; the priests who minister to the LORD are sons of Aaron, and the Levites attend to their duties.
Contemporary English Version
But we have not turned our backs on the Lord God! Aaron's own descendants serve as our priests, and the Levites are their assistants.
Complete Jewish Bible
"But we are different. Adonai is our God, and we have not abandoned him. We have cohanim performing the service for Adonai , descendants of Aharon. With the L'vi'im doing their work,
Darby Translation
But as for us, Jehovah is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests that serve Jehovah are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites are at their work:
Easy-to-Read Version
"But as for us, the Lord is our God. We people of Judah have not refused to obey God. We have not left him. The priests who serve the Lord are Aaron's sons, and the Levites help the priests in their work.
George Lamsa Translation
But as for us, we have not forsaken the LORD our God, and the priests, who minister to the LORD, are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites serve as they should;
Good News Translation
"But we still serve the Lord our God and have not abandoned him. Priests descended from Aaron perform their duties, and Levites assist them.
Lexham English Bible
But as for us, Yahweh is our God, and we have not forsaken him. The priests serving Yahweh are the sons of Aaron, the Levites, according to their service.
Literal Translation
As for us, Jehovah is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; yea, priests are serving Jehovah, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, in the work,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But with vs is ye LORDE oure God, who we forsake not: and the prestes that minister vnto the LORDE, the children of Aaron and the Leuites in their busines,
American Standard Version
But as for us, Jehovah is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and we have priests ministering unto Jehovah, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work:
Bible in Basic English
But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not been turned away from him; we have priests who do the work of the Lord, even the sons of Aaron and the Levites in their places;
Bishop's Bible (1568)
But we belong vnto the Lorde our God whom we haue not forsaken, and the priestes are the sonnes of Aaron which minister vnto the Lorde, and the Leuites wayte vpon their office.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and we have priests ministering unto the LORD, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work;
King James Version (1611)
But as for vs, the Lord is our God, and wee haue not forsaken him, and the Priests which minister vnto the Lord, are the sonnes of Aaron, and the Leuites waite vpon their businesse.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But we have not forsaken the Lord our God, and his priests, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, minister to the Lord; and in their daily courses
English Revised Version
But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and [we have] priests ministering unto the LORD, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work:
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But oure Lord is God, whom we forsaken not; and preestis of the sones of Aaron mynystren to the Lord, and dekenes ben in her ordre;
Update Bible Version
But as for us, Yahweh is our God, and we haven't forsaken him; and [we have] priests ministering to Yahweh, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work:
Webster's Bible Translation
But as for us, the LORD [is] our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, who minister to the LORD, [are] the sons of Aaron, and the Levites [wait] upon [their] business:
New King James Version
But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and the priests who minister to the LORD are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites attend to their duties.
New Living Translation
"But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not abandoned him. Only the descendants of Aaron serve the Lord as priests, and the Levites alone may help them in their work.
New Life Bible
But as for us, the Lord is our God. We have not left Him. The sons of Aaron are working for the Lord as religious leaders. And the Levites are doing their work.
New Revised Standard
But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not abandoned him. We have priests ministering to the Lord who are descendants of Aaron, and Levites for their service.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But, as for us, Yahweh, is our God, and we have not forsaken him, - and, the priests who are waiting upon Yahweh, are sons of Aaron, with Levites in the work;
Douay-Rheims Bible
But the Lord is our God, whom we forsake not, and the priests who minister to the Lord are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites are in their order.
Revised Standard Version
But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the LORD who are sons of Aaron, and Levites for their service.
Young's Literal Translation
`As for us, Jehovah [is] our God, and we have not forsaken Him, and priests are ministering to Jehovah, sons of Aaron and the Levites, in the work,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and the sons of Aaron are ministering to the LORD as priests, and the Levites attend to their work.

Contextual Overview

1In the eighteenth year of the rule of King Jeroboam, Abijah took over the throne of Judah. He ruled in Jerusalem three years. His mother was Maacah daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. War broke out between Abijah and Jeroboam. Abijah started out with 400,000 of his best soldiers; Jeroboam countered with 800,000 of his best. Abijah took a prominent position on Mount Zemaraim in the hill country of Ephraim and gave this speech: "Listen, Jeroboam and all Israel! Don't you realize that God , the one and only God of Israel, established David and his sons as the permanent rulers of Israel, ratified by a ‘covenant of salt'— God 's kingdom ruled by God 's king? And what happened? Jeroboam, the son of Solomon's slave Nebat, rebelled against his master. All the riffraff joined his cause and were too much for Rehoboam, Solomon's true heir. Rehoboam didn't know his way around—besides he was a real wimp; he couldn't stand up against them. "Taking advantage of that weakness, you are asserting yourself against the very rule of God that is delegated to David's descendants—you think you are so big with your huge army backed up by the golden-calf idols that Jeroboam made for you as gods! But just look at what you've done—you threw out the priests of God , the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and made priests to suit yourselves, priests just like the pagans have. Anyone who shows up with enough money to pay for it can be a priest! A priest of No-God! "But for the rest of us in Judah, we're sticking with God . We have not traded him in for the latest model—we're keeping the tried-and-true priests of Aaron to lead us to God and the Levites to lead us in worship by sacrificing Whole-Burnt-Offerings and aromatic incense to God at the daily morning and evening prayers, setting out fresh holy bread on a clean table, and lighting the lamps on the golden Lampstand every night. We continue doing what God told us to in the way he told us to do it; but you have rid yourselves of him. "Can't you see the obvious? God is on our side; he's our leader. And his priests with trumpets are all ready to blow the signal to battle. O Israel—don't fight against God , the God of your ancestors. You will not win this battle." While Abijah was speaking, Jeroboam had sent men around to take them by surprise from the rear: Jeroboam in front of Judah and the ambush behind. When Judah looked back, they saw they were attacked front and back. They prayed desperately to God , the priests blew their trumpets, and the soldiers of Judah shouted their battle cry. At the battle cry, God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. The army of Israel scattered before Judah; God gave them the victory. Abijah and his troops slaughtered them—500,000 of Israel's best fighters were killed that day. The army of Israel fell flat on its face—a humiliating defeat. The army of Judah won hands down because they trusted God , the God of their ancestors. Abijah followed up his victory by pursuing Jeroboam, taking the towns of Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron with their surrounding villages. Jeroboam never did recover from his defeat while Abijah lived. Later on God struck him down and he died. Meanwhile Abijah flourished; he married fourteen wives and ended up with a family of twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. The rest of the history of Abijah, what he did and said, is written in the study written by Iddo the prophet. 3King Abijah In the eighteenth year of the rule of King Jeroboam, Abijah took over the throne of Judah. He ruled in Jerusalem three years. His mother was Maacah daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. War broke out between Abijah and Jeroboam. Abijah started out with 400,000 of his best soldiers; Jeroboam countered with 800,000 of his best. 4Abijah took a prominent position on Mount Zemaraim in the hill country of Ephraim and gave this speech: "Listen, Jeroboam and all Israel! Don't you realize that God , the one and only God of Israel, established David and his sons as the permanent rulers of Israel, ratified by a ‘covenant of salt'— God 's kingdom ruled by God 's king? And what happened? Jeroboam, the son of Solomon's slave Nebat, rebelled against his master. All the riffraff joined his cause and were too much for Rehoboam, Solomon's true heir. Rehoboam didn't know his way around—besides he was a real wimp; he couldn't stand up against them. 8"Taking advantage of that weakness, you are asserting yourself against the very rule of God that is delegated to David's descendants—you think you are so big with your huge army backed up by the golden-calf idols that Jeroboam made for you as gods! But just look at what you've done—you threw out the priests of God , the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and made priests to suit yourselves, priests just like the pagans have. Anyone who shows up with enough money to pay for it can be a priest! A priest of No-God! 10"But for the rest of us in Judah, we're sticking with God . We have not traded him in for the latest model—we're keeping the tried-and-true priests of Aaron to lead us to God and the Levites to lead us in worship by sacrificing Whole-Burnt-Offerings and aromatic incense to God at the daily morning and evening prayers, setting out fresh holy bread on a clean table, and lighting the lamps on the golden Lampstand every night. We continue doing what God told us to in the way he told us to do it; but you have rid yourselves of him. 12 "Can't you see the obvious? God is on our side; he's our leader. And his priests with trumpets are all ready to blow the signal to battle. O Israel—don't fight against God , the God of your ancestors. You will not win this battle."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the Lord: We have not abandoned the Lord; and we still serve him according to His own law. But what Abijah urged concerning the state of religion in Judah was not strictly just; and, as spoken by him, it favoured ostentation. Abijah himself was but an indifferent character; and idolatry was evidently connived at in his days. Yet it was true, that the men of Judah had the priests, ordinances, and worship of Jehovah among them; that there were numbers of pious worshippers in the land; that theirs was the more righteous cause; that Jehovah was on their side as their Captain, while Israel fought against him; and that the presence of the priests with the sacred trumpets was a token of His presence and favour. 2 Chronicles 11:16, 2 Chronicles 11:17, Exodus 19:5, Exodus 19:6, Zechariah 13:9

the priests: Exodus 29:1-37, Numbers 16:40, Numbers 18:1-7

Reciprocal: Numbers 1:53 - and the 2 Chronicles 21:10 - because Psalms 20:7 - but we Joel 1:9 - the Lord's John 4:22 - we worship

Cross-References

Genesis 3:6
When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she'd know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.
Genesis 13:1
So Abram left Egypt and went back to the Negev, he and his wife and everything he owned, and Lot still with him. By now Abram was very rich, loaded with cattle and silver and gold.
Genesis 13:8
Abram said to Lot, "Let's not have fighting between us, between your shepherds and my shepherds. After all, we're family. Look around. Isn't there plenty of land out there? Let's separate. If you go left, I'll go right; if you go right, I'll go left."
Genesis 13:10
Lot looked. He saw the whole plain of the Jordan spread out, well watered (this was before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah), like God 's garden, like Egypt, and stretching all the way to Zoar. Lot took the whole plain of the Jordan. Lot set out to the east. That's how they came to part company, uncle and nephew. Abram settled in Canaan; Lot settled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent near Sodom. The people of Sodom were evil—flagrant sinners against God . After Lot separated from him, God said to Abram, "Open your eyes, look around. Look north, south, east, and west. Everything you see, the whole land spread out before you, I will give to you and your children forever. I'll make your descendants like dust—counting your descendants will be as impossible as counting the dust of the Earth. So—on your feet, get moving! Walk through the country, its length and breadth; I'm giving it all to you." Abram moved his tent. He went and settled by the Oaks of Mamre in Hebron. There he built an altar to God .
Genesis 14:8
That's when the king of Sodom marched out with the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, that is, Zoar. They drew up in battle formation against their enemies in the Valley of Siddim—against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five.
Isaiah 15:5
Oh, how I grieve for Moab! Refugees stream to Zoar and then on to Eglath-shelishiyah. Up the slopes of Luhith they weep; on the road to Horonaim they cry their loss. The springs of Nimrim are dried up— grass brown, buds stunted, nothing grows. They leave, carrying all their possessions on their backs, everything they own, Making their way as best they can across Willow Creek to safety. Poignant cries reverberate all through Moab, Gut-wrenching sobs as far as Eglaim, heart-racking sobs all the way to Beer-elim. The banks of the Dibon crest with blood, but God has worse in store for Dibon: A lion—a lion to finish off the fugitives, to clean up whoever's left in the land.
Jeremiah 48:34
"Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out, and the people in Jahaz will hear the cries. They will hear them all the way from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. Even the waters of Nimrim will be dried up.
Ezekiel 28:13
The Money Has Gone to Your Head God's Message came to me, "Son of man, tell the prince of Tyre, ‘This is what God , the Master, says: "‘Your heart is proud, going around saying, "I'm a god. I sit on God's divine throne, ruling the sea"— You, a mere mortal, not even close to being a god, A mere mortal trying to be a god. Look, you think you're smarter than Daniel. No enigmas can stump you. Your sharp intelligence made you world-wealthy. You piled up gold and silver in your banks. You used your head well, worked good deals, made a lot of money. But the money has gone to your head, swelled your head—what a big head! "‘Therefore, God , the Master, says: "‘Because you're acting like a god, pretending to be a god, I'm giving fair warning: I'm bringing strangers down on you, the most vicious of all nations. They'll pull their swords and make hash of your reputation for knowing it all. They'll puncture the balloon of your god-pretensions. They'll bring you down from your self-made pedestal and bury you in the deep blue sea. Will you protest to your assassins, "You can't do that! I'm a god"? To them you're a mere mortal. They're killing a man, not a god. You'll die like a stray dog, killed by strangers— Because I said so. Decree of God , the Master.'" God 's Message came to me: "Son of man, raise a funeral song over the king of Tyre. Tell him, A Message from God , the Master: "You had everything going for you. You were in Eden, God's garden. You were dressed in splendor, your robe studded with jewels: Carnelian, peridot, and moonstone, beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald, all in settings of engraved gold. A robe was prepared for you the same day you were created. You were the anointed cherub. I placed you on the mountain of God. You strolled in magnificence among the stones of fire. From the day of your creation you were sheer perfection... and then imperfection—evil!—was detected in you. In much buying and selling you turned violent, you sinned! I threw you, disgraced, off the mountain of God. I threw you out—you, the anointed angel-cherub. No more strolling among the gems of fire for you! Your beauty went to your head. You corrupted wisdom by using it to get worldly fame. I threw you to the ground, sent you sprawling before an audience of kings and let them gloat over your demise. By sin after sin after sin, by your corrupt ways of doing business, you defiled your holy places of worship. So I set a fire around and within you. It burned you up. I reduced you to ashes. All anyone sees now when they look for you is ashes, a pitiful mound of ashes. All who once knew you now throw up their hands: ‘This can't have happened! This has happened!'" God 's Message came to me: "Son of man, confront Sidon. Preach against it. Say, ‘Message from God , the Master: "‘Look! I'm against you, Sidon. I intend to be known for who I truly am among you.' They'll know that I am God when I set things right and reveal my holy presence. I'll order an epidemic of disease there, along with murder and mayhem in the streets. People will drop dead right and left, as war presses in from every side. Then they'll realize that I mean business, that I am God . "No longer will Israel have to put up with their thistle-and-thorn neighbors Who have treated them so contemptuously. And they also will realize that I am God ." God , the Master, says, "When I gather Israel from the peoples among whom they've been scattered and put my holiness on display among them with all the nations looking on, then they'll live in their own land that I gave to my servant Jacob. They'll live there in safety. They'll build houses. They'll plant vineyards, living in safety. Meanwhile, I'll bring judgment on all the neighbors who have treated them with such contempt. And they'll realize that I am God ."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But as for us, the Lord [is] our God,.... The Word of the Lord, as the Targum; we know and acknowledge no other; not the calves at Dan and Bethel, nor any other idols, only the one living and true God:

and we have not forsaken him; his laws, statutes, ordinances, and worship; for though Abijah was not a religious man, yet it seems the form of religion was kept up, and temple service was observed, in his days:

and the priests which minister unto the Lord; by offering sacrifices, and burning incense:

are the sons of Aaron; and they only:

and the Levites wait upon their business; some in singing songs of praise, vocally and instrumentally, others in keeping the doors of the temple and the treasures of the house of God, and others in assisting the priests at the altar.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Chronicles 13:10. The Lord is our God — We have not abandoned the Lord; and we still serve him according to his own law.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile