2 Chronicles 15:9

2Ch 15:9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the LORD his God [was] with him.

Ver. 9. And the strangers with them, &c.] Strangers they had made themselves by their revolt with the rest, but now they repented and returned, being looked upon by their "brethren in iniquity" as apostates, like as was Luther by the Papists. An apostate he confessed himself, sed beatum et sanctum, "but happy and holy," but such a one as had not kept touch with the devil.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Ch 15:9. And out of Simeon — For the generality of this tribe, though they had their inheritance out of the portion of Judah, revolted to Jeroboam with the other tribes, as appears from many passages of Scripture. This they might conveniently do, because, as their portion bordered, on one side, on the tribe of Judah, so, on the other, it touched on that of Dan, and therefore could easily join with the one or the other. For they fell to him out of Israel in abundance — Namely, from the king of Israel.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

15:9 the people of Ephraim, Manasseh: The Chronicler always included the northern tribes in his accounts of spiritual reform (cp. 30:1-11). • The territory of Simeon was absorbed into Judah.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

he gathered all Judah and Benjamin--Not satisfied with these minor measures of purification and improvement, Asa meditated a grand scheme which was to pledge his whole kingdom to complete the work of reformation, and with this in view he waited for a general assembly of the people.

and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh--The population of Asa's kingdom had been vastly increased by the continued influx of strangers, who, prompted by motives either of interest or of piety, sought in his dominions that security and freedom which they could not enjoy amid the complicated troubles which distracted Israel.

and out of Simeon--Although a portion of that tribe, located within the territory of Judah, were already subjects of the southern kingdom, the general body of the Simeonites had joined in forming the northern kingdom of Israel. But many of them now returned of their own accord.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 9. And the strangers] Many out of the different tribes, particularly out of Simeon, Ephraim, and Manasseh, having reflected that the Divine blessing was promised to the house of David, and finding the government of Jeroboam founded in idolatry, would naturally, through a spirit of piety, leave their own country, and go where they might enjoy the worship of the true God.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(9) The strangers—i.e., the non-Judæans; members of the northern kingdom. A similar accession to the southern kingdom had taken place under Rehoboam (2Ch_11:16); and another yet is related in the reign of Hezekiah (2Ch_30:11; 2Ch_30:18).

And out of Simeon.—This tribe is again mentioned along with Ephraim and Manasseh in 2Ch_34:6, although its territory lay “within the inheritance of the children of Judah” (Jos_19:1). Perhaps a portion of the tribe had migrated northward (comp. Judges 18), and some of these now settled again in Judah. Gen_49:7 speaks of Simeon as “divided in Jacob, and scattered in Israel.”

Another solution is, that although politically one with Judah, the tribe of Simeon was religiously isolated by its illegal worship established at Beersheba, similar to that at Bethel and Dan (Amo_4:4; Amo_5:5; Amo_8:14). But this hardly agrees with the next clause: “They fell to him out of Israel.”

They fell to him.—(1Ch_12:19; 2Ki_7:4.)

When they saw that the Lord.—They had heard of his great deliverance from Zerah.

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.—This seems to indicate that the Cushite invasion took place not long before, perhaps in the spring of the same year (see Note on 1Ch_20:1).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. the strangers with them] R.V. them that sojourned with them; cp. 2Ch_10:17; 2Ch_11:16-17; 2Ch_16:1.

Simeon] The territory of this tribe lay in the South and it is natural to think that at the disruption Simeon followed Judah in allegiance to the house of David. It may be however that Simeon at first held aloof.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them,.... The proselytes of the gate:

out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: out of all the places in those tribes that had come off to him, or had been taken by him; for otherwise these belonged to the ten tribes under the government of Jeroboam, and his successors, and the next clause explains it:

for they fell to him out of Israel abundance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him; as was clear by the victory he gave him over the Ethiopians; after that time many in the above tribes came over to him; the Targum is,"when they saw the Word of the Lord his God was his help.''

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Strangers ... - i. e. “Israelites of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.” The separation of the two kingdoms had made their Israelite brethren “strangers,” or “foreigners,” to Judah.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Simeon. This tribe was intimately connected with that of Juda, though many had revolted. Some afterwards returned, as they did from other parts, actuated either by motives of interest or of religion, chap. xxxiv. 6., and 3 Kings xi. 13. (Calmet)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Out of Simeon; which tribe, though they had their inheritance out of the portion of Judah, did for the generality of them revolt to Jeroboam with the other tribes, as appears from many passages of Scripture; which they might conveniently do, because their portion bordered, as on one side upon that of Judah, so on the other side upon that of Dan; and therefore might indifferently join with the one or other, as they saw fit.

They fell to him, to wit, from the king of Israel.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. The strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh — The Israelites of these leading tribes of the northern kingdom are here spoken of as strangers. Such estrangement had secession wrought, Many of the more pious Israelites out of the various tribes joined the kingdom of Judah in the days of Rehoboam, but multitudes more came now when they saw that the Lord his God was with Asa.

And out of Simeon — Most of the tribe of Simeon probably fell to the southern kingdom from the first, but not all the tribe, for there were not a few whose jealousy of Judah and Jerusalem led them to cast in their fortunes with the majority of the nation. Keil remarks that “the Simeonites, though politically united with Judah, yet in religious matters were not so, but had set up in Beersheba a worship of their own similar to that in Beth-el and Dan. In such a case the more earnest and thoughtful people from Simeon, as well as from Ephraim and Manasseh, may have gone to Jerusalem to the sacrificial festival prepared by Asa. In favour of this last supposition we may adduce the fact that the prophet Amos (1Ch_4:4; 1Ch_5:5; 1Ch_8:14) mentions Beer-sheba, along with Beth-el and Gilgal, as a place to which pilgrimages were made by the idolatrous Israelites.”

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He gathered. As the following verses go on to show, Ass wisely gathered all beneath his sway, with a view to sacrifice and to record anew hallowed resolve as a nation. The strangers. It is a significant comment on the estranging effect of religious schism (for the schism was religious even beyond what it was national) that so comparatively soon these of the tribes of Israel should have become called "strangers" by the side of Judah and Benjamin. They fell to him in abundance. Another significant comment on the sameness of human nature in all time; the weak and the multitude will see, learn, do duty, less under pure conviction of right, than under the strong commanding influence of observation of where and with whom success goes, even if that success necessitate the owning of the Divine blessing as its cause 2Ch_11:16 and 1Ch_12:19. It should be noted, not for the sake of satire of human nature, but for the inculcation of the infinite importance of godly influence and example. Out of Simeon. (see also 2Ch_34:6) The "lines" of the Simeonites fell to them originally (Jos_19:1) within Judah. The difficulty suggested by their being called, apparently, "strangers," and being certainly classed with the comers from "Ephraim and Manasseh," may be variously overcome, either by supposing that they had become more estranged from Judah in religious position than it was possible to them to have become in merely geographical; or that they had in some degree outgrown their own proper habitat, and had to some extent colonized a more northerly region; (Gen_49:7) or that, though, indeed, our compiler"s composition undoubtedly places the Simeonites summoned, among the strangers, through mentioning them after Ephraim and Manasseh, yet this location of their name be held accidental, rather than due to special design.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.