2 Chronicles 25:8

2Ch 25:8 But if thou wilt go, do [it], be strong for the battle: God shall make thee fall before the enemy: for God hath power to help, and to cast down.

Ver. 8. But if thou wilt go.] If thou hast a mind to wrestle a fall with the Almighty, at thy own peril be it.

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.

If thou wilt not give credit to my words.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(8) But if thou wilt go.—Rather, But go thyself; in contrast with the prohibition, “Let not the army of Israel go.”

Do it, be strong for the battle.—Compare 1Ch_22:16 : “Arise! act!”

God shall make thee fall.—Before these words, the expression wĕlô’, “and not,” must have dropped out of the text. “Venture on the expedition by thyself. with a good courage,” says the prophet, “and God will not let thee stumble before the foe.”

For God hath power.—For there is strength in God, to help and to make to stumble. (Comp. 2Ch_20:6; 1Ch_29:12; Psa_9:3.) The ancient versions were evidently embarrassed by the passage. The LXX. render: “Because if thou think to prevail through them, then will the Lord rout thee before thy foes; because it is from the Lord both to be strong and to rout.” Vulg.: “But if thou thinkest that wars depend on the strength of an army, God will make thee to be overcome by the enemy.” Syriac: “Because thou art going to make war, the Lord will cast thee down before thy foes; because thou hast not praised the Lord, who is the helper and uplifter.” It is noticeable that no version inserts the required negative; the omission, therefore, is ancient.

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

8. do it] R.V. do valiantly (spoken ironically).

shall make thee fall] R.V. shall cast thee down.

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 Amaziah said to the man of God, but what shall we do for the one hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel?.... They will be lost, there is no demanding them back again; this he spake with some concern, as loath to lose so much money:

and the man of God answered, the Lord is able to give thee much more than this; whose is the earth, and the fulness thereof, the gold and silver, and all the riches of it; and therefore he had no need to trouble himself about the loss of his money, which, if obedient to the will of God, he might expect it would be abundantly repaid him.

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

If the present text is regarded as sound, this passage must be taken ironically. But most recent commentators supply a second negative, and render it: “But go thou alone, act, be strong for the battle - God shall then not make thee to fall.”

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

And. Heb. "But if thou wilt go, do; be strong; (he speaks ironically) God," &c. Sept. "if thou thinkest that thou art strong with these, the Lord," &c. Amasias ought to have known that no dependance was to be placed on Israel, while they despised God, C. xv. 2.

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).

Be strong for the battle; take courage, and strengthen thyself as much as thou canst. It is an ironical concession, like that, Go, and prosper.

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

It is hard to feel satisfied as to the correct rendering of this verse. The drift of the next verse, which shows Amaziah a convert to the strong exhortation of the man of God, makes either alternative allowable under the present text very untimely. and not very much in accord with what we should look for at the lips of the man of God. The very conceivable way out of the difficulty is to read al, hyphened to (all the rather that no vau is present in aOB, as the present text is), and proceed to supply aB or awB again before hTa crediting some copyist with confusion of eye through these having come close together in his manuscript. The rendering will then be straightforward, and prepare the way for Amaziah"s yielding conformably with the tenor of the next verse. "But if not" (i.e. if thou wilt not be guided by my remonstrance as to Ephraim), "go thou, be on the alert, exert all the strength possible for the battle, and yet nevertheless God will cause thee to stumble." And the remaining sentence may bear this significance, "For God hath power to help thee though alone, or to cast thee down though supported by an extra hundred thousand." If such alteration or conjectural restoration of the text be not accepted, we may harmonize the facts of the case with the most utter faithfulness of lip on the part of the prophet, by translating, "For in very truth, if thou go at all, and though thou make the best preparations, God shall make it go ill with thee." And Amaziah is persuaded to this point, that he will neither risk the lives of them of Ephraim vainly, nor risk the likelier displeasure of God on himself. He yields only partly, and therefore is nothing benefited. The difficulty is left untouched, that the prophet did not simply in toto forbid Amaziah to go, and that, saving them of Ephraim, he saves them to be a second scourge for the back of Amaziah, though he took his prophet"s advice so far, and lost his own money. A careful and devout observer of human life and perverseness, when once these commit themselves to the vain struggle with God, and equally vain attempt to haggle with his providence as to how much to yield and how much to resist and with. hold, cannot but be struck with the photograph here thrown off, and that it is a faithful one, of hard facts that have met together disastrously times without number in men"s lives. The sum, then, of the matter of our vers. 7, 8 may amount to this: "Under no circumstances take Israel, and if thou go thyself with all best preparations, yet know that God shall destroy thee."

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

Do it - It is an ironical concession like that, go, and prosper.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

But if you come The meaning is: If you do not believe my words, will you not try [to put effort into your military campaign?] Come, do, and strengthen yourself for war.

to help or to cause to stumble The meaning is: He has the strength to help you without the army of Ephraim and to cause you to stumble if you take them with you.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.