Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
2 Chronicles 14:13 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 13. 13And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown, that they could not recover themselves; for they were destroyed before the LORD, and before his host; and they carried away very much spoil.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The KJV label renders Cushites from the ancient Nile and northeast African world; it must not become a modern racial stereotype. In 2 Chronicles 14:13, “Ethiopians” belongs to the complete movement “Asa cries out against Zerah's larger force.”
Read It With
- 2 Chronicles 14:9–15
Read 2 Chronicles 14:13 with 14:9–15. The selected wording supplies one step in the thought unit through its next action, speech, or consequence; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: A vast Cushite army advances, Asa appeals to God rather than numbers, Judah prevails, and the pursuit devastates Gerar and surrounding settlements.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “Asa cries out against Zerah's larger force,” 2 Chronicles 14:13 advances the thought unit through its next action, speech, or consequence through the wording “And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: The prayer models dependence, while the aftermath makes victory's violence and plunder impossible to ignore. 2 Chronicles 14:1–8 has just established this prior movement: Asa's early rest is linked with removing foreign altars, commanding Judah to seek God, and building fortified cities while maintaining an army. Together those details explain why “Asa cries out against Zerah's larger force” belongs here rather than merely following a database record.
Read 2 Chronicles 14:9–15 together
Why these verses belong together: 2 Chronicles 14:9–15 forms the complete movement “Asa cries out against Zerah's larger force”: A vast Cushite army advances, Asa appeals to God rather than numbers, Judah prevails, and the pursuit devastates Gerar and surrounding settlements.
Verse 9. 9 And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thousand, and three hundred chariots; and came unto Mareshah.
Verse 10. 10 Then Asa went out against him, and they set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.
Verse 11. 11 And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said, LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O LORD our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee.
Verse 12. 12 So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled.
Verse 13. 13 And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown, that they could not recover themselves; for they were destroyed before the LORD, and before his host; and they carried away very much spoil.
Verse 14. 14 And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; for the fear of the LORD came upon them: and they spoiled all the cities; for there was exceeding much spoil in them.
Verse 15. 15 They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to Jerusalem.
Follow the Context
- A vast Cushite army advances, Asa appeals to God rather than numbers, Judah prevails, and the pursuit devastates Gerar and surrounding settlements.
- The prayer models dependence, while the aftermath makes victory's violence and plunder impossible to ignore.
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“Ethiopians”
In plain language: The KJV label renders Cushites from the ancient Nile and northeast African world; it must not become a modern racial stereotype.
In 2 Chronicles 14:13, “Ethiopians” belongs to the complete movement “Asa cries out against Zerah's larger force.”
Why it matters: This wording materially sharpens the passage-specific meaning or boundary.
How certain? probableWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
2 Chronicles 14:13 does not permit the wording “And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. The account does not authorize racial stigma against Cushites, holy war, looting civilians, or a formula guaranteeing weaker armies victory.
What Remains True
Reform, prayer, victory, and prosperity never remove the need to hear correction, protect dissenters, reject coercion, and respond responsibly to illness and failure. This unit tests that truth through the narrated movement: A vast Cushite army advances, Asa appeals to God rather than numbers, Judah prevails, and the pursuit devastates Gerar and surrounding settlements. In 2 Chronicles 14:13, the concrete line “And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
How It Can Shape Life
- The evidence to keep visible in this verse is “And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown….” Test reform and success by truthfulness, noncoercion, protection of critics, and responsible care; do not turn victory, wealth, or illness into a formula about someone's faith. This response follows from the unit's own movement: A vast Cushite army advances, Asa appeals to God rather than numbers, Judah prevails, and the pursuit devastates Gerar and surrounding settlements.
Teach It Back
Explain why 2 Chronicles 14:13 follows Judah's pursuit to Gerar, destruction, and extensive spoil. Use 14:9–15, paraphrase “And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown…,” state one source or reconstruction limit, identify one person or group power can obscure, and reject one conclusion this verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 2 Chronicles 14:9–15 — Asa cries out against Zerah's larger forceSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Zerah's identity, the million figure, campaign setting, and relationship to external history remain uncertain; Cush is an ancient geographic-ethnic term, not a moral category.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: 2 Chronicles 14:9–15, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 2 Chronicles
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, clauses, regnal formulas, temple vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/2Chr.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 14:9–15
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Full Notes: 2 Chronicles
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press; STEP Bible presentation, 2019 edition; current web presentation
Supports: Unit-bounded translation comparisons and only those lexical, textual, grammatical, numerical, historical, and parallel-passage notes attached to these verses.
Exact location: STEP Bible NET2full, 2 Chronicles 14:9–15, verse-attached translation and translator notes
Open source ↗