Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 20:29
And the fear of God came upon all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records the reaction of surrounding nations immediately after Jehoshaphat’s army returns to Jerusalem with musical worship, following God’s intervention against their enemies.
The words — פַּחַד (paḥad) translates literally as "[the] dread of," which combines with אֱלֹהִים ('elohim, "God") to form "fear of God" without importing the surrounding context's "terror that fell upon."
The thread — This pattern of divine intervention triggering widespread awe among neighboring nations appears in 2 Chronicles 17:10, Exodus 23:27, and 2 Kings 7:6.
Why it lands — The verse states a historical cause-and-effect: political rest follows divine military action, requiring the reader to separate observable outcomes from theological speculation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel.
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 17:10 And the dread of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that surrounded Judah, so that they did not make war against Jehoshaphat.
- Exodus 23:27 I will send My terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn and run.
- 2 Kings 7:6 For the Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a great army, so that they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel must have hired the kings of the Hittites and Egyptians to attack us.”
- Genesis 35:5 As they set out, a terror from God fell over the surrounding cities, so that they did not pursue Jacob’s sons.
- 2 Chronicles 14:14 and attacked all the cities around Gerar, because the terror of the LORD had fallen upon them. They plundered all the cities, since there was much plunder there.
- Exodus 15:14 The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.
- Joshua 2:9 and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you.
- Joshua 5:1 Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts melted and their spirits failed for fear of the Israelites.
- Joshua 9:9 “Your servants have come from a very distant land,” they replied, “because of the fame of the LORD your God. For we have heard the reports about Him: all that He did in Egypt,