Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 25:2
And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator describes King Amaziah at the outset of his twenty-nine-year reign in Jerusalem, immediately following his accession and preceding his military campaigns.
The words — רַק לֹא (rak lo') translates literally as "only not," modifying the preceding phrase to indicate a qualified obedience rather than complete devotion.
The thread — The text contrasts Amaziah's partial compliance with the wholehearted obedience of Joash in 2 Chronicles 24:2, while foreshadowing his later idolatry in 2 Chronicles 25:14 and echoing the New Testament warning against double-mindedness in James 4:8.
Why it lands — The verse demands that a reader examine whether their actions align with divine standards or merely satisfy external expectations without internal commitment.
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 he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart.
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 25:14 When Amaziah returned from the slaughter of the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the Seirites, set them up as his own gods, bowed before them, and burned sacrifices to them.
- James 4:8 Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
- 2 Chronicles 24:2 And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
- Isaiah 29:13 Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.
- Acts 8:21 You have no part or share in our ministry, because your heart is not right before God.
- 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him; the LORD does not see as man does. For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.”
- 2 Chronicles 26:4 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Amaziah had done.
- 2 Kings 14:4 Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away, and the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.
- Psalms 78:37 Their hearts were disloyal to Him, and they were unfaithful to His covenant.
- Hosea 10:2 Their hearts are devious; now they must bear their guilt. The LORD will break down their altars and demolish their sacred pillars.