Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 27:8
He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The chronicler records a regnal formula for King Jotham, stating his age at accession and the length of his rule over Jerusalem. This statement functions as a historical bracket between the note that Jotham’s deeds are preserved in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah and the record of his death and Ahaz’s succession.
The words — The Hebrew בֶּן־עֶשְׂרִ֥ים וְ/חָמֵ֛שׁ שָׁנָ֖ה (ben-'esrim ve/chamesh shanah) literally renders "a son of twenty and five years," while בְּ/מַלְכּ֑וֹ (be/malch/o) denotes the moment of his enthronement. These lexical markers establish a fixed chronological boundary for the monarch’s tenure.
The thread — This regnal formula repeats the exact chronological data found in 2 Chronicles 27:1 and mirrors the standard Judean king-list structure. The chronicler places this data between the reference to external royal archives in 2 Chronicles 27:7 and the burial notice in 2 Chronicles 27:9 to close the biographical unit.
Why it lands — The text first establishes the factual duration of Jotham’s reign before any theological assessment is introduced. It requires the reader to accept the chronicler’s dates as the operative framework within which subsequent divine judgment and covenantal history are measured.
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
He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 27:1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother’s name was Jerushah daughter of Zadok.