Bible Strands
2 Kings 13:2
And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and followed the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records King Jehoahaz of Israel’s conduct during the early years of his seventeen-year reign, immediately following his accession in the twenty-third year of Joash of Judah. This placement frames Jehoahaz’s rule as a direct continuation of northern Israel’s entrenched apostasy.
The words — The text pairs וַ/יֵּלֵךְ (va/i.ye.lekh), literally "he walked," with אַחַר ('a.Char) "after" to describe Jehoahaz’s sustained adherence to Jeroboam’s sins. It also uses בְּ/עֵינֵי (be./'ei.Nei) "in the sight of" יְהוָה (Yah.weh) "Yahweh" to mark these actions as directly observed by God.
The thread — This unrepentant pattern directly fulfills the warning in 1 Kings 14:16 and replicates the institutional idolatry established in 1 Kings 12:26 and maintained in 2 Kings 10:29. The narrative treats Jehoahaz’s conduct as a chronological link in a continuous cycle of northern rebellion.
Why it lands — The passage requires the reader to acknowledge that institutional continuity and royal succession do not automatically produce spiritual reform. It establishes a baseline of unbroken disobedience that precedes the divine judgment detailed in 2 Kings 13:3.
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 evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 12:26 Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom might revert to the house of David.
- 1 Kings 14:16 So He will give Israel over on account of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”
- 2 Kings 10:29 but he did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit—the worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan.
- 2 Kings 13:11 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and did not turn away from all the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit, but he walked in them.
- Hosea 5:11 Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment, for he is determined to follow worthless idols.