Bible Strands
2 Kings 16:5
Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to wage war against Jerusalem. They besieged Ahaz but could not overcome him.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The biblical narrator records events during the reign of Ahaz of Judah, describing a northern military coalition advancing against Jerusalem. This occurs immediately after the text details Ahaz’s continued idolatrous sacrifices on the high places and under every green tree.
The words — The Hebrew verb יַעֲלֶה (ya'aleh) literally means "he came up," denoting an army's descent from the northern territories into the Judean hills. The proper name רְצִין (Rezin) identifies the Aramean monarch who joins Pekah son of Remaliah in this campaign.
The thread — The same coalition is introduced in 2 Kings 15:37 as the beginning of divine judgment against Judah and is immediately followed by the Immanuel sign in Isaiah 7:14. Isaiah 7:1 also places these marching forces within the specific chronology of Ahaz's kingship.
Why it lands — The text states that the besieging armies "could not overcome him," recording a failed military campaign against the Davidic line. A reader must recognize that political pressure and siege warfare are subject to divine restraint, requiring an assessment of threats against God's sovereign protection rather than human capability.
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
Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 15:37 (In those days the LORD began to send Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah against Judah.)
- Isaiah 7:1 Now in the days that Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, Rezin king of Aram marched up to wage war against Jerusalem. He was accompanied by Pekah son of Remaliah the king of Israel, but he could not overpower the city.
- Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
- Isaiah 8:9 Huddle together, O peoples, and be shattered; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for battle, and be shattered; prepare for battle, and be shattered!
- Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
- 1 Kings 11:36 I will give one tribe to his son, so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put My Name.
- 1 Kings 15:4 Nevertheless, for the sake of David, the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem by raising up a son to succeed him and to make Jerusalem strong.
- 2 Chronicles 28:5 So the LORD his God delivered Ahaz into the hand of the king of Aram, who attacked him and took many captives to Damascus. Ahaz was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who struck him with great force.
- Isaiah 8:6 “Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoiced in Rezin and the son of Remaliah,