What Does 2 Chronicles 13:14 Mean in the King James?

And when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind: and they cried unto the LORD, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.
2 Chronicles 13:14 · KJV
The analysis reads the King James wording.

King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.

This verse in the Selah Decoded Version

With battle before and behind, Judah still has a direction of appeal: its cry goes to the LORD.

You can feel pressed from every side, with no clear way forward or back. This verse gives voice to that distress: Judah cries to the LORD while the priests sound their trumpets. The danger is spoken aloud, not hidden.

WHAT THIS UNDOES

Being surrounded does not mean you are cut off from every possible appeal.

וַיִּצְעֲקוּ

wayyits'aqu they cried

GROWS FROM

צעק

To cry out or call urgently from distress.

“cried unto the LORD” in this verse is wayyits'aqu they cried. The verb ⁨וַיִּצְעֲקוּ⁩ (wayyits’aqu, they cried out) comes from ⁨צעק⁩ (tsa’aq, cry out urgently). The same root appears in ⁨צְעָקָה⁩ (tse’aqah, an outcry) when God hears the oppressed in Exodus 3:7. Here, “cried” is more than emotion: it is a call for help directed to the LORD.

ALSO GROWS

tsa'aq: To cry out or call urgently.

צָעַק

This verb form names the urgent call Judah makes when the battle is before and behind.

tse'aqah: An outcry or cry for help.

צְעָקָה

In Exodus 3:7, God hears the outcry of the oppressed; the shared root links Judah’s appeal to a cry heard in the midst of constriction.

When danger closes in, the cry to God is voiced, and the way toward deliverance remains open.

And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.
Exodus 14:10 · KJVWith danger closing in from behind, the people cry out to the LORD, as Judah does when battle surrounds them.
The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
Psalm 34:17 · KJVThe verse connects the cry with being heard and delivered through troubles.
And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
Luke 18:7 · KJVThe cry continues even when the wait feels long; the appeal remains directed to God.
And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
Exodus 3:7 · KJV

“Cried” in Judah’s appeal and “cry” in Exodus 3:7 share the Hebrew root ⁨צעק⁩ (tsa’aq, cry out). In both verses the cry rises from distress; Exodus adds that the LORD hears it.

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2 Chronicles 13:14 KJV Meaning