What Does 2 Chronicles 16:7 Mean in the King James?
And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and not relied on the LORD thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The Hebrew makes reliance physical: Asa puts his weight on Syria, while the Syrian force slips from his grasp.
THE MEANING
The verse places you at the hinge between support and control: Asa relies on the king of Syria rather than the LORD, and that king’s army escapes his hand. It speaks now wherever powerful backing seems to promise control over what can still slip away.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
Powerful backing guarantees that I can keep events in my control.
THE ROOT
נִשְׁעַנְתָּ
nishanta
GROWS FROM
שען
sha'an
to lean on or rely for support
“relied” in this verse is nishanta. This verb makes reliance a physical act: placing your weight on something that bears you. The same root gives words for a staff and support, so the verse’s contrast is between the support Asa chooses and what he cannot keep in his hand.
ALSO GROWS
mish'enet: staff; support one leans on
מִשְׁעֶנֶת
This concrete branch shows reliance as weight placed on something that holds a person up.
mish'an: support; stay
מִשְׁעָן
This names the backing that bears a person, bringing the verse’s question into focus: what is Asa leaning on?
THE PATTERN
Trust placed in human power cannot guarantee a lasting hold over events.
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD!But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:THE THREAD
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.The word rendered “lean” comes from שען (sha’an), the same root as “relied” in this verse. Proverbs makes the physical image explicit: it contrasts trust in the LORD with placing your weight on another support.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us