Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Asa the son succeeds Abijah, and having cut down idolatry and been strengthened by God, he routs Zerah king of the Ethiopians with a million soldiers.
Vulgate Text: 2 Paralipomenon 14:1-15
1. And Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David; and Asa his son reigned in his place, in whose days the land was at rest ten years. 2. And Asa did what was good and pleasing in the sight of his God, and he overthrew the altars of foreign worship, and the high places, 3. and broke the statues, and cut down the groves; 4. and he commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to observe the law and all the commandments; 5. and he removed from all the cities of Judah the altars and shrines, and he reigned in peace. 6. He also built fortified cities in Judah, because he was at rest, and no wars had arisen in his times, the Lord granting peace. 7. And he said to Judah: Let us build these cities, and surround them with walls, and strengthen them with towers, and gates, and bars, while everything is still quiet from wars; because we have sought the Lord God of our fathers, and He has given us peace on every side. So they built, and there was no hindrance in the construction. 8. And Asa had in his army three hundred thousand from Judah bearing shields and spears, and from Benjamin two hundred and eighty thousand bearing bucklers and bows — all these were most valiant men. 9. And Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with his army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah. 10. And Asa went out to meet him, and drew up his battle line for war in the valley of Zephathah, which is near Mareshah; 11. and he called upon the Lord God and said: O Lord, there is no difference with You, whether You help with few or with many; help us, O Lord our God, for trusting in You and in Your name, we have come against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God; let no man prevail against You. 12. So the Lord struck the Ethiopians with terror before Asa and Judah; and the Ethiopians fled. 13. And Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar; and the Ethiopians fell even to utter destruction, because they were crushed when the Lord struck them and His army fought. They therefore took much spoil, 14. and struck all the cities round about Gerar; for a great terror had seized them all; and they plundered the cities and carried away much booty. 15. And destroying even the sheepfolds, they took an infinite multitude of cattle and camels, and returned to Jerusalem.
Verse 2: Asa Overthrew the Altars
2. KING ASA OVERTHREW THE ALTARS OF FOREIGN WORSHIP AND THE HIGH PLACES. — You will say: In 3 Kings XV, 14, it is said of Asa: "He did not remove the high places." I answer that some high places were dedicated to idols, others to the true God: Asa removed the former, not the latter.
Verse 5: He Removed the Shrines
5. AND HE REMOVED THE SHRINES — namely of Baal, Ashtoreth, and the other gods. In Hebrew it is Chammanim or Hammonim, which properly means sun-shrines, that is, temples or altars of the Sun, or of Ammon.
Verse 9: Zerah the Ethiopian
9. AND THERE CAME OUT AGAINST THEM ZERAH THE ETHIOPIAN WITH HIS ARMY OF A MILLION MEN. — Serarius, Sanchez, Salianus, and others understand the true Ethiopia, which is below Egypt. For this borders on Egypt, and is therefore near to Judea; and perhaps Zerah was king of Egypt as well as of Ethiopia.
Verse 13: The Ethiopians Fell to Utter Destruction
13. AND THE ETHIOPIANS FELL EVEN TO UTTER DESTRUCTION, BECAUSE THEY WERE CRUSHED WHEN THE LORD STRUCK THEM, AND HIS ARMY (that is, the army of King Asa, or of God, namely the army of Angels) WAS FIGHTING — invoking God and the holy Angels on behalf of Asa and Judah.