God’s Word for You

2 Chronicles 13:1-3 A chronology question

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Wednesday, November 20, 2024

13:1 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam, Abijah became king of Judah, 2 and he reigned in Jerusalem for three years. His mother’s name was Maacah, a daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.

When people used to ask me how long I had been a missionary, I would confidently say, “Three years, from 1999-2001.” But my wife would correct me, saying, “Well, it was really not even a year and a half.” That’s because I was ordained in September of 1999, and I was called away to my present church in early February of 2001. On my calendar, it looked like three years. But to my wife (a math teacher), that was not even close to being the right answer. This is part of the issue we run into when we try to understand the dates of the Hebrew Kings. A simple case of “my point of view” versus “your point of view” can easily become a big difference in how we understand the numbers given to us in the text of the Bible.

Already we have a question about the chronology. Jeroboam and Rehoboam began their reigns at the same time, the year Solomon died (930 BC). Rehoboam reigned seventeen years before he died, but now this is synchronized (compared) with the eighteenth year of Jeroboam’s reign. Why the discrepancy?

The most elementary guess is also the least likely: That Rehoboam died on the last day of the year, and his son Abijah began his reign the next day, the first day of the year (this is unlikely).

Actually, there are several things to consider:

1, How did a king count the beginning of his reign, from the time of his actual accession to the throne, or from the following year?

2, Which calendar was in use? The religious year began in April (Exodus 12:2; Leviticus 23:5). But the secular year began six months later, in Tishri (late September) which was the seventh month.

3, How did the scribe of one nation calculate the dates and years of a neighboring nation, by his own system, or by theirs?

4, Did a nation calculate coregencies, when father and son might rule at the same time?

5, Did a kingdom change the way it made these calculations?

6, Is there some absolute date during the years in question to help us fix dates more clearly backward and forward, as there is with King Solomon and the building of the temple and the date of the exodus (1 Kings 6:1)?

In the case of Rehoboam and Jeroboam in our verse, it appears that we are wise to answer the second point above with the strong evidence that Solomon and his successors used a calendar based on the secular year, that is, when the month of Tishri (in the fall) would be the beginning of the year. This is especially evident from a close examination of 2 Kings 22:3 and 23:23 (too much happens to fit inside the first two weeks of Nisan). Since it is therefore likely that the southern kingdom of Judah would be using Solomon’s system, it helps us understand this discrepancy between the seventeenth year and eighteenth year. If Jeroboam up north began using a different calendar (the spring or Nisan calendar), it helps to account for the information we have in the Scripture before us.

Therefore: If Israel (north) celebrated the New Year in the spring, but Judah (south) celebrated the New Year in the fall, then it is possible for King Abijah of Judah to consider his taking the throne as being in the 17th year since Rehoboam’s reign began (since it’s not springtime yet), but that in the north they would now call it the 18th year since Jeroboam’s reign began (if it’s after their autumnal New Year’s day).

Another quirk in this passage is that Abijah’s mother, Maacah, is said to be the daughter (bath) of Uriel of Gibeah. But wasn’t she called the daughter (bath) of Absalom back in 2 Chronicles 11:20? If you will recall, I suggested then that it might be wise to take “daughter” of Absalom as “granddaughter.” If we follow the same suggestion here, then there is no discrepancy, allowing for Uriel to be one of Absalom’s thirty sons (2 Samuel 14:27). After Absalom’s death, it isn’t surprising that his children may have scattered somewhat, to find a place with the families of their mothers.

Now there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 Abijah went into battle with a force of four hundred thousand capable fighting men, and Jeroboam drew up a battle line against him with eight hundred thousand capable troops.

Abijah’s story takes a somber turn here. His father had tried going to war against Jeroboam, and now when Abijah went, he thought he had a magnificent army, but Jeroboam mustered twice as many men! What were the southern king’s choices? If he withdrew, the northern soldiers might attack him anyway, and he could lose without ever attacking. On the other hand, if he attacked, he might be wiped out completely. A certain kind of commander might leave his army to its fate and slip away to save his life. He could also try to come up with a clever plan to outsmart the northerners. Or he could pray for help. What would he do?

Perhaps our author has caught us off-guard, confusing us with that strange chronology question, and the question of his mother’s pedigree. Perhaps we haven’t learned anything at all about Abijah’s faith or faithfulness. At least not yet. But we can certainly take the time to examine our own place before God.

Am I a good man? Am I a godly man? Do I submit myself to God’s holy will? Do I love my neighbor as myself? Am I sorry for my sins? Should I pray more than I do? Can I give more more of my time, more of my skills, more of my life, to God’s service? Luther ends his Small Catechism with many encouragements about prayer, and this is the last of them: “A word for all: Love your neighbor as yourself. This is the sum of all the commandments. And continue praying for everyone.”

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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