II Chronicles 7:13-14 · Bible study
2 Chronicles 7:13-14 Commentary: The Grammar of Repentance
Hebrew · 5 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why God sends drought, locust, plague, and what it means for His people to humble, pray, seek, turn. A study of the condition and promise.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God calls His people to respond to covenant judgments with humility, prayer, pursuit of His presence, and repentance, promising forgiveness and restoration.
- Key words: humble (kana H3665), pray (palal H6419), seek (baqash H1245), turn (shub H7725), forgive (salach H5545), heal (rapha H7495).
- Main debate: Whether the primary application is to national Israel under the old covenant or to the church today, and whether the healing is physical or spiritual.
- Theological theme: God's covenant faithfulness: He disciplines His people and provides a path to restoration through genuine repentance.
- Best use: A Scriptural pattern for corporate prayer and repentance in times of crisis, both personal and national.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
13If I close the sky so there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send a plague among My people,
14and if My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.
WEB World English Bible 2000
13“If I shut up the sky so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people,
14if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
KJV King James Version 1769
13If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
14If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
13If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
14if my people, who are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
13If I restrain the heavens and there is no rain, and if I lay charge on the locust to consume the land, and if I send pestilence among My people--
14and My people on whom My name is called be humbled, and pray, and seek My face, and turn back from their evil ways, then I--I hear from the heavens, and forgive their sin, and heal their land.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
13If I shut up the heavens that there be no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
14and my people, who are called by my name, humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from the heavens, and forgive their sin, and heal their land.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
13If I shut up heaven, and there fall no rain, or if I give orders, and command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people:
14And my people, upon whom my name is called, being converted, shall make supplication to me, and seek out my face, and do penance for their most wicked ways: then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · II Chronicles 7:13
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that II Chronicles 7:13-14 presents a conditional promise within the covenant relationship. God lists three specific covenant curses, drought, locusts, and pestilence, each tied to Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26. Matthew Henry observes that these judgments are designed to drive God's people to repentance, not simply to punish. The four actions in verse 14, humble themselves, pray, seek my face, turn from their wicked ways, form a complete response: inward humility, verbal prayer, earnest pursuit of God, and concrete change of behavior. The Cambridge Bible notes that the LXX specifies the locust devours the trees, highlighting agricultural devastation. All sources agree that the divine promises of hearing from heaven, forgiveness, and healing are conditional: God's restoration follows the people's genuine repentance. This passage stands as a model of covenant faithfulness: God disciplines, then provides a clear path to renewal.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Covenant curse interpretation: The three judgments mirror specific curses in Deuteronomy 28 and 11.
- Conditional national promise: The phrase 'my people who are called by my name' refers to Israel; the promise is tied to the land and temple.
- Principle for the church: As part of Scripture, the pattern of repentance and restoration applies to all believers, often interpreted spiritually through Christ.
What is clear: God promises to hear, forgive, and restore His people when they respond to judgment with humility, prayer, seeking God, and turning from sin.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Applicability beyond Israel | Christians agree the passage reveals God's character: He desires repentance and promises mercy. | Some hold it applies directly to national Israel in the land; others see it as a principle for the church, fulfilled spiritually in Christ. |
| Nature of the healing promised | God promises to restore what has been broken by sin and judgment. | Some emphasize physical restoration of the land; others see spiritual restoration of the people as primary. |
| Sequence of divine action and human response | The four actions, humble, pray, seek, turn, are God's prescribed response to judgment. | Some stress God's sovereignty in causing the judgments to prompt repentance; others emphasize human free will in turning. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The setting is Solomon's temple dedication. God's night vision (verse 12) is a direct answer to Solomon's prayer in 2 Chronicles 6. In that prayer, Solomon specifically asked God to respond when drought, locust, or plague came upon the people because of their sin (2 Chronicles 6:26-31). God now affirms that pattern: these calamities are indeed His disciplined acts, and the remedy is the people's repentance.
The three judgments, shutting up the sky, commanding the locust, sending pestilence, are not random. They are covenant curses from Deuteronomy 28:23-24 (bronze sky), 28:38 (locusts consume crops), and 28:21-22 (pestilence). Deuteronomy 11:17 explicitly connects rain withheld with God's anger. Locust plagues are familiar from Exodus 10; pestilence recurs in Numbers 14:12, 16:46-47, and 2 Samuel 24:13-15. Each judgment targets a fundamental need: water, food, life. Together they represent comprehensive national crisis.
The phrase 'my people who are called by my name' signals covenant ownership. The temple was built as the place where God's name would dwell (verse 16). Yet the promise is not limited to the temple building: verse 15 says God's eyes and ears will be open to prayer made in this place, but the conditions of verse 14 extend wherever His people are. God's statement forms part of a larger passage that includes both promises of blessing and warnings of exile (verses 19-22). The entire covenant framework is in view.
Christians from all traditions recognize here a pattern for both corporate and personal repentance. The historical context underscores that this is not a magic formula but a relational process between God and His people.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for II Chronicles 7:13-14. The Hebrew text is consistent across manuscripts, and the differences in English translations are due to translation choices, not manuscript variation.
Reception History
This passage has been repeatedly invoked through church history as a call to repentance in times of national crisis. During the plague years in England, church leaders set aside days of prayer citing these verses. American colonists appealed to it during times of drought and war, believing national blessing depended on national repentance. Puritan expositors like Matthew Henry used it as a covenant template: judgment, repentance, restoration. In the modern era, the passage is often quoted at prayer gatherings for revival, and it appears in the liturgy of various denominations during penitential seasons. The broad range of appeals, from the Reformation to contemporary evangelical initiatives, shows that Christians have consistently seen this as a divinely given pattern for how a people under God's discipline may find their way back to blessing.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God's Sovereign Judgments. God actively shuts heaven, commands locusts, sends pestilence. These are not random disasters but covenant discipline meant to call His people back.
- God's Prescribed Response. Humble yourselves, pray, seek my face, turn from wicked ways. The sequence requires inward humility, outward prayer, intentional pursuit of God, and concrete repentance.
- God's Promised Restoration. I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. Forgiveness precedes healing; restoration is both spiritual and physical.
Five-point outline
- Recognize the judgment. Identify the crisis as God's call to attention. The three calamities show God's sovereignty over nature.
- Humble yourselves. The Hebrew kana means “be subdued, brought low.” It is the opposite of pride.
- Pray. The verb palal in the reflexive (Hithpael) means “to intervene, intercede.” Prayer is not just asking but standing in the gap.
- Seek my face. Baqash panim: actively pursue God’s presence, not just his benefits.
- Turn from wicked ways. Shub: “return” or “turn back.” This is a decisive change of direction, not just regret.
Illustration hooks
- A farming community facing its third year of drought. Some neighbors give up; others gather for prayer. The church decides to fast and ask the whole town to humble themselves before God.
- A pandemic sweeps through. People cry out for healing but soon forget when restrictions lift. This passage challenges us to sustain repentance, not just emergency prayers.
- Personal illustration: A Christian who has been distant from God wakes up to a crisis, a broken relationship, a health scare, and realizes it is time to humble, pray, seek, turn.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “Is this promise only for ancient Israel, or can we claim it today?”
- “What if we humble ourselves and pray, but the land doesn't seem healed?”
- “How do we ‘seek God’s face’ in a practical, daily way?”
Leading a Discussion
Read II Chronicles 7:13-14 in light of Solomon's prayer in chapter 6. God is responding to the specific requests in that prayer. Notice the flow: God judges, then gives a remedy. This passage is often used as a blueprint for national revival, but it is first a conversation between God and His covenant people.
Discussion questions
- What three judgments does God list? Why do you think God chose these specific disasters? (Look up Deuteronomy 11:17, 28:38, 28:21-22 for connections.)
- The Hebrew verb for “humble themselves” is kana, meaning “to be subdued.” How is this different from simply feeling sorry?
- “Seek my face” implies pursuing God’s presence. How does this differ from asking for things? Read Psalm 27:8 for a parallel.
- Why does God say “my people who are called by my name”? What does that tell you about the relationship behind the command?
- “Turn from their wicked ways” suggests a corporate as well as individual turning. What might turning look like for your small group or church?
- God promises to hear, forgive, and heal. Which of these is easiest for you to trust? Which is hardest? Why?
- How might this passage be misapplied? For example, when might it be wrong to assume a disaster is God’s judgment on a people?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 10:4 | Or else, if you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your country, |
| Exodus 10:6 | Your houses shall be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians, as neither your fathers nor your fathers’ fathers have seen, since the day that they were on the earth to this day.’” He turned, and went out from Pharaoh. |
| Numbers 14:12 | I will strike them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” |
| Numbers 16:46 | Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, put fire from the altar in it, lay incense on it, carry it quickly to the congregation, and make atonement for them; for wrath has gone out from Yahweh! The plague has begun.” |
| Numbers 16:47 | Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the middle of the assembly. The plague had already begun among the people. He put on the incense, and made atonement for the people. |
| Deuteronomy 11:17 | and Yahweh’s anger be kindled against you, and he shut up the sky so that there is no rain, and the land doesn’t yield its fruit; and you perish quickly from off the good land which Yahweh gives you. |
| II Samuel 24:13 | So Gad came to David, and told him, saying, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now answer, and consider what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” |
| II Samuel 24:15 | So Yahweh sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning even to the appointed time; and seventy thousand men died of the people from Dan even to Beersheba. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
4 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke observes that the Targum, an ancient Aramaic paraphrase, interprets the pestilence sent by God as a personal agent: the angel of death. This reading transforms an impersonal plague into a direct instrument of divine judgment, emphasizing the active hand of God behind the calamity.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible Schools commentary points out that the Septuagint translates "to devour the land" as "to devour the trees," cross-referencing Exodus 10:15 and Joel 1:6-7. It also notes that these verses are unique, having no parallel in 1 Kings.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange notes that the Chronicler expands God’s response to Solomon beyond the parallel in 1 Kings, especially by adding the phrase about choosing the temple as a “house of sacrifice” and strengthening the conditional nature of the covenant. He also observes small but meaningful textual variations, such as “a man to rule in Israel” instead of “a man on the throne,” which reflect the Chronicler’s distinctive emphasis.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry draws out the striking balance in God's answer: He grants the temple as a settled house of prayer, yet immediately hedges that gift with conditions. The temple's blessing flows from the people's repentance, not from the building itself. And God adds a solemn warning that apostasy will turn this chosen house into a ruin and a shock to every passerby.