4 `Thy father made our yoke sharp, and now, make light `somewhat' of the sharp service of thy father, and of his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we serve thee.'
and the Egyptians cause the sons of Israel to serve with rigour, and make their lives bitter in hard service, in clay, and in brick, and in every `kind' of service in the field; all their service in which they have served `is' with rigour.
And it cometh to pass during these many days, that the king of Egypt dieth, and the sons of Israel sigh because of the service, and cry, and their cry goeth up unto God, because of the service;
and saith, `This is the custom of the king who doth reign over you: Your sons he doth take, and hath appointed for himself among his chariots, and among his horsemen, and they have run before his chariots; also to appoint for himself heads of thousands, and heads of fifties; also to plow his plowing, and to reap his reaping; and to make instruments of his war, and instruments of his charioteer. `And your daughters he doth take for perfumers, and for cooks, and for bakers; and your fields, and your vineyards, and your olive-yards -- the best -- he doth take, and hath given to his servants. And your seed and your vineyards he doth tithe, and hath given to his eunuchs, and to his servants. And your men-servants, and your maid-servants, and your young men -- the best, and your asses, he doth take, and hath prepared for his own work; your flock he doth tithe, and ye are to him for servants. And ye have cried out in that day because of the king whom ye have chosen for yourselves, and Jehovah doth not answer you in that day.'
Judah and Israel `are' many, as the sand that `is' by the sea for multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.
And Judah dwelleth -- and Israel -- in confidence, each under his vine, and under his fig-tree, from Dan even unto Beer-Sheba, all the days of Solomon.
And out of the sons of Israel Solomon hath not appointed a servant, for they `are' the men of war, and his servants, and his heads, and his captains, and the heads of his chariots, and his horsemen.
`Thy father made hard our yoke, and thou, now, make light `some' of the hard service of thy father, and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we serve thee.'
take up my yoke upon you, and learn from me, because I am meek and humble in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls, for my yoke `is' easy, and my burden is light.'
for they bind together burdens heavy and grievous to be borne, and lay upon the shoulders of men, but with their finger they will not move them.
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Commentary on 2 Chronicles 10 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
IV. The History of the Kingdom of Judah Until Its Fall - 2 Chronicles 10-36.
After giving an account of the revolt of the ten tribes of Israel from the divinely chosen royal house of David (2 Chron 10), the author of the Chronicle narrates the history of the kingdom of Judah - to which he confines himself, to the exclusion of the history of the kingdom of the ten tribes - at much greater length than the author of the books of Kings has done. This latter portrays the development of both kingdoms, but treats only very briefly of the history of the kingdom of Judah, especially under its first rulers, and characterizes the attitude of the kings and people of Judah to the kingdom of Israel and to the Lord only in the most general way. The author of the Chronicle, on the other hand, depicts the development of Judah under Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, and Jehoshaphat much more thoroughly, by communicating a considerable number of events which are omitted in the book of Kings. As we have already proved, the purpose of the chronicler was to show, according to the varying attitude of the kings of the house of David to the Lord and to His law, how, on the one hand, God rewarded the fidelity of the kings and of the people to His covenant with prosperity and blessing, and furnished to the kingdom of Judah, in war with its enemies, power which secured the victory; and how, on the other, He took vengeance for every revolt of the kings and people, and for every fall into idolatry and superstition, by humiliations and awful judgments. And more especially from the times of the godless kings Ahaz and Manasseh does our author do this, pointing out how God suffered the people to fall ever deeper into feebleness, and dependence upon the heathen world powers, until finally, when the efforts of the pious kings Hezekiah and Josiah to bring back the people, sunk as they were in idolatry and moral corruption, to the God of their fathers and to His service failed to bring about any permanent repentance and reformation, He cast forth Judah also from His presence, and gave over Jerusalem and the temple to destruction by the Chaldeans, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem and Judah to be led away into exile to Babylon.
This event is narrated in our chapter, except in so far as a few unessential differences in form are concerned, exactly as we have it in 1 Kings 12:1-19; so that we may refer for the exposition of it to the commentary on 1 Kings 12, where we have both treated the contents of this chapter, and have also discussed the deeper and more latent causes of this event, so important in its consequences.