2 Chronicles 17:14

And these are the numbers of them according to the house of their fathers: Of Judah, the captains of thousands; Adnah the chief, and with him mighty men of valour three hundred thousand.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(14) And these . . . their fathers.—And this is their muster (or census), according to their father-houses (clans), 1Chronicles 24:3. The warriors were marshalled in the army according to clans, so that men of the same stock fought side by side with their kindred. Perhaps in the original document this heading was followed by a much more detailed scheme of names and divisions than that which the text presents.

Of Judah.—To Judah (belonged) captains of thousands, viz., the three enumerated in 2Chronicles 17:14-16 : Adnah, Jehohanan, and Amasiah. They were the principal officers, or generals, of the entire forces of Judah.

Adnah the chief—To wit, the captain Adnah. That Adnah was commander-in-chief is implied by his being named first, and his corps being the largest.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

17:1-19 Jehoshaphat promotes religion in Judah, His prosperity. - Jehoshaphat found his people generally very ignorant, and therefore endeavoured to have them well taught. The public teaching of the word of God forms, in all ages, the great method of promoting the power of godliness. Thereby the understanding is informed, the conscience is awakened and directed. We have a particular account of Jehoshaphat's prosperity. But it was not his formidable army that restrained the neighbouring nations from attempting any thing against Israel, but the fear of God which fell upon them, when Jehoshaphat reformed his country, and set up a preaching ministry in it. The ordinances of God are more the strength and safety of a kingdom, than soldiers and weapons of war. The Bible requires use to notice the hand of God in every event, yet this is little regarded. But let all employ the talents they have: be faithful, even in that which is little. Set up the worship of God in your houses. The charge of a family is important. Why should you not instruct them as Jehoshaphat did his subjects, in the book of the law of the Lord. But be consistent. Do not recommend one thing, and practise another. Begin with yourselves. Seek to the Lord God of Israel, then call upon children and servants to follow your example.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The captains of thousands; Adnah the chief - literally, "princes of thousands, Adnah the prince." The writer does not mean that Adnah (or Johohanan, 2 Chronicles 17:15) was in any way superior to the other "princes," but only that he was one of them.

Three hundred thousand - This number. and those which follow in 2 Chronicles 17:15-18, have been with good reason regarded as corrupt by most critics. For:

(1) They imply a minimum population of 1,480 to the square mile, which is more than three times greater than that of any country in the known world (circa 1880's).

(2) they produce a total just double that of the next largest estimate of the military force of Judah, the 580, 000 of 2 Chronicles 14:8.

(3) they are professedly a statement, not of the whole military force, but of the force maintained at Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 17:13; compare 2 Chronicles 17:19).

It is probable that the original numbers have been lost, and that the loss was suppplied by a scribe, who took 2 Chronicles 14:8 as his basis.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

14. these are the numbers—The warriors were arranged in the army according to their fathers houses. The army of Jehoshaphat, commanded by five great generals and consisting of five unequal divisions, comprised one million one hundred and sixty thousand men, without including those who garrisoned the fortresses. No monarch, since the time of Solomon, equalled Jehoshaphat in the extent of his revenue, in the strength of his fortifications, and in the number of his troops.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

No text from Poole on this verse.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And these are the numbers of them, according to the house of their fathers,.... Both of the tribe of Judah and of Benjamin: and first

of Judah, the captains of thousands; some had 1000 men under them, and some one hundred:

Adnah the chief; he was the principal commander or general of them:

and with him mighty men of valour, three hundred thousand; such a number was under his command.

Geneva Study Bible

And these are the numbers of them according to the house of their fathers: Of Judah, the captains of thousands; Adnah the chief, and with him mighty men of valor three hundred thousand.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

14. these are the numbers of them] R.V. this was the numbering of them.

the house of their fathers] R.V. their fathers’ houses.

Adnah the chief] R.V. Adnah the captain; cp. 2 Chronicles 17:15, Jehohanan the captain.

14–19 (no parallel in 1 Kin.). The Number of Jehoshaphat’s Army

The numbers here given, if they are to be literally understood, must be pronounced impossibly high, especially since they are represented as exclusive of the garrisons in Judah, and perhaps as representing the forces stationed in Jerusalem itself (2 Chronicles 17:13). Cp. note on 2 Chronicles 14:8.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 14. - This verse, with the following four, gives us the names of five captains, chiefs, princes, or military officers for the kingdom's service, with the numbers of the troops they severally commanded. The numbers of them (see note under 1 Chronicles 23:11); Hebrew, פקֻדָּתָם. The better English rendering to carry at once the signification would be, The muster of them, etc. The captains... the chief, In both cases the Hebrew is the familiar word for" prince" (שָׂר); in the former without article, in the latter with article. The numbers of this and following four verses are not only absolutely unreliable, but in themselves impossible. According to the house of their fathers; i.e. the quotation is drawn from an army catalogue, arranged carefully by fathers' houses (Numbers 1:18, 22, etc.). 2 Chronicles 17:14

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The men fit for war passed in review according to their fathers'-houses. The male population of Judah fell into three divisions, that of Benjamin into two. The prince Adnah held the first place among the generals, with 300,000 men of Judah. ידו על, at his hand, i.e., with and under him, Jehohanan had the command of 280,000 men, and Amasiah over 200,000. השׂר is a contraction for אלפים שׂר. For what special reason it is so honourably recorded of Amasiah that he had willingly offered himself to the Lord (cf. for התנדּב, Judges 5:9) has not been communicated.