Limitless Word

2 Chronicles 16:9

For the eyes of the LORD roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter. From now on, therefore, you will be at war.”
2 Chronicles 16:9 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB For Yahweh’s eyes run back and forth throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. You have done foolishly in this; for from now on you will have wars.”
  • KJV For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.
  • NKJV For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.”
  • NASB For the eyes of the Lord roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will have wars.”
  • NLT The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. What a fool you have been! From now on you will be at war.”

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

God's eyes range the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully His, but Asa acted foolishly and will face wars. God actively supports the wholly devoted, and self-reliance brings loss.

Overview

This famous verse affirms God's watchful readiness to empower the wholehearted, the very devotion Asa once showed. His failure to trust now is called foolish and brings the consequence of ongoing conflict. The promise that God strengthens those committed to Him assures believers of His help, supremely seen in His giving of Christ for His people.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 24

  • 1 Pet 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
  • Prov 15:3The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing the evil and the good.
  • Jer 16:17For My eyes are on all their ways. They are not hidden from My face, and their guilt is not concealed from My eyes.
  • Prov 5:21For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and the LORD examines all his paths.
  • Ps 34:15The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their cry.
  • Job 34:21For His eyes are on the ways of a man, and He sees his every step.
  • Heb 4:13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
  • Zech 4:10For who has despised the day of small things? But these seven eyes of the LORD, which scan the whole earth, will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel.”
  • Jer 32:19the One great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are on all the ways of the sons of men, to reward each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds.
  • 2 Chr 6:20May Your eyes be open toward this temple day and night, toward the place where You said You would put Your Name, so that You may hear the prayer that Your servant prays toward this place.
  • Ps 113:6He humbles Himself to behold the heavens and the earth.
  • Ps 37:37Consider the blameless and observe the upright, for posterity awaits the man of peace.
  • 1 Sam 13:13“You have acted foolishly,” Samuel declared. “You have not kept the command that the LORD your God gave you; if you had, the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time.
  • Gal 3:1O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
  • 1 Chr 21:8Then David said to God, “I have sinned greatly because I have done this thing. Now I beg You to take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.”
  • Luke 12:20But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’
  • 2 Kgs 20:3“Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before You faithfully and with wholehearted devotion; I have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
  • 2 Sam 12:7–12Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
  • Job 34:18–19who says to kings, ‘You are worthless!’ and to nobles, ‘You are wicked,’
  • 1 Kgs 15:32And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their days.
  • 2 Chr 15:17The high places were not removed from Israel, but Asa’s heart was fully devoted all his days.
  • 1 Cor 15:36You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
  • Jer 5:21“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.
  • Matt 5:22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to the fire of hell.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (6)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 2 Chronicles videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 2 Chronicles 16:9YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 2 ChroniclesMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Temple, priesthood, and the repeated need for a faithful king who seeks the LORD all point past every imperfect reign to the King and Temple who finally and fully dwell with God's people.

How 2 Chronicles 16:9 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.