2 Chronicles 16:7 (ASV)

Passage

And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and hast not relied on Jehovah thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thy hand.

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 16:5 And it came to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left off building Ramah, and let his work cease.

2 Chronicles 16:6 Then Asa the king took all Judah; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded; and he built therewith Geba and Mizpah.

2 Chronicles 16:7 And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and hast not relied on Jehovah thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thy hand.

2 Chronicles 16:8 Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge host, with chariots and horsemen exceeding many? yet, because thou didst rely on Jehovah, he delivered them into thy hand.

2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly; for from henceforth thou shalt have wars.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "time", "hanani", "seer", "came", "king", "judah", "said", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "time" and "hanani", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "Then Asa the king took all Judah..." into verse 8's "Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim...", so "time" and "hanani" belong inside that flow. In 2 Chronicles context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "time" and "hanani" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.