2 Chronicles 7:13 (ASV)

Passage

If 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;

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 7:11 Thus Solomon finished the house of Jehovah, and the king`s house: and all that came into Solomon`s heart to make in the house of Jehovah, and in his own house, he prosperously effected.

2 Chronicles 7:12 And Jehovah appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for a house of sacrifice.

2 Chronicles 7:13 If 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;

2 Chronicles 7:14 if 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.

2 Chronicles 7:15 Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent, unto the prayer that is made in this place.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shut", "heavens", "rain", "command", "locust", "devour", "land", and "send". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shut" and "heavens", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "And Jehovah appeared to Solomon by night..." into verse 14's "if my people who are called by...", so "shut" and "heavens" 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 "shut" and "heavens" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.