2 Chronicles 16:8 (DBY)

Passage

Were not the Ethiopians and the Libyans a huge army, with very many chariots and horsemen? but when thou didst rely on Jehovah, he delivered them into thy hand.

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 16:6 And king Asa took all Judah; and they carried away the stones and the timber from Ramah, with which Baasha had been building, and he built with them 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 has the army of the king of Syria escaped out of thy hand.

2 Chronicles 16:8 Were not the Ethiopians and the Libyans a huge army, with very many chariots and horsemen? but when thou didst rely on Jehovah, he delivered them into thy hand.

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

2 Chronicles 16:10 And Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in the prison; for he was enraged with him because of this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "ethiopians", "libyans", "huge", "army", "very", "chariots", "horsemen", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "ethiopians" and "libyans", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "And at that time Hanani the seer..." into verse 9's "For the eyes of Jehovah run to...", so "ethiopians" and "libyans" 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 "ethiopians" and "libyans" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.