2 Chronicles 16:9 (GNV)

Passage

For the eyes of the Lord beholde all the earth to shewe him selfe strong with them that are of perfite heart towarde him: thou hast then done foolishly in this: therefore from henceforth thou shalt haue warres.

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 16:7 And at that same time Hanani the Seer came to Asa King of Iudah, and saide vnto him, Because thou hast rested vpon the king of Aram, and not rested in the Lord thy God, therefore is the hoste of the King of Aram escaped out of thine hande.

2 Chronicles 16:8 The Ethiopians and the Lubims, were they not a great hoste with charets and horsemen, exceeding many? yet because thou diddest rest vpon the Lord, he deliuered them into thine had.

2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord beholde all the earth to shewe him selfe strong with them that are of perfite heart towarde him: thou hast then done foolishly in this: therefore from henceforth thou shalt haue warres.

2 Chronicles 16:10 Then Asa was wroth with the Seer, and put him into a prison: for he was displeased with him, because of this thing. And Asa oppressed certaine of the people at the same time.

2 Chronicles 16:11 And behold, the actes of Asa first and last, loe, they are written in the booke of the Kings of Iudah and Israel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "eyes", "lord", "beholde", "earth", "shewe", "selfe", "strong", and "perfite". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "eyes" and "lord", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "The Ethiopians and the Lubims were they..." into verse 10's "Then Asa was wroth with the Seer...", so "eyes" and "lord" 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 "eyes" and "lord" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.