2 Chronicles 20:23 (GNV)

Passage

For the children of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of mount Seir, to slay and to destroy them and when they had made an end of the inhabitantes of Seir, euery one helped to destroy another.

Nearby Context

2 Chronicles 20:21 And when he had consulted with the people, and appoynted singers vnto the Lord, and them that should prayse him that is in the beautifull Sanctuarie, in going forth before the men of armes, and saying, Prayse ye the Lord, for his mercy lasteth for euer,

2 Chronicles 20:22 And when they began to shoute, and to prayse, the Lord layed ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Iudah, and they slewe one another.

2 Chronicles 20:23 For the children of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of mount Seir, to slay and to destroy them and when they had made an end of the inhabitantes of Seir, euery one helped to destroy another.

2 Chronicles 20:24 And when Iudah came towarde Mizpah in the wildernes, they looked vnto the multitude: and behold, the carkeises were fallen to the earth, and none escaped.

2 Chronicles 20:25 And when Iehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoyle of them, they founde among them in abundance both of substance and also of bodies laden with precious iewels, which they tooke for themselues, till they could cary no more: they were three dayes in gathering of the spoyle: for it was much.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "children", "ammon", "moab", "rose", "against", "inhabitants", "mount", and "seir". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "children" and "ammon", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "And when they began to shoute and..." into verse 24's "And when Iudah came towarde Mizpah in...", so "children" and "ammon" 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 "children" and "ammon" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.