The big picture
2 Chronicles 27 opens in verse 1 with “Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen…”, reaches its middle movement near verse 5 with “He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the…”, and closes in verse 9 with “And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz…” Repeated or prominent terms include built, Jotham, LORD, years, reigned. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
2 Chronicles · King James Version · 92 Chronicles 27:1-5
1–5: Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he…
2 Chronicles 27:1–5 opens with “Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in…” and reaches “He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the children of…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on 2 Chronicles 27 develops its own movement around built, Jotham, LORD, years, reigned, with particular weight carried by built, LORD, Ammon.
Context that brings the passage to life
“Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s…” The number twenty makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
“And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD , according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he…” Naming Uzziah keeps the account rooted in particular people or places. Follow where the name returns and what changes around it.
2 Chronicles 27:1-5
King James Version1Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok.
2And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD , according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the LORD . And the people did yet corruptly.
3He built the high gate of the house of the LORD , and on the wall of Ophel he built much.
4Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers.
5He fought also with the king of the Ammonites, and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him the same year an hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. So much did the children of Ammon pay unto him, both the second year, and the third.
2 Chronicles 27:6-9
6–9: So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD…
2 Chronicles 27:6–9 opens with “So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.” and reaches “And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on 2 Chronicles 27 develops its own movement around built, Jotham, LORD, years, reigned, with particular weight carried by Jotham, reigned, ways.
2 Chronicles 27:6-9
King James Version6So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.
7Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
2 Chronicles 27:1 begins with “Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Jerushah, the daughter…”
Where the chapter turns
2 Chronicles 27:7 forms a natural hinge: “Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.”
The final note
2 Chronicles 27:9 leaves the reader with “And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words built, Jotham, LORD, years, reigned, Ammon help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
What makes the deception more than a harmless family trick?
Jacob exploits his father's blindness, impersonates his brother and invokes God while lying.
What does the family lose?
Trust, safety and proximity: Jacob must flee, and Esau carries murderous resentment.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.