The big picture
Jotham, the king of Judah, a kingdom, rules from Jerusalem, the royal city, for sixteen years. He follows the good example of Uzziah, his father, but stays out of the temple, God's house of worship. The people do not share his faithfulness. His reign includes building projects and victory over the Ammonites, a neighbouring people. The account links his strength to the way he prepares his conduct before God. At his death, his son Ahaz takes the throne.
In this chapter
- A Faithful King Among Corrupt People 2 Chronicles 27:1-2
Jotham becomes king at twenty-five and rules for sixteen years.
- Building and Victory Mark the Reign 2 Chronicles 27:3-6
Jotham builds the temple's high gate and works on the wall at Ophel.
- Jotham Dies and Ahaz Succeeds Him 2 Chronicles 27:7-9
The remaining acts, wars and conduct of Jotham are said to be recorded elsewhere.
Central truth
Jotham grows strong by ordering his ways before God, though the people continue doing wrong during his reign.
Scripture beside the summary
2 Chronicles · King James Version · 92 Chronicles 27:1-2
A Faithful King Among Corrupt People
Jotham becomes king at twenty-five and rules for sixteen years. His mother is named Jerushah. He does what is right before God, following the good conduct of his father Uzziah. One difference is made clear: he does not enter God's temple. Yet the people still act corruptly. The judgement on the king does not become an automatic judgement on everyone he rules. His own conduct is praised while the wider people's wrongdoing is stated beside it, leaving a divided picture of the reign.
In everyday life
A factory owner refuses shortcuts on the production floor, even when orders fall behind. She checks her own station carefully, but supervisors still hide faults on other lines. Her example has not yet changed every worker's practice. The account of Jotham judges both king and people by their conduct before God.
Notice
2 Chronicles 27:2 The people continue doing wrong despite the praise given to Jotham. A faithful ruler's conduct does not mean the whole nation has followed him.
2 Chronicles 27:1-2
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.
2 Chronicles 27:3-6
Building and Victory Mark the Reign
Jotham builds the temple's high gate and works on the wall at Ophel. He also builds towns, forts and towers in Judah's hills and forests. He defeats the king of the Ammonites, who then send silver, wheat and barley. Their payments continue for three years. These works and gains show his growing power. The account gives a reason beneath the visible results: he has prepared his ways before God. His strength is tied to that settled direction, not merely to walls or military success.
In everyday life
A farm manager repairs boundary fences and grain stores before taking on a larger lease. The work reflects years of careful decisions rather than a sudden lucky season. Neighbours see the buildings, but her habits lie behind them. Jotham's rise includes tribute from a defeated people and is credited to his conduct before God.
Notice
2 Chronicles 27:6 Jotham's strength is linked directly to preparing his ways before God. The building and tribute are outcomes within a reign given that moral explanation.
2 Chronicles 27:3-6
King James Version3He 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.
6So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the LORD his God.
2 Chronicles 27:7-9
Jotham Dies and Ahaz Succeeds Him
The remaining acts, wars and conduct of Jotham are said to be recorded elsewhere. The account repeats his age at the start and the length of his reign. Then he dies and is buried in the city of David, the royal burial area in Jerusalem. His son Ahaz becomes king. The brief ending closes one ruler's service and names the next. It does not treat the father's good conduct as a guarantee about his son. A new reign begins after the burial.
In everyday life
A family archivist closes a grandparent's album with dates, a burial record and the name of the heir. The last page gives a clear handover without predicting what the next generation will do. The earlier life remains a distinct record. Jotham's ending marks succession to a royal throne among God's people.
Notice
2 Chronicles 27:9 Ahaz is named after Jotham's burial. The brief succession notice identifies who follows without assigning the new king his father's faithful record.
2 Chronicles 27:7-9
King James Version7Now 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.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
Music and video connected to the passage
Related media appears when its Scripture reference overlaps this study. Music and video can illuminate a theme while the biblical text remains the foundation.
