2 Chronicles 15:12

And they entered into a covenant,.... Asa and all his people; that is, as Piscator remarks, they went between the pieces of the calf cut asunder, for the confirmation of the covenant, see Jeremiah 34:18 , to seek the Lord God of their fathers, with all their heart, and with all their soul; to serve and worship him most truly, sincerely, and cordially.

15:1-19 The people make a solemn covenant with God. - The work of complete reformation appeared so difficult, that Asa had not courage to attempt it, till assured of Divine assistance and acceptance. He and his people offered sacrifices to God; thanksgiving for the favours they had received, and supplication for further favours. Prayers and praises are now our spiritual sacrifices. The people, of their own will, covenanted to seek the Lord, each for himself, with earnestness. What is religion but seeking God, inquiring after him, applying to him upon all occasions? We make nothing of our religion, if we do not make heart-work of it; God will have all the heart, or none. Our devotedness to God our Saviour, should be avowed and shown in the most solemn and public manner. What is done in hypocrisy is a mere drudgery.

Verse 12. - They entered into a covenant. For the original, see Exodus 24:6-8 ; Deuteronomy 4:29 ; for two other solemn renewals of it, see 2 Kings 23:1-3 ; 2 Chronicles 34:29-33 ; where, however, the stringent engagement of the following verse, though sufficiently to be inferred, is not notified. To seek ; Hebrew, לִדְרושׁ . (for similar use of לְ , with infinitive after, etc., see Nehemiah 10:30 ; Jeremiah 34:10 ). 2 Chronicles 15:12

Solemn renewals of the original covenant which God made with their fathers in the wilderness Exodus 24:3-8 occur from time to time in the history of the Jews, following upon intervals of apostasy. This renewal in the reign of Asa is the first on record. The next falls 300 years later in the reign of Josiah. There is a third in the time of Nehemiah (see the marginal references). On such occasions, the people bound themselves by a solem oath to observe all the directions of the Law, and called down God's curse upon them if they forsook it.

10-14. the third month—when was held the feast of pentecost. On this occasion, it was celebrated at Jerusalem by an extraordinary sacrifice of seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep, the spoil of the Ethiopians being offered. The assembled worshippers entered with great and holy enthusiasm into a national covenant "to seek the Lord their God … with all their heart and with all their soul;" and, at the same time, to execute with rigor the laws which made idolatry punishable with death (2Ch 15:13; De 17:2-5; Heb 10:28). The people testified unbounded satisfaction with this important religious movement, and its moral influence was seen in the promotion of piety, order, and tranquillity throughout the land.

And they entered into the covenant, i.e., they renewed the covenant, bound themselves by a promise on oath (שׁבוּעה, 2 Chronicles 15:14 ) to hold the covenant, viz., to worship Jahve the God of the fathers with their whole heart and soul; cf. Deuteronomy 4:29 . With בּבּרית בּוא, cf. Jeremiah 34:10 .