“Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years, and departed without being desired. Howbeit they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.”
My Notes
What Does 2 Chronicles 21:20 Mean?
"He departed without being desired. Howbeit they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings." Jehoram of Judah dies and nobody mourns. The phrase "without being desired" (belo chemdah — without longing, without anyone wanting him) is the most devastating obituary in Scripture: when he died, nobody wished he'd lived longer. Nobody missed him. The death produced relief, not grief.
The burial detail compounds the judgment: he's buried in the City of David but NOT in the royal tombs. The community denies him the honor of being placed among the kings. He ruled as a king. He isn't buried as one. The tomb reserved for faithful rulers is closed to the unfaithful one. The postmortem exclusion is the community's final verdict on his reign.
Jehoram's crimes (verses 4, 6, 11, 13) include murdering his own brothers, leading Judah into idolatry, and receiving a prophetic letter from Elijah announcing divine judgment. The 'without being desired' death is the consequence of a reign that produced nothing people wanted to remember.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How would your departure be received — with mourning or relief?
- 2.What does 'without being desired' teach about the legacy of leadership that serves itself?
- 3.What does exclusion from the 'royal tombs' — denial of honorable legacy — look like in your context?
- 4.What kind of life produces the 'nobody missed him' obituary — and are you building that kind of life?
Devotional
Nobody wanted him. He died and nobody missed him. The most devastating obituary possible: he departed without being desired. The community that should have mourned their king felt nothing when he died — or worse, felt relief.
The exclusion from the royal tombs is the community's final verdict: you were king. You aren't buried as one. The tombs where David and Solomon and Jehoshaphat rest — you don't belong there. Your body goes in the City of David. Your body doesn't go where the good kings' bodies go. The burial location is the legacy assessment.
The 'without being desired' describes a life that produced no positive legacy: nobody wanted Jehoram alive because Jehoram alive produced nothing worth wanting. He murdered his brothers. He led Judah into idolatry. He married into Ahab's family and imported their wickedness. When he died, the community's response was: finally.
The contrast with other royal deaths is the context: when good kings died, 'all Judah mourned' (2 Chronicles 35:24 — Josiah). When Jehoram died, nobody desired him. The mourning that should accompany a king's death is replaced by the silence of a community that has nothing positive to say.
The terrifying question: how will your departure be received? With desire or without? With mourning or with relief? Will the community you served wish you'd stayed — or wish you'd left sooner?
The 'without being desired' is the summary evaluation you can't argue with: it's not what you said about yourself. It's how people felt when you were gone.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Not in the sepulchres of the kings - Compare the similar treatment of Joash 2Ch 24:25 and Ahaz 2Ch 28:27.
Departed without being desired - He was hated while he lived, and neglected when he died; visibly cursed of God, and…
Here we have, I. A warning from God sent to Jehoram by a writing from Elijah the prophet. By this it appears that…
and departed without being desired Render, he lived so that none desired him (or "delighted in him"). Cp. LXX., ἐπορεύθη…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture