1Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother’s name was Jerushah daughter of Zadok.
2And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Uzziah had done. In addition, he did not enter the temple of the LORD. But the people still behaved corruptly.
3Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the house of the LORD, and he worked extensively on the wall at the hill of Ophel.
4He also built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.
5Jotham waged war against the king of the Ammonites and defeated them, and that year they gave him a hundred talents of silver, ten thousand cors of wheat, and ten thousand cors of barley. They paid him the same in the second and third years.
6So Jotham grew powerful because he ordered his ways before the LORD his God.
7As for the rest of the acts of Jotham, along with all his wars and his ways, they are indeed written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.
8He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years.
9And Jotham rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Ahaz reigned in his place.
Understand This
2 Chronicles 27, explained
What 2 Chronicles 27 is saying
Jotham succeeds Uzziah and becomes a quietly effective king—building the Upper Gate of the Temple, fortifying cities in the Judean hill country, and defeating the Ammonites who pay substantial tribute for three years. The Chronicler notes that 'he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord' and significantly adds: 'He did not enter the Temple of the Lord'—learning from his father's fatal mistake. Jotham 'grew mighty because he ordered his ways before the Lord.'
The background behind it
Jotham's brief sixteen-year reign (ca. 750-735 BC) occurred during the rising Assyrian threat under Tiglath-pileser III. The Chronicler's coverage is notably brief but entirely positive—one of the few kings with no recorded failure. The note about not entering the Temple is unique to Chronicles and deliberately echoes Uzziah's transgression.
Themes running underneath
Jotham represents the Chronicler's ideal of learning from the previous generation's mistakes. The key phrase 'he ordered his ways before the Lord' suggests disciplined, sustained faithfulness rather than dramatic acts. His strength came from consistent obedience rather than spectacular episodes.
Why it still matters
Jotham's quiet, steady faithfulness offers an alternative model of spiritual maturity—no dramatic failures, no spectacular miracles, just consistent, disciplined ordering of one's life before God. Not every faithful life makes headlines.
Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible — used by permission, Bible Hub.