BibleTools.info

9. Zerah the Ethiopian. As yet we have not been able to identify Zerah from contemporary records. Since there were Cushites in western Arabia and eastern Africa bordering on the Red Sea (see Gen. 10:6), Zerah may have been from that region. He may have had Libyan auxiliary forces in his army, from Egypt, where a Libyan dynasty ruled. Asa had done what he could to build up the national defenses and train an army (2 Chron. 14:6-8). So when Zerah struck, Judah was ready.

A thousand thousand. Some think that this symmetrical number expresses the thought of a very large host in the same way as we today speak of a “myriad” without intending to convey the idea of exactly or even approximately “ten thousand,” the literal meaning of the term. Those who hold this opinion point out that a million men would be entirely out of proportion. Be that as it may, Zerah’s forces were obviously an overwhelming “multitude” to Asa and his army. See pp. 122, 123.

Mareshah. One of the fortresses that Rehoboam had built (ch. 11:8). It was located in the lowland of Judah, about 25 mi. southwest of Jerusalem.