With him is an arm of flesh: This idiom refers to the power of human beings. In many cases a literal rendering is not advisable. So it may be better to say “He has only human strength” (New Jerusalem Bible), “He has with him mere human strength” ( NET Bible), or “He has only human power” (Anchor Bible). Compare the somewhat similar expressions in Isa 31.3 and Jer 17.5.

But with us is the LORD our God, to help us and to fight our battles may be rendered “but the LORD our God is on our side to help us and fight our battles” (God’s Word).

The exhortation of Hezekiah is in the form of a direct quotation; but in those languages that favor indirect discourse, the same meaning may be conveyed by saying:

• 7 He urged them to be strong and courageous and not to be afraid or discouraged by the king of Assyria or the big army with him. He said that someone greater was on the side of Judah. 8 The king of Assyria had human power on his side, but the LORD God was on the side of Judah to help them and fight their battles.

And the people took confidence from the words of Hezekiah king of Judah: As in verse 6, the Hebrew word for people may refer specifically to the army. The Hebrew verb rendered took confidence often refers to support or strength that has been provided. In its form used here, it sometimes refers to the action of leaning on or against something. The people “leaned on” the words of the king, which means that they “were encouraged” (New Century Version), “were buoyed up” (Revised English Bible), or “were reassured” (An American Translation). But where passive verbs are not a realistic option, translators may prefer to render this whole sentence as “These words greatly encouraged the army of Judah” (Contemporary English Version) or “And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said” (similarly New International Version). Instead of saying Hezekiah king of Judah, it may be more natural in some languages to say “Hezekiah, their king.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .