Biblical Account of Jehoram's Bowel Disease Symptoms

The biblical account of Jehoram's bowel disease is found in 2 Chronicles 21:18-20, which states that the Lord afflicted Jehoram with "an incurable disease of the bowels" ^[1]. This condition is described as a punishment for Jehoram's wickedness, as foretold by the prophet Elijah in a letter ^[4].

The symptoms of Jehoram's disease are not explicitly detailed in the biblical text, but various interpretations have been proposed by commentators. According to Flavius Josephus, Jehoram's condition involved his bowels falling out due to "inward rottenness of the parts" accompanied by long torments ^[2]. This description is echoed in the account of Jehoram's death in 2 Chronicles 21:18-20, where it is noted that he died after a long and painful bowel disease ^[3].

The nature of Jehoram's bowel disease has been the subject of various interpretations. Some have suggested it was a "hernia" or "rupture", while others propose it was a "dysentery" or "bloody flux" ^[7]. The Targum interprets it as the "Word of the Lord breaking him" ^[7]. Rabbi Yoḥanan in the Babylonian Talmud discusses a similar intestinal illness, describing it as embarrassing for the sufferer due to severe diarrhea ^[8].

The disease is seen as a divine judgment on Jehoram for his wicked reign, marked by idolatry and violence against his own family ^{[4, 5]}. Elijah's letter to Jehoram foretold not only the king's personal suffering but also the calamities that would befall his people and family ^{[2, 5]}.

Jehoram's death was marked by a lack of dignity, as he was not given an honorary funeral rite and was buried away from the royal cemetery, signifying the disgrace associated with his condition and reign ^[3]. This treatment contrasts with the respect typically accorded to kings of Judah, underscoring the severity of Jehoram's transgressions and the consequent judgment.

The historical context of Jehoram's reign and his disease is intertwined with the broader narratives of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, including the influences of neighboring nations and the prophetic voices that critiqued royal actions ^[6]. The account of Jehoram's suffering serves as a stark reminder of the biblical theme that disobedience to God's laws results in severe consequences, even for those in positions of power.

The various traditions represented in the sources offer different insights into Jehoram's condition, ranging from the literal descriptions of his physical suffering to the theological interpretations of his disease as a punishment ^{[2, 4, 7]}. These perspectives collectively enrich the understanding of the biblical narrative and its implications for the understanding of divine judgment and human accountability.

The disease that afflicted Jehoram remains a subject of both historical and theological reflection, illustrating the complex interplay between physical suffering, moral failing, and divine judgment in biblical narratives.

Sources

II Chronicles “II Chronicles 21:18 (BSB) — After all this, the LORD afflicted Jehoram with an incurable disease of the bowels.”
Project Gutenberg “Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, CHAPTER 5, section 2: gave him notice in this epistle what punishment he should undergo for these crimes, namely, the destruction of his people, with the corruption of the king's own wives and children; and that he should himself die of a distemper in his bowels, with long torments, those his bowels falling out by the violence of the inward rottenness of the parts, insomuch that, though he see his own misery, he shall not be able at all to help himself, but shall die in that manner. This it was which Elijah denounced to him in that epistle. 3. It was ”
2 Chronicles (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 2 Chronicles 21:18: 21:18-20 Jehoram died after a long and painful bowel disease. He was not given the dignity of an honorary funeral rite (see 16:14) and was buried in disgrace away from the royal cemetery.”
2 Chronicles (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 2 Chronicles 21 (introduction): Jehoram succeeds his father Jehoshaphat; and commences his reign with the murder of his brethren, and of several of the princes of Israel, Ch2 21:1-5. He walks in the way of Ahab, whose bad daughter, Athaliah, he had married, Ch2 21:6. God remembers his covenant with David, and does not destroy the nation, Ch2 21:7. The Edomites revolt, Ch2 21:8-10. Jehoram restores the high places in the mountains of Judah, and greatly corrupts the morals of the people, Ch2 21:11. A letter comes to him from Elijah, Ch2 21:12-15. The Philistines and Arabians come ”
2 Chronicles (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on 2 Chronicles 21:12: The prophet Elijah's letter against Joram, and the infliction of the punishments as announced. - Ch2 21:12. There came to him a writing from the prophet Elijah to this effect: "Thus saith Jahve, the God of thy father David, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat, ... but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel, ... and also hast slain thy brethren, the house of thy father, who were better than thyself; behold, Jahve will send a great plague upon thy people, and upon thy sons, and thy wives, and upon all thy goods; and thou shalt ha”
2 Kings (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on 2 Kings 8:23: According to Ch2 21:18., Joram died of a terrible disease, in which his bowels fell out, and was buried in the city of David, though not in the family sepulchre of the kings. (Note: "The building of Carthage, Dido, her husband Sichaeus, her brother Pygmalion king of Tyre (scelere ante alios immanior omnes), all coincide with the reign of Joram. This synchronism of the history of Tyre is not without significance here. The Tyrian, Israelitish, and Judaean histories are closely connected at this time. Jezebel, a Tyrian princess, was Ahab's wife, and again her dau”
2 Chronicles (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Chronicles 21:16: After all this the Lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease. What it was is not agreed upon; some take it be an "hernia", or rupture; others, the falling of the "anus", or a fistula in it; others, the colic, or iliac passion; but generally it is thought to be a dysentery, or bloody flux; the Targum is,"the Word of the Lord broke him.'' After all this the Lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease. What it was is not agreed upon; some take it be an "hernia", or rupture; others, the falling of the "anus", or a fistula in it; others, the”
Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim 41b.3: Rabbi Yoḥanan said: One does not visit a person suffering from buredam , an intestinal illness, nor is the name of that illness mentioned, because it is embarrassing for the one suffering from the illness. The Gemara asks: What is the reason that one does not visit him? Rabbi Elazar said: It is due to the fact that he is like a flowing spring, as the symptom of the illness is severe diarrhea. And Rabbi Elazar said: Why is the illness called buredam ? It is due to the fact that the one suffering from the illness is like a flowing spring, a bottomless pit [ bor ”

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