2 Chronicles 27 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
~750-732 BC, the reign of King Jotham of Judah, as the Assyrian empire was rising in the north
Location
Jerusalem, where Jotham rebuilds the temple's Upper Gate and works on the Ophel wall on the ridge south of the temple, plus new towns in the Judean hills and forts in the wooded areas
Audience
Post-exile Jews, given a brief portrait of a competent king whose people did not follow his example
Situation
Jotham reigns well for sixteen years, builds up Jerusalem's defences and the hill country towns, and defeats the Ammonites, who pay him heavy tribute in silver, wheat, and barley for three years. The chapter notes pointedly that he did not enter the temple as his father had, but that the people continued their corrupt practices.
Key Background
The Ophel is the narrow spur of ground linking the old city of David to the temple platform, a structural weak point in Jerusalem's defences that several kings had to reinforce. Tribute paid partly in wheat and barley rather than only metal reflects how ancient economies actually worked, where grain was a store of value and armies ran on it. This is the period when Assyria under Tiglath-Pileser the Third began absorbing the small kingdoms of the region, so Jotham's building of forts and towers was preparation for a threat that would break over Judah in his son's reign. Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah were all active during these years.