“They” is the reading of the Hebrew text here; perhaps this is meant to include not only the old prophet but his sons (cf. v. 31 ).


Heb “the man of God.”


Heb “for the word which he cried out by the word of the Lord ”


For location see Map4-G4 ; Map5-C1 ; Map6-E3 ; Map7-D1 ; Map8-G3 .


Heb “did not turn from his evil way.”


Heb “and one who had the desire he was filling his hand so that he became [one of] the priests of the high places.”


Heb “house.”


Some mss of the Old Greek lack vv. 1-20 .


Heb “Get up, change yourself.”


Heb “look, Ahijah the prophet is there, he told me [I would be] king over this nation.”


Heb “take in your hand.”


Heb “and the wife of Jeroboam did so; she arose and went to Shiloh and entered the house of Ahijah.”


Heb “his eyes were set because of his old age.”


Heb “I am sent to you [with] a hard [message].”


The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 7-11 are one long sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (vv. 7-9 ) and the main clause announcing the punishment (vv. 10-11 ). The translation divides this lengthy sentence for stylistic reasons.


Heb “what was right in my eyes.”


Heb “you went and you made for yourself other gods, metal [ones], angering me, and you threw me behind your back.”


Heb “and I will cut off from Jeroboam those who urinate against a wall (including both those who are) restrained and let free (or “abandoned”) in Israel.” The precise meaning of the idiomatic phrase עָצוּר וְעָזוּב (’ atsur vÿ ’ azuv ) is uncertain. For various options see HALOT 871 s.v. עצר 6 and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 107. The two terms are usually taken as polar opposites (“slaves and freemen” or “minors and adults”), but Cogan and Tadmor, on the basis of contextual considerations (note the usage with אֶפֶס [’ efes ], “nothing but”) in Deut 32:36 and 2 Kgs 14:26 , argue convincingly that the terms are synonyms, meaning “restrained and abandoned,” and refer to incapable or incapacitated individuals.


The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר ( ba ’ ar ) to mean “burn.” Manure was sometimes used as fuel (see Ezek 4:12, 15 ). However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר as a homonym meaning “sweep away” ( HALOT 146 s.v. II בער ). In this case one might translate, “I will sweep away the dynasty of Jeroboam, just as one sweeps away manure it is gone” (cf. ASV, NASB, TEV). Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.


The Hebrew text has “belonging to Jeroboam” here.


Heb “This is the day. What also now?” The precise meaning of the second half of the statement is uncertain.


The elliptical Hebrew text reads literally “and the Lord will strike Israel as a reed sways in the water.”


Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 22, 31 ).


Heb “the River.” In biblical Hebrew this is a typical reference to the Euphrates River. The name “Euphrates” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.


Heb “because they made their Asherah poles that anger the Lord ”; or “their images of Asherah”; ASV, NASB “their Asherim”; NCV “they set up idols to worship Asherah.” sn Asherah was a leading deity of the Canaanite pantheon, wife/sister of El and goddess of fertility. She was commonly worshiped at shrines in or near groves of evergreen trees, or, failing that, at places marked by wooden poles. These were to be burned or cut down ( Deut 12:3; 16:21 ; Judg 6:25, 28, 30 ; 2 Kgs 18:4 ).


Heb “and he will give [up] Israel.”


Heb “went and entered.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam, how he fought and how he ruled, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “Rehoboam.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “the city where the Lord chose to place his name from all the tribes of Israel.”


Heb “an Ammonite”; the word “woman” is implied.


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “and they made him jealous more than all which their fathers had done by their sins which they sinned.”


The Old Greek translation has “a conspiracy” rather than “male cultic prostitutes.”


Heb “they did according to all the abominable acts of the nations.”


Heb “runners.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Rehoboam, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


In the Hebrew text the name is spelled “Abijam” here and in 1 Kgs 15:1-8 .


The Old Greek also has the phrase “the son of Rehoboam.”


Heb “his heart was not complete with the Lord his God, like the heart of David his father.”


Heb “gave him a lamp.”


The Old Greek has the plural “his sons.”


Heb “by raising up his son after him.”


Heb “and by causing Jerusalem to stand firm.”


The words “he did this” are added for stylistic reasons.


Heb “what was right in the eyes of the Lord. ”


Heb “and had not turned aside from all which he commanded him.”


Most Hebrew mss read “Rehoboam”; a few Hebrew mss and the Syriac read “Abijam” (a variant of Abijah).


Heb “his”; the referent (Abijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Abijah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.” The Old Greek also has these words: “in the twenty-eighth year of Jeroboam.”


Heb “and they buried him.”


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “mother,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.


Heb “father,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.


The word used here, גִלּוּלִים [ gillulim ], is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים ). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as “worthless things” ( אֱלִילִים , ’ elilim ), “vanities” or “empty winds” ( הֲבָלִים , havalim ).


Heb “fathers” (also in v. 24 ).


Heb “yet the heart of Asa was complete with the Lord all his days.”


Heb “and he brought the holy things of his father and his holy things (into) the house of the Lord , silver, gold, and items.” Instead of “his holy things,” a marginal reading ( Qere ) in the Hebrew text has “the holy things of [the house of the Lord ].”


Heb “There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.”


Heb “and he built up Ramah so as to not permit going out or coming in to Asa king of Judah.”


Heb “King Asa sent it.”


Heb “[May there be] a covenant between me and you [as there was] between my father and your father.”


Heb “so he will go up from upon me.”


Heb “and Ben Hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of the armies which belonged to him against the cities of Israel.”


Heb “he struck down.”


Heb “and all Kinnereth together with all the land of Naphtali.”


Heb “building.”


Heb “and King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah, there was no one exempt, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its wood which Baasha had built.”


Heb “and King Asa built with them.”


Heb “As for the rest of all the events of Asa, and all his strength and all which he did and the cities which he built, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “Yet in the time of his old age he became sick in his feet.”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “and he walked in the way of his father and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”


Heb “against him”; the referent (Nadab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and when he became king, he struck down all the house of Jeroboam; he did not leave any breath to Jeroboam until he destroyed him.”


Heb “according to the word of the Lord which he spoke.”


Heb “because of Jeroboam which he committed and which he made Israel commit, by his provocation by which he made the Lord God of Israel angry.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Nadab, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “and he walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”


Heb “and the word of the Lord came to Jehu son of Hanani concerning [or “against”] Baasha, saying.”


The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 2-3 are one sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (v. 2 ) and the main clause announcing the punishment (v. 3 ). The translation divides this sentence for stylistic reasons.


Heb “walked in the way of Jeroboam.”


Heb “angering me by their sins.”


The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר ( ba ’ ar ) to mean “burn.” However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר ( ba ’ ar ) as a homonym meaning “sweep away” ( HALOT 146 s.v. II בער ). In this case one might translate, “I am ready to sweep away Baasha and his family.” Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.


The Old Greek, Syriac Peshitta, and some mss of the Targum have here “his house.”


Heb “the ones belonging to Baasha.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Baasha, and that which he did and his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “and also through Jehu son of Hanani the word of the Lord came concerning [or “against”] Baasha and his house, and because of all the evil which he did in the eyes of the Lord .”


Heb “angering him by the work of his hands, so that he was like the house of Jeroboam, and because of how he struck it down.”


Heb “while he was drinking and drunken.”


Heb “and he became king in his place.”


Heb “and he did not spare any belonging to him who urinate against a wall, [including] his kinsmen redeemers and his friends.”


Heb “angering the Lord God of Israel with their empty things.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Elah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “Now the people were encamped.


Heb “and the people who were encamped heard.”


Heb “has conspired against and also has struck down the king.”


Heb “and he burned the house of the king over him with fire and he died.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did to make Israel sin.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Zimri, and his conspiracy which he conspired, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


The Hebrew term כִּכָּר ( kikkar , “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 150 pounds of silver.


Heb “he built up the hill.”


Heb “walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”


Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his strength which he demonstrated, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


The Old Greek has eight additional verses here. Cf. 1 Kgs 22:41-44 .


Heb “and he went and served Baal and bowed down to him.” sn The Canaanites worshiped Baal as a storm and fertility god.


Heb “Ahab”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.


Heb “in his days.”


For location see Map5-B2 ; Map6-E1 ; Map7-E1 ; Map8-E3 ; Map10-A2 ; Map11-A1 .


Heb “with Abiram, his firstborn, he founded it.”


Heb “with Segub, his youngest, he set up its gates.”


Heb “according to the word of the Lord which he spoke.”


Heb “before whom I stand.”


Heb “except at the command of my word.”


Heb “commanded.”


Heb “to provide for you.”


Heb “So he went and did.”


Heb “And it came about at the end of days.”


Heb “Look, I have commanded.”


The Hebrew text also includes the phrase “in your hand.”


Heb “Look, I am gathering two sticks and then I will go and make it for me and my son and we will eat it and we will die.”


Heb “according to your word.”


Heb “and she ate, she and he and her house [for] days.”


Heb “after these things.”


Heb “What to me and to you, man of God, that you have come.”


Heb “to make me remember.”


Heb “you are a man of God and the word of the Lord is truly in your mouth.” sn This episode is especially significant in light of Ahab’s decision to promote Baal worship in Israel. In Canaanite mythology the drought that swept over the region (v. 1 ) would signal that Baal, a fertility god responsible for providing food for his subjects, had been defeated by the god of death and was imprisoned in the underworld. While Baal was overcome by death and unable to function like a king, Israel’s God demonstrated his sovereignty and superiority to death by providing food for a widow and restoring life to her son. And he did it all in Sidonian territory, Baal’s back yard, as it were. The episode demonstrates that Israel’s God, not Baal, is the true king who provides food and controls life and death. This polemic against Baalism reaches its climax in the next chapter, when the Lord proves that he, not Baal, controls the elements of the storm and determines when the rains will fall.


Heb “the word of the Lord came to Elijah.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “now Obadiah greatly feared the Lord .” “Fear” refers here to obedience and allegiance, the products of healthy respect for the Lord ’s authority.


Heb “cutting off.”


Heb “grass.”


Heb “to cut off.”


Heb “look, Elijah [came] to meet him.”


Heb “[It is] I.”


Heb “Look, Elijah”; or “Elijah is here.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Obadiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “to kill me.”


Heb “he makes the kingdom or the nation swear an oath.”


Heb “to [a place] which I do not know.”


Heb “and I will go to inform Ahab and he will not find you and he will kill me.”


The words “that would not be fair” are added to clarify the logic of Obadiah’s argument.


Heb “has feared the Lord ” (also see the note at 1 Kgs 18:3 ).


Heb “Has it not been told to my master what I did…?” The rhetorical question expects an answer, “Of course it has!”


Traditionally, “the Lord of Hosts.”


Heb “(before whom I stand).”


Heb “Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah.”


Heb “Ahab.”


Or “trouble.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The word “messengers” is supplied in the translation both here and in v. 20 for clarification.


Heb “who eat at the table of Jezebel.”


Heb “How long are you going to limp around on two crutches?” (see HALOT 762 s.v. סְעִפִּים ). In context this idiomatic expression refers to indecision rather than physical disability.


Heb “the God.”


Heb “to the people.”


Elijah now directly addresses the prophets.


Heb “The matter [i.e., proposal] is good [i.e., acceptable].”


The last sentence of v. 25 is absent in the Syriac Peshitta.


Heb “and they took the bull which he allowed them.”


Heb “limped” (the same verb is used in v. 21 ).


The MT has “which he made,” but some medieval Hebrew mss and the ancient versions have the plural form of the verb.


Or “as was their custom.”


Heb “until blood poured out on them.” sn mutilated…covered with blood . This self-mutilation was a mourning rite designed to facilitate Baal’s return from the underworld.


Heb “when noon passed they prophesied until the offering up of the offering.”


The Old Greek translation and Syriac Peshitta include the following words here: “When it was time to offer the sacrifice, Elijah the Tishbite spoke to the prophets of the abominations: ‘Stand aside for the time being, and I will offer my burnt offering.’ So they stood aside and departed.” sn In 2 Kgs 4:31 the words “there was no sound and there was no response” are used to describe a dead boy. Similar words are used here to describe the god Baal as dead and therefore unresponsive.


The word “new” is implied but not actually present in the Hebrew text.


Heb “and he built the stones into an altar in the name of the Lord. ”


A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about seven quarts.


The words “when they had done so” are supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “at the offering up of the offering.”


The words “the altar” are supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “let it be known.”


Heb “the God.”


Heb “that you are turning their heart[s] back.”


The words “from the sky” are added for stylistic reasons.


Heb “the God” (the phrase occurs twice in this verse).


Or “slaughtered.”


Heb “for [there is] the sound of the roar of the rain.”


Heb “He said, ‘Return,’ seven times.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “so that the rain won’t restrain you.”


Heb “rode and went to.”


Heb “and the hand of the Lord was on Elijah.”


Heb “and girded up his loins.” The idea is that of gathering up the robes and tucking them into the sash or belt so that they do not get in the way of the legs when running (or working or fighting).


Heb “saying.”


Heb “So may the gods do to me, and so may they add.”


Heb “I do not make your life like the life of one of them.”


The MT has “and he saw,” but some medieval Hebrew mss as well as several ancient versions support the reading “he was afraid.” The consonantal text ( וַיַּרְא , vayyar ’) is ambiguous and can be vocalized וַיַּרְא (from רָאָה , ra ’ ah , “to see”) or וַיִּרָא ( vayyira ’, from יָרֵא , yare ’, “to fear”).


Or “broom tree” (also in v. 5 ).


Heb “and asked with respect to his life to die.”


Heb “fathers.”


Or “lay down.”


Heb “Look, a messenger.”


Heb “and again lay down”


Heb “for the journey is too great for you.”


Or “very zealous.” The infinitive absolute preceding the finite verb emphasizes the degree of his zeal and allegiance.


Traditionally, “the God of hosts.”


Heb “abandoned your covenant.”


Heb “and they are seeking my life to take it.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “tearing away the mountains and breaking the cliffs” (or perhaps, “breaking the stones”).


Heb “a voice, calm, soft.”


Heb “look.”


Heb “I have kept in Israel seven thousand, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and all the mouths that have not kissed him.”


Heb “and with the equipment of the oxen he cooked them, the flesh.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “and he went up and besieged Samaria and fought against it.”


Heb “to the city.”


Heb “all that is desirable to your eyes they will put in their hand and take.”


Heb “elders.”


Heb “Know and see that this [man] is seeking trouble.”


Heb “Do not listen and do not be willing.”


Heb “all which you sent to your servant in the beginning I will do, but this thing I am unable to do.”


Heb “So may the gods do to me, and so may they add.”


Heb “if the dirt of Samaria suffices for the handfuls of all the people who are at my feet.”


Heb “When he heard this word.”


Heb “in the temporary shelters.” This is probably referring to tents.


Heb “this great horde.”


The words “will this be accomplished” are supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “he”; the referent (Ahab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “drinking and drunken.”


Heb “if they come in peace, take them alive; if they come for battle, take them alive.”


Heb “each struck down his man.”


Heb “struck down Aram with a great striking down.”


The definite article indicates previous reference, that is, “the prophet mentioned earlier” (see v. 13 ).


Heb “strengthen yourself.”


Heb “know and see.”


Heb “at the turning of the year.”


Heb “go up against.”


Or “servants.”


Heb “And you, you muster an army like the one that fell from you, horse like horse and chariot like chariot.”


Heb “he listened to their voice and did so.”


Heb “mustered Aram.”


Heb “and went up to Aphek for battle with Israel.”


The noun translated “small flocks” occurs only here. The common interpretation derives the word from the verbal root חשׂף , “to strip off; to make bare.” In this case the noun refers to something “stripped off” or “made bare.” HALOT 359 s.v. II חשׂף derives the noun from a proposed homonymic verbal root (which occurs only in Ps 29:9 ) meaning “cause a premature birth.” In this case the derived noun could refer to goats that are undersized because they are born prematurely.


Heb “the man of God.”


Heb “and the remaining ones fled to Aphek to the city and the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand men, the ones who remained.”


Heb “and Ben Hadad fled and went into the city, [into] an inner room in an inner room.”


Or “merciful.” The word used here often means “devoted” or “loyal.” Perhaps the idea is that the Israelite kings are willing to make treaties with other kings.


Heb “go out.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “streets,” but this must refer to streets set up with stalls for merchants to sell their goods. See HALOT 299 s.v. חוּץ .


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “I will send you away with a treaty.” The words “Ahab then said” are supplied in the translation. There is nothing in the Hebrew text to indicate that the speaker has changed from Ben Hadad to Ahab. Some suggest adding “and he said” before “I will send you away.” Others prefer to maintain Ben Hadad as the speaker and change the statement to, “Please send me away with a treaty.”


Heb “Now a man from the sons of the prophets said to his companion by the word of the Lord , ‘Wound me.’”


Heb “he”; the referent (the prophet) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and the man wounded him, wounding and bruising.”


Heb “middle.”


Heb “man” (also a second time later in this verse).


Heb “if being missed, he is missed.” The emphatic infinitive absolute before the finite verbal form lends solemnity to the warning.


The Hebrew term כִּכָּר ( kikkar , “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 75 pounds of silver.


Heb “your life will be in place of his life, or a unit of silver you will pay.”


Heb “so [i.e., in accordance with his testimony] is your judgment, you have determined [it].”


Heb “Because you sent away the man of my destruction [i.e., that I determined should be destroyed] from [my/your?] hand, your life will be in place of his life, and your people in place of his people.”


Heb “after these things.” The words “the following episode took place” are added for stylistic reasons.


Heb “if it is good in your eyes.”


The Old Greek translation includes the following words: “And it will be mine as a garden of herbs.”


Heb “Far be it from me, by the Lord , that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to you.”


Heb “on account of the word that Naboth the Jezreelite spoke to him.”


Heb “I will not give to you the inheritance of my fathers.”


Heb “turned away his face.”


Heb “While I was talking…, I said…, he said….” Ahab’s explanation is one lengthy sentence in the Hebrew text, which is divided in the English translation for stylistic reasons.


Heb “You, now, you are exercising kingship over Israel.”


Heb “so your heart [i.e., disposition] might be well.”


Heb “scrolls.”


Heb “in the name of Ahab.”


Heb “elders.”


Heb “to the nobles who were in his city, the ones who lived with Naboth.”


Heb “she wrote on the scrolls, saying.”


Heb “his.”


Heb “and the nobles who were living in his city.”


Heb “did as Jezebel sent to them, just as was written in the scrolls which she sent to them.”


Heb “led him.”


Heb “and they stoned him with stones and he died.”


Heb “Naboth was stoned and he died.” So also in v. 15 .


Heb “Jezebel”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“she”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.


The Old Greek translation includes the following words here: “he tore his garments and put on sackcloth. After these things.”


Heb “and Ahab said to Elijah.” The narrative is elliptical and streamlined. The words “when Elijah arrived” are supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “you have sold yourself.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


The introductory formula “the Lord says” is omitted in the Hebrew text, but supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “I will burn after you.” Some take the verb בָּעַר ( ba ’ ar ) to mean here “sweep away.” See the discussion of this verb in the notes at 14:10 and 16:3 .


Heb “and I will cut off from Ahab those who urinate against a wall, [including both those who are] restrained and let free [or “abandoned”] in Israel.” The precise meaning of the idiomatic phrase עָצוּר וְעָזוּב (’ atsur vÿ ’ azuv , translated here “weak and incapacitated”) is uncertain. For various options see HALOT 871 s.v. עצר and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 107. The two terms are usually taken as polar opposites (“slaves and freemen” or “minors and adults”), but Cogan and Tadmor, on the basis of contextual considerations (note the usage with אֶפֶס (’ efes ), “nothing but”) in Deut 32:36 and 2 Kgs 14:26 , argue convincingly that the terms are synonyms, meaning “restrained and abandoned,” and refer to incapable or incapacitated individuals.


Heb “house.”


Heb “because of the provocation by which you angered [me], and you caused Israel to sin.”


A few Hebrew mss and some ancient versions agree with 2 Kgs 9:10, 36 , which reads, “the plot [of ground] at Jezreel.” The Hebrew words translated “outer wall” ( חֵל , khel , defectively written here!) and “plot [of ground]” ( חֵלֶק , kheleq ) are spelled similarly.


“Dogs will eat the ones who belonging to Ahab who die in the city.”


Heb “who sold himself.”


Heb “like Ahab…whom his wife Jezebel incited.”


The Hebrew word used here, גִלּוּלִים ( gillulim ) is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים ). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as אֱלִילִים (’ elilim , “worthless things”) and הֲבָלִים ( havalim , “vanities” or “empty winds”).


Heb “He acted very abominably by walking after the disgusting idols, according to all which the Amorites had done.”


Or “humbles himself.” The expression occurs a second time later in this verse.


Heb “I will not bring the disaster during his days, [but] in the days of his son I will bring the disaster on his house.”


Heb “and they lived three years without war between Aram and Israel.”


The word “visit” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.


Heb “Do you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us, and we hesitate to take it from the hand of the king of Aram?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course, you must know!”


Heb “Like me, like you; like my people, like your people; like my horses; like your horses.”


Heb “and Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel.”


Heb “Should I go against Ramoth Gilead for war or should I refrain?”


Though Jehoshaphat requested an oracle from “the Lord ” ( יְהוָה , Yahweh ), they stop short of actually using this name and substitute the title אֲדֹנָי (’ adonai , “lord; master”). This ambiguity may explain in part Jehoshaphat’s hesitancy and caution (vv. 7-8 ). He seems to doubt that the four hundred are genuine prophets of the Lord .


Heb “to seek the Lord from him.”


Or “hate.”


The words “his name is” are supplied for stylistic reasons.


Heb “were sitting, a man on his throne.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “the words of the prophets are [with] one mouth good for the king.”


Heb “let your words be like the word of each of them and speak good.”


Or “swear an oath by.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Micaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and fall.”


Heb “the spirit.” The significance of the article prefixed to רוּחַ ( ruakh ) is uncertain, but it could contain a clue as to this spirit’s identity, especially when interpreted in light of v. 24 . It is certainly possible, and probably even likely, that the article is used in a generic or dramatic sense and should be translated, “a spirit.” In the latter case it would show that this spirit was vivid and definite in the mind of Micaiah the storyteller. However, if one insists that the article indicates a well-known or universally known spirit, the following context provides a likely referent. Verse 24 tells how Zedekiah slapped Micaiah in the face and then asked sarcastically, “Which way did the spirit from the Lord ( רוּחַ־יְהוָה , [ ruakh-Yahweh ], Heb “the spirit of the Lord ”) go when he went from me to speak to you?” When the phrase “the spirit of the Lord ” refers to the divine spirit (rather than the divine breath or mind, Isa 40:7, 13 ) elsewhere, the spirit energizes an individual or group for special tasks or moves one to prophesy. This raises the possibility that the deceiving spirit of vv. 20-23 is the same as the divine spirit mentioned by Zedekiah in v. 24 . This would explain why the article is used on רוּחַ ; he can be called “the spirit” because he is the well-known spirit who energizes the prophets.


Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The Hebrew text has two imperfects connected by וְגַם ( vÿgam ). These verbs could be translated as specific futures, “you will deceive and also you will prevail,” in which case the Lord is assuring the spirit of success on his mission. However, in a commissioning context (note the following imperatives) such as this, it is more likely that the imperfects are injunctive, in which case one could translate, “Deceive, and also overpower.”


Heb “the bread of affliction and the water of affliction.”


Heb “come in peace.” So also in v. 28 .


Heb “Listen.”


The Hebrew verbal forms could be imperatives (“Disguise yourself and enter”), but this would make no sense in light of the immediately following context. The forms are better interpreted as infinitives absolute functioning as cohortatives. See IBHS 594 §35.5.2a. Some prefer to emend the forms to imperfects.


Heb “small or great.”


Heb “now a man drew a bow in his innocence” (i.e., with no specific target in mind, or at least without realizing his target was the king of Israel).


Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “camp.”


Heb “and the king died and he came to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria.”


Heb “now the prostitutes bathed.”


Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Ahab and all that he did, and the house of ivory which he built and all the cities which he built, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “he walked in all the way of Asa his father and did not turn from it, doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord. ”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehoshaphat, and his strength that he demonstrated and how he fought, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “and the rest of the male cultic prostitutes who were left in the days of Asa his father, he burned from the land.” Some understand the verb בִּעֵר ( bi ’ er ) to mean “sweep away” here rather than “burn.” See the note at 1 Kgs 14:10 . sn Despite Asa’s opposition to these male cultic prostitutes (see 1 Kgs 15:12 ) some of them had managed to remain in the land. Jehoshaphat finished what his father had started.


Heb “a fleet of Tarshish [ships].” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish.


Heb “Let my servants go with your servants in the fleet.”


Heb “with his fathers in the city of his father.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Or “way.”


Heb “and walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother and in the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat who made Israel sin.”


Heb “he served Baal and bowed down to him.”


Heb “according to all which his father had done.”


Heb “and he sent messengers and said to them.”


That is, “seek an oracle from.”


Heb “Is it because there is no God in Israel [that] you are going to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron?” The translation seeks to bring out the sarcastic tone of the rhetorical question.


Heb “to him.” sn The narrative is elliptical and telescoped here. The account of Elijah encountering the messengers and delivering the Lord’s message is omitted; we only here of it as the messengers report what happened to the king.


Heb “said to him.”


Heb “Is it because there is no God in Israel [that] you are sending to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron?” The translation seeks to bring out the sarcastic tone of the rhetorical question. In v. 3 the messengers are addressed (in the phrase “you are on your way” the second person plural pronoun is used in Hebrew), but here the king is addressed (in the phrase “you are sending” the second person singular pronoun is used).


Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “What was the manner…?”


Heb “an owner of hair.” This idiomatic expression indicates that Elijah was very hairy. For other examples where the idiom “owner of” is used to describe a characteristic of someone, see HALOT 143 s.v. בַּעַל . For example, an “owner of dreams” is one who frequently has dreams ( Gen 37:19 ) and an “owner of anger” is a hot-tempered individual ( Prov 22:24 ).


Heb “belt of skin” (i.e., one made from animal hide).


Heb “officer of fifty and his fifty.”


Heb “to him.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the captain) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “man of God” (also in vv. 10, 11, 12, 13 ).


Heb “answered and said to the officer of fifty.”


Wordplay contributes to the irony here. The king tells Elijah to “come down” (Hebrew יָרַד , yarad ), but Elijah calls fire down ( יָרַד ) on the arrogant king’s officer.


The MT reads, “he answered and said to him.” The verb “he answered” ( וַיַּעַן , vayya ’ an ) is probably a corruption of “he went up” ( וַיַּעַל , vayya ’ al ). See v. 9 .


Two medieval Hebrew mss , the LXX, and the Syriac Peshitta have the singular “to him.”


Or “intense fire.” The divine name may be used idiomatically to emphasize the intensity of the fire. Whether one translates אֱלֹהִים (’ elohim ) here as a proper name or idiomatically, this addition to the narrative (the name is omitted in the first panel, v. 10 b) emphasizes the severity of the judgment and is appropriate given the more intense command delivered by the king to the prophet in this panel.


Heb “went up and approached and kneeled.”


Heb “look.”


Heb “their fifty.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “him”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “Because you sent messengers to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron, is there no God in Israel to inquire of his word?”


Heb “according to the word of the Lord which he spoke through Elijah.”


Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not recorded in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Or “when.”


For location see Map4-G4 ; Map5-C1 ; Map6-E3 ; Map7-D1 ; Map8-G3 .


Heb “the sons of the prophets.”


Heb “from your head.” The same expression occurs in v. 5 .


For location see Map5-B2 ; Map6-E1 ; Map7-E1 ; Map8-E3 ; Map10-A2 ; Map11-A1 .


Heb “the two of them.” The referents (Elijah and Elisha) have been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “Ask! What can I do for you….?”


Heb “May a double portion of your spirit come to me.”


Heb “You have made difficult [your] request.”


Though the noun is singular here, it may be collective, in which case it could be translated “chariots.”


Heb “look, a chariot of fire and horses of fire.”


Heb “and they made a division between the two of them.”


Heb “Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen off him.” The wording is changed slightly in the translation for the sake of variety of expression (see v. 13 ).


Heb “and the sons of the prophets who were in Jericho, [who were standing] opposite, saw him and said.”


Heb “the spirit of Elijah.”


Or “the spirit of the Lord .”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “him”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “my.”


Heb “miscarries” or “is barren.”


Or “healed.”


Heb “there will no longer be from there death and miscarriage [or, ‘barrenness’].”


Heb “according to the word of Elisha which he spoke.”


The word נַעַר ( na ’ ar ), here translated “boy,” can refer to a broad age range, including infants as well as young men. But the qualifying term “young” (or “small”) suggests these youths were relatively young. The phrase in question (“young boy”) occurs elsewhere in 1 Sam 20:35 ; 1 Kgs 3:7 (used by Solomon in an hyperbolic manner); 11:17 ; 2 Kgs 5:14 ; and Isa 11:6 .


Heb “he cursed them in the name of the Lord .” A curse was a formal appeal to a higher authority (here the Lord) to vindicate one’s cause through judgment. As in chapter one, this account makes it clear that disrespect for the Lord’s designated spokesmen can be deadly, for it is ultimately rejection of the Lord’s authority.


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “held tight,” or “clung to.”


The Hebrew text has the singular, “it.” Some ancient witnesses read the plural, which seems preferable since the antecedent (“sins”) is plural. Another option is to emend the plural “sins” to a singular. One ancient Greek witness has the singular “sin.”


For a discussion of the meaning of term ( נֹקֵד , noqed ), see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 43.


The vav + perfect here indicates customary action contemporary with the situation described in the preceding main clause. See IBHS 533-34 §32.2.3e.


Heb “went and sent.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Jehoshaphat) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “I will go up – like me, like you; like my people, like your people; like my horses; like your horses.”


Heb “Where is the road we will go up?”


Heb “he”; the referent (Jehoram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “the king of Israel and the king of Judah and the king of Edom.”


Or “ah.”


Heb “that we might inquire of the Lord through him?”


Heb “who poured water on the hands of Elijah.” This refers to one of the typical tasks of a servant.


Heb “the word of the Lord is with him.”


Or “What do we have in common?” The text reads literally, “What to me and to you?”


Traditionally “the Lord of hosts.”


Heb “before whom I stand.”


Heb “if I did not lift up the face of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah.”


Heb “I would not look at you or see you.”


The term used refers to one who plays a stringed instrument, perhaps a harp.


Heb “the hand of the Lord came on him.” This may refer to what typically happened, “[for] when a musician played, the hand of the Lord would come upon him.”


Heb “making this valley cisterns, cisterns.” The Hebrew noun גֵּב ( gev ) means “cistern” in Jer 14:3 (cf. Jer 39:10 ). The repetition of the noun is for emphasis. See GKC 396 §123. e . The verb (“making”) is an infinitive absolute, which has to be interpreted in light of the context. The translation above takes it in an imperatival sense. The command need not be understood as literal, but as hyperbolic. Telling them to build cisterns is a dramatic way of leading into the announcement that he would miraculously provide water in the desert. Some prefer to translate the infinitive as an imperfect with the Lord as the understood subject, “I will turn this valley [into] many pools.”


Heb “see.”


Heb “and this is easy in the eyes of the Lord .”


Heb “choice” or “select.”


Elisha places the object first and uses an imperfect verb form. The stylistic shift may signal that he is now instructing them what to do, rather than merely predicting what would happen.


Heb “good.”


Heb “and ruin every good portion with stones.”


Heb “and in the morning, when the offering is offered up, look, water was coming from the way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.”


Heb “had come up to fight them.”


Heb “and they mustered all who tied on a belt and upwards, and they stood at the border.”


Heb “they”; the referent (the Moabites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The translation assumes the verb is חָרַב ( kharav , “to be desolate”). The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb form for emphasis. (For another example of the Hophal infinitive with a Niphal finite verb, see Lev 19:20 . Cf. also IBHS 582 §35.2.1c.) Some prefer to derive the verb from a proposed homonym meaning “at HALOT 349 s.v. II חרב and BDB 352 s.v. חָרְבָה ).


Heb “they.”


The consonantal text ( Kethib ) suggests, “and they went, striking down,” but the marginal reading ( Qere ) is “they struck down, striking down.” For a discussion of the textual problem, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 46.


Heb “and [on] every good portion they were throwing each man his stone and they filled it.” The vav + perfect (“and they filled”) here indicates customary action contemporary with the situation described in the preceding main clause (where a customary imperfect is used, “they were throwing”). See the note at 3:4 .


Heb “until he had allowed its stones to remain in Kir Hareseth.”


Heb “and the king of Moab saw that the battle was too strong for him.”


Heb “he took with him seven hundred men, who drew the sword, to break through against.”


Heb “there was great anger against Israel.” sn The meaning of this statement is uncertain, for the subject of the anger is not indicated. Except for two relatively late texts, the noun קֶצֶף ( qetsef ) refers to an outburst of divine anger. But it seems unlikely the Lord would be angry with Israel, for he placed his stamp of approval on the campaign (vv. 16-19 ). D. N. Freedman suggests the narrator, who obviously has a bias against the Omride dynasty, included this observation to show that the Lord would not allow the Israelite king to “have an undiluted victory” (as quoted in M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings [AB], 52, n. 8). Some suggest that the original source identified Chemosh the Moabite god as the subject and that his name was later suppressed by a conscientious scribe, but this proposal raises more questions than it answers. For a discussion of various views, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 47-48, 51-52.


Heb “they departed from him.”


Heb “a wife from among the wives of the sons of the prophets.”


Or “cried out.”


Heb “your servant feared the Lord .” “Fear” refers here to obedience and allegiance, the products of healthy respect for the Lord’s authority.


Heb “Go, ask for containers from outside, from all your neighbors, empty containers.”


Heb “Do not borrow just a few.”


Heb “all these vessels.”


Heb “to her son.”


Heb “man of God” (also in vv. 16, 22, 25, 27 [twice]).


Heb “great,” perhaps “wealthy.”


Or “she urged him to eat some food.”


Or “he would turn aside there to eat some food.”


Heb “I know.”


Heb “holy man of God.”


Heb “a small upper room of a wall”; according to HALOT 832 s.v. עֲלִיָּה , this refers to “a fully walled upper room.”


Heb “and let’s put there for him.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “turned aside.”


Or “slept there.”


Heb “Call for this Shunammite woman.”


Heb “and he called for her and she stood before him.”


Heb “he said to him.”


Heb “you have turned trembling to us with all this trembling.” The exaggerated language is probably idiomatic. The point seems to be that she has taken great pains or gone out of her way to be kind to them. Her concern was a sign of her respect for the prophetic office.


Heb “Among my people I am living.” This answer suggests that she has security within the context of her family.


Heb “and he said.”


Heb “Call for her.”


Heb “and he called her.”


Heb “and he called for her and she stood in the door.”


Heb “at this appointed time, at the time [when it is] reviving.” For a discussion of the second phrase see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 57.


Heb “to his father, to the harvesters.”


Heb “He”; the referent (the boy’s father) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “knees.”


Heb “man of God’s.”


Heb “peace.”


Heb “lead [the donkey on] and go.”


Heb “do not restrain for me the riding unless I say to you.”


Heb “went and came.”


Heb “the man of God.” The phrase has been replaced by the relative pronoun “he” in the translation for stylistic reasons.


Heb “she said.” The narrator streamlines the story at this point, omitting any reference to Gehazi running to meet her and asking her the questions.


Heb “her soul [i.e., ‘disposition’] is bitter.”


Heb “take my staff in your hand.”


Heb “If you meet a man, do not greet him with a blessing; if a man greets you with a blessing, do not answer.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The referent must be Elisha here, since the following verse makes it clear that Gehazi had gone on ahead of them.


Heb “to meet him.”


Heb “look.”


Heb “and closed the door behind the two of them.”


Heb “he went up and lay down over.”


Heb “his” (also in the next two clauses).


Or perhaps, “body”; Heb “flesh.”


Heb “and he returned and went into the house, once here and once there.”


Heb “and he went up.”


Heb “and he called for her.”


Heb “the sons of the prophets were sitting before him.”


The words “the fire” are added for clarification.


Heb “sons of the prophets.”


Heb “a vine of the field.”


Heb “[some] of the gourds of the field.”


Heb “he came and cut [them up].”


The Hebrew text reads, “for they did not know” ( יָדָעוּ , yada ’ u ) but some emend the final shureq ( וּ , indicating a third plural subject) to holem vav ( וֹ , a third masculine singular pronominal suffix on a third singular verb) and read “for he did not know it.” Perhaps it is best to omit the final vav as dittographic (note the vav at the beginning of the next verb form) and read simply, “for he did not know.” See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 59.


Heb “and they poured out [the stew].” The plural subject is probably indefinite.


Or “and let them eat.”


Heb “man of God.”


On the meaning of the word צִקְלוֹן ( tsiqlon ), “ear of grain,” see HALOT 148 s.v. בָּצֵק and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 59.


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “How can I set this before a hundred men?”


The verb forms are infinitives absolute ( Heb “eating and leaving over”) and have to be translated in light of the context.


Heb “was a great man before his master and lifted up with respect to the face.”


For a discussion of מְצֹרָע ( mÿtsora ’), traditionally translated “leprous,” see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 63. Naaman probably had a skin disorder of some type, not leprosy/Hansen’s disease.


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “he”; the referent (Naaman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The Hebrew term כִּכָּר ( kikkar , “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 750 pounds of silver (cf. NCV, NLT, CEV).


Heb “six thousand gold […].” The unit of measure is not given in the Hebrew text. A number of English versions supply “pieces” (e.g., KJV, ASV, NAB, TEV) or “shekels” (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV).


Heb “and now when this letter comes to you, look, I have sent to you Naaman my servant.”


Heb “Am I God, killing and restoring life, that this one sends to me to cure a man from his skin disease?” In the Hebrew text this is one lengthy rhetorical question, which has been divided up in the translation for stylistic reasons.


Heb “Indeed, know and see that he is seeking an occasion with respect to me.”


Heb “man of God” (also in vv. 15, 20 ).


Heb “Let him come.”


Heb “will return to you.”


Heb “Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all of the waters of Israel?” The rhetorical question expects an emphatic “yes” as an answer.


Heb “my father,” reflecting the perspective of each individual servant. To address their master as “father” would emphasize his authority and express their respect. See BDB 3 s.v. אָב and the similar idiomatic use of “father” in 2 Kgs 2:12 .


Heb “a great thing.”


Heb “would you not do [it]?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you would.”


Heb “How much more [when] he said, “Wash and be healed.” The second imperative (“be healed”) states the expected result of obeying the first (‘wash”).


Heb “according to the word of the man of God.”


Heb “and his skin was restored, like the skin of a small child.”


Heb “look.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “before whom I stand.”


Heb “and [if] not, may there be given to your servant a load [for] a pair of mules, earth.”


Heb “for your servant will not again make a burnt offering and sacrifice to other gods, only to the Lord .”


Heb “When my master enters the house of Rimmon to bow down there, and he leans on my hand and I bow down [in] the house of Rimmon, when I bow down [in] the house of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant for this thing.” sn Rimmon was the Syrian storm god. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 65.


Heb “and he went from him a distance of land.” The precise meaning of כִּבְרַה ( kivrah ) “distance,” is uncertain. See BDB 460 s.v. כִּבְרַה , and HALOT 459-60 s.v. II * כְּבָרַה , and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 65.


Heb “said” (i.e., to himself).


Heb “Look, my master spared this Syrian Naaman by not taking from his hand what he brought.”


Heb “Is there peace?”


Heb “peace.”


Heb “Look now, here, two servants came to me from the Ephraimite hill country, from the sons of the prophets.”


The Hebrew term כִּכָּר ( kikkar , “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 75 pounds of silver (cf. NCV, NLT, CEV).


Heb “Be resolved and accept two talents.”


Heb “before him.”


Heb “from their hand.”


Heb “and he sent the men away and they went.”


Heb “Did not my heart go as a man turned from his chariot to meet you?” The rhetorical question emphasizes that he was indeed present in “heart” (or “spirit”) and was very much aware of what Gehazi had done. In the MT the interrogative particle has been accidentally omitted before the negative particle.


In the MT the statement is phrased as a rhetorical question, “Is this the time…?” It expects an emphatic negative response.


Heb “cling to.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Gehazi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Traditionally, “he went from before him, leprous like snow.” But see the note at 5:1 , as well as M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 66.


Heb “the sons of the prophets.”


Heb “sit before you.”


Heb “narrow, tight.”


Heb “iron.”


Or “ah.”


Heb “man of God” (also in v. 9 ).


The verb form used here is difficult to analyze. On the basis of the form נְחִתִּים ( nÿkhitim ) in v. 9 from the root נָחַת ( nakhat ), it is probably best to emend the verb to תִּנְחְתוּ ( tinkhÿtu ; a Qal imperfect form from the same root). The verb נָחַת in at least two other instances carries the nuance “go down, descend” in a military context. For a defense of this view, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 72.


The vav + perfect here indicates action contemporary with the preceding main verb (“sent”). See IBHS 533-34 §32.2.3e.


Heb “and the king of Israel sent to the place about which the man of God spoke to him, and he warned it and he guarded himself there, not once and not twice.”


Heb “and the heart of the king of Syria was stirred up over this thing.”


Heb “servants.”


Heb “Will you not tell me who among us [is] for the king of Israel?” The sarcastic rhetorical question expresses the king’s suspicion.


Heb “he” (also a second time in this verse); the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “Go and see where he [is] so I can send and take him.”


Heb “heavy force.”


Heb “man of God’s.”


Heb “his young servant said to him.”


Heb “for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”


Heb “and he saw, and look.”


Heb “and they came down to him.”


Or “this nation,” perhaps emphasizing the strength of the Syrian army.


On the basis of the Akkadian etymology of the word, M. Cogan and H. Tadmor ( II Kings [AB], 74) translate “blinding light.” HALOT 761 s.v. סַנְוֵרִים suggests the glosses “dazzling, deception.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “according to the word of Elisha.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “and they saw, and look, [they were] in the middle of Samaria.”


Heb “Should I strike them down? I will strike them down.” In the Hebrew text the first person imperfect form is repeated; the first form has the interrogative he prefixed to it; the second does not. It is likely that the second form should be omitted as dittographic or that the first should be emended to an infinitive absolute.


Heb “my father.” The king addresses the prophet in this way to indicate his respect. See 2 Kgs 2:12 .


Heb “Are [they] ones you captured with your sword or your bow (that) you can strike (them) down?”


Or “held a great feast.”


Heb “they went back.”


Heb “went up.”


Heb “and there was a great famine in Samaria.”


Heb “and look, [they] were besieging it until.”


Heb “eighty, silver.” The unit of measurement is omitted.


The consonantal text ( Kethib ) reads, “dove dung” ( חֲרֵייוֹנִים , khareyonim ), while the marginal reading ( Qere ) has “discharge” ( דִּבְיוֹנִים , divyonim ). Based on evidence from Akkadian, M. Cogan and H. Tadmor ( II Kings [AB], 79) suggest that “dove’s dung” was a popular name for the inedible husks of seeds.


Heb “five, silver.” The unit of measurement is omitted.


Heb “From where can I help you, from the threshing floor or the winepress?” The rhetorical question expresses the king’s frustration. He has no grain or wine to give to the masses.


Heb “the people saw, and look, [there was] sackcloth against his skin underneath.”


Heb “So may God do to me, and so may he add.”


Heb “if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat stays on him today.”


Heb “and the elders were sitting with him.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “sent a man from before him, before the messenger came to him.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “elders.”


Heb “Do you see that this son of an assassin has sent to remove my head?”


Heb “Is not the sound of his master’s footsteps behind him?”


The Hebrew text also has “look” here.


Heb “came down to him.”


Heb “Look, this is a disaster from the Lord .”


Heb “the officer on whose hand the king leans.”


Heb “man of God.”


Heb “the Lord was making holes in the sky, could this thing be?” Opening holes in the sky would allow the waters stored up there to pour to the earth and assure a good crop. But, the officer argues, even if this were to happen, it would take a long time to grow and harvest the crop.


Heb “you will not eat from there.”


Heb “until we die.”


Heb “If we say, ‘We will enter the city,’ the famine is in the city and we will die there.”


Heb “fall.”


Heb “keep us alive.”


Heb “we will die.” The paraphrastic translation attempts to bring out the logical force of their reasoning.


Heb “they arose to go to.”


Heb “they ate and drank.”


Heb “and they hid [it].”


Heb “and they took from there.”


Heb “this day is a day of good news and we are keeping silent.”


Heb “the light of the morning.”


Heb “punishment will find us.”


The MT has a singular form (“gatekeeper”), but the context suggests a plural. The pronoun that follows (“them”) is plural and a plural noun appears in v. 11 . The Syriac Peshitta and the Targum have the plural here.


Heb “and, look, there was no man or voice of a man there.”


Heb “but the horses are tied up and the donkeys are tied up and the tents are as they were.”


Heb “and the gatekeepers called out and they told [it] to the house of the king.”


Heb “servants” (also in v. 13 ).


Heb “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.” The MT is dittographic here; the words “that remain in it. Look they are like all the people of Israel” have been accidentally repeated. The original text read, “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.”


Heb “and let us send so we might see.”


Heb “and the king sent [them] after the Syrian camp.”


Heb “Go and see.”


Heb “went after.”


Heb “and look, all the road was full of clothes and equipment that Syria had thrown away in their haste.”


Or “messengers.”


Heb “the officer on whose hand he leans.”


Heb “and the people trampled him in the gate and he died.”


Heb “just as the man of God had spoken, [the word] which he spoke when the king came down to him.”


Heb “the Lord was making holes in the sky, could this thing be?” See the note at 7:2 .


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “you will not eat from there.” tn In the Hebrew text vv. 18-19 a are one lengthy sentence, “When the man of God spoke to the king…, the officer replied to the man of God, ‘Look…so soon?’” The translation divides this sentence up for stylistic reasons.


Heb “Get up and go, you and your house, and live temporarily where you can live temporarily.”


Heb “and the woman got up and did according to the word of the man of God.”


Heb “and went out to cry out to the king for her house and her field.”


Heb “man of God’s.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Gehazi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and look, the woman whose son he had brought back to life was crying out to the king for her house and her field.” sn The legal background of the situation is uncertain. For a discussion of possibilities, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 87-88.


Heb “and the king asked the woman and she told him.”


Heb “and he assigned to her an official, saying.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “man of God” (also a second time in this verse and in v. 11 ).


The Hebrew text also has “in your hand.”


Heb “Inquire of the Lord through him, saying.”


Heb “him”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The Hebrew text also has “in his hand.”


Heb “and.” It is possible that the conjunction is here explanatory, equivalent to English “that is.” In this case the forty camel loads constitute the “gift” and one should translate, “He took along a gift, consisting of forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus.”


Heb “saying.”


The consonantal text ( Kethib ) reads, “Go, say, ‘Surely you will not ( לֹא , lo ’) recover” In this case the vav beginning the next clause should be translated, “for, because.” The marginal reading ( Qere ) has, “Go, say to him ( לוֹ , lo ), ‘You will surely recover.” In this case the vav ( ו ) beginning the next clause should be translated, “although, but.” The Qere has the support of some medieval Hebrew mss and the ancient versions, and is consistent with v. 14 , where Hazael tells the king, “You will surely recover.” It is possible that a scribe has changed לוֹ , “to him,” to לֹא , “not,” because he felt that Elisha would not lie to the king. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 90. Another possibility is that a scribe has decided to harmonize Elisha’s message with Hazael’s words in v. 14 . But it is possible that Hazael, once he found out he would become the next king, decided to lie to the king to facilitate his assassination plot by making the king feel secure.


Heb “and he made his face stand [i.e., be motionless] and set [his face?] until embarrassment.”


Heb “Indeed, what is your servant, a dog, that he could do this great thing?” With his reference to a dog, Hazael is not denying that he is a “dog” and protesting that he would never commit such a dastardly “dog-like” deed. Rather, as Elisha’s response indicates, Hazael is suggesting that he, like a dog, is too insignificant to ever be in a position to lead such conquests.


Heb “The Lord has shown me you [as] king over Syria.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “he”; the referent (Hazael) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “his”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The Hebrew text reads, “and in the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel, and [or, ‘while’?] Jehoshaphat [was?] king of Judah, Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah became king.” The first reference to “Jehoshaphat king of Judah” is probably due to a scribe accidentally copying the phrase from the later in the verse. If the Hebrew text is retained, the verse probably refers to the beginning of a coregency between Jehoshaphat and Jehoram.


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


The Hebrew has only one sentence, “and the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah for the sake of.” The translation divides it for the sake of clarity.


Heb “just as he had promised to give him and his sons a lamp all the days.” The metaphorical “lamp” symbolizes the Davidic dynasty; this is reflected in the translation.


Heb “in his days Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah and enthroned a king over them.”


Heb “and he arose at night and defeated Edom, who had surrounded him, and the chariot officers.” The Hebrew text as it stands gives the impression that Joram was surrounded and launched a victorious night counterattack. It would then be quite natural to understand the last statement in the verse to refer to an Edomite retreat. Yet v. 22 goes on to state that the Edomite revolt was successful. Therefore, if the MT is retained, it may be better to understand the final statement in v. 21 as a reference to an Israelite retreat (made in spite of the success described in the preceding sentence). The translation above assumes an emendation of the Hebrew text. Adding a third masculine singular pronominal suffix to the accusative sign before Edom (reading אֶתוֹ [’ eto ], “him,” instead of just אֶת [’ et ]) and taking Edom as the subject of verbs allows one to translate the verse in a way that is more consistent with the context, which depicts an Israelite defeat, not victory. There is, however, no evidence for this emendation.


Heb “and the people fled to their tents.”


Heb “and Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah until this day.”


Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Joram and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Hebrew בַּת ( bat ), “daughter,” can refer, as here to a granddaughter. See HALOT 166 s.v. בַּת .


Heb “and he walked in the way of the house of Ahab and did evil in the eyes of the Lord like the house of Ahab, for he was a relative by marriage of the house of Ahab.” For this use of חֲתַן ( khatan ), normally “son-in-law,” see HALOT 365 s.v. חָתָן . Ahab was Ahaziah’s grandfather on his mother’s side.


Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”


Heb “to see.”


Heb “one of the sons of the prophets.”


Or “flask.”


Heb “and go and set him apart from his brothers and bring him into an inner room in an inner room.”


Heb “anointed.”


Heb “and open the door and run away and do not delay.”


Heb “the young man, the young man, the prophet.” The MT is probably dittographic, the phrase “the young man” being accidentally repeated. The phrases “the young man” and “the prophet” are appositional, with the latter qualifying more specifically the former.


Heb “and he arrived and look, the officers of the army were sitting.”


Heb “[there is] a word for me to you, O officer.”


Heb “To whom from all of us?”


Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “he”; the referent (the prophet) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Or “strike down the house of Ahab your master.”


Heb “I will avenge the shed blood of my servants the prophets and the shed blood of all the servants of the Lord from the hand of Jezebel.”


The LXX has the second person, “you.”


Heb “and I will cut off from Ahab those who urinate against a wall, [including both those who are] restrained and let free [or, ‘abandoned’] in Israel.” On the phrase וְעָצוּר וְעָזוּב ( vÿ ’ atsur vÿ ’ azur , translated here “weak and incapacitated”) see the note at 1 Kgs 14:10 .


Heb “house.”


Heb “went out to.”


The MT has the singular, “he said,” but many witnesses correctly read the plural.


Heb “Is there peace?”


Heb “He said, ‘You, you know the man and his thoughts.’” Jehu tries to deflect their question by reminding them that the man is an eccentric individual who says strange things. His reply suggests that the man said nothing of importance. The translation seeks to bring out the tone and intent of Jehu’s reply.


Heb “So he said, ‘Like this and like this he said to me, saying.’” The words “like this and like this” are probably not a direct quote of Jehu’s words to his colleagues. Rather this is the narrator’s way of avoiding repetition and indicating that Jehu repeated, or at least summarized, what the prophet had said to him.


Heb “his”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and they hurried and took, each one his garment, and they placed [them] beneath him on the bone [?] of the steps.” The precise nuance of גֶרֶם ( gerem ), “bone,” is unclear. Some suggest the nuance “bare” here; it may be a technical architectural term in this context.


Heb “they blew the trumpet.” This has been translated as a passive to avoid the implication that the same ones who shouted had all blown trumpets.


Or “has become.”


Heb “he and all Israel.”


Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”


The words “his supporters” are added for clarification.


Heb “If this is your desire.” נֶפֶשׁ ( nefesh ) refers here to the seat of the emotions and will. For other examples of this use of the word, see BDB 660-61 s.v.


Heb “rode [or, ‘mounted’] and went.”


Heb “lying down.”


Heb “to see.”


Heb “the quantity [of the men] of Jehu, when he approached.” Elsewhere שִׁפְעַה ( shif ’ ah ), “quantity,” is used of a quantity of camels ( Isa 60:6 ) or horses ( Ezek 26:10 ) and of an abundance of water ( Job 22:11; 38:34 ).


The term שִׁפְעַת ( shifat ) appears to be a construct form of the noun, but no genitive follows.


Heb “said.”


Heb “Get a rider and send [him] to meet him and let him ask, ‘Is there peace?’”


Heb “the rider of the horse.”


Heb “Is there peace?”


Heb “What concerning you and concerning peace?” That is, “What concern is that to you?”


Heb “and he came to them.”


The MT has simply “peace,” omitting the prefixed interrogative particle. It is likely that the particle has been accidentally omitted; several ancient witnesses include it or assume its presence.


Heb “and the driving is like the driving of Jehu son of Nimshi.”


The words “my chariot” are added for clarification.


Heb “and he hitched up his chariot.”


Heb “each in his chariot and they went out.”


Heb “they found him.”


Heb “How [can there be] peace as long as the adulterous acts of Jezebel your mother and her many acts of sorcery [continue]?” In this instance “adulterous acts” is employed metaphorically for idolatry. As elsewhere in the OT, worshiping other gods is viewed as spiritual adultery and unfaithfulness to the one true God. The phrase “many acts of sorcery” could be taken literally, for Jezebel undoubtedly utilized pagan divination practices, but the phrase may be metaphorical, pointing to her devotion to pagan customs in general.


Heb “and Jehoram turned his hands and fled.” The phrase “turned his hands” refers to how he would have pulled on the reins in order to make his horses turn around.


Heb “Deceit, Ahaziah.”


Heb “and Jehu filled his hand with the bow and he struck Jehoram between his shoulders.”


Heb “went out from.”


Heb “said to.”


Heb “and I will repay you in this plot of land.”


Heb “and Ahaziah king of Judah saw and fled.”


After Jehu’s order (“kill him too”), the MT has simply, “to the chariot in the ascent of Gur which is near Ibleam.” The main verb in the clause, “they shot him” ( וַיִּכְהוּ , vayyikhhu ), has been accidentally omitted by virtual haplography/homoioteleuton. Note that the immediately preceding form הַכֻּהוּ ( hakkuhu ), “shoot him,” ends with the same suffix.


For location see Map1-D4 ; Map2-C1 ; Map4-C2 ; Map5-F2 ; Map7-B1 .


Heb “drove him.”


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “she fixed her eyes with antimony.” Antimony ( פּוּךְ , pukh ) was used as a cosmetic. The narrator portrays her as a prostitute (see Jer 4:30 ), a role she has played in the spiritual realm (see the note at v. 22 ).


Heb “two, three.” The narrator may be intentionally vague or uncertain here, or the two numbers may represent alternate traditions.


The words “when she hit the ground” are added for stylistic reasons.


Heb “and he trampled her.”


Heb “and he went and ate and drank.”


Heb “Attend to this accursed woman and bury her for she was the daughter of a king.”


Heb “they did not find her, except for.”


Heb “It is the word of the Lord , which he spoke by the hand of his servant, Elijah the Tishbite, saying.”


Heb “so that they will not say, ‘This is Jezebel.’”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “to the officers of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of Ahab, saying.” It is not certain why the officials of Jezreel would be in Samaria. They may have fled there after they heard what happened to Joram and before Jehu entered the city. They would have had time to flee while Jehu was pursuing Ahaziah.


Heb “And now when this letter comes to you – with you are the sons of your master and with you are chariots and horses and a fortified city and weapons.”


Hebrew יָשָׁר ( yashar ) does not have its normal moral/ethical nuance here (“upright”), but a more neutral sense of “proper, right, suitable.” For the gloss “capable,” see HALOT 450 s.v. יָשָׁר .


Or “fight for.”


Heb “they were very, very afraid.” The term מְאֹד ( me ’ od ) “very,” is repeated for emphasis.


Heb “did not stand before him.”


Heb “How can we stand?”


Heb “the one who was over the house.”


Heb “the one who was over the city.”


Or “elders.”


Heb “servants.”


Heb “Do what is good in your eyes.”


Heb “If you are mine and you are listening to my voice.”


Heb “great,” probably in wealth, position, and prestige.


Heb “and when the letter came to them, they took the sons of the king and slaughtered seventy men.”


Heb “him”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “Know then that there has not fallen from the word of the Lord to the ground that which the Lord spoke against the house of Ahab. The Lord has done that which he spoke by the hand of his servant Elijah.”


Heb “and he arose and went and came to Samaria.”


Heb “found.”


Or “brothers.”


Heb “for the peace of.”


Heb “and he went from there and found Jehonadab son of Rekab [who was coming] to meet him.”


Heb “and he blessed him and said to him.”


Heb “Is there with your heart [what is] right, as my heart [is] with your heart?”


Heb “Jehonadab said, ‘There is and there is. Give your hand.’” If the text is allowed to stand, there are two possible ways to understand the syntax of וָיֵשׁ ( vayesh ), “and there is”: (1) The repetition of יֵשׁ ( yesh , “there is and there is”) could be taken as emphatic, “indeed I am.” In this case, the entire statement could be taken as Jehonadab’s words or one could understand the words “give your hand” as Jehu’s. In the latter case the change in speakers is unmarked. (2) וָיֵשׁ begins Jehu’s response and has a conditional force, “if you are.” In this case, the transition in speakers is unmarked. However, it is possible that וַיֹּאמֶר ( vayyo ’ mer ), “and he said,” or וַיֹּאמֶר יֵהוּא ( vayyo ’ mer yehu ), “and Jehu said,” originally appeared between יֵשׁ and וָיֵשׁ and has accidentally dropped from the text by homoioarcton (note that both the proposed וַיֹּאמֶר and וָיֵשׁ begin with vav , ו ). The present translation assumes such a textual reconstruction; it is supported by the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate.


Heb “and see my zeal for the Lord .”


The MT has a plural form, but this is most likely an error. The LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate all have the singular.


Heb “and he struck down all the remaining ones to Ahab in Samaria until he destroyed him.”


Or “served.


Or “serve.”


Heb “much” or “greatly.”


Heb “and now, all the prophets of Baal, all his servants and all his priests summon to me.”


Heb “acted with deception [or, ‘trickery’].”


Heb “set apart”; or “observe as holy.”


Heb “and the house of Baal was filled mouth to mouth.”


Heb “and he said to the one who was over the wardrobe.”


Heb “Search carefully and observe so that there are not here with you any servants of the Lord , only the servants of Baal.”


Heb “The man who escapes from the men whom I am bringing into your hands, [it will be] his life in place of his life.”


Heb “runners.”


Heb “and they threw.” No object appears. According to M. Cogan and H. Tadmor ( II Kings [AB], 116), this is an idiom for leaving a corpse unburied.


Heb “and they came to the city of the house of Baal.” It seems unlikely that a literal city is meant. Some emend עִיר (’ ir ), “city,” to דְּבִיר ( dÿvir ) “holy place,” or suggest that עִיר is due to dittography of the immediately preceding עַד (’ ad ) “to.” Perhaps עִיר is here a technical term meaning “fortress” or, more likely, “inner room.”


Or “pulled down.”


The verb “they demolished” is repeated in the Hebrew text.


Heb “and they made it into.”


The consonantal text ( Kethib ) has the hapax legomenon מַחֲרָאוֹת ( makhara ’ ot ), “places to defecate” or “dung houses” (note the related noun חרא ( khr ’)/ חרי ( khri ), “dung,” HALOT 348-49 s.v. * חֲרָאִים ). The marginal reading ( Qere ) glosses this, perhaps euphemistically, מוֹצָאוֹת ( motsa ’ ot ), “outhouses.”


Heb “destroyed Baal.”


For location see Map4-G4 ; Map5-C1 ; Map6-E3 ; Map7-D1 ; Map8-G3 .


Heb “Except the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat which he caused Israel to commit, Jehu did not turn aside from after them – the golden calves which [were in] Bethel and which [were] in Dan.”


Heb “Because you have done well by doing what is proper in my eyes – according to all which was in my heart you have done to the house of Ahab – sons of four generations will sit for you on the throne of Israel.” In the Hebrew text the Lord’s statement is one long sentence (with a parenthesis). The translation above divides it into shorter sentences for stylistic reasons. sn Jehu ruled over Israel from approximately 841-814 b.c. Four of his descendants (Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam II, and Zechariah) ruled from approximately 814-753 b.c. The dynasty came to an end when Shallum assassinated Zechariah in 753 b.c . See 2 Kgs 15:8-12 .


Heb “But Jehu was not careful to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart.”


Heb “He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam which he caused Israel to commit.”


Heb “began to cut off Israel.”


Heb “Hazael struck them down in all the territory of Israel, from the Jordan on the east.” In the Hebrew text the phrase “from the Jordan on the east” begins v. 33 .


Heb “all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassehites, from Aroer which is near the Arnon Valley, and Gilead, and Bashan.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehu, and all which he did and all his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “she arose and she destroyed all the royal offspring.” The verb קוּם ( qum ) “arise,” is here used in an auxiliary sense to indicate that she embarked on a campaign to destroy the royal offspring. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 125.


Heb “stole.”


Heb “him and his nurse in an inner room of beds.” The verb is missing in the Hebrew text. The parallel passage in 2 Chr 22:11 has “and she put” at the beginning of the clause. M. Cogan and H. Tadmor ( II Kings [AB], 126) regard the Chronicles passage as an editorial attempt to clarify the difficulty of the original text. They prefer to take “him and his nurse” as objects of the verb “stole” and understand “in the bedroom” as the place where the royal descendants were executed. The phrase בַּחֲדַר הַמִּטּוֹת ( bakhadar hammittot ), “an inner room of beds,” is sometimes understood as referring to a bedroom ( HALOT 293 s.v. חֶדֶר ), though some prefer to see here a “room where the covers and cloths were kept for the beds ( HALOT 573 s.v. מִטָּת ). In either case, it may have been a temporary hideout, for v. 3 indicates that the child hid in the temple for six years.


Heb “and they hid him from Athaliah and he was not put to death.” The subject of the plural verb (“they hid”) is probably indefinite.


Heb “and he was with her [in] the house of the Lord hiding.”


Heb “Jehoiada sent and took.”


Heb “the runners.”


Heb “he brought them to himself.”


Or “covenant.”


Heb “the gate of Sur” (followed by many English versions) but no such gate is mentioned elsewhere in the OT. The parallel account in 2 Chr 23:5 has “Foundation Gate.” סוּר ( sur ), “Sur,” may be a corruption of יְסוֹד ( yÿsod ) “foundation,” involving in part dalet - resh confusion.


The meaning of מַסָּח ( massakh ) is not certain. The translation above, rather than understanding it as a genitive modifying “house,” takes it as an adverb describing how the groups will guard the palace. See HALOT 605 s.v. מַסָּח for the proposed meaning “alternating” (i.e., “in turns”).


Verses 5 b-7 read literally, “the third of you, the ones entering [on] the Sabbath and the ones guarding the guard of the house of the king, and the third in the gate of Sur, and the third in the gate behind the runners, and you will guard the guard of the house, alternating. And the two units of you, all the ones going out [on] the Sabbath, and they will guard the guard of the house of the Lord for the king.” The precise meaning of this text is impossible to determine. It would appear that the Carians and royal bodyguard were divided into three units. One unit would serve during the Sabbath; the other two would be off duty on the Sabbath. Jehoiada divided the first unit into three groups and assigned them different locations. The two off duty units were assigned the task of guarding the king.


Heb “and be with the king in his going out and in his coming in.”


Heb “according to all that.”


Heb “came.”


Heb “the runners” (also in v. 19 ).


Heb “and the runners stood, each with his weapons in his hand, from the south shoulder of the house to the north shoulder of the house, at the altar and at the house, near the king all around.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Jehoiada) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The Hebrew term עֵדוּת (’ edut ) normally means “witness” or “testimony.” Here it probably refers to some tangible symbol of kingship, perhaps a piece of jewelry such as an amulet or neck chain. See the discussion in M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 128. Some suggest that a document is in view, perhaps a copy of the royal protocol or of the stipulations of the Davidic covenant. See HALOT 790-91 s.v. עֵדוּת .


Or “they made him king and anointed him.”


The MT reads, “and Athaliah heard the sound of the runners, the people.” The term הָעָם ( ha ’ am ), “the people,” is probably a scribal addition anticipating the reference to the people later in the verse and in v. 14 .


Heb “she came to the people.”


Heb “and she saw, and look.”


Or “conspiracy, conspiracy.”


The Hebrew text also has, “and said to them.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated.


Heb “ranks.”


Heb “for the priest had said, ‘Let her not be put to death in the house of the Lord .’”


Heb “and they placed hands on her, and she went the way of the entrance of the horses [into] the house of the king.”


Heb “and Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and [between] the king and [between] the people, to become a people for the Lord , and between the king and [between] the people.” The final words of the verse (“and between the king and [between] the people”) are probably accidentally repeated from earlier in the verse. They do not appear in the parallel account in 2 Chr 23:16 . If retained, they probably point to an agreement governing how the king and people should relate to one another.


Or “tore down.”


Or “images.”


The Hebrew construction translated “smashed…to bits” is emphatic. The adverbial infinitive absolute ( הֵיטֵב [ hetev ], “well”) accompanying the Piel form of the verb שָׁבַר ( shavar ), “break,” suggests thorough demolition.


Heb “the priest.” Jehoiada’s name is added for clarification.


Heb “the Gate of the Runners of the House of the King.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Jehoash is an alternate name for Joash (see 11:2 ).


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “and Jehoash did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord all his days.”


Heb “that which.” Jehoiada taught the king the Lord’s will.


The words “I place at your disposal” are added in the translation for clarification.


Heb “the silver of passing over a man.” The precise meaning of the phrase is debated, but עָבַר (’ avar ), “pass over,” probably refers here to counting, suggesting the reference is to a census conducted for taxation purposes. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 137.


Heb “the silver of persons, his valuation.” The precise meaning of the phrase is uncertain, but parallels in suggest that personal vows are referred to here. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 137.


Heb “all the silver which goes up on the heart of a man to bring to the house of the Lord .”


Heb “Let the priests take for themselves, each from his treasurer, and let them repair the damage of the temple, with respect to all the damage that is found there.” The word מַכָּר ( makar ), translated here “treasurer,” occurs only in this passage. Some suggest it means “merchant” or “benefactor.” Its usage in Ugaritic texts, where it appears in a list of temple officials, suggests that it refers in this context to individuals who were in charge of disbursing temple funds.


Heb “Now, do not take silver from your treasurers, because for the damages to the temple you must give it.”


Outside of this passage the verb אוּת (’ ut ) appears only in Gen 34:15-22 .


Heb “and not to repair the damages to the temple.” This does not mean that the priests were no longer interested in repairing the temple. As the following context makes clear, the priests decided to hire skilled workers to repair the damage to the temple, rather than trying to make the repairs themselves.


Heb “on the right side of the altar as a man enters.”


Heb “the king’s scribe.”


Heb “went up and tied [it] and counted the silver that was found in the house of the Lord .” The order of the clauses has been rearranged in the translation to make better sense in English, since it seems more logical to count the money before bagging it (cf. NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT).


Heb “would give.”


Heb “doers of the work.”


Heb “and for all that which was going out concerning the house for repair.”


Heb “was given.”


Heb “gave.”


Heb “and they did not conduct a reckoning of the men who gave the silver into their hand to give to the doers of the work, for in honesty they were working.”


Heb “went up and fought against.”


Heb “Hazael set his face to go up against Jerusalem.”


The object (“it all”) is supplied in the translation for clarification.


Heb “went up.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Joash, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “rose up and conspired [with] a conspiracy.”


Heb “Beth Millo which goes down [toward] Silla.”


Heb “struck him down and he died.”


Heb “they buried him.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “walked after.”


Heb “he did not turn aside from it.”


Heb “and the anger of the Lord burned against.”


Heb “he gave them into the hand of.”


Heb “all the days.”


Heb “appeased the face of the Lord .”


Heb “and the Lord heard.”


Heb “for he saw the oppression of Israel, for the king of Syria oppressed them.”


Heb “and they went from under the hand of Syria.”


Heb “and the sons of Israel lived in their tents as before.”


Heb “they did not turn away from.”


Heb “house.”


Heb “in it he walked.” The singular verb ( הָלַךְ , halakh ) is probably due to an error of haplography and should be emended to the plural ( הָלְכּוּ , halÿku ). Note that a vav immediately follows (on the form וְגַם , vÿgam ).


Or “an image of Asherah”; ASV, NASB “the Asherah”; NCV “the Asherah idol.” sn Asherah was a leading deity of the Canaanite pantheon, wife/sister of El and goddess of fertility. She was commonly worshiped at shrines in or near groves of evergreen trees, or, failing that, at places marked by wooden poles. These were to be burned or cut down ( Deut 12:3; 16:21 ; Judg 6:25, 28, 30 ; 2 Kgs 18:4 ).


Heb “Indeed he did not leave to Jehoahaz people.” The identity of the subject is uncertain, but the king of Syria, mentioned later in the verse, is a likely candidate.


Heb “them,” i.e., the remainder of this troops.


Heb “and made them like dust for trampling.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehoahaz, and all which he did and his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “and they buried him.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “turn away from all.”


Heb “in it he walked.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Joash, and all which he did and his strength, [and] how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “sat on his throne.”


Heb “Now Elisha was ill with the illness by which he would die.”


Heb “went down to him.”


Though the noun is singular here, it may be collective, in which case it could be translated “chariots.”


Heb “and he took a bow and some arrows.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “Cause your hand to ride on the bow.”


Heb “and he caused his hand to ride.”


Heb “He opened [it].”


Heb “and he shot.”


Heb “The arrow of victory of the Lord and the arrow of victory over Syria.”


Heb “you will strike down Syria in Aphek until destruction.”


Heb “and he took [them].”


Heb “man of God.”


Heb “[It was necessary] to strike five or six times, then you would strike down Syria until destruction.” On the syntax of the infinitive construct, see GKC 349 §114. k .


Heb “and they buried him.”


Heb “entered.”


The MT reading בָּא שָׁנָה ( ba ’ shanah ), “it came, year,” should probably be emended to בְּבָּא הַשָּׁנָה ( bÿba ’ hashanah ), “at the coming [i.e., ‘beginning’] of the year.” See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 148.


Heb “and it so happened [that] they.”


Heb “and look, they saw.”


Heb “the man”; the adjective “dead” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.


Heb “the man.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the dead man) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Otherwise the reader might think it was Elisha rather than the unnamed dead man who came back to life.


Heb “all the days of Jehoahaz.”


Or “showed them compassion.”


Heb “he turned to them.”


Heb “because of his covenant with.”


Heb “until now.”


Heb “from the hand of.”


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “the name of his mother.”


Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord .”


Heb “according to all which Joash his father had done, he did.”


Heb “when the kingdom was secure in his hand.”


Heb “he struck down his servants, the ones who had struck down the king, his father.”


Heb “as it is written in the scroll of the law of Moses which the Lord commanded, saying.”


Heb “on account of sons.”


Heb “on account of fathers.”


Or “struck down.”


Heb “let us look at each other [in the] face.” The expression refers here to meeting in battle. See v. 11 .


Heb “the animal of the field.”


Or “you have indeed defeated Edom.”


Heb “and your heart has lifted you up.”


Heb “be glorified.”


Heb “Why get involved in calamity and fall, you and Judah with you?”


Heb “did not listen.”


Heb “went up.”


Heb “looked at each other [in the] face.”


Heb “and Judah was struck down before Israel and they fled, each to his tent.”


The MT has the plural form of the verb, but the final vav ( ו ) is virtually dittographic. The word that immediately follows in the Hebrew text begins with a yod ( י ). The form should be emended to the singular, which is consistent in number with the verb (“he broke down”) that follows.


Heb “came to.”


Heb “four hundred cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) long.


Heb “the sons of the pledges.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehoash, and all which he did and his strength, [and] how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Amaziah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “and they conspired against him [with] a conspiracy in Jerusalem.”


Heb “and they sent after him to Lachish.”


Heb “and they carried him on horses.”


Heb “he”; the referent (Azariah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “lay with his fathers.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “turn away from all.”


The phrases “in the north” and “in the south” are added in the translation for clarification.


Heb “which he spoke by the hand of.”


Heb “for the Lord saw the very bitter affliction of Israel.” This translation assumes an emendation of מֹרֶה ( moreh ), which is meaningless here, to ַהמַּר ( hammar ), the adjective “bitter” functioning attributively with the article prefixed. This emendation is supported by the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate. Another option would be מַר הוּא ( mar hu ’), “it was bitter.”


Heb “[there was] none but the restrained, and [there was] none but the abandoned, and there was no deliverer for Israel.” On the meaning of the terms עָצוּר (’ atsur ) and עָזוּב (’ azur ), see the note at 1 Kgs 14:10 .


Heb “name.”


The phrase “from under heaven” adds emphasis to the verb “blot out” and suggest total annihilation. For other examples of the verb מָחָה ( makhah ), “blot out,” combined with “from under heaven,” see Exod 17:14 ; Deut 9:14; 25:19; 29:20 .


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam, and all which he did and his strength, [and] how he fought and how he restored Damascus and Hamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?” The phrase “to Judah” is probably not original; it may be a scribal addition by a Judahite scribe who was trying to link Jeroboam’s conquests with the earlier achievements of David and Solomon, who ruled in Judah. The Syriac Peshitta has simply “to Israel.” M. Cogan and H. Tadmor ( II Kings [AB], 162) offer this proposal, but acknowledge that it is “highly speculative.”


The MT has simply “with the kings of Israel,” which appears to stand in apposition to the immediately preceding “with his fathers.” But it is likely that the words “and he was buried in Samaria” have been accidentally omitted from the text. See 13:13 and 14:16 .


For location see Map5-B1 ; Map6-F3 ; Map7-E2 ; Map8-F2 ; Map10-B3 ; JP1-F4 ; JP2-F4 ; JP3-F4 ; JP4-F4 .


Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord , according to all which Amaziah his father had done.”


Traditionally, “he was a leper.” But see the note at 5:1 .


The precise meaning of בֵית הַחָפְשִׁית ( bet hakhofÿshit ), “house of […?],” is uncertain. For a discussion of various proposals, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 166-67.


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Azariah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “and they buried him.”


For location see Map2-B1 ; Map4-D3 ; Map5-E2 ; Map6-A4 ; Map7-C1 .


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “turn away from.”


The MT reads, “and he struck him down before the people and killed him” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). However, the reading קָבָל עָם ( qaval ’ am ), “before the people,” is problematic to some because קָבָל is a relatively late Aramaic term. Nevertheless, the Aramaic term qobel certainly antedates the writing of Kings. The bigger problem seems to be the unnecessary intrusion of an Aramaic word at all here. Most interpreters prefer to follow Lucian’s Greek version and read “in Ibleam” ( בְיִבְלְעָם , bÿivle ’ am ). Cf. NAB, TEV.


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”


Heb “It was the word of the Lord which he spoke to Jehu, saying.”


“sons of four generations will sit for you on the throne of Israel.” sn See the note at 2 Kgs 10:30 .


Heb “a month of days.”


Heb “and came to.”


Heb “went up from Tirzah and arrived in Samaria and attacked Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he conspired, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”


Heb “then Menahem attacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its borders from Tirzah, for it would not open, and he attacked.” tn Instead of “Tiphsah,” the LXX has “Tirzah,” while Lucian’s Greek version reads “Tappuah.” For discussion see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 171.


The MT of v. 18 ends with the words, “all his days.” If this phrase is taken with what precedes, then one should translate, “[who encouraged Israel to sin] throughout his reign.” However, it may be preferable to emend the text to בְיֹמָיו ( bÿyomav ), “in his days,” and join the phrase to what follows. The translation assumes this change.


Heb “gave.”


Heb “Pul.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.


The Hebrew term כִּכָּר ( kikkar , “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 75,000 pounds of silver (cf. NCV “about seventy-four thousand pounds”); NLT “thirty-seven tons”; CEV “over thirty tons”; TEV “34,000 kilogrammes.”


Heb “so his hands would be with him.”


Heb “to keep hold of the kingdom in his hand.”


Heb “and Menahem brought out the silver over Israel, over the prominent men of means, to give to the king of Assyria, fifty shekels of silver for each man.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Menahem, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”


Heb “lay down with his fathers.”


Heb “in the eyes of.”


Heb “turn away from.”


Heb “and he struck him down in Samaria in the fortress of the house of the king, Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men from the sons of the Gileadites, and they killed him.” sn The precise identity of Argob and Arieh , as well as their relationship to the king, are uncertain. The usual assumption is that they were officials assassinated along with Pekahiah, or that they were two of the more prominent Gileadites involved in the revolt. For discussion see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 173.


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Pekahiah, and all which he did, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”


For location see Map1-D2 ; Map2-D3 ; Map3-A2 ; Map4-C1 .


Heb “them.”


Heb “and struck him down and killed him.”


Heb “As for the rest of the events of Pekah, and all which he did, look, they are written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.”