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2 Kings Chapter
Seven
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 7
This
chapter begins with a prophecy of great plenty in Samaria on the morrow, and of
the death of an unbelieving lord, 2 Kings 7:1,
relates the case of four lepers, who that night went into the Syrian camp,
which was deserted, occasioned by the noise of chariots, horses, and a host,
which they fancied they heard, 2 Kings 7:3, the
report which the lepers made to the king's household of this affair, and the
method the king's servants took to know the truth of it, 2 Kings 7:10 which,
when confirmed, the people went out and spoiled the tents of the Syrians,
whereby the prophecy of plenty was fulfilled, 2 Kings 7:16, and
the unbelieving lord having post at the gate of the city assigned him, was trod
to death, and so the prediction concerning him had its accomplishment also, 2 Kings 7:17.
2 Kings 7:1 Then
Elisha said, “Hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord: ‘Tomorrow
about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two
seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.’”
YLT
1And Elisha saith, `Hear ye
a word of Jehovah: thus said Jehovah, About this time to-morrow, a measure of
fine flour [is] at a shekel, and two measures of barley at a shekel, in the
gate of Samaria.'
Then Elisha said, hear the word of the Lord,.... This he said
to the king and those that were with him:
thus saith the Lord, tomorrow, about this time; which very
probably was the forenoon:
shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel; "a
seah", the measure here spoken of, or "saturn", according to
someF18Godwin, ut supra. (Moses & Aaron, B. 6. c. 9.) , was a
gallon and an half; but Bishop CumberlandF19Of Scripture Weights and
Measures, c. 3. p. 86. makes it two wine gallons and an half; and a shekel,
according to his accurate computation, was two shillings and four pence
farthing, and near the eighth part of oneF20lb. c. 4. p. 104,105. :
and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria; where the
market was kept; the same sort of measure and of money is here used as before;
and we learn from hence that a measure of wheat was equal to two of barley.
2 Kings 7:2 2 So an officer on whose
hand the king leaned answered the man of God and said, “Look, if the Lord would make
windows in heaven, could this thing be?” And he said, “In fact, you shall see it
with your eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”
YLT
2And the captain whom the
king hath, by whose hand he hath been supported, answereth the man of God and
saith, `Lo, Jehovah is making windows in the heavens -- shall this thing be?'
and he saith, `Lo, thou art seeing it with thine eyes, and thereof thou dost
not eat.'
Then a lord, on whose hand the king leaned,.... Not
figuratively, in whom the king confided, but literally, on whose hand he
rested, and by whom he was supported, being a form and matter of state, while
he and Elisha were talking together, or on whom he leaned as he came to him;
this was a principal lord, the third to the king, as his title seems to denote;
the word by which the Septuagint renders it is by SuidasF21In voce τρισταται. interpreted of such
that held three spears in the hand together; and this was an honourable post,
for a king to lean on him; such state was used by the king of Syria, 2 Kings 5:18 and by
the kings and queens of Persia; so GorionidesF23Heb. Hist. l. 2. c.
4. says of Esther, that on the third day; she put on her beautiful garments and
glorious ornaments, and took two of her maidens with her, and put her right hand
on one of them, and leaned upon her in a royal manner, or as was the manner of
kings: the same
answered the man of God; the prophet of the Lord,
as the Targum:
and said, behold, if the Lord would make windows in heaven, might
this thing be? it is impossible it should be, if he was to open the windows of
heaven as at the flood, and let down showers of wheat and barley, in like
manner as he rained manna in the wilderness:
and he said; the prophet in reply to him:
behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat
thereof; wheat and barley sold at the above price, but should not taste
of it, as a punishment of his unbelief.
2 Kings 7:3 3 Now there were four
leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said to one another, “Why are
we sitting here until we die?
YLT
3And four men have been
leprous, at the opening of the gate, and they say one unto another, `What -- we
are sitting here till we have died;
And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate,.... Of the
city of Samaria; lepers, according to the law, being obliged to be without the
city and camp, Leviticus 13:46
these might have a dwelling assigned them near the gate; or they might get as
near to it as they could, partly to obtain relief from the city, and partly for
fear of the Syrians; these, the Jews sayF24T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 47.
1. & Sanhedrin, fol. 107. 2. , were Gehazi and his three sons, see 2 Kings 5:27.
and they said one to another, why sit we here until we die? being ready
to perish with hunger.
2 Kings 7:4 4 If we say, ‘We will enter
the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we
sit here, we die also. Now therefore, come, let us surrender to the army of the
Syrians. If they keep us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall
only die.”
YLT
4if we have said, We go in
to the city, then the famine [is] in the city, and we have died there; and if
we have sat here, then we have died; and now, come and we fall unto the camp of
Aram; if they keep us alive, we live, and if they put us to death -- we have
died.'
If we say we will enter into the city,.... Contrary
to the law which forbid them:
then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; not being
able to obtain food to preserve life:
and if we sit here, we die also; having nothing to eat to
support nature:
now therefore let us come, and fall unto the host of the Syrians; put ourselves
into their hands, and lie at their mercy:
if they save us alive, we shall live; if they do
not put us to death, but give us bread to eat, our lives will be preserved:
and if they kill us, we shall but die; which we must
inevitably do, whether we stay here, or go into the city.
2 Kings 7:5 5 And they rose at twilight
to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of
the Syrian camp, to their surprise no one was there.
YLT
5And they rise in the
twilight, to go in unto the camp of Aram, and they come in unto the extremity
of the camp of Aram, and lo, there is not a man there,
And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the
Syrians,...., The dusk of the evening, or the evening twilight, as
appears from 2 Kings 7:9,
and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria; not the
further part of it, but the edge or border of it nearest to them:
behold, there was no man there; no sentinel or guard,
which they expected, and to whom they would have surrendered themselves.
2 Kings 7:6 6 For the Lord had caused
the army of the Syrians to hear the noise of chariots and the noise of
horses—the noise of a great army; so they said to one another, “Look, the king
of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the
Egyptians to attack us!”
YLT
6seeing Jehovah hath caused
the camp of Aram to hear a noise of chariot and a noise of horse -- a noise of
great force, and they say one unto another, `Lo, the king of Israel hath hired
against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of Egypt, to come against
us.'
For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of
chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host,.... Or of
many armies, as the Targum; either in the air by the ministry of angels; or the
Lord so wrought upon their imagination, that they fancied they heard such
noises; or he caused such noises in their ears:
and they said one to another, lo, the king of Israel hath hired
against us the kings of the Hittites; one of the nations of
the Canaanites, and may be here put for the whole of those that remained, and
who lived upon the borders of the land of Israel; though JosephusF25Ut
supra, (Antiqu. l. 9. c. 4.) sect. 5. has it, the kings of the isles; that is,
of Chittim, see Jeremiah 2:10.
and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us; Egypt being
now divided into petty kingdoms; or else the governors of the several nomes or
districts of it are here meant: for the king of Israel to hire these kings was
very unlikely in his present circumstances; but those unreasonable things, in
their panic, their imaginations suggested to them.
2 Kings 7:7 7 Therefore they arose and
fled at twilight, and left the camp intact—their tents, their horses, and their
donkeys—and they fled for their lives.
YLT
7And they rise and flee in
the twilight, and forsake their tents, and their horses, and their asses -- the
camp as it [is] -- and flee for their life.
Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight,.... Or in the
dark, as the Targum; when the twilight was going off; so that the lepers came
very quickly after they were gone, 2 Kings 7:5.
and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses; such was
their fright, that they could not stay to loose their cattle, with which they
might have made greater speed, but ran away on foot: and they left
even the camp as it was; took nothing away with
them, either money or provisions:
and fled for their life; which they imagined to
be in great danger.
2 Kings 7:8 8 And when these lepers came
to the outskirts of the camp, they went into one tent and ate and drank, and
carried from it silver and gold and clothing, and went and hid them; then
they came back and entered another tent, and carried some from there also,
and went and hid it.
YLT
8And these lepers come in
unto the extremity of the camp, and come in unto one tent, and eat, and drink,
and lift up thence silver, and gold, and garments, and go and hide; and they
turn back and go in unto another tent, and lift up thence, and go and hide.
And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they
went into one tent,.... The first they came to:
and did eat and drink; which was the first
thing they did, being hungry, and almost starved:
and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid
it; in a place without the camp, where they thought it would be
safe, and where they could come at it again:
and came again and entered into another tent, and carried thence
also, and went and hid it; this, Josephus saysF26Ut supra,
(Antiqu. l. 9. c. 4.) sect. 5. , they did four times.
2 Kings 7:9 9 Then they said to one
another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we
remain silent. If we wait until morning light, some punishment will come upon
us. Now therefore, come, let us go and tell the king’s household.”
YLT
9And they say one unto
another, `We are not doing right this day; a day of tidings it [is], and we are
keeping silent; and -- we have waited till the light of the morning, then hath
punishment found us; and now, come and we go in and declare to the house of the
king.'
Then they said one to another, we do not well,.... This is
not right, to take this booty to ourselves; it is not doing justice to our
brethren, and it may not prove well to ourselves in the issue:
this day is a day of good tidings; to be delivered from the
enemy, and have such plenty of provisions thrown into their hands; it would be
joyful tidings to the inhabitants of the city, did they know it:
and we hold our peace; and do not publish this
good tidings, that others may share the benefit of it:
if we tarry till the morning light; when it will in course
be discovered:
some mischief will come upon us; either from the Syrians,
who they might fear would return by that time, or some of them lurking about
would fall upon them and destroy them; or the king of Israel, when he came to
know it, would be so incensed as to inflict some punishment on them; or they
might expect some evil from the immediate hand of God:
now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king's household; acquaint some
of his servants with what had happened.
2 Kings 7:10 10 So they went and called to
the gatekeepers of the city, and told them, saying, “We went to the Syrian
camp, and surprisingly no one was there, not a human sound—only horses
and donkeys tied, and the tents intact.”
YLT
10And they come in, and call
unto the gatekeeper of the city, and declare for themselves, saying, `We have
come in unto the camp of Aram, and lo, there is not there a man, or sound of
man, but the bound horse, and the bound ass, and tents as they [are].'
So they came and called to the porter of the city,.... The chief
of those that had the care of the gate of it; for there were more than one, as
follows:
and they told them; the porter, and the watchmen with him:
we came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man
there, neither voice of man; not one to be seen or heard:
but horses tied, and asses tied; to their mangers; the
latter, as well as the former, were used for war, not only to carry burdens,
but to fight upon, as AelianusF1De Animal. l. 12. c. 34. relates of
some people; and especially when there was a want of horses, as StraboF2Geograph.
l. 15. p. 500. ; and both observe that this creature was sacrificed to Mars:
and the tents as they were; none of them struck, nor
anything taken out of them.
2 Kings 7:11 11 And the gatekeepers called
out, and they told it to the king’s household inside.
YLT
11and he calleth the
gatekeepers, and they declare to the house of the king within.
And he called the porters,.... The porter of the
city called to the porters of the king's palace:
and they told it to the king's house within; to some of
his domestic servants within the palace, and they reported it to the king.
2 Kings 7:12 12 So the king arose in the
night and said to his servants, “Let me now tell you what the Syrians have done
to us. They know that we are hungry; therefore they have gone out of the
camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, ‘When they come out of the city,
we shall catch them alive, and get into the city.’”
YLT
12And the king riseth by
night, and saith unto his servants, `Let me declare, I pray you, to you that
which the Aramaeans have done to us; they have known that we are famished, and
they are gone out from the camp to be hidden in the field, saying, When they
come out from the city, then we catch them alive, and unto the city we enter.'
And the king arose in the night,.... Upon the report made
to him:
and he said unto his servants, I will now show you what the
Syrians have done to us; taking it to be a stratagem of theirs to decoy them:
they know that we be hungry; and would be glad to
come out of the city to get some food:
therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the
field; to make us believe that they have broke up the siege, and have
deserted the camp, and are gone, when they only lie in ambush:
saying, when they come out of the city; which they
supposed they would do through hunger:
we shall catch them alive; take them captive at
once:
and get into the city; being open to let them
out, and receive them on their return.
2 Kings 7:13 13 And one of his servants
answered and said, “Please, let several men take five of the remaining
horses which are left in the city. Look, they may either become like all
the multitude of Israel that are left in it; or indeed, I say, they may
become like all the multitude of Israel left from those who are consumed;
so let us send them and see.”
YLT
13And one of his servants
answereth and saith, `Then let them take, I pray thee, five of the horses that
are left, that have been left in it -- lo, they [are] as all the multitude of
Israel who have been left in it; lo, they are as all the multitude of Israel
who have been consumed -- and we send and see.'
And one of his servants answered and said, let some take, I pray
thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city,.... Not
having died through the famine as the rest:
behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in
it; behold, I say, they are even as the multitude of Israel that are consumed; signifying,
there was a like consumption among the horses as among the people, and they
that remained were starving as they were; so that should those horses, and the
men, fall into the hands of the Syrians, and perish, it would be no great
matter; the loss would not be much, since they must perish if they continue in
the city: according to the Vulgate Latin version, these five horses were all
that were left:
and let us send and see; whether the report of
the lepers is true or not.
2 Kings 7:14 14 Therefore they took two
chariots with horses; and the king sent them in the direction of the Syrian
army, saying, “Go and see.”
YLT
14And they take two
chariot-horses, and the king sendeth after the camp of Aram, saying, `Go, and
see.'
They took therefore two chariot horses,.... Not five,
but two only, and those the best, that drew in the king's chariot perhaps, and
so were better fed, and fitter for this expedition:
and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying, go and
see; whether they are fled or not.
2 Kings 7:15 15 And they went after them
to the Jordan; and indeed all the road was full of garments and weapons
which the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. So the messengers returned
and told the king.
YLT
15And they go after them unto
the Jordan, and lo, all the way is full of garments and vessels that the
Aramaeans have cast away in their haste, and the messengers turn back and
declare to the king.
And they went after them unto Jordan,.... Not
finding them in the camp, and knowing the rout they would take to their own
land, they went as far as Jordan, over which they must pass:
and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels which the
Syrians had cast away in their haste; in their fright and
flight, such of their clothes as hindered them in running; and their armour, as
JosephusF3Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 9. c. 4. sect. 5.) seems rightly to
understand the word used, these they threw away for quicker dispatch:
and the messengers returned and told the king: that it was
as the lepers said, and what they themselves had seen.
2 Kings 7:16 16 Then the people went out
and plundered the tents of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold
for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, according to the word of
the Lord.
YLT
16And the people go out and
spoil the camp of Aram, and there is a measure of fine flour at a shekel, and
two measures of barley at a shekel, according to the word of Jehovah.
And the people went out and spoiled the tents of the Syrians,.... Of their
riches, and of their provisions; of which there was such a plenty, not only for
present use, but for sale:
so that a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, &c.
according to the word of the Lord; by Elisha, 2 Kings 7:1.
2 Kings 7:17 17 Now the king had appointed
the officer on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate. But the people
trampled him in the gate, and he died, just as the man of God had said, who
spoke when the king came down to him.
YLT
17And the king hath appointed
the captain, by whose hand he is supported, over the gate, and the people tread
him down in the gate, and he dieth, as the man of God spake, which he spake in
the coming down of the king unto him,
And the king appointed the lord, on whose hand he leaned, to have
the charge of the gate,.... Not to keep out the enemy, of which there was no danger; but
to prevent disorders and tumults among the people, and that they might go out
in an orderly and regular manner:
and the people trod upon him in the gate; being eager
to get out for food; and he endeavouring to keep order among them, they pressed
upon him, and threw him down, and trampled him under foot; or he was placed
here to regulate the market, that everyone might be supplied in course, but
through the people's pressing to get provisions, he was overborne, and trod
upon:
and died, as the man of God had said, who spake when the king came
down to him; so that he saw the plenty, but partook not of it, as he said,
see 2 Kings 7:2.
2 Kings 7:18 18 So it happened just as the
man of God had spoken to the king, saying, “Two seahs of barley for a shekel,
and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, shall be sold tomorrow about this
time in the gate of Samaria.”
YLT
18yea, it cometh to pass,
according to the speaking of the man of God unto the king, saying, `Two
measures of barley at a shekel, and a measure of fine flour at a shekel are, at
this time to-morrow, in the gate of Samaria;'
And it came to pass, as the man of God had spoken to the king,
saying,.... As in 2 Kings 7:1, and
what he said to the king there, and to the lord, in 2 Kings 7:2, are
repeated in this and the next verse, that it might be observed how exactly the
prophecies were fulfilled.
2 Kings 7:19 19 Then that officer had
answered the man of God, and said, “Now look, if the Lord would make
windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And he had said, “In fact, you shall
see it with your eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”
YLT
19and the captain answereth
the man of God, and saith, `And lo, Jehovah is making windows in the heavens --
it is according to this word?' and he saith, `Lo, thou art seeing with thine
eyes, and thereof thou dost not eat;'
And that lord answered the man of God, and said,.... As in 2 Kings 7:2.
and he said; that is, Elisha, as in the same place.
2 Kings 7:20 20 And so it happened to him,
for the people trampled him in the gate, and he died.
YLT
20and it cometh to him so,
and the people tread him down in the gate, and he dieth.
And so it fell out unto him,.... As the prophet
predicted:
for the people trod upon him in the gate, and he died; See Gill on 2 Kings 7:17.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》