1 Kings 11:24

24 and gathered men to himself. He became captain of a raiding party when David killed the Zobaites. He^[a] went to Damascus, lived there, and became king in Damascus.

1 Kings 11:24 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 11:24

And he gathered men unto him
Perhaps some of the scattered forces of his master:

and became captain over a band, when David slew them of Zobah;
some that escaped enlisted under this man, and lived by plunder the remainder of David's reign, and so in the reign of Solomon unto his old age, when his heart was turned away from God to idols, by his wives:

and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus;
Rezon and his men went thither, not in David's time, for he put a garrison there, ( 2 Samuel 8:6 ) but towards the close of Solomon's days, and when Hadad set up in Edom, which gave him the hint to do the same at Damascus, of which he became king, and was the founder of that kingdom; after him there was a long race of kings there.

1 Kings 11:24 In-Context

22 But Pharaoh asked him, "What do you lack here with me for you to want to go back to your own country?" "Nothing," he replied, "but please let me leave."

23 God raised up Rezon son of Eliada as an enemy against Solomon. Rezon had fled from his master Hadadezer king of Zobah

24 and gathered men to himself. He became captain of a raiding party when David killed the Zobaites. He went to Damascus, lived there, and became king in Damascus.

25 Rezon was Israel's enemy throughout Solomon's reign, adding to the trouble Hadad [had caused]. He ruled over Aram, but he loathed Israel.

26 Now Solomon's servant, Jeroboam son of Nebat, was an Ephraimite from Zeredah. His widowed mother's name was Zeruah. Jeroboam rebelled against Solomon,

Footnotes

• [a]. LXX; Hb reads They