2 Kings 6:28

28 The king said to her, "{What is the problem}?" Then the woman said, "This woman said to me, 'Give me your son, and let us eat him today, then tomorrow we will eat my son.'

2 Kings 6:28 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 6:28

And the king said unto her, what aileth thee?
&c.] His passion subsiding, or pitying her as in distress, and supposing that there might be something particular and pressing in her case:

and she answered,

this woman said unto me;
who was now with her, and to whom she pointed:

give thy son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son
tomorrow;
and this was agreed to between them, that first one should be eaten, and then the other, and that they should feed upon one as long as it would last, and then on the other; for it is not to be limited precisely to a day and tomorrow.

2 Kings 6:28 In-Context

26 It happened that the king of Israel [was] crossing over on the wall, and a woman called out to him, saying, "Help, my lord the king!"

27 He said, "No, let Yahweh help you. {How} can I save you? From the threshing floor or from the wine press?"

28 The king said to her, "{What is the problem}?" Then the woman said, "This woman said to me, 'Give me your son, and let us eat him today, then tomorrow we will eat my son.'

29 So we cooked my son and ate him, and I said to her the next day, 'Give your son that we may eat him.' But she had hidden her son."

30 It happened that when the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his clothes. Now he had been walking on the wall, and the people saw, and behold, sackcloth was over his flesh underneath.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "What is for you"