1 Kings 20:37

Listen to 1 Kings 20:37
37 Then he found another man and said, ā€œStrike me, please. ā€ And the man struck him—struck him and wounded him.

1 Kings 20:37 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 20:37

Then he found another man, and said, smite me, I pray thee,
&c.] This is not said to be his neighbour, nor one of the sons of the prophets, but a rustic man, and so stuck not to take him at his word:

and the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him;
in his face; made some incision in his flesh, broke the skin, and fetched blood of him; perhaps somewhere about his eyes, by what follows: this he got done to him, that he might look like a wounded soldier, and thereby get the more easily to the speech of Ahab.

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1 Kings 20:37 In-Context

35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his fellow at the command of the Lord, ā€œStrike me, please. ā€ But the man refused to strike him.
36 Then he said to him, ā€œBecause you have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as you have gone from me, a lion shall strike you down. ā€ And as soon as he had departed from him, a lion met him and struck him down.
37 Then he found another man and said, ā€œStrike me, please. ā€ And the man struck him—struck him and wounded him.
38 So the prophet departed and waited for the king by the way, disguising himself with a bandage over his eyes.
39 And as the king passed, he cried to the king and said, ā€œYour servant went out into the midst of the battle, and behold, a soldier turned and brought a man to me and said, ā€˜Guard this man; if by any means he is missing, your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of silver. ’
The Holy Bible, English Standard VersionĀ® (ESVĀ®) Ā© 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025