1 Kings 15:20

20 Ben-Hadad listened to king Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Yisra'el, and struck `Iyon, and Dan, and Avel-Beit-Ma`akhah, and all Kinnarot, with all the land of Naftali.

1 Kings 15:20 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 15:20

So Benhadad hearkened unto King Asa, and sent the captains of
the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel
He broke off his alliance with the king of Israel; and as he had a standing army, with proper officers, he sent them directly to take the cities of Israel:

and he smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abelbethmaachah, and all Cinneroth,
with all the land of Naphtali;
places which lay on the northern part of Israel, the nearest to Syria. Ijon some place in the tribe of Naphtali, others in Asher; it seems to be on the extreme border of the land northward, as Dan also was; hence the phrase from Dan to Beersheba, i.e. from north to south. Abelbethmaachah is the same with Abelmaim, ( 2 Chronicles 16:4 ) which perhaps is the same with that Abela, placed by Jerome

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FOOTNOTES:

F24 between Damascus and Paneas, supposed to be the Enhydra of Pliny {y}. Cinneroth is the same with Gennesaret, a fruitful country in Galilee, from which is a sea or lake of that name, mentioned in the New Testament, and was in the tribe of Naphtali, the land of which was seized upon at this time.

F24 De loc. Heb. fol. 83. K.
F25 Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 19.

1 Kings 15:20 In-Context

18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants; and king Asa sent them to Ben-Hadad, the son of Tavrimon, the son of Hezyon, king of Aram, who lived at Dammesek, saying,

19 [There is] a league between me and you, between my father and your father: behold, I have sent to you a present of silver and gold; go, break your league with Ba`sha king of Yisra'el, that he may depart from me.

20 Ben-Hadad listened to king Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Yisra'el, and struck `Iyon, and Dan, and Avel-Beit-Ma`akhah, and all Kinnarot, with all the land of Naftali.

21 It happened, when Ba`sha heard of it, that he left off building Ramah, and lived in Tirtzah.

22 Then king Asa made a proclamation to all Yehudah; none was exempted: and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber of it, with which Ba`sha had built; and king Asa built therewith Geva of Binyamin, and Mitzpah.