1 Kings 20:5-15

5 And the messengers came again , and said , Thus speaketh Benhadad, saying , Although I have sent unto thee, saying , Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;

6 Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be , that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away .

7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said , Mark , I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.

8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent .

9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do : but this thing I may not do . And the messengers departed , and brought him word again .

10 And Benhadad sent unto him, and said , The gods do so unto me, and more also , if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.

11 And the king of Israel answered and said , Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off .

12 And it came to pass, when Benhadad heard this message, as he was drinking , he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city.

13 And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying , Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thine hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.

14 And Ahab said , By whom? And he said , Thus saith the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said , Who shall order the battle? And he answered , Thou.

15 Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand.

1 Kings 20:5-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 20

This chapter relates the siege of Samaria by the king of Syria, and his insolent demand of Ahab's wives, children, and riches, 1Ki 20:1-12, the sally made out upon him, at the direction of the prophet, and the route made of the Syrian army, 1Ki 20:13-21, the return of the Syrian army the next year, when there was a pitched battle between them and Israel, in which the former were entirely defeated, 1Ki 20:22-30, the peace Ahab made with the king of Syria, 1Ki 20:31-34, and the reproof one of the sons of the prophets gave him for it, which made him very uneasy, 1Ki 20:35-43.

Footnotes

• [a]. pleasant: Heb. desirable
• [b]. I denied...: Heb. I kept not back from him
• [c]. follow...: Heb. are at my feet
• [d]. message: Heb. word
• [e]. came: Heb. approached