Kings II 17:2

2 and I will come upon him when he weary and weak-handed, and I will strike him with terror; and all the people with him shall flee, and I will smite the king only of all.

Kings II 17:2 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 17:2

And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, but
not as the kings of Israel that were before him.
] He did not worship Baal, as some of them had done; and he could not worship the calves, as all of them had, for they were carried away by the Assyrians in the former captivities, as the Jews ^F19 say; and who also observe ^F20, that he removed the garrisons set on the borders of the land to watch the Israelites, that they might not go up to Jerusalem; and this being done on the fifteenth of Ab, that day was afterwards observed as a festival on that account; and they further remark ^F21, that the captivity of the ten tribes was in the reign of this king, who was better than the rest, to show that it was not barely the sins of the kings on whom the Israelites would cast the blame, that they were carried captives, but their own, according to ( Hosea 5:3 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 22.
F20 T. Bab. Gittin, fol. 88. Kimchi in loc.
F21 Seder Olam Raba, ut supra. (c. 22.)

Kings II 17:2 In-Context

1 And Achitophel said to Abessalom, Let me now choose out for myself twelve thousand men, and I will arise and follow after David this night:

2 and I will come upon him when he weary and weak-handed, and I will strike him with terror; and all the people with him shall flee, and I will smite the king only of all.

3 And I will bring back all the people to thee, as a bride returns to her husband: only thou seekest the life of one man, and all the people shall have peace.

4 And the saying right in the eyes of Abessalom, and in the eyes of all the elders of Israel.

5 And Abessalom said, Call now also Chusi the Arachite, and let us hear what in his mouth, even in his also.