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John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:9

So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him ,.... As was usual when a prophet or seer was consulted, see 1 Samuel 9:7 . even of every good thing of Damascus ; which was a very fruitful place, and had abundance of gardens and orchards in it, which yielded excellent fruit, and of such it is probable the present consisted, and which was large: even forty camels' burden : which, as they are strong creatures, will bear a great deal. Abarbinel thinks, bread, flesh, and wine,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:10

And Elisha said unto him, go, say unto him, thou mayest certainly recover ,.... That is, of the disease; and there was not only a probability that he might recover of it, it not being a mortal one, but a certainty that he should not die of it, as he did not, but die a violent death, which the prophet predicts in the next clause; though some take these words not as a command, what he should say, but as a prediction of what he would say; that he would go and tell him he should certainly... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:11

And he settled his countenance steadfastly ,.... Refrained himself as much as possible, that he might not weep, as some Jewish writers interpret it; or, as others, he turned his face on one side, and covered it with his hands, that Hazael might not see him weep; or rather he set his face on Hazael, and looked at him so wistly: until he was ashamed ; that is, Hazael; the prophet looked him out of countenance: and the man of God wept ; at the thought of what calamities the man before... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:12

And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord ?.... Imagining it was for the death of Benhadad he had predicted, for which he could see no reason; of the title, "my lord", see 1 Kings 18:7 . and he answered, because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel ; which he foresaw by a spirit of prophecy; and Israel being his own people, he sympathized in their calamities before they came: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire ; which should be taken by him, see 2 Kings... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:13

And Hazael said, but what, is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing ?.... What dost thou take me to be, a vile, impudent, fierce, and cruel creature, as a dog, to be guilty of so great inhumanity and barbarity as this? or what is thy servant? a dog, a mean abject creature, of no power and authority, incapable of doing such great things spoken of? to which sense not only what is predicted of him, said to be great, inclines, but what follows: and Elisha answered, the Lord... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:14

So he departed from Elisha, and came to his master ,.... Benhadad king of Syria: who said to him, what said Elisha to thee ? concerning his recovery, which was the thing uppermost in his mind, and he was eagerly desirous to know how it would be: and he answered, he told me that thou shouldest surely recover ; which was false; for he only said that he "might", and not that he should; and he concealed what he also declared, that though he might recover of his disease, yet that he... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 8:15

And it came to pass on the morrow ,.... In such haste was Hazael to be king, as the prophet said he would be: that he took a thick cloth, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died ; not that Benhadad took or ordered such a cloth to be dipped and laid on his own face, to allay the violent heat in him; but Hazael did this, and perhaps under such a pretence; but his real design was to strike in the heat, or suffocate him; for such a thick cloth, one of the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 8:1

Then spake Elisha - As this is the relation of an event far past, the words should be translated, "But Elisha had spoken unto the woman whose son he had restored unto life; and the woman had arisen, and acted according to the saying of the man of God, and had gone with her family, and had sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years." What is mentioned in these two verses happened several years before the time specified in the third verse. See the observations at the end of the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 8:4

The king talked with Gehazi - This is supposed to have happened before the cleansing of Naaman, for is it likely that the king would hold conversation with a leprous man; or that, knowing Gehazi had been dismissed with the highest disgrace from the prophet's service, he could hold any conversation with him concerning his late master, relative to whom he could not expect him to give either a true or impartial account? Some think that this conversation might have taken place after... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 8:5

This is the woman , and this is her son , whom Elisha restored to life - This was a very providential occurrence in behalf of the Shunammite. The relation given by Gehazi was now corroborated by the woman herself; the king was duly affected, and gave immediate orders for the restoration of her land. read more

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