2 Kings 6:24-33

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Kings 6:33

And while he yet talked with them ,.... Elisha with the elders: behold, the messenger came down unto him ; sent by the king: and he said ; either the messenger in the king's name, or rather the king, who was at his heels, and came to the door before the messenger was let in, who was detained; and therefore it is most probable the king went in first; for that was the intention of Elisha in holding the messenger, not to save his own life, but that the king, who was following, might... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:25

And , behold , they besieged it - They had closed it in on every side, and reduced it to the greatest necessity. An ass ' s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver - I suppose we are to take the ass's head literally; and if the head sold for so much, what must other parts sell for which were much to be preferred? The famine must be great that could oblige them to eat any part of an animal that was proscribed by the law; and it must be still greater that... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:27

If the Lord do not help thee - Some read this as an imprecation, May God save thee not! how can I save thee? read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:29

So we boiled my son - This is horrible; but for the sake of humanity we must allow that the children died through hunger, and then became food for their starved, desperate parents. She hath hid her son - He was already dead, says Jarchi; and she hid him, that she might eat him alone. This very evil Moses had foretold should come upon them if they forsook God; see Deuteronomy 28:53-57 . The same evil came upon this wretched people when besieged by Nebuchadnezzar; see ... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:30

He had sackcloth within upon his flesh - The king was in deep mourning for the distresses of the people. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:31

If the head of Elisha - shall stand on him - Either he attributed these calamities to the prophet, or else he thought he could remove them, and yet would not. The miserable king was driven to desperation. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:32

This son of a murderer - Jehoram, the son of Ahab and Jezebel. But Ahab is called a murderer because of the murder of Naboth. Shut the door - He was obliged to make use of this method for his personal safety, as the king was highly incensed. The sound of his master ' s feet behind him ? - That is, King Jehoram is following his messenger, that he may see him take off my head. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Kings 6:33

Behold , this evil is of the Lord - It is difficult to know whether it be the prophet, the messenger, or the king, that says these words. It might be the answer of the prophet from within to the messenger who was without, and who sought for admission, and gave his reason; to whom Elisha might have replied: "I am not the cause of these calamities; they are from the Lord; I have been praying for their removal; but why should I pray to the Lord any longer, for the time of your... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Kings 6:24

And it came to pass after this —probably some considerable time after, when the memory of Jehoram's kind act had passed away— that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host. A contrast is intended between the inroads of small bodies of plunderers and the invasion of the territory by the monarch himself at the head of his entire force. And went up. However Samaria was approached from Syria, there must always have been a final ascent, either from the Jordan valley or from the Plain of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Kings 6:24-33

Half-heartedness. Jehoram was altogether half-hearted in his religion. He "halted between two opinions." While he paid a certain amount of respect to Elisha, as the prophet of Jehovah, he nevertheless allowed the worship of Baal to continue in the capital ( 2 Kings 10:18-28 ), if not elsewhere, and maintained the calf-worship also at Dan and Bethel ( 2 Kings 3:3 ). He had suffered himself to be guided by Elisha in respect of the Syrian prisoners captured by the prophet ( 2 Kings 6:23 ... read more

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