2 Kings 1:5. When the messengers turned back unto him, &c.— It may seem something strange, that Ahaziah's messengers should stop their journey to Ekron at Elijah's command. But he was a man of such a venerable presence, and spake to them with such authority in the name of the Lord, that they were over-awed thereby to obey him rather than the king. read more
2 Kings 1:8. He was an hairy man— Elijah being a hairy man may either denote his wearing long hair on his head and his beard, according to the manner of the ancient Greek philosophers, or it may denote his habit, which was made of skins, rough, and with the hair on; as the ancient heroes were clothed with the skins of tygers, lions, and bears; as the evangelist represents the Baptist, in a raiment of camel's hair; or as the apostle describes the prophets, wandering about in sheep-skins and... read more
1. Then Moab rebelled—Subdued by David (2 Samuel 8:2), they had, in the partition of Israel and Judah, fallen to the share of the former kingdom. But they took advantage of the death of Ahab to shake off the yoke (see on 2 Kings 3:6). The casualty that befell Ahaziah [2 Kings 3:6- :] prevented his taking active measures for suppressing this revolt, which was accomplished as a providential judgment on the house of Ahab for all these crimes. 2 Kings 3:6- :. AHAZIAH'S JUDGMENT BY ELIJAH. read more
2-8. Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber—This lattice was either a part of the wooden parapet, or fence, which surrounds the flat roofs of houses, and over which the king was carelessly leaning when it gave way; or it might be an opening like a skylight in the roof itself, done over with lattice-work, which, being slender or rotten, the king stepped on and slipped through. This latter supposition is most probably the true one, as Ahaziah did not fall either into the street... read more
3. the angel of the Lord—not an angel, but the angel, who carried on all communications between the invisible God and His chosen people [HENGSTENBERG]. This angel commissioned Elijah to meet the king's messengers, to stop them peremptorily on the idolatrous errand, and convey by them to the king information of his approaching death. This consultation of an idol, being a breach of the fundamental law of the kingdom (Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 5:7), was a daring and deliberate rejection of the... read more
4. Thou shalt not come down from that bed—On being taken up, he had probably been laid on the divan—a raised frame, about three feet broad, extended along the sides of a room, covered with cushions and mattresses—serving, in short, as a sofa by day and a bed by night, and ascended by steps. Elijah departed—to his ordinary abode, which was then at Mount Carmel (2 Kings 2:25; 1 Kings 18:42). read more
5. the messengers turned back—They did not know the stranger; but his authoritative tone, commanding attitude, and affecting message determined them at once to return. read more
2-8. Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber—This lattice was either a part of the wooden parapet, or fence, which surrounds the flat roofs of houses, and over which the king was carelessly leaning when it gave way; or it might be an opening like a skylight in the roof itself, done over with lattice-work, which, being slender or rotten, the king stepped on and slipped through. This latter supposition is most probably the true one, as Ahaziah did not fall either into the street... read more
8. an hairy man—This was the description not of his person, as in the case of Esau, but of his dress, which consisted either of unwrought sheep or goatskins ( :-), or of camel's haircloth—the coarser manufacture of this material like our rough haircloth. The Dervishes and Bedouins are attired in this wild, uncouth manner, while their hair flows loose on the head, their shaggy cloak is thrown over their shoulders and tied in front on the breast, naked, except at the waist, round which is a skin... read more
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Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - 2 Kings 1:4
2 Kings 1:4. Thou shalt not come down from that bed, &c.— At one end of each chamber in the eastern buildings there is a little gallery raised three, four, or five feet above the floor, having a ballustrade in the front, with a few steps likewise leading up to it. There they placed their beds; a situation frequently alluded to in the Scriptures. See Shaw's Travels, p. 211, &c. read more