John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 20:1-43
War between Israel and SyriaThe Syrians besiege Samaria, but a sally being made from the city by the direction of a prophet, they are driven off, and the next year are beaten at Aphek. Ahab, having spared Benhadad the Syrian king, is rebuked by a prophet in the name of the Lord.1. Ben-hadad] probably the son of the Benhadad mentioned, in 1 Kings 15:18. In the Assyrian inscription he is termed Dad-idri, i.e. Hadadezer. The history here reverts to the Syrian attacks upon Israel made originally at... read more
Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Kings 20:1-25
God’s deliverance of Samaria 20:1-25God dealt gently (cf. 1 Kings 19:12) with the Northern Kingdom at this time in the Divided Monarchy to continue to move His people back to Himself. This pericope records the first of three battles the writer recorded in 1 Kings between Ahab and the kings of Aram, Israel’s antagonistic neighbor to the northeast. The first of these evidently took place early in Ahab’s reign (ca. 874). Ahab’s adversary would have been Ben-Hadad I (900-860 B.C.). [Note: See D. D.... read more