Verse 10
10. Two men The law required at least two witnesses to convict a man of murder or any great crime. See Numbers 35:30; Deuteronomy 17:6; Deuteronomy 19:15. So, says Wordsworth, “even Jezebel bears witness to the Pentateuch.”
Sons of Belial Literally, sons of worthlessness; that is, worthless, good-for-nothing fellows. See note on 1 Samuel 1:16.
Thou didst blaspheme God and the king The word rendered blaspheme is ברךְ , which usually means to bless, and is often used in the farewell blessing of one departing from the presence of another. Compare Genesis 47:10; 1 Kings 8:66. “To this latter signification,” says Furst, “belongs the meaning, to give the parting salutation to one in a bad sense, that is, to wish away, to imprecate upon one, to curse, to revile. Job 1:5; Job 2:5. Analogy in the Semitic dialects admits of directly opposite meanings in a word.” So, also, Gesenius in his Hebrews Lexicon. Some think that blasphemy of God and the king was so shocking to the Hebrew mind that it was expressed by this word euphemistically.
Stone him According to Leviticus 24:16, the blasphemer of Jehovah is to be stoned to death; and according to Exodus 22:28, cursing of the ruler is a kindred crime. The first martyr, Stephen, was stoned on the charge of blasphemy. According to 2 Kings 9:26, Naboth’s sons were also put to death with him. They were, perhaps, the only heirs that could rightly claim the inheritance; or, like Achan’s children, they may have been regarded and treated as involved in the parent’s guilt. See note on Joshua 7:24.
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