20 And they slew H5221 every one H376 his man: H376 and the Syrians H758 fled; H5127 and Israel H3478 pursued H7291 them: and Benhadad H1130 the king H4428 of Syria H758 escaped H4422 on an horse H5483 with the horsemen. H6571
And five H2568 of you shall chase H7291 an hundred, H3967 and an hundred H3967 of you shall put ten thousand H7233 to flight: H7291 and your enemies H341 shall fall H5307 before H6440 you by the sword. H2719
And the three H7969 companies H7218 blew H8628 the trumpets, H7782 and brake H7665 the pitchers, H3537 and held H2388 the lamps H3940 in their left H8040 hands, H3027 and the trumpets H7782 in their right H3225 hands H3027 to blow H8628 withal: and they cried, H7121 The sword H2719 of the LORD, H3068 and of Gideon. H1439 And they stood H5975 every man H376 in his place round about H5439 the camp: H4264 and all the host H4264 ran, H7323 and cried, H7321 and fled. H5127 H5127 And the three H7969 hundred H3967 blew H8628 the trumpets, H7782 and the LORD H3068 set H7760 every man's H376 sword H2719 against his fellow, H7453 even throughout all the host: H4264 and the host H4264 fled H5127 to Bethshittah H1029 in Zererath, H6888 and to the border H8193 of Abelmeholah, H65 unto Tabbath. H2888
And Jonathan H3129 climbed up H5927 upon his hands H3027 and upon his feet, H7272 and his armourbearer H5375 H3627 after H310 him: and they fell H5307 before H6440 Jonathan; H3129 and his armourbearer H5375 H3627 slew H4191 after H310 him. And that first H7223 slaughter, H4347 which Jonathan H3129 and his armourbearer H5375 H3627 made, H5221 was about twenty H6242 men, H376 within as it were an half H2677 acre H4618 of land, H7704 which a yoke H6776 of oxen might plow. And there was trembling H2731 in the host, H4264 in the field, H7704 and among all the people: H5971 the garrison, H4673 and the spoilers, H7843 they also trembled, H2729 and the earth H776 quaked: H7264 so it was a very great H430 trembling. H2731
And when he had brought him down, H3381 behold, they were spread abroad H5203 upon all H6440 the earth, H776 eating H398 and drinking, H8354 and dancing, H2287 because of all the great H1419 spoil H7998 that they had taken H3947 out of the land H776 of the Philistines, H6430 and out of the land H776 of Judah. H3063 And David H1732 smote H5221 them from the twilight H5399 even unto the evening H6153 of the next day: H4283 and there escaped H4422 not a man H376 of them, save four H702 hundred H3967 young H5288 men, H376 which rode H7392 upon camels, H1581 and fled. H5127
And they caught H2388 every one H376 his fellow H7453 by the head, H7218 and thrust his sword H2719 in his fellow's H7453 side; H6654 so they fell down H5307 together: H3162 wherefore that place H4725 was called H7121 Helkathhazzurim, H2521 which is in Gibeon. H1391
For the Lord H136 had made the host H4264 of the Syrians H758 to hear H8085 a noise H6963 of chariots, H7393 and a noise H6963 of horses, H5483 even the noise H6963 of a great H1419 host: H2428 and they said H559 one H376 to another, H251 Lo, the king H4428 of Israel H3478 hath hired H7936 against us the kings H4428 of the Hittites, H2850 and the kings H4428 of the Egyptians, H4714 to come H935 upon us. Wherefore they arose H6965 and fled H5127 in the twilight, H5399 and left H5800 their tents, H168 and their horses, H5483 and their asses, H2543 even the camp H4264 as it was, and fled H5127 for their life. H5315
So Sennacherib H5576 king H4428 of Assyria H804 departed, H5265 and went H3212 and returned, H7725 and dwelt H3427 at Nineveh. H5210
I returned, H7725 and saw H7200 under the sun, H8121 that the race H4793 is not to the swift, H7031 nor the battle H4421 to the strong, H1368 neither yet bread H3899 to the wise, H2450 nor yet riches H6239 to men of understanding, H995 nor yet favour H2580 to men of skill; H3045 but time H6256 and chance H6294 happeneth H7136 to them all.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 1 Kings 20
Commentary on 1 Kings 20 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 20
This chapter is the history of a war between Ben-hadad king of Syria and Ahab king of Israel, in which Ahab was, once and again, victorious. We read nothing of Elijah or Elishain all this story; Jezebel's rage, it is probable, had abated, and the persecution of the prophets began to cool, which gleam of peace Elijah improved. He appeared not at court, but, being told how many thousands of good people there were in Israel more than he thought of, employed himself, as we may suppose, in founding religious houses, schools, or colleges of prophets, in several parts of the country, to be nurseries of religion, that they might help to reform the nation when the throne and court would not be reformed. While he was thus busied, God favoured the nation with the successes we here read of, which were the more remarkable because obtained against Ben-hadad king of Syria, whose successor, Hazael, was ordained to be a scourge to Israel. They must shortly suffer by the Syrians, and yet now triumphed over them, that, if possible, they might be led to repentance by the goodness of God. Here is,
1Ki 20:1-11
Here is,
1Ki 20:12-21
The treaty between the besiegers and the besieged being broken off abruptly, we have here an account of the battle that ensued immediately.
1Ki 20:22-30
We have here an account of another successful campaign which Ahab, by divine aid, made against the Syrians, in which he gave them a greater defeat than in the former. Strange! Ahab idolatrous and yet victorious, a persecutor and yet a conqueror! God has wise and holy ends in suffering wicked men to prosper, and glorifies his own name thereby.
1Ki 20:31-43
Here is an account of what followed upon the victory which Israel obtained over the Syrians.