2 Kings 7

And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not eat thereof. A just punishment of his unbelief. And such will be the portion of those that believe not the promise of eternal life.

2 Kings 7:1

JiiND Elisha said. T5nto the king, who followed the messenger, (see foregoing chapter, ver. 32, 33.) and spake such words as Elisha here satisfies him were very unreasonable. Hear ye the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord, Tomorrow, about this time, shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel.] The Hebrew word seah signifies a certain measure, containing the thirtieth part of an omer: which is about a peck of our measure. In the gate of Samaria.JVfhich was the market-place, as well as a place for other public meetings, (see 2 Sam. xix. 8.)

2 Kings 7:2

Tlien a lord, on whose hand the king leaned. Some think this was the messenger which the king sent to see execution done upon Elisha. Whosoever he was, he was greatly beloved by the king; for when he went abroad he leaned on him, which was a sign he was dear to him. For this state kings in those countries took upon them, to lean upon some favourite. As queen Esther, the Jews say, had a young lady on whom she rested her right hand, after the manner of the eastern kings. (Sec upon ver. 18.) Answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the^Lord should make windows in heaven, might this thing be?] He was incredulous, and seems to have laughed at what the prophet said: looking upon it as unlikely, as that God would rain corn from heaven, as once he did manna.

2 Kings 7:3

And there were four leprous men. . The Jews will Jiave these to have been Gehazi and his three sons; as they say in Gemara Sanhedrin, p. 416. edit. J. Coch. At the entering of the gate.] Of the city of Samaria. From whence lepers were thrust out, as anciently out. of the camp, (Lev. xiii. 46. xiv. 3. Numb. v. 23.) But they got as near the gate of the city as they could, for fear of the enemy. It appears by this that the Israelites observed the ceremonial law, though they were gross idolaters. And they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die?] 7 For the city could no longer supply their wants, having not sufficient for themselves,'

2 Kings 7:4

If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. . Lepers might sometimes come into their cities, if there was a great occasion, keeping their due distance from every one; as appears, some think, from Gehazi’s talking with the king himself, in the next chapter, (viii. 4.) but more plainly from this place. (See Grotius upon St. Luke vii. 12.) And if we sit still here, we die also.] The besiegers having carried away all the food thereabout. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians.] Who possibly might take compassion upon miserable people, though enemies to them. If they save us alive, we sliall live.] They will not let us starve, but give us food. And if they kill us, we shall but die.] They knew the worst that could happen to them was to lose their lives; which they should certainly do where they were; and therefore they chose an uncertain evil before a certain.

2 Kings 7:5

And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians. In the close of tie evening, as appears from ver. 9. 12. And when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria.] Unto their trenches. Behold, there tvas no man there.] Not a man to guard them, nor so much as a centinel to watch them.

2 Kings 7:6

For the Lord had made the host of Syria to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host. By the ministry of angels he made such a rattling like that of chariots, and prancing of horses, that the Syrians imagined a great army was not only marching towards them, but ready to fall upon them. And they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of Egypt, to come upon us.] Those people of the land of Canaan called Hittites, who dwelt about Hebron and Beer-sheba, were rooted out by the Israelites. But cither some of them fled, and settled themselves in some neighbouring country, and there grew very populous; or else, wc are to understand by (he kings oT the Hittites (as Josephus doth), thekings rwv v/jtrwv, of the isles, lib.ix.Antiq. cap. 2. As if chitlim was the same with cetim, as all isles, he saith, are called. Every one of which had a king; as Egypt itself was then divided into several kingdoms; whose help, the Syrians thought, the king of Israel had procured.

2 Kings 7:7

Wherefore they arose, and fled in the twilight. Being but newly gone when the lepers came thither. And they left their tents, and their horses, and their asses.] Asses were employed in war as well as horses; at least for carrying of their baggage. So Bochartus observes out’ of Pollux, xpzia 8’ dc iroXi/jLovG (TK£vo<p6p(t)v pjv ovu)v, asses are of use in war to carry burdens. There were several people, also, that fought upon asses, as others’did upon horses; which he proves out of iElian and other authors* (Sec Hierozoicon, par. ii. lib. ii. cap. 13.) Even the camp as it was, and fled for their life.] They thought of saving nothing but themselves; their fear being so great, that they left all they had behind them.

2 Kings 7:8

And when these lepeis came into the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it.] They had satisfied their hunger in the first tent, so that they had nothing now to do, but to get what treasure they could find, and secure it.

2 Kings 7:9

Then they said one to another, We do not well. When they had both well refreshed and enriched themselves, and also secured their booty, they began to reflect upon the distress of their brethren; and condemned themselves for making no more haste to impart unto them the discovery they had made of the enemy’s flight, and the plenty of all things they found in their camp. Tliis is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace.] Do not publish the goodness of God to us all. If we tarry till the morning-light, some mischief will come upon us.] The Syrians might possibly recover out of their fright, and return when they saw none pursue them:" or, some of them might be lurking thereabout, and come and kill them. Now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household.] Impart this joyful news to the city. For every good citizen is in duty bound to discover every thing that is for the public safety.

2 Kings 7:10

So they came, and called to the porter oftlie city. To him that was the chief commander at the gate of Samaria. And they told tliem.] Him and the guard that was with him.. Saying, We came into the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were.] Standing without any body in them; but full of provision and riches.

2 Kings 7:11

And he called the porters. Of the king’s house. And they told it to the king’s house ivithin.] Reported it in the court, till it came to the king’s ears.

2 Kings 7:12

And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants, I will now shew you what the Syriaiis have done to us. What their stratagem is. They know that we be hungry, therefore are they gone out of the camp, to hide themselves in the field, saying, WJien they shall come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city.] His long sufferings had made him suspicious and cautious; and this was no improbable conjecture.

2 Kings 7:13

And one of his servants anstvered and said, Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, ivhich are left in the city (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it; behold, I say, they are even as all