25 And there was a great famine in Samaria; and behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was worth eighty silver-pieces, and the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung five silver-pieces.
When I break the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and shall deliver you the bread again by weight; and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.
And Elijah went to shew himself to Ahab. And the famine was severe in Samaria.
And the king said to her, What aileth thee? And she said, This woman said to me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. And we boiled my son, and ate him: and I said to her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him; and she has hidden her son.
If we say, Let us enter into the city, the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if we abide here, we shall die. And now come, let us fall away to the camp of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they put us to death, we shall but die.
On the ninth of the [fourth] month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.
And I said, Alas, Lord Jehovah! Behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; for I will give you assured peace in this place. And Jehovah said unto me, The prophets prophesy falsehood in my name; I have not sent them, neither have I commanded them, nor spoken unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision, and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, and who say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land: By sword and by famine shall those prophets be consumed;
If I go forth into the field, behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, behold them that pine away with famine! For both prophet and priest shall go about into a land that they know not.
Behold the mounds, they are come unto the city for taking it; and the city is given over into the hand of the Chaldeans, that fight against it, by the sword, and the famine, and the pestilence: and what thou hast spoken is come to pass; and behold, thou seest [it].
And Jehovah said, So shall the children of Israel eat their bread unclean among the nations whither I will drive them. Then said I, Ah, Lord Jehovah! behold, my soul hath not been defiled, and from my youth up even until now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or of that which is torn; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth. And he said unto me, See, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith. And he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I break the staff of bread in Jerusalem; and they shall eat bread by weight, and with anxiety; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment:
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 2 Kings 6
Commentary on 2 Kings 6 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 6
In this chapter we have,
The relief of it is another of the wonders wrought by Elisha's word, which we shall have the story of in the next chapter. Elisha is still a great blessing both to church and state, both to the sons of the prophets and to his prince.
2Ki 6:1-7
Several things may be observed here,
2Ki 6:8-12
Here we have Elisha, with his spirit of prophecy, serving the king, as before helping the sons of the prophets; for that, as other gifts, is given to every man to profit withal; and, whatever abilities any man has of doing good, he is by them made a debtor both to the wise and unwise. Observe here,
2Ki 6:13-23
Here is,
2Ki 6:24-33
This last paragraph of this chapter should, of right, have been the first of the next chapter, for it begins a new story, which is there continued and concluded. Here is,