1 And Ahab hath seventy sons in Samaria, and Jehu writeth letters, and sendeth to Samaria, unto the heads of Jezreel, the elders, and unto the supporters of Ahab, saying,
2 `And now, at the coming in of this letter unto you, and with you `are' sons of your lord, and with you `are' the chariots and the horses, and a fenced city, and the armour,
3 and ye have seen the best and the uprightest of the sons of your lord, and have set `him' on the throne of his father, and fight ye for the house of your lord.'
4 And they fear very greatly, and say, `Lo, the two kings have not stood before him, and how do we stand -- we?'
5 And he who `is' over the house, and he who `is' over the city, and the elders, and the supporters, send unto Jehu, saying, `Thy servants we `are', and all that thou sayest unto us we do; we do not make any one king -- that which `is' good in thine eyes do.'
6 And he writeth unto them a letter a second time, saying, `If ye `are' for me, and to my voice are hearkening, take the heads of the men -- the sons of your lord, and come unto me about this time to-morrow, to Jezreel;' and the sons of the king `are' seventy men, with the great ones of the city those bringing them up.
7 And it cometh to pass, at the coming in of the letter unto them, that they take the sons of the king, and slaughter seventy men, and put their heads in baskets, and send unto him to Jezreel,
8 and the messenger cometh in, and declareth to him, saying, `They have brought in the heads of the sons of the king,' and he saith, `Make them two heaps at the opening of the gate till the morning.'
9 And it cometh to pass in the morning, that he goeth out, and standeth, and saith unto all the people, `Righteous are ye; lo, I have conspired against my lord, and slay him -- and who smote all these?
10 Know ye now, that nothing doth fall of the word of Jehovah to the earth that Jehovah spake against the house of Ahab, and Jehovah hath done that which He spake by the hand of His servant Elijah.'
11 And Jehu smiteth all those left to the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his acquaintances, and his priests, till he hath not left to him a remnant.
12 And he riseth, and cometh in and goeth to Samaria; he `is' at the shepherds' shearing-house in the way,
13 and Jehu hath found the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and saith, `Who `are' ye?' and they say, `Brethren of Ahaziah we `are', and we go down to salute the sons of the king, and the sons of the mistress.'
14 And he saith, `Catch them alive;' and they catch them alive, and slaughter them at the pit of the shearing-house, forty and two men, and he hath not left a man of them.
15 And he goeth thence, and findeth Jehonadab son of Rechab -- to meet him, and blesseth him, and saith unto him, `Is thy heart right, as my heart `is' with thy heart?' and Jehonadab saith, `It is;' -- `Then it is; give thy hand;' and he giveth his hand, and he causeth him to come up into him into the chariot,
16 and saith, `Come with me, and look on my zeal for Jehovah;' and they cause him to ride in his chariot.
17 And he cometh in to Samaria, and smiteth all those left to Ahab in Samaria, till his destroying him, according to the word of Jehovah that He spake unto Elisha.
18 And Jehu gathereth the whole of the people, and saith unto them, `Ahab served Baal a little -- Jehu doth serve him much:
19 and now, all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests, call ye unto me; let not a man be lacking, for a great sacrifice I have for Baal; every one who is lacking -- he doth not live;' and Jehu hath done `it' in subtilty, in order to destroy the servants of Baal.
20 And Jehu saith, `Sanctify a restraint for Baal;' and they proclaim `it'.
21 And Jehu sendeth into all Israel, and all the servants of Baal come in, and there hath not been left a man who hath not come in; and they come in to the house of Baal, and the house of Baal is full -- mouth to mouth.
22 And he saith to him who `is' over the wardrobe, `Bring out clothing to all servants of Baal;' and he bringeth out to them the clothing.
23 And Jehu goeth in, and Jehonadab son of Rechab, to the house of Baal, and saith to the servants of Baal, `Search and see, lest there be here with you of the servants of Jehovah -- but, the servants of Baal by themselves.'
24 And they come in to make sacrifices and burnt-offerings, and Jehu hath set for himself in an out-place eighty men, and saith, `The man who letteth escape `any' of the men whom I am bringing in unto your hand -- his soul for his soul.'
25 And it cometh to pass at his finishing to make the burnt-offering, that Jehu saith to the runners, and to the captains, `Go in, smite them, let none come out;' and they smite them by the mouth of the sword, and the runners and the captains cast `them' out; and they go unto the city, to the house of Baal,
26 and bring out the standing-pillars of the house of Baal, and burn them,
27 and break down the standing-pillar of Baal, and break down the house of Baal, and appoint it for a draught-house unto this day.
28 And Jehu destroyeth Baal out of Israel,
29 only -- the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, that he caused Israel to sin, Jehu hath not turned aside from after them -- the calves of gold that `are' at Beth-El, and in Dan.
30 And Jehovah saith unto Jehu, `Because that thou hast done well, to do that which `is' right in Mine eyes -- according to all that `is' in My heart thou hast done to the house of Ahab -- the sons of the fourth `generation' do sit for thee on the throne of Israel.'
31 And Jehu hath not taken heed to walk in the law of Jehovah, God of Israel, with all his heart, he hath not turned aside from the sins of Jeroboam, that he caused Israel to sin.
32 In those days hath Jehovah begun to cut off `some' in Israel, and Hazael smiteth them in all the border of Israel,
33 from the Jordan, at the sun-rising, the whole land of Gilead, of the Gadite, and the Reubenite, and the Manassahite (from Aroer, that `is' by the brook Arnon), even Gilead and Bashan.
34 And the rest of the matters of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his might, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
35 And Jehu lieth with his fathers, and they bury him in Samaria, and reign doth Jehoahaz his son in his stead.
36 And the days that Jehu hath reigned over Israel `are' twenty and eight years, in Samaria.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on 2 Kings 10
Commentary on 2 Kings 10 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 10
2Ki 10:1-17. Jehu Causes Seventy of Ahab's Children to Be Beheaded.
1-4. Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria—As it appears (2Ki 10:13), that grandsons are included it is probable that this number comprehended the whole posterity of Ahab. Their being all assembled in that capital might arise from their being left there on the king's departure for Ramoth-gilead, or from their taking refuge in some of the strongholds of that city on the news of Jehu's conspiracy. It may be inferred from the tenor of Jehu's letters that their first intention was to select the fittest of the royal family and set him up as king. Perhaps this challenge of Jehu was designed as a stroke of policy on his part to elicit their views, and to find out whether they were inclined to be pacific or hostile. The bold character of the man, and the rapid success of his conspiracy, terrified the civic authorities of Samaria and Jezreel into submission.
5. he that was over the house—the governor or chamberlain of the palace.
the bringers-up of the children—Anciently, and still also in many Eastern countries, the principal grandees were charged with the support and education of the royal princes. This involved a heavy expense which they were forced to bear, but for which they endeavored to find some compensation in the advantages of their connection with the court.
6. take ye the heads of the men, your master's sons—The barbarous practice of a successful usurper slaughtering all who may have claims to the throne, has been frequently exemplified in the ancient and modern histories of the East.
8. Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering in of the gate, &c.—The exhibition of the heads of enemies is always considered a glorious trophy. Sometimes a pile of heads is erected at the gate of the palace; and a head of peculiarly striking appearance selected to grace the summit of the pyramid.
9-11. said to all the people, Ye be righteous, &c.—A great concourse was assembled to gaze on this novel and ghastly spectacle. The speech which Jehu addressed to the spectators was artfully framed to impress their minds with the idea that so wholesale a massacre was the result of the divine judgments denounced on the house of Ahab; and the effect of it was to prepare the public mind for hearing, without horror, of a similar revolting tragedy which was soon after perpetrated, namely, the extinction of all the influential friends and supporters of the dynasty of Ahab, including those of the royal house of Judah.
13, 14. We are the brethren of Ahaziah—that is, not full, but step-brothers, sons of Jehoram by various concubines. Ignorant of the revolution that had taken place, they were travelling to Samaria on a visit to their royal relatives of Israel, when they were seized and put to death, because of the apprehension that they might probably stimulate and strengthen the party that still remained faithful in their allegiance to Ahab's dynasty.
children of the queen—that is, of the queen mother, or regent, Jezebel.
15-18. Jehonadab the son of Rechab—(See 1Ch 2:55). A person who, from his piety and simple primitive manner of life (Jer 35:1-19), was highly esteemed, and possessed great influence in the country. Jehu saw in a moment the advantage that his cause would gain from the friendship and countenance of this venerable man in the eyes of the people, and accordingly paid him the distinguished attention of inviting him to a seat in his chariot.
give me thine hand—not simply to aid him in getting up, but for a far more significant and important purpose—the giving, or rather joining hands, being the recognized mode of striking a league or covenant, as well as of testifying fealty to a new sovereign; accordingly, it is said, "he [Jehonadab] gave him [Jehu] his hand."
2Ki 10:18-29. He Destroys the Worshippers of Baal.
19. call unto me all the prophets of Baal—The votaries of Baal are here classified under the several titles of prophets, priests, and servants, or worshippers generally. They might be easily convened into one spacious temple, as their number had been greatly diminished both by the influential ministrations of Elijah and Elisha, and also from the late King Joram's neglect and discontinuance of the worship. Jehu's appointment of a solemn sacrifice in honor of Baal, and a summons to all his worshippers to join in its celebration, was a deep-laid plot, which he had resolved upon for their extinction, a measure in perfect harmony with the Mosaic law, and worthy of a constitutional king of Israel. It was done, however, not from religious, but purely political motives, because he believed that the existence and interests of the Baalites were inseparably bound up with the dynasty of Ahab and because he hoped that by their extermination he would secure the attachment of the far larger and more influential party who worshipped God in Israel. Jehonadab's concurrence must have been given in the belief of his being actuated solely by the highest principles of piety and zeal.
22. Bring forth vestments for all the worshippers of Baal—The priests of Baal were clad, probably, in robes of white byssus while they were engaged in the functions of their office, and these were kept under the care of an officer in a particular wardrobe of Baal's temple. This treacherous massacre, and the means taken to accomplish it, are paralleled by the slaughter of the Janissaries and other terrible tragedies in the modern history of the East.
29. Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam … Jehu departed not from after them—Jehu had no intention of carrying his zeal for the Lord beyond a certain point, and as he considered it impolitic to encourage his subjects to travel to Jerusalem, he re-established the symbolic worship of the calves.