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2 Kings Chapter
Three
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 3
This
chapter gives the character of Jehoram king of Israel, 2 Kings 3:1,
relates the rebellion of the king of Moab against him, 2 Kings 3:4, the
war that he and his allies entered into on that account, 2 Kings 3:6 the
distress the combined army were in for want of water, their application upon
this to Elisha, who promised them water, and they had it in a wonderful manner,
2 Kings 3:10 and
the chapter is concluded with the rout of the Moabites, and the barbarity of
their king to his eldest son, 2 Kings 3:21.
2 Kings 3:1 Now
Jehoram the son of Ahab became king over Israel at Samaria in the eighteenth
year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years.
YLT
1And Jehoram son of Ahab
hath reigned over Israel, in Samaria, in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat
king of Judah, and he reigneth twelve years,
Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria
the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah,.... So that the two
years of the reign of his brother Ahaziah were not complete, only part of the
seventeenth and part of the eighteenth of Jehoshaphat, since he began to reign
in his seventeenth year, at the beginning of that, and died towards the close
of the eighteenth, when Jehoram succeeded him, see 1 Kings 22:51, and
reigned twelve years.
2 Kings 3:2 2 And he did evil in the
sight of the Lord,
but not like his father and mother; for he put away the sacred pillar of
Baal that his father had made.
YLT
2and doth the evil thing in
the eyes of Jehovah, only not like his father, and like his mother, and he
turneth aside the standing-pillar of Baal that his father made;
And he wrought evil in the sight of the Lord,.... Was
guilty of idolatry:
but not like his father, and like his mother; his father
Ahab, and his mother Jezebel:
for he put away the image of Baal that his father had made; he did not
destroy it, only removed it from the temple of Baal where it was set, that it
might not be worshipped, at least publicly, see 1 Kings 16:31 this
he did, either moved to it by his own conscience, observing the sudden deaths
of his father and brother, which he might suppose was for their idolatry; or in
order to obtain success in his war with Moab he was entering into; or being
instigated by Jehoshaphat to do it, or otherwise he might refuse to join him.
2 Kings 3:3 3 Nevertheless he persisted
in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin; he did not
depart from them.
YLT
3only to the sins of
Jeroboam son of Nebat that he caused Israel to sin he hath cleaved, he hath not
turned aside from it.
Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, which made Israel to sin,.... He closely adhered to the worship of
the calves set up by him:
he departed not therefrom: that being a piece of
state policy, to keep up the division of the two kingdoms.
2 Kings 3:4 4 Now Mesha king of Moab was
a sheepbreeder, and he regularly paid the king of Israel one hundred thousand
lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.
YLT
4And Mesha king of Moab was
a sheep-master, and he rendered to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs,
and a hundred thousand rams, [with] wool,
And Mesha king of Moab was a sheep master,.... With
which his country abounded; he kept great numbers of them, and shepherds to
take care of them; he traded in them, and got great riches by them; his
substance chiefly consisted in them:
and rendered unto the king of Israel: either as a
present, or as an annual tribute:
an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the
wool; that is, upon them, unshorn, and so the more valuable; and it
was usual for tributary nations to pay their tribute to those to whom they were
subject in such commodities which they most abounded with; so the Cappadocians,
as StraboF3Geograph. l. 11. p. 362. relates, used to pay, as a
tribute to the Persians, every year, 1500 horses and 2000 mules, and five
myriads of sheep, or 50,000; and formerly, PlinyF4Nat. Hist. l. 18.
c. 3. says, the only tribute was from the pastures.
2 Kings 3:5 5 But it happened, when Ahab
died, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
YLT
5and it cometh to pass at
the death of Ahab, that the king of Moab transgresseth against the king of
Israel.
But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab
rebelled against the king of Israel. Who then was Ahaziah; but
either through the pusillanimity of his temper, or the sickness that attended
him, or the shortness of his reign, he took no steps to the reduction of him,
or to oblige him to pay his tribute, which he neglected to do, and is meant by
his rebellion.
2 Kings 3:6 6 So King Jehoram went out
of Samaria at that time and mustered all Israel.
YLT
6And king Jehoram goeth out
in that day from Samaria, and inspecteth all Israel,
And King Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time, As soon as he
came to the throne:
and numbered all Israel; who were fit to bear
arms, got them together at some certain place, and mustered them, and prepared
for a war with Moab, to reduce them.
2 Kings 3:7 7 Then he went and sent to
Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me.
Will you go with me to fight against Moab?” And he said, “I will go up; I am
as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
YLT
7and goeth and sendeth unto
Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying, `The king of Moab hath transgressed against
me; dost thou go with me unto Moab for battle?' and he saith, `I go up, as I,
so thou; as my people, so thy people; as my horses, so thy horses.
And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, the
king of Moab hath rebelled against me,.... By refusing to pay
him tribute:
wilt thou go up with me against Moab to battle? and he said, I
will go up; which he agreed to, partly to encourage in the reformation of
religion which he had begun, and partly to chastise the Moabites for their
invasion of his country, 2 Chronicles 20:1.
I am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy
horses; the same answer he returned to Ahab; see Gill on 1 Kings 22:4.
2 Kings 3:8 8 Then he said, “Which way
shall we go up?” And he answered, “By way of the Wilderness of Edom.”
YLT
8And he saith, `Where [is]
this -- the way we go up?' and he saith, `The way of the wilderness of Edom.'
And he said, which way shall we go up.... That is,
Jehoram said so to Jehoshaphat, consulting with him which was the best way to
take to the land of Moab, whether the shortest way, over Jordan; or some other:
and he answered, the way through the wilderness of Edom; which
bordered upon it, and the same through which the Israelites passed; for Kadesh
was on the extreme border of Edom, whither they came, Numbers 20:1 and
this Jehoshaphat proposed, partly that they might come upon Moab unawares, and
attack them where they were weakest, and not on their guard; and partly, to
take the king of Edom with them, who was no other than Jehoshaphat's deputy,
and so be assisting to them, and prevent him from revolting, which otherwise he
might take this opportunity of doing.
2 Kings 3:9 9 So the king of Israel went
with the king of Judah and the king of Edom, and they marched on that
roundabout route seven days; and there was no water for the army, nor for the
animals that followed them.
YLT
9And the king of Israel
goeth, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom, and they turn round the way
seven days, and there hath been no water for the camp, and for the cattle that
[are] at their feet,
So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah,.... The way
of the wilderness of Edom, proposed by the latter:
and the king of Edom; whom they took with them
in their way, who was not properly a king, but a viceroy or deputy, see 1 Kings 22:47.
and they fetched a compass of seven days journey; they went
round the Dead Sea, and through the wilderness of Edom, and so to the borders
of Moab:
and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that
followed them; neither for the soldiers in the army, nor the cattle that drew
the carriages, being in a wilderness.
2 Kings 3:10 10 And the king of Israel
said, “Alas! For the Lord
has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.”
YLT
10and the king of Israel
saith, `Alas, for Jehovah hath called for these three kings, to give them into
the hand of Moab.'
And the king of Israel said, alas!.... Lamenting their sad
case, as being desperate; and the rather he was the more concerned, as he was
the principal who had drawn the other kings into this affair, though he throws
it upon the Lord and his providence:
that the Lord hath called these three kings together, to deliver
them into the hands of Moab; into whose hands they must inevitably fall,
if they could have no water to refresh them; since they would be so weak as not
to be able to stand a battle with them, and be dispersed here and there in
search of water, and so fall into their hands. Extreme thirst is intolerable.
It is reportedF5Plutarch. in Apothegm. of Lysimachus, that he
delivered himself and his army into the hands of the enemy for a draught of
water. Leo AfricanusF6Descriptio Africae, l. 1. p. 75. relates, that
in the desert of Azaoad stand two marble pillars, testifying that a rich
merchant bought of a carrier of wares a cup of water at the price of 10,000
ducats; but there not being water sufficient neither for the one nor the other,
they were both died with thirst.
2 Kings 3:11 11 But Jehoshaphat said, “Is
there no prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire
of the Lord
by him?” So one of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said,
“Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of
Elijah.”
YLT
11And Jehoshaphat saith, `Is
there not here a prophet of Jehovah, and we seek Jehovah by him?' And one of
the servants of the king of Israel answereth and saith, `Here [is] Elisha son
of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.'
But Jehoshaphat said, is there not here a prophet of the Lord,
that we may inquire of the Lord by him?.... This the good king
should have done before be set out, but had neglected it; however, it was not
too late:
and one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said; who might be
one that feared the Lord, and was intimate with Elisha, or however had
knowledge of him, as appears by what follows:
here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands
of Elijah; or ministered to him, as the Targum; was his menial servant,
waited on him, and assisted him when he washed his handsF7See the
like phrase of the business of a servant in Homer, Iliad. 3. ver. 270, &
Iliad. 9. ver. 174. Odyss. 1. ver. 147. & Odyss. 3. ver. 388. & Odyss.
4. ver. 258,261. & passim. ; some Jewish writers understand it of his
pouring water on the hand of Elijah at Carmel, when the altar and trench were
filled with it, and when a miracle was wrought, as they fancy, and the fingers
of Elijah became as fountains of water.
2 Kings 3:12 12 And Jehoshaphat said, “The
word of the Lord
is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went
down to him.
YLT
12And Jehoshaphat saith, `The
word of Jehovah is with him;' and go down unto him do the king of Israel, and
Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom.
And Jehoshaphat said, the word of the Lord is with him,.... To give
them an answer, which he concluded from his being a servant and disciple of
Elijah, whom he succeeded in his office, and of whom he had, doubtless, heard;
and from his following the camp, and being in it, which he easily imagined was
not to fight, but to assist by his advice and counsel, and by his prophecies,
as there might be occasion for them:
so the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went
down to him; descended from their chariots, and went to the tent in the camp
where he was; they did not send for him to come to them, but, in honour of him,
went to him themselves.
2 Kings 3:13 13 Then Elisha said to the
king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father
and the prophets of your mother.” But the king of Israel said to him, “No, for
the Lord
has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of
Moab.”
YLT
13And Elisha saith unto the
king of Israel, `What -- to me and to thee? go unto the prophets of thy father,
and unto the prophets of thy mother;' and the king of Israel saith to him,
`Nay, for Jehovah hath called for these three kings to give them into the hand
of Moab.'
And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, what have I to do with
thee?.... An idolater; I can hold no discourse nor have any
conversation with thee, nor give thee any advice or assistance:
get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy
mother; the prophets of Baal, and of the groves:
and the king of Israel said unto him, nay; meaning, he
would not apply to them, who he was sensible could give him no relief, only to
the Lord God, from whom this affliction was, and therefore begs he would pray
to him to have mercy on them; so the Targum,"I beseech thee remember not
the sins of that wickedness, pray for mercy for us:"
for the Lord hath called these three kings together, to deliver
them into the hand of Moab; signifying, that he should not perish
alone, but the other two kings with him, who had no connection with the
prophets of his father and mother in their idolatry, and therefore hoped for
their sakes mercy would be shown.
2 Kings 3:14 14 And Elisha said, “As
the Lord
of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely were it not that I regard the
presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you, nor see you.
YLT
14And Elisha saith, `Jehovah
of Hosts liveth, before whom I have stood; for unless the face of Jehoshaphat
king of Judah I am lifting up, I do not look unto thee, nor see thee;
Elisha said, as the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand,.... Whose
minster and prophet he was, to whom he prayed, and whose service he was ready
to perform:
surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the
king of Judah; revere him not only as a king, but as a pious prince, and a
worshipper of the true God:
I would not look toward thee, nor see thee; give him no
countenance at all, pay no regard to his request, not so much as to look at him
in a civil way; but turn away his face from him with contempt and disdain, as
unworthy to be conversed with by a prophet of the Lord.
2 Kings 3:15 15 But now bring me a
musician.” Then it happened, when the musician played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him.
YLT
15and now, bring to me a
minstrel; and it hath been, at the playing of the minstrel, that the hand of
Jehovah is on him,
But now bring me a minstrel,.... A piper, a man that
knows how to play upon the harp, as the Targum; according to Procopius Gazaeus,
this was one of the Levites he ordered to be fetched, who was used to the
spiritual melody of David, and could play on musical instruments as he directed.
This he did to allay his passion, and compose his spirits, ruffled at the sight
of Jehoram, and to fit him to receive prophetic inspiration, which sometimes
came upon the Lord's prophets when thus employed, see 1 Samuel 10:5. Some
thinkF8Weemse's Christ. Synagog. l. 1. c. 6. sect. 4. p. 143. the
music the prophet called for is that sort the Greeks call "harmony",
which is the gravest and saddest, and settles the affections:
and it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of
the Lord came upon him; the spirit of prophecy, as the Targum, which came by the power
of God, and as a gift from his hand.
2 Kings 3:16 16 And he said, “Thus says
the Lord:
‘Make this valley full of ditches.’
YLT
16and he saith, `Thus said
Jehovah, Make this valley ditches -- ditches;
And he said, thus saith the Lord, make this valley full of
ditches. In which the allied army lay encamped, that they might be ready
to receive large quantities of water, sufficient for the whole army and cattle,
when it came.
2 Kings 3:17 17 For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall
not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with
water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’
YLT
17for thus said Jehovah, Ye
do not see wind, nor do ye see rain, and that valley is full of water, and ye
have drunk -- ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
For thus saith the Lord, ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye
see the rain,.... Neither perceive the south wind blow, which usually brings
rain, nor clouds gathering in the heavens, as portending it, nor any filling
from thence:
yet that valley shall be filled with water; and all the
ditches dug in it:
that ye may drink, both ye and your cattle, and all your beasts; there would
be such a quantity as would be enough for them all, the soldiers, the horses
they rode on, and the beasts that drew their wagons.
2 Kings 3:18 18 And this is a simple
matter in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the
Moabites into your hand.
YLT
18`And this hath been light
in the eyes of Jehovah, and he hath given Moab into your hand,
And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord,.... To give
them such a plenty of water in such an extraordinary manner: he would do for
them what was greater, not only save them from falling into the hand of Moab,
which they feared,
but he wilt deliver the Moabites into your hands; which was
more than was asked for, or expected.
2 Kings 3:19 19 Also you shall attack
every fortified city and every choice city, and shall cut down every good tree,
and stop up every spring of water, and ruin every good piece of land with
stones.”
YLT
19and ye have smitten every
fenced city, and every choice city, and every good tree ye cause to fall, and
all fountains of waters ye stop, and every good portion ye mar with stones.'
And ye shall smite every fenced city and every choice city,.... That is,
the inhabitants of them with the sword, and demolish them also, 2 Kings 3:25, and
shall fell every good tree; which seems contrary to the law in Deuteronomy 20:19,
but that may respect trees belonging to a city when besieged only, or only to
Canaanitish cities; or the law was now dispensed with, and that for this time
only, to make the punishment of Moab the greater, for their rebellion and other
sins:
and stop all wells of water; which must be very
distressing to those that survived the calamity of the sword:
and mar every good piece of land with stones; as that it
could not be ploughed and sowed, nor anything spring up and grow upon it.
2 Kings 3:20 20 Now it happened in the
morning, when the grain offering was offered, that suddenly water came by way
of Edom, and the land was filled with water.
YLT
20And it cometh to pass in
the morning, at the ascending of the [morning]-present, that lo, waters are
coming in from the way of Edom, and the land is filled with the waters,
And it came to pass in the morning, when the meat offering was
offered,.... At Jerusalem; which always went along with the daily burnt
offering of the lamb, which might not indeed be offered before break of day,
yet quickly after; for no sacrifice could be offered before that; see Gill on Exodus 29:39,
that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom; not from the
heavens, but it may be out of some rock, rolling along on the earth from the
hills and mountains, down into the valleys, where the armies were:
and the country was filled with water; all round
about them. Who has not heard of the "thundering" legion, as it was
called by the Emperor M. Aurelius, who, when the army under him was about to
engage with the Germans and Sarmatians, and sadly distressed with thirst, fell
down on their knees and prayed, upon which a large shower of rain came down to
the refreshment of the army, and thunder bolts, which annoyed and put the enemy
to flightF9Euseb. Hist. Eccl. l. 5. c. 5. Orosii Hist. l. 7. c. 15.
p. 120. ? at the battle of the Romans with Jugurtha, a sudden and unexpected
shower of rain fell, to the refreshment of the Romans, in intolerable thirstF11Orosii
Hist. l. 5. c. 15. p. 77. .
2 Kings 3:21 21 And when all the Moabites
heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, all who were able to bear
arms and older were gathered; and they stood at the border.
YLT
21and all Moab have heard
that the kings have come up to fight against them, and they are called
together, from every one girding on a girdle and upward, and they stand by the
border.
And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to
fight against them,.... The kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom:
they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward; that were of
an age capable of that, and all who were more grown; or "girt on a
girdle"F12חגר חגרה
"eingente cingulo", Montanus. , a military one, with which the sword
was girt, who were at age to wear and knew how to wield a sword: and stood in
the border; of their land, between Edom and them, to defend themselves and their
country against these invaders.
2 Kings 3:22 22 Then they rose up early in
the morning, and the sun was shining on the water; and the Moabites saw the
water on the other side as red as blood.
YLT
22And they rise early in the
morning, and the sun hath shone on the waters, and the Moabites see, from
over-against, the waters red as blood,
And they rose up early in the morning,.... To watch
the motions of their enemies, and be upon their guard against them:
and the sun shone upon the water; with which the valley
was filled:
and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood; so it
appeared through the rays of the sun reflected on it.
2 Kings 3:23 23 And they said, “This is
blood; the kings have surely struck swords and have killed one another; now
therefore, Moab, to the spoil!”
YLT
23and say, `Blood this [is];
the kings have been surely destroyed, and they smite each his neighbour; and
now for spoil, Moab!'
And they said, this is blood,.... They were very
confident of it, having no notion of water, there having been no rain for some
time; and perhaps it was not usual to see water at any time in this place:
the kings are surely slain; they and their forces:
and they have smitten one another; having quarrelled either
about their religion, or about want of water, and the distress they were come
into through it, laying the blame of their coming out to war, or of their
coming that way, on one another; and the Moabites might rather think something
of this kind had happened, from what had lately been done among themselves, and
their allies, 2 Chronicles 20:23.
now therefore, Moab, to the spoil; having no occasion to
fight, or prepare for it; all they had to do was to march directly to the
enemy's camp, and plunder it.
2 Kings 3:24 24 So when they came to the
camp of Israel, Israel rose up and attacked the Moabites, so that they fled
before them; and they entered their land, killing the Moabites.
YLT
24And they come in unto the
camp of Israel, and the Israelites rise, and smite the Moabites, and they flee
from their face; and they enter into Moab, so as to smite Moab,
And when they came to the camp of Israel,.... Not in an
orderly regular manner, in rank and file, as an army should march, but in a
confused manner, everyone striving who should get thither first, and have the
largest share of the booty:
the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled
before them; being prepared for them, they fell upon them sword in hand, and
soon obliged them to flee:
but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country; they pursued
them closely, and slew them as they fled, and followed them not only to their
borders, but into their own country: though SchultensF13De Defect.
Hod. Ling. Heb. sect. 26. , from the use of the word נבה
in the Arabic language, renders the passage, "and they blunted their
swords in it (in that slaughter), even by smiting the Moabites".
2 Kings 3:25 25 Then they destroyed the
cities, and each man threw a stone on every good piece of land and filled it;
and they stopped up all the springs of water and cut down all the good trees.
But they left the stones of Kir Haraseth intact. However the slingers
surrounded and attacked it.
YLT
25and the cities they break
down, and [on] every good portion they cast each his stone, and have filled it,
and every fountain of water they stop, and every good tree they cause to fall
-- till one had left its stones in Kir-Haraseth, and the slingers go round and
smite it.
And they beat down the cities,.... Demolished the walls
of them, and houses in them, wherever they came:
and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and
filled it; which they had taken out of the walls and houses they pulled
down; or which they picked up in the highway, as they passed along, being a
stony country; or which being laid in heaps, gathered out of the fields, they
took and scattered them all over them:
and they stopped all the wells of water; with stones
and dirt:
and felled all the good trees; fruit bearing ones; See
Gill on 2 Kings 3:19,
only in Kirharaseth left they the stones thereof; not able to
demolish it, it being a strong fortified city, the principal of the kingdom,
and into which the king of Moab had thrown himself, and the remains of his
forces; of which see Isaiah 16:7,
howbeit, the slingers went about it, and smote it; smote the
soldiers that appeared upon the walls of it; though Kimchi, and other Jewish
writers, understand it of engineers, who cast out large stones from a sort of
machines then in use, to batter down and break through the walls of cities.
2 Kings 3:26 26 And when the king of Moab
saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took with him seven hundred men
who drew swords, to break through to the king of Edom, but they could not.
YLT
26And the king of Moab seeth
that the battle has been too strong for him, and he taketh with him seven
hundred men, drawing sword, to cleave through unto the king of Edom, and they
have not been able,
And when the king of Moab
saw that the battle was too sore for him,.... The siege was so
close, the slingers or engineers did so much execution, that he saw the city
would soon be taken, and he be obliged to deliver it up:
he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords; men expert in
war, bold and daring:
to break through even unto the king of Edom; through his
quarters, and so escape, he lying nearest to the city, and perhaps the weakest
body of men with him; or he might think he was not so hearty in the cause of
the kings, and would make but a feeble resistance, and let him pass:
but they could not; break through they met with a greater
opposition than was expected perhaps the Edomites remembered how they had
lately used them, which made them fight more desperately against them, see 2 Chronicles 20:23.
2 Kings 3:27 27 Then he took his eldest
son who would have reigned in his place, and offered him as a burnt
offering upon the wall; and there was great indignation against Israel. So they
departed from him and returned to their own land.
YLT
27and he taketh his son, the
first-born who reigneth in his stead, and causeth him to ascend -- a
burnt-offering on the wall, and there is great wrath against Israel, and they
journey from off him, and turn back to the land.
Then he took his eldest
son, that should have reigned in his stead,.... Not the eldest son
of the king of Edom, whom the king of Moab had in his hands before, which made
the king of Edom the more willing to join in this expedition for the recovery
of his son, as Joseph Kimchi thinks; or whom he took now in his sally out upon
him, as Moses Kimchi and Ben Gersom, proceeding upon a mistaken sense of Amos 2:1 for the
king of Edom could have no son that had a right, or was designed to succeed
him, since he was but a deputy king himself; and besides, the sacrificing of
him was not the way to cause the kings to raise the siege, but rather to
provoke them to press it the more closely: it was the king of Moab that took
his son and heir to the crown,
and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall; that it might
be seen by the camp of Israel, and move their compassion; or rather this was
done as a religious action, to appease the deity by an human sacrifice so dear
and precious, to give success, and cause the enemy to break up the siege; and
was either offered to the true God, the God of Israel, in imitation of Abraham,
as some Jewish writers fancyF14T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 39. 2. Pesikta
in Abarbinel in loc. , or to his idol Chemosh, the sun; and Jarchi observes,
out of an exposition of theirs, that "vau" is wanting in the word for
wall, and so may be interpreted of the sun, towards which this burnt offering
was offered; and it is observed, from various Heathen authors, that it was
usual with the Heathens, when in calamity and distress, to offer up to their
gods what was most dear and valuable to them; and particularly the PhoeniciansF15Vid.
Euseb. Evangel. Praepar. l. 1. c. 10. p. 40. l. 4. c. 16. p. 156. Porphyr. de
Abstinentia, l. 2. sect. 56. Vid. Aelian. Var. Hist. l. 12. c. 28. , and from
them the Carthaginians had this custom, who at one time offered up two hundred
sons of their nobility, to appease their godsF16Diodor. Sicul. Bibliothec.
l. 20. p. 756. :
and there was great indignation against Israel; not of the
king of Edom against them, for not rescuing his son, or because they were the
means of this disaster which befell him; but of the king of Moab, who was quite
desperate, and determined to hold out the siege to the utmost extremity: and
they departed, and returned to their own land; the three kings, the one to
Edom, the other to Israel, and the third to Judah; when they saw the Moabites
would sell their lives so dear, and hold out to the last man, they thought fit
to break up the siege; and perhaps were greatly affected with the barbarous
shocking sight they had seen, and might fear, should they stay, something else
of the like kind would be done.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》