2 Kings 18:23 BSB — MannaFest

2 Kings 18:23

Now, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

KJV

Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

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Commentary

3 voices

Albert Barnes

1798–1870

Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)

The phrase translated “give pledges,” or “hostages” (margin) may perhaps be best understood as meaning “make an agreement.” If you will “bind yourself to find the riders” (i. e., trained horsemen), we will “bind ourselves to furnish the horses.” The suggestion implied that in all Judaea there were not 2000 men accustomed to serve as cavalry.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

Ephrem the Syrian

ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 18:19 (373)

As I have already said, Sennacherib is a type of the devil, and this hypothesis is perfectly confirmed by the words that in this passage the Rabshakeh boastfully speaks against God when he makes false promises to the people, trying to take away from [God] …

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

What an idol did he make of that prince whose creature he was! God is the great King, but Sennacherib was in his eye a little god, and he would possess them with the same veneration for him that he had, and thereby frighten them into a submission to him. But to those who by faith see the King of kings in his power and glory even the king of Assyria looks mean and little.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

18 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וְעַתָּה֙	ve.'a.Tah	and therefore	H6258 →
הִתְעָ֣רֶב	hit.'A.rev	make a wager	H6148 →
נָ֔א	Na'	please	H4994 →
אֶת־	'et-	with	H854 →
אֲדֹנִ֖י	'a.do.Ni	master my	H113 →
אֶת־	'et-	with	H854 →
מֶ֣לֶךְ	Me.lekh	[the] king of	H4428 →
אַשּׁ֑וּר	'a.Shur	Assyria	H804 →
וְאֶתְּנָ֤ה	ve.'e.te.Nah	and let me give	H5414 →
לְךָ֙	le.Kha	to you
אַלְפַּ֣יִם	'al.Pa.yim	two thousand	H505 →
סוּסִ֔ים	su.Sim	horses	H5483 →
אִם־	'im-	if	H518 →
תּוּכַ֕ל	tu.Khal	you will be able	H3201 →
לָ֥תֶת	La.tet	to put	H5414 →
לְךָ֖	le.Kha	<for> yourself
רֹכְבִ֥ים	ro.khe.Vim	riders	H7392 →
עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃	'a.lei.Hem	on them	H5921 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
1 Samuel 17:42
When the Philistine looked and saw David, he despised him because he was just a boy, ruddy and handsome.
leads to
- 1 Samuel 16:12
  So Jesse sent for his youngest son and brought him in. He was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him, for he is the one.”
- Psalms 123:3–4
  Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy, for we have endured much contempt.
- 1 Samuel 17:33
  But Saul replied, “You cannot go out against this Philistine to fight him. You are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”
Through
1 Kings 20:10
Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”
leads to
- 1 Kings 19:2
  So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like the lives of those…
- Exodus 11:8
  And all these officials of yours will come and bow before me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that, I will depart.” And hot with anger, Moses left Pharaoh’s…
- Acts 23:12
  When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
Through
1 Kings 20:18
“If they have marched out in peace,” he said, “take them alive. Even if they have marched out for war, take them alive.”
leads to
- 2 Kings 14:8–12
  Then Amaziah sent messengers to the king of Israel Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu. “Come, let us meet face to face,” he said.
- 1 Samuel 17:44
  “Come here,” he called to David, “and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”

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About 2 Kings

Elijah Ascends to Heaven in a Chariot of Fire — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

2 Kings: the study guide →Read chapter 18 →The featured study →

PlaceUpper MesopotamiaAssyriaMesopotamian empire whose capital Nineveh repented at Jonah's preaching and fell to Nahum's burden in 612 BC; the rod of God's ang…

Continue: 2 Kings 18 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About 2 Kings

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About 2 Kings