2 Kings 9:8
in 2 Kings 9The whole house of Ahab will perish, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, both slave and free, in Israel.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For the whole house of Ahab shall perish; and I will cut off from Ahab every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel.
KJV
For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel:
⋯
This verse in 2 Kings 9
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
strike down the house of your master Ahab
on 2 Kings 9:7-10
The charge is the blood of My servants the prophets, shed by the hand of Jezebel. Ahab's house is the third dynasty condemned in the formula spoken against the houses of Jeroboam and Baasha. At Jezreel the dogs will devour Jezebel.
This site's exposition
The whole house of Ahab
Adam Clarke counted this verse and the next as part of the commission Jehu received against the house of Ahab. He grounded the sentence in the law that the man who sheds human blood forfeits his own life. Every male, slave and free, falls under it.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"Then the prophet Elisha called a member of the company of prophets and said to him, 'Gird up your loins; take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead.' " Here the Scripture reports the just sentence that befalls the house of …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Those whom God sends on his errands shall not go without full instructions. (3.) He also ordered him, [1.] To do it privately, to single out Jehu from the rest of the captains and anoint him in an inner chamber (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
For the whole house of Ahab shall perish,.... Be cut off by death, and that in a violent manner, not one should escape: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel; of these phrases; see Gill on 1Ki 14:10, 1Ki 21:21.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאָבַ֖ד | veavad | and it will perish | H6 → | 184 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | [the] house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| אַחְאָ֑ב | ʾachav | Ahab | H256 → | 92 times |
| וְהִכְרַתִּ֤י | vehikhrati | and I will cut off | H3772 → | 288 times |
| לְאַחְאָב֙ | leachav | to Ahab | H256 → | 92 times |
| מַשְׁתִּ֣ין | mashtin | [one who] urinates | H8366 → | |
| בְּקִ֔יר | bekir | on a wall | H7023 → | 75 times |
| וְעָצ֥וּר | veatzur | and shut up | H6113 → | 47 times |
| וְעָז֖וּב | veazuv | and freed | H5800 → | 215 times |
| בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ | beyisrael | in Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
וְאָבַ֖דand it will perish
veavadH6 →184 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
בֵּ֣ית[the] house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
אַחְאָ֑בAhab
ʾachavH256 →92 times
וְהִכְרַתִּ֤יand I will cut off
vehikhratiH3772 →288 times
לְאַחְאָב֙to Ahab
leachavH256 →92 times
מַשְׁתִּ֣ין[one who] urinates
mashtinH8366 →
בְּקִ֔ירon a wall
bekirH7023 →75 times
וְעָצ֥וּרand shut up
veatzurH6113 →47 times
וְעָז֖וּבand freed
veazuvH5800 →215 times
בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃in Israel
beyisraelH3478 →2507 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 32:36For the LORD will vindicate His people and have compassion on His servants when He sees that their strength is gone and no one remains, slave or free.
it leads to
- Psalms 135:14
For the LORD will vindicate His people and will have compassion on His servants.
- Psalms 106:45
And He remembered His covenant with them, and relented by the abundance of His loving devotion.
- Psalms 135:14
Through
1 Samuel 25:22May God punish David, and ever so severely, if I let one of Nabal’s men survive until morning.”
it leads to
- 1 Kings 14:10
Because of all this, behold, I am bringing disaster on the house of Jeroboam: I will cut off from Jeroboam every male, both slave and free, in Israel; I will burn up the house…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Kings 21:21
This is what the LORD says: ‘I will bring calamity on you and consume your descendants; I will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both slave and free.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 20:13
But if my father intends to bring evil on you, then may the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if I do not tell you and send you on your way in safety.…
- 1 Kings 14:10
Through
2 Kings 14:26For the LORD saw that the affliction of the Israelites, both slave and free, was very bitter. There was no one to help Israel,
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 32:36
For the LORD will vindicate His people and have compassion on His servants when He sees that their strength is gone and no one remains, slave or free.
- 2 Kings 13:4
Then Jehoahaz sought the favor of the LORD, and the LORD listened to him because He saw the oppression that the king of Aram had inflicted on Israel.
- Exodus 3:7
The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.
- Deuteronomy 32:36
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 2 Kings

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 9:1-24; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
