2 Kings 10:7
in 2 Kings 10And when the letter arrived, they took the sons of the king and slaughtered all seventy of them. They put their heads in baskets and sent them to Jehu at Jezreel.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons, and slew them, even seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent them unto him to Jezreel.
KJV
And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel.
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This verse in 2 Kings 10
Commentary
4 notes on this verseAnd it came to pass, when the letter came to them,.... They did not in the least hesitate, but immediately complied with the contents of it: that they took the king's sons, and slew seventy persons; which was the whole number of them: and put their heads in baskets, and sent them to Jezreel; as a present to Jehu, just as they carried the firstfruits, as Abarbinel observes.
This site's exposition
take ye the heads of the men
on 2 Kings 10:6-7
Jehu's second letter turns loyalty into an order, bring the heads of your master's sons by tomorrow. The men who raised these seventy princes obey without hesitation, and their obedience becomes the very act that empties Ahab's house of heirs. Their swift compliance answers Elijah's old sentence on Ahab's line with human hands willing to carry it out.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Learn hence not to trust in a friend nor to put confidence in a guide not governed by conscience. One can scarcely expect that he who has been false to his God should ever be faithful to his prince. But observe God's righteousness in their unrighteousness.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Put their heads in baskets - What cold-blooded wretches were the whole of these people!
The words behind it
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְהִ֗י | vayhi | and it was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כְּבֹ֤א | kevo' | when came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| הַסֵּ֙פֶר֙ | hasefer | the letter | H5612 → | 186 times |
| אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם | ʾaleihem | to them | H413 → | 5510 times |
| וַיִּקְחוּ֙ | vaiyikchu | and they took | H3947 → | 966 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בְּנֵ֣י | benei | [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וַֽיִּשְׁחֲט֖וּ | vaiyishchatu | and they slaughtered | H7819 → | 81 times |
| שִׁבְעִ֣ים | shivim | seventy | H7657 → | 91 times |
| אִ֑ישׁ | ʾish | man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| וַיָּשִׂ֤ימוּ | vaiyasimu | and they put | H7760 → | 584 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| רָֽאשֵׁיהֶם֙ | rasheihem | heads their | H7218 → | 599 times |
| בַּדּוּדִ֔ים | badudim | in <the> baskets | H1731 → | |
| וַיִּשְׁלְח֥וּ | vaiyishlechu | and they sent [them] | H7971 → | 845 times |
| אֵלָ֖יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| יִזְרְעֶֽאלָה׃ | yizreelah | Jezreel towards | H3157 → | 36 times |
וַיְהִ֗יand it was
vayhiH1961 →3559 times
כְּבֹ֤אwhen came
kevo'H935 →2568 times
הַסֵּ֙פֶר֙the letter
haseferH5612 →186 times
אֲלֵיהֶ֔םto them
ʾaleihemH413 →5510 times
וַיִּקְחוּ֙and they took
vaiyikchuH3947 →966 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
בְּנֵ֣י[the] sons of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
וַֽיִּשְׁחֲט֖וּand they slaughtered
vaiyishchatuH7819 →81 times
שִׁבְעִ֣יםseventy
shivimH7657 →91 times
אִ֑ישׁman
ʾishH376 →1663 times
וַיָּשִׂ֤ימוּand they put
vaiyasimuH7760 →584 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
רָֽאשֵׁיהֶם֙heads their
rasheihemH7218 →599 times
בַּדּוּדִ֔יםin <the> baskets
badudimH1731 →
וַיִּשְׁלְח֥וּand they sent [them]
vaiyishlechuH7971 →845 times
אֵלָ֖יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
יִזְרְעֶֽאלָה׃Jezreel towards
yizreelahH3157 →36 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
1 Kings 21:21This 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.
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…
- Exodus 20:5–6
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth…
- 1 Kings 14:10
Through
2 Kings 11:1When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to annihilate all the royal heirs.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 41:1
In the seventh month, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family and one of the king’s chief officers, came with ten men to Gedaliah son…
- 2 Kings 25:25
In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down and killed Gedaliah, along with the…
- 2 Chronicles 22:10–12
When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to annihilate all the royal heirs of the house of Judah.
- 2 Chronicles 24:7
For the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into the house of God and had even used the sacred objects of the house of the LORD for the Baals.
- Matthew 2:16
When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years…
- Jeremiah 41:1
Through
2 Chronicles 21:4When Jehoram had established himself over his father’s kingdom, he strengthened himself by putting to the sword all his brothers along with some of the princes of Israel.
it leads to
- Judges 9:5
He went to his father’s house in Ophrah, and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he hid himself.
- Judges 9:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 2 Kings

Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonDivided kingdomJehuThe furious-driving commander anointed at Elisha's order who purged the house of Ahab and Baal from Israel — zealous for the LORD,…
- PlaceNorthern IsraelJezreelAhab's summer capital beside Naboth's vineyard; the city of the dogs' prophecy, where Jezebel fell and Jehu's wheels rolled.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
