2 Kings 18:8
in 2 Kings 18He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its borders, from watchtower to fortified city.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He smote the Philistines unto Gaza and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.
KJV
He smote the Philistines, even unto Gaza, and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
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This verse in 2 Kings 18
Commentary
6 notes on this verseHe smote the Philistines even unto Gaza, and the borders thereof,.... Who in his father's time had invaded Judah, and taken many cities and towns in it, which Hezekiah now recovered, and drove them to their own territories, of which Gaza was one; see 2Ch 28:18. from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city; that is, places both great and small, cities, towns, and villages; of this phrase, see 2Ki 17:9.
This site's exposition
the Lord was with him
on 2 Kings 18:7-8
The Lord was with him summarizes Hezekiah's early reign before a single battle is named, and the rebellion against Assyria that follows is presented as the fruit of that nearness rather than a political gamble judged on its own terms. Tribute to Assyria had been standard policy since Ahaz invited Tiglath-pileser in at 2 Kings 16:7, so Hezekiah's refusal breaks with his own father's course. The strike against the Philistines, from Gaza to the fenced cities, reverses the losses Ahaz suffered at Philistine hands in 2 Chronicles 28:18.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Yet is invaded, and his country put under contribution by Sennacherib, ver. 13-16. Jerusalem is besieged, ver. 17. The virulent speech of Rabshakeh, ver. 18-25.
quarantine:anchor (2026-07-29) — cites-ver-17/18-anchored-7-12
The kingdom of Assyria had now grown considerable, though we never read of it till the last reign. Such changes there are in the affairs of nations and families: those that have been despicable become formidable, and those, on the contrary, are brought low that have made a great noise and figure.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
From the tower of the watchmen - See the same words, 2Ki 17:9 (note). It seems a proverbial mode of expression: he reduced every kind of fortification; nothing was able to stand before him.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Sargon had established the complete dominion of Assyria over the Philistines. Hence, the object of Hezekiah’s Philistine campaign was not so much conquest as opposition to the Assyrian power. How successful it was is indicated in the Assyrian records by the number of towns in this quarter which Sennacherib recovered before he proceeded against Jerusalem.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הֽוּא־ | hu'- | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| הִכָּ֧ה | hikah | he struck down | H5221 → | 499 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| פְּלִשְׁתִּ֛ים | pelishtim | [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| עַזָּ֖ה | ʾazah | Gaza | H5804 → | |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| גְּבוּלֶ֑יהָ | gevuleiha | territories its | H1366 → | 240 times |
| מִמִּגְדַּ֥ל | mimigdal | from a tower of | H4026 → | 48 times |
| נוֹצְרִ֖ים | notzrim | watchmen | H5341 → | |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | unto | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| עִ֥יר | ʾir | a city of | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| מִבְצָֽר׃ פ | mivtzar | fortification | H4013 → | 37 times |
הֽוּא־he
hu'-H1931 →1879 times
הִכָּ֧הhe struck down
hikahH5221 →499 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
פְּלִשְׁתִּ֛ים[the] Philistines
pelishtimH6430 →287 times
עַד־to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
עַזָּ֖הGaza
ʾazahH5804 →
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
גְּבוּלֶ֑יהָterritories its
gevuleihaH1366 →240 times
מִמִּגְדַּ֥לfrom a tower of
mimigdalH4026 →48 times
נוֹצְרִ֖יםwatchmen
notzrimH5341 →
עַד־unto
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
עִ֥ירa city of
ʾirH5892 →1090 times
מִבְצָֽר׃ פfortification
mivtzarH4013 →37 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
Isaiah 5:2He dug it up and cleared the stones and planted the finest vines. He built a watchtower in the middle and dug out a winepress as well. He waited for the vineyard to yield…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 2:21
I had planted you like a choice vine from the very best seed. How could you turn yourself before Me into a rotten, wild vine?
- Deuteronomy 32:32–33
But their vine is from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are poisonous; their clusters are bitter.
- Isaiah 1:2–4
Listen, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: “I have raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me.
- Revelation 14:18–20
Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters…
- 1 Corinthians 9:7
Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Who tends a flock and does not drink of its milk?
- Jeremiah 2:21
Through
Isaiah 14:29Do not rejoice, all you Philistines, that the rod that struck you is broken. For a viper will spring from the root of the snake, and a flying serpent from its egg.
it leads to
- Isaiah 11:8
The infant will play by the cobra’s den, and the toddler will reach into the viper’s nest.
- Isaiah 30:6
This is the burden against the beasts of the Negev: Through a land of hardship and distress, of lioness and lion, of viper and flying serpent, they carry their wealth on the backs of…
- Isaiah 11:8
Through
2 Chronicles 28:18The Philistines had also raided the cities of the foothills and the Negev of Judah, capturing and occupying Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, and Gederoth, as well as Soco, Timnah, and Gimzo with their villages.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 16:57
before your wickedness was uncovered? Even so, you are now scorned by the daughters of Edom and all those around her, and by the daughters of the Philistines—all those around you who despise you.
- Ezekiel 16:57
Where this verse is studied
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; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); F. W. Farrar, The Second Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
