2 Kings 9:20
in 2 Kings 9Again the watchman reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. And the charioteer is driving like Jehu son of Nimshi—he is driving like a madman!”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not back: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.
KJV
And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.
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This verse in 2 Kings 9
Commentary
6 notes on this verseHe driveth furiously - Jehu was a bold, daring, prompt, and precipitate general. In his various military operations he had established his character; and now it was almost proverbial.
This site's exposition
a watchman on the tower
on 2 Kings 9:17-20
A watchman posted on the tower reads the approach and sends first one horseman, then a second, and Jehu answers each the same way, what hast thou to do with peace, turn thee behind me, folding the king's own messengers into his advancing company. The watchman's final report turns on one detail rather than any message, the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he driveth furiously, a description Clarke calls almost proverbial for the man. The reader learns Jehu's identity from his chariot before Joram does.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
So he went out with a group of select men. But he met Joram, king of Israel, in the course of his journey, and little later Ahaziah, king of Judah. He was able to defeat them after the first attack and killed them both.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And the watchman told, saying, he came even unto them, and cometh not again,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
A report was made to Joram in his palace below. A messenger on horseback was quickly despatched down into the plain to meet the ambiguous host and to question the object of their approach. "Is it peace?" We may safely assume that this messenger would meet Jehu at the distance of three miles or more.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The driving ... furiously - The word translated “driving” means “leading” or “conducting” a band. The watchman observed that the “company” (or, multitude) was led forward madly, and associated this strange procedure with the known character of Jehu. It is curious that some versions, as well as Josephus, give an opposite sense: “he driveth quietly.” Jehu was properly “the grandson” of Nimshi, who was probably a more famous person than Jehoshaphat 2Ki 9:2.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּגֵּ֤ד | vaiyaged | and he reported | H5046 → | 370 times |
| הַצֹּפֶה֙ | hatzopeh | the watchman | H6822 → | 36 times |
| לֵאמֹ֔ר | lemor | <to> saying | H559 → | 5305 times |
| בָּ֥א | ba' | he came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| אֲלֵיהֶ֖ם | ʾaleihem | to them | H413 → | 5510 times |
| וְלֹֽא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| שָׁ֑ב | shav | he has turned back | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| וְהַמִּנְהָ֗ג | vehaminhag | and the driving | H4491 → | |
| כְּמִנְהַג֙ | keminhag | [is] like [the] driving of | H4491 → | |
| יֵה֣וּא | yehu' | Jehu | H3058 → | 58 times |
| בֶן־ | ven- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| נִמְשִׁ֔י | nimshi | Nimshi | H5250 → | 5 times |
| כִּ֥י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בְשִׁגָּע֖וֹן | veshigaon | with madness | H7697 → | |
| יִנְהָֽג׃ | yinhag | he drives | H5090 → |
וַיַּגֵּ֤דand he reported
vaiyagedH5046 →370 times
הַצֹּפֶה֙the watchman
hatzopehH6822 →36 times
לֵאמֹ֔ר<to> saying
lemorH559 →5305 times
בָּ֥אhe came
ba'H935 →2568 times
עַד־to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
אֲלֵיהֶ֖םto them
ʾaleihemH413 →5510 times
וְלֹֽא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
שָׁ֑בhe has turned back
shavH7725 →1056 times
וְהַמִּנְהָ֗גand the driving
vehaminhagH4491 →
כְּמִנְהַג֙[is] like [the] driving of
keminhagH4491 →
יֵה֣וּאJehu
yehu'H3058 →58 times
בֶן־[the] son of
ven-H1121 →4930 times
נִמְשִׁ֔יNimshi
nimshiH5250 →5 times
כִּ֥יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
בְשִׁגָּע֖וֹןwith madness
veshigaonH7697 →
יִנְהָֽג׃he drives
yinhagH5090 →
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 54:16Behold, I have created the craftsman who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its task; and I have created the destroyer to wreak havoc.
it leads to
- Proverbs 16:4
The LORD has made everything for His purpose—even the wicked for the day of disaster.
- Exodus 9:16
But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power to you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth.
- Isaiah 46:11
I summon a bird of prey from the east, a man for My purpose from a far-off land. Truly I have spoken, and truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it,…
- Proverbs 16:4
Through
Habakkuk 3:12You marched across the earth with fury; You threshed the nations in wrath.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 51:33
For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “The Daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor at the time it is trampled. In just a little while her…
- Jeremiah 51:33
Through
1 Kings 19:17Then Jehu will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Jehu.
it leads to
- 2 Kings 13:22
And Hazael king of Aram oppressed Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz.
- 2 Kings 8:12
“Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword,…
- 2 Kings 13:3
So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He delivered them continually into the hands of Hazael king of Aram and his son Ben-hadad.
- 2 Kings 13:22
Through
2 Samuel 18:27The watchman said, “The first man appears to me to be running like Ahimaaz son of Zadok.” “This is a good man,” said the king. “He comes with good news.”
it leads to
- 1 Kings 1:42
As he was speaking, suddenly Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest arrived. “Come in,” said Adonijah, “for you are a man of valor. You must be bringing good news.”
- 1 Kings 1:42
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; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 9:1-24; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).