1 Kings 20:28

1 Kings 20:28 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the Lord, Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
• New International Version (NIV)The man of God came up and told the king of Israel, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because the Arameans think the Lord is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys, I will deliver this vast army into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And a man of God came near and said to the king of Israel, "Thus says the Lord, 'Because the Syrians have said, "The Lord is a god of the hills but he is not a god of the valleys," therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.'"
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then a man of God came and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Because the Syrians have said, “The Lord is God of the hills, but He is not God of the valleys,” therefore I will deliver all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.’ ”

Context of 1 Kings 20:28

26At the first of the year [in spring], Ben-hadad assembled and counted the Arameans (Syrians) and went up to Aphek [east of the Sea of Galilee] to fight against Israel. 27The sons of Israel were counted and given provisions, and they went to meet them. The Israelites camped before the enemy like two little flocks of goats [with everything against them, except God], and the Arameans filled the country. A man of God approached and said to the king of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because the Arameans have said, “The Lord is a god of the hills, but He is not a god of the valleys,” I will give this great army into your hand, and you shall know [by experience] that I am the Lord.’ ” 29So they camped opposite each other for seven days. Then on the seventh day the battle began, and the sons of Israel killed 100,000 of the Aramean foot soldiers in a single day. 30But the rest ran to the city of Aphek, and the [city] wall fell on 27,000 of the men who were left. Ben-hadad escaped and came into the city, going into an inner chamber [to hide].

1 Kings 20:28 word by word

וַיִּגַּ֞שׁ אִ֣ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים וַיֹּאמֶר֮ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל֒ וַיֹּ֜אמֶר כֹּֽה־אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֗ה יַ֠עַן אֲשֶׁ֨ר אָמְר֤וּ אֲרָם֙ אֱלֹהֵ֤י הָרִים֙ יְהוָ֔ה וְלֹֽא־אֱלֹהֵ֥י עֲמָקִ֖ים ה֑וּא וְ֠נָתַתִּי אֶת־כָּל־הֶהָמ֨וֹן הַגָּ֤דוֹל הַזֶּה֙ בְּיָדֶ֔ךָ וִֽידַעְתֶּ֖ם כִּֽי־אֲנִ֥י יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And there cameנָגַשׁnâgash · to approach: approachH5066
• a manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• of Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• and spakeאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• Because the Syriansאֲרָם'ărâm · SyriaH758
• of the hillsהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• of the valleysעֵ֫מֶק‛êmeq · valleyH6010
• therefore will I deliverנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• all this greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• multitudeהָמוֹןhâmôn hâmôn · crowdH1995
• into thine handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• and ye shall knowיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045

Cross-references for 1 Kings 20:28

• Psalms 18:25With the kind (merciful, faithful, loyal) You show Yourself kind, With the blameless You show Yourself blameless,
• Isaiah 24:18Then it will be that he who flees at the sound of terror will fall into the pit, And he who comes up out of the pit will be caught in the snare; For the windows of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble.
• Jeremiah 48:44“The one who flees from the terror Will fall into the pit, And the one who gets up out of the pit Will be taken and caught in the trap; For I shall bring upon it, even upon Moab, The year of their punishment,” says the Lord.
• Amos 2:14Flight will be lost to the swift [so they will be unable to escape], And the strong shall not strengthen nor maintain his power, Nor shall the mighty man save his own life.
• Amos 5:19It is as if a man runs from a lion [escaping one danger] And a bear meets him [so he dies anyway], Or goes home, and leans with his hand against the wall And a snake bites him.
• Amos 9:3Though they hide on the summit of [Mount] Carmel, I will track them down and take them from there; And though they hide from My sight on the floor of the sea, From there I shall command the serpent and it will bite them.
• Luke 13:4Or do you assume that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed were worse sinners than all the others who live in Jerusalem?
• 1 Kings 20:10Ben-hadad sent word to him and said, “May the gods do so to me, and more also, if there is enough dust left of Samaria for handfuls for all the [armed] people who follow me.”
• Daniel 4:37Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and faithful and His ways are just, and He is able to humiliate and humble those who walk in [self-centered, self-righteous] pride.”
• 1 Kings 22:25Micaiah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day [of the king’s defeat] when you enter an inner room [looking for a place] to hide yourself.”
• 2 Chronicles 18:24Micaiah said, “Behold, you will see on that day when you go into an inner room [desperately trying] to hide yourself.”

Commentaries on 1 Kings 20:28

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28Because the Syrians have said - God resents their blasphemy, and is determined to punish it. They shall now be discomfited in such a way as to show that God's power is every where, and that the multitude of a host is nothing against him.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 28A man of God - Evidently not the prophet who had spoken to Ahab the year before 1 Kings 20:13, 1 Kings 20:22. He probably dwelt in the neighborhood of Samaria. Now that Ahab and his army had marched out into the Trans-Jordanic territory, another prophet, a native probably of that region, announced God‘s will to them.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 22-30Verses 22-30 Those about Benhadad advised him to change his ground. They take it for granted that it was not Israel, but Israel's gods, that beat them; but they speak very ignorantly of Jehovah. They supposed that Israel had many gods, to whom they ascribed limited power within a certain district; thus vain were the Gentiles in their imaginations concerning God. The greatest wisdom in worldly concerns is often united with the most contemptible folly in…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 27-30Even though the Arameans had more soldiers, Israel won a great victory with God's help. Everyone learned that "nothing is impossible with God" (Luke 1:37; see Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27). When God supports you, the enemy will retreat (Psalm 56:9) and suffer heavy losses (Deuteronomy 32:30–31; 2 Kings 19:32–36). Israel could face their enemies without fear (Psalms 3:6; 27:1–3). God's promise to Israel through the prophet showed that this battle was for both…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 27-3127-31. like two little flocks of kids--Goats are never seen in large flocks, or scattered, like sheep; and hence the two small but compact divisions of the Israelite force are compared to goats, not sheep. Humanly speaking, that little handful of men would have been overpowered by numbers. But a prophet was sent to the small Israelite army to announce the victory, in order to convince the Syrians that the God of Israel was omnipotent everywhere, in the…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 20:28

• Aphek
• Infidelity
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Presumption
• Prophecy
• War

In the dictionaries

• God
• Israel
• man of God
• Ahab
• Mark
• Benhadad
• Israel, Kingdom of
• Pentateuch
• Joash
• I am Yahweh

Commentaries on 1 Kings 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary