1 Kings 20:40

1 Kings 20:40 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.
• New International Version (NIV)While your servant was busy here and there, the man disappeared.” “That is your sentence,” the king of Israel said. “You have pronounced it yourself.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And as your servant was busy here and there, he was gone." The king of Israel said to him, "So shall your judgment be; you yourself have decided it."
• New King James Version (NKJV)While your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” Then the king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself have decided it.”

Context of 1 Kings 20:40

38Then the prophet, disguised with a bandage over his eyes, waited for the king by the road. 39When the king passed by, the disciple called to him. “I went to fight in the battle. A man turned around and brought a prisoner to me. He said, ‘Guard this prisoner. If he gets away, you will pay for his life with your own life or be fined 75 pounds of silver.’ But while I was busy doing other things, he got away.” The king of Israel told him, “That’s your own penalty. You have determined it yourself.” 41Then he quickly took the bandage off his eyes. The king of Israel recognized him as one of the prophets. 42The prophet told him, “This is what the Lord says: You let the man go. He was claimed by God and should have been killed. For that reason your life will be taken in place of his life and your people in place of his people.”

1 Kings 20:40 word by word

וַיְהִ֣י עַבְדְּךָ֗ עֹשֵׂ֥ה הֵ֛נָּה וָהֵ֖נָּה וְה֣וּא אֵינֶ֑נּוּ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אֵלָ֧יו מֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל כֵּ֥ן מִשְׁפָּטֶ֖ךָ אַתָּ֥ה חָרָֽצְתָּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And as thy servantעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• was busyעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• here and there, he was goneאַ֫יִן'ayin · nothingH369
• And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• thy judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justice: judgementH4941
• thyself hast decidedחָרַץchârats · to decideH2782

Cross-references for 1 Kings 20:40

• 1 Kings 20:34Benhadad told him, “I will give back the towns my father took from your father. You may set up trading centers in Damascus as my father did in Samaria.” Ahab said, “If you will put this into a treaty, I will let you go.” So Ahab made a treaty with Benhadad and let him go.
• 1 Kings 22:31The king of Aram had given orders to the 32 chariot commanders. He said, “Don’t fight anyone except the king of Israel.”
• 1 Samuel 15:9Saul and the army spared Agag and the best sheep and cows, the fattened animals, the lambs, and all the best ⌞property⌟. The army refused to claim them for God by destroying them. But everything that was worthless and weak the army did claim for God and destroy.
• 2 Kings 6:24Later King Benhadad of Aram assembled his whole army. They went to Samaria and blockaded it.
• 2 Kings 8:12“Sir, why are you crying?” Hazael asked. Elisha answered, “I know the evil you will do to the Israelites: You will set their fortresses on fire, kill their best young men, smash their little children, and rip open their pregnant women.”
• 2 Chronicles 18:33One man aimed his bow at random and hit the king of Israel between his scale armor and his breastplate. Ahab told the chariot driver, “Turn around, and get me away from these troops. I’m badly wounded.”

Commentaries on 1 Kings 20:40

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 31-43Verses 31-43 This encouragement sinners have to repent and humble themselves before God; Have we not heard, that the God of Israel is a merciful God? Have we not found him so? That is gospel repentance, which flows from an apprehension of the mercy of God, in Christ; there is forgiveness with him. What a change is here! The most haughty in prosperity often are most abject in adversity; an evil spirit will thus affect a man in both these conditions. There…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 35-43Ahab showed mercy to Ben-hadad, which displeased God. An unnamed prophet used symbolic actions to show this disapproval. God's prophets often used symbols to deliver his messages (Isaiah 20; Jeremiah 27:1–7; Ezekiel 4:1–3, 9–17; 5:1–4). By sparing an untrustworthy enemy, Ahab brought judgment on himself and his people instead of relying more on the Lord.Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 20:40

• Parables
• Self-Condemnation
• Symbols and Similitudes

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Ahab
• Mark
• Micaiah
• Israel, Kingdom of

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