1 Kings 20:18

1 Kings 20:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.
• New International Version (NIV)He said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; if they have come out for war, take them alive.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)He said, "If they have come out for peace, take them alive. Or if they have come out for war, take them alive."
• New King James Version (NKJV)So he said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; and if they have come out for war, take them alive.”

Context of 1 Kings 20:18

16They went out at noon, while Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the temporary shelters with the thirty-two kings who were helping him. 17The young men of the leaders of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out scouts, and they reported to him, saying, “Men have come out from Samaria.” Then he said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive as well.” 19So these men went out from the city, the young men of the leaders of the provinces, and the army which followed them. 20And they killed, each one, his man; and the Arameans fled and Israel pursued them, and Ben-hadad the king of Aram escaped on a horse with horsemen.

1 Kings 20:18 word by word

וַיֹּ֛אמֶר אִם־לְשָׁל֥וֹם יָצָ֖אוּ תִּפְשׂ֣וּם חַיִּ֑ים וְאִ֧ם לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה יָצָ֖אוּ חַיִּ֥ים תִּפְשֽׂוּם׃Read the interlinear

• Then he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Ifאִם'im · ifH518
• they have comeיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• for peaceשָׁלוֹםshâlôm shâlôm · peaceH7965
• takeתָּפַשׂtâphaώ · to captureH8610
• them aliveחַיchay · aliveH2416
• for warמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421

Cross-references for 1 Kings 20:18

• 2 Samuel 2:16And each one of them seized his opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim, which is in Gibeon.
• Ecclesiastes 9:11I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to the skillful; for time and chance overtake them all.
• Leviticus 26:8five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand; and your enemies will fall before you by the sword.
• Judges 7:20When the three units blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers, they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing, and shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”
• 1 Samuel 14:13Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer behind him; and the men fell before Jonathan, and his armor bearer put some to death after him.
• 2 Kings 7:6For the Lord had made the army of the Arameans hear a sound of chariots, a sound of horses, that is, the sound of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians against us, to attack us!”
• Psalms 33:16The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not rescued by great strength.
• Psalms 46:6The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered; He raised His voice, the earth quaked.
• 1 Samuel 30:16Now when he had brought him down, behold, they were dispersed over all the land, eating and drinking and celebrating because of all the great plunder that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.
• 2 Kings 19:36So Sennacherib the king of Assyria departed and returned home, and lived at Nineveh.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 20:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Take them alive - He was confident of victory. Do not slay them; bring them to me, they may give us some useful information.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-21Verses 12-21 The proud Syrians were beaten, and the despised Israelites were conquerors. The orders of the proud, drunken king disordered his troops, and prevented them from attacking the Israelites. Those that are most secure, are commonly least courageous. Ahab slew the Syrians with a great slaughter. God often makes one wicked man a scourge to another.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13-34Two separate battles took place, one in Samaria (1 Kings 20:13–25) and another at Aphek (1 Kings 20:26–34). The writer shared similar details for both: advice before the battle (1 Kings 20:13–14, 23–25), conditions before the battle (1 Kings 20:15–16, 26–28), Israel's victory despite being outnumbered (1 Kings 20:17–21, 29–30), and advice after the battle (1 Kings 20:22, 31).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-2113-21. behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab--Though the king and people of Israel had highly offended Him, God had not utterly cast them off. He still cherished designs of mercy towards them, and here, though unasked, gave them a signal proof of His interest in them, by a prophet's animating announcement that the Lord would that day deliver the mighty hosts of the enemy into his hand by means of a small, feeble, inadequate band. Conformably to the…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 20:18

• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Prophecy

In the dictionaries

• Ahab
• Mark
• Samaria
• Benhadad
• Israel, Kingdom of
• Samaria, City 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