1 Kings 20:21

1 Kings 20:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
• New International Version (NIV)The king of Israel advanced and overpowered the horses and chariots and inflicted heavy losses on the Arameans.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots, and struck the Syrians with a great blow.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the king of Israel went out and attacked the horses and chariots, and killed the Syrians with a great slaughter.

Context of 1 Kings 20:21

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. The king of Israel also went out and struck the horses and chariots, and killed the Arameans in a great slaughter. 22Then the prophet approached the king of Israel and said to him, “Go, show yourself courageous and be aware and see what you have to do; for at the turn of the year the king of Aram will march against you.” 23Now the servants of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the mountains; for that reason they were stronger than we. But let us fight them in the plain, and we will certainly be stronger than they.

1 Kings 20:21 word by word

וַיֵּצֵא֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַיַּ֥ךְ אֶת־הַסּ֖וּס וְאֶת־הָרָ֑כֶב וְהִכָּ֥ה בַאֲרָ֖ם מַכָּ֥ה גְדוֹלָֽה׃Read the interlinear

• The kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• also wentיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• and struckנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• the horsesסוּסsûs sûs · horseH5483
• and chariotsרֶ֫כֶבrekeb · chariotH7393
• the Arameansאֲרָם'ărâm · SyriaH758
• in a greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• slaughterמַכָּהmakkâh makkeh · woundH4347

Cross-references for 1 Kings 20:21

• 1 Kings 20:28Then a man of God approached and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Since the Arameans have said, “The Lord is a god of mountains, but He is not a god of valleys,” therefore I will hand over to you all this great multitude, and you shall know that I am the Lord.’”
• 1 Kings 14:23For they, too, built for themselves high places, memorial stones, and Asherim on every high hill and under every luxuriant tree.
• 1 Samuel 4:8Woe to us! Who will save us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness.
• 2 Kings 19:12Did the gods of the nations which my fathers destroyed save them: Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar?
• 2 Chronicles 32:13Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands at all able to save their land from my hand?
• Psalms 50:21These things you have done and I kept silent; You thought that I was just like you; I will rebuke you and present the case before your eyes.
• Psalms 121:1I will raise my eyes to the mountains; From where will my help come?
• Isaiah 42:8I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to idols.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 20:21

• 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. 20-22Horses and chariots were important in ancient battles. Ahab's defeat of most of Ben-hadad's forces was crucial to prevent future attacks. However, God's prophet warned that the king of Aram would come back. in the spring: Late spring and early summer were common times for war in the ancient Near East. Armies could rely on good weather and grain from the early harvest.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 20:21

• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Prophecy

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• 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