2 Kings 3:4

2 Kings 3:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster, and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool.
• New International Version (NIV)Now Mesha king of Moab raised sheep, and he had to pay the king of Israel a tribute of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and he had to deliver to the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheepbreeder, and he regularly paid the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.

Context of 2 Kings 3:4

2He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, but not to the same extent as his father and mother. He at least tore down the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had set up. 3Nevertheless, he continued in the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had committed and led the people of Israel to commit. King Mesha of Moab was a sheep breeder. He used to pay the king of Israel an annual tribute of 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams. 5But after Ahab’s death, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6So King Joram promptly mustered the army of Israel and marched from Samaria.

2 Kings 3:4 word by word

וּמֵישַׁ֥ע מֶֽלֶךְ־מוֹאָ֖ב הָיָ֣ה נֹקֵ֑ד וְהֵשִׁ֤יב לְמֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ מֵאָה־אֶ֣לֶף כָּרִ֔ים וּמֵ֥אָה אֶ֖לֶף אֵילִ֥ים צָֽמֶר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Meshaמֵישַׁעmêysha‛ · MeshaH4338
• kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Moabמוֹאָבmô'âb · MoabH4124
• was a sheepmasterנֹקֵדnôqêd · shepherdH5349
• and renderedשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• an hundredמֵאָהmê'âh mê'yâh · hundredH3967
• thousandאֶ֫לֶף'eleph · thousandH505
• lambsכַּרkar · ramH3733
• ramsאַ֫יִל'ayil · ramH352
• with the woolצֶ֫מֶרtsemer · woolH6785

Cross-references for 2 Kings 3:4

• Genesis 13:2(Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.)
• Genesis 26:13He became a very rich man, and his wealth continued to grow.
• 2 Chronicles 26:10He also constructed forts in the wilderness and dug many water cisterns, because he kept great herds of livestock in the foothills of Judah and on the plains. He was also a man who loved the soil. He had many workers who cared for his farms and vineyards, both on the hillsides and in the fertile valleys.
• Job 1:3He owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 teams of oxen, and 500 female donkeys. He also had many servants. He was, in fact, the richest person in that entire area.
• Job 42:12So the Lord blessed Job in the second half of his life even more than in the beginning. For now he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 teams of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.
• 2 Samuel 8:2David also conquered the land of Moab. He made the people lie down on the ground in a row, and he measured them off in groups with a length of rope. He measured off two groups to be executed for every one group to be spared. The Moabites who were spared became David’s subjects and paid him tribute money.
• 1 Chronicles 18:2David also conquered the land of Moab, and the Moabites who were spared became David’s subjects and paid him tribute money.
• Psalms 60:8But Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant, and I will wipe my feet on Edom and shout in triumph over Philistia.”
• Psalms 108:9But Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant, and I will wipe my feet on Edom and shout in triumph over Philistia.”
• Isaiah 16:1Send lambs from Sela as tribute to the ruler of the land. Send them through the desert to the mountain of beautiful Zion.

Commentaries on 2 Kings 3:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Was a sheepmaster - The original is נקד naked, of which the Septuagint could make nothing, and therefore retained the Hebrew word : but the Chaldee has גיתי מרי marey githey, "a sheepmaster;" Aquila has ; and Symmachus, ; all to the same sense. The original signifies one who marks or brands, probably from the marking of sheep. He fed many sheep, etc., and had them all marked in a particular way, in order to ascertain his property. A hundred thousand lambs…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Moab, the region immediately east of the Dead Sea and of the lower Jordan, though in part suited for agriculture, is in the main a great grazing country. Mesha resembled a modern Arab Sheikh, whose wealth is usually estimated by the number of his flocks and herds. His tribute of the wool of 100,000 lambs was a tribute in kind, the ordinary tribute at this time in the East. Mesha is the monarch who wrote the inscription on the “Moabite stone” (2 Kings 1:1…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-5The Moabite rebellion (see 2 Kings 1:1) started when they stopped paying their yearly tribute. The Moabite Stone (Mesha Stela) describes how Israel controlled northern Moab during the time of Omri and Ahab. This control continued under the rule of Ahaziah and Joram.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-64-6. Mesha king of Moab, &c.--As his dominions embraced an extensive pasture country, he paid, as annual tribute, the wool of a hundred thousand lambs and a hundred thousand rams. It is still common in the East to pay custom and taxes in the fruits or natural produce of the land.Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Kings 3:4

• Mesha
• Sheep

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Moab
• Moab; Moabites
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Moab, Moabite
• Colour
• Compass
• Indignation
• Jehoram

Commentaries on 2 Kings 3

• 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
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings