_A.M. 3112. B.C. 892._
Elisha foretels plenty, and the death of the unbelieving lord, 2 Kings
7:1; 2 Kings 7:2. Four lepers discover that the Syrians are fled, and
bring the news into the city, 2 Kings 7:3. The king sends messengers
in order to be assured of the truth, 2 Kings 7:12. Sudden plenty,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then_ When things were at the worst; when all help and relief were
despaired of, and the king was impatient of waiting any longer; _said
Elisha_ To the king, who was now come to him, (2 Kings 7:18,) and to
his courtiers, who were come with him, 2 Kings 7:2. _Hear ye the word
of the Lord _ Hear what... [ Continue Reading ]
_A lord on whose hand the king leaned_ When he walked; _said, Behold,
if the Lord would make windows in heaven_ Through which he should rain
down corn, as once he did manna; _might this thing be?_ He could not
conceive, considering the prodigious famine that then reigned in
Samaria, and their being... [ Continue Reading ]
_There were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate_ Namely,
of the city, out of which they were shut by virtue of God's law. They
had either had their dwelling-place near the gate, or had come near it
for fear of the Syrian army. _They said one to another, Why sit we
here till we die?_ None... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Lord had made the host of the Syrians hear a noise of chariots_,
&c. The air, by the ministry of angels, doubtless, was put into such a
motion about the camp of the Syrians, as to give sounds like to those
it would have given if it had been agitated by the rattling of
chariots, the prancing of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Wherefore they arose and fled_ And that with incredible
precipitation, as for their lives, leaving their camp as it was, and
even their horses, which, if they had taken them, might have expedited
their flight. None of them had so much sense as to send scouts to
discover the supposed enemy, much les... [ Continue Reading ]
_They said We do not well_ Not well for our brethren, whom we should
pity and help; nor well for ourselves, for we may suffer for this
neglect; either from the Syrians, who may be lurking hereabouts, or
from our king and people, or from God's immediate hand. Thus their own
consciences spoke to them,... [ Continue Reading ]
_The king said, I will show you what the Syrians have done_ He was
jealous of a stratagem, and feared the Syrians had only retreated to
be in ambush, and draw out the besieged, that they might fall upon
them to more advantage. He knew he had no reason to expect that God
should appear thus wonderfull... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let some, I pray thee, take five of the horses_, &c. The sense seems
to be, We may well venture these five horses, though we have no more,
because both they and we are ready to perish with hunger: let us,
therefore, use them while we may, for our common good, or to make the
discovery. _Behold, they... [ Continue Reading ]
2 Kings 7:14. _They took therefore two chariot horses_ It is probable
the king would venture no more than two horsemen, whom he thought
sufficient: and these took two of his own horses to make the
discovery. _They went after them unto Jordan_ Finding the camp empty,
as the lepers had related, they f... [ Continue Reading ]
_The king appointed the lord to have the charge of the gate _ To
prevent tumults and disorders among the people, and to take care to
have the gates shut, if need were, and if the Syrians should happen to
return upon them. _And that lord answered_, &c. This part of the
history is repeated, because it... [ Continue Reading ]