The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Kings — Section 473

tho denuncia.tion of eh. xx. 42. But the more clearly tho.n the mention of Abah'a present arrangement evidently dates from wives. When we consider bow jealously very early times. the seraglio of an Eastern prince is guarded, and how the surrender of the ha.rem is a. Ver. 1.-And Ben-hadad [See on cbs_ xi. virtual surrender of the throne (2 Sam. xvi. 14 o.nd xv. 18. The LXX. uniformly spells 21, 22 ; note on eh. ii. 22), and certainly a the name Ader (via!: 'Ao•p). The form ,1~ surrender of a.11 manhood and self-respect, is found in ob. xi. 17, and , and 1 are fre- we see that his nim was to wound Ahab in quently interchanged; cf. Gen. xxv. 15, his tenderest point, to humble him to the xxxvi. 39 with 1 Chron. i. 30, 46. We learn lowest depths of degradation, and possibly from ver. 34 that this prince was the son of to .force a. quarrel npon him], even the a Syrian king who had conquered some of goodliest [The LXX. omits this. Bahr says the cities of· Israel, but we cannot neverthe- the word can only apply to the sons, and less be certain that he was the son of that that it must mean the most eminent young Ben-ha.dad (eh. xv. 18) who invaded Israel men of the city-not Ahab's children- in the reign of Bo.asha (Ewald). See on whom Bon-ha.dad demo.nclecl as hostages. var. 34.] the king of Syria gathered all his But against this is (1) Ahab's answer, "All host [See note on eh. x. 2, where we have that I have," &e. ; (2) the fact that Ben- same word] together: and thore were thirty hada.d obviously meant insult and plunder; and two kings with him [Evidently these and (3) the language of ver. 7, where sea wen vassals, not allied powers. The note], are m.Jne. [Heb. mine are the1J, Raw- number alone proves that they must ho.ve linson would explain this excessive demand been petty princes or c~e!tains_ of. Hittite of the Syrian king by the assumption that tribes, ruling over very hm1t~d districts 9:11d when it was made the siege had already all acknowledging the suzera.mty of the kmg lasted a long time, and that the people wera of Damascus, all paying tribute (eh. x. 25), now reduced to the greatest straits, circum- and furnishing e. contingent in time of wo.r. sto.nces which the historian, with the cha- "The Assyrian inscriptions show that this racteristic brevity of the so.cred writers, country was, o.bout the period in question, omits to mention. But really no such parcelled out into e. number of petty king- supposition is needed. The overw~elming doms," &c. (Rawlinson. See "Records of the force which Ben-ha.dad ho.d at his ho.ck Past," vol. xii. p. 20)], a.nd horses, a.nd cha.- would, in his eyes, justify any demands. riots [Heh. lwrse and chariot; cf. ver. 21 And the prima facie view of ver. 2 is tho.t and chs. i. 5 ; x. 26 ; xvi. 9, &c. Both o.re the messengers were sent on the first ap- collective nouns. We see here the fruit o.nd proa.ch of the o.rmy, or rather at the be- retribution of Solomon's irreligious policy ginning of the siege.] (oh. x. 29 and Homiletics, p. 216). "A king Ver. 4.-And the king of Israel answered who has been probably identified with this and said, My lord, O king, a.ccording to thy .Ben-ho.da.d brought into the field against saying, I a.m thine, and all tha.t I have. Assyria. nearly 4000 chariots" (Rawlinson)]: [Much has been written about Ahab's pusil- and he went up and besieged Sa.ma.rta, and lanimous acquiescence in these disgro.ceful warred aga.lnst it. [The object of this ex- terms, &c. Dut it is not absolutely eleo.r pedition was olenrly to humble and to plunder that be ever meant to surrender either wives the kingdom of Sama.rie.. It would almost or children to the invader. All that is cer- o.ppeo.r, from the animus of the Syria.n king tain is that he judged it wise, in the presence a.nd tho studied offensiveness of his mes- of the enormous force a.rrnyed ago.inst him, so.ges, as if Ahn.b or Israel must have given to make every possible concession, to adopt him dire oficnce. But Ben-ha.dad wo.s the most subservient tone, o.nd to cringe at clea.rly II vain and overbeo.ring 1md tyra.n- the feet of Ben-hadad. Dut 1111 the time ho nical prince, and the only crime of Israel may have hoped that his soft answer would mo.y ho.ve been tho.t it was independent of turn away wro.th. It is very for from cert11irJ him, or had refused to do him homage.] that had Ben-hada.d sent to demand the Ver. 2.-And he sent messengers to Ahab wives o.nd children which Ahab here seems king of Isra.el into [Heh. to. It is not clear willing to yield to him they would have been tha.t they entered the city. They may ho.ve sent. When Ben-ho.dad tbroo.tens (ver. 6) delivered their message to the king, or to 11 mea.sure which involved much less indig- his representatives at the go.tea or to the nity tho.n the surrender of the entire sernglio people on the wo.lls (2 Kings xviii. 18, 27)] to his lusts, Ahab stands o.t bay. Allowo.uce the city, and said unto him, Thus sa.ith must be ma.de for the exaggerations of Ben-hadad, Eastern courtesy. The writer wo.s enter- Ver. 3.-Thy silver and thy gold 1B m.Jne tained in 1861 by Jo.cob esh Shella.Li, then [Heh. mine it is]; thy wives a.lso a.nd thy sheykh of tho Samarita.ns, who repen.t.edly ahlldrm[Nothing reveals Ben-ha.dad's object .used words ver~ similar to those. '' 'I'hie 484 THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS. [OH. XX. 1-48,