1 Kings 20:7
5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;
6 Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.
Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent.
9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.
Compare
- BSB
- Then the king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, “Please take note and see that this man is looking for trouble, for when he demanded my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold, I did not deny him.”
- KJV
- Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
- WEB
- Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, “Please notice how this man seeks mischief; for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I didn’t deny him.”
- ASV
- Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
- DARBY
- And the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this [man] seeks mischief; for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
- BLB
- And the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, “Know, please, and see that this one seeks evil, for he sent to me for my wives and my children and my silver and my gold, and I did not withhold from him.”
- ÅB
- Da kalte Israels konge alle landets eldste til seg og sa: Nå ser dere vel grant at han bare vil oss ondt! Han sendte bud til meg og krevde mine hustruer og mine barn, mitt sølv og mitt gull, og jeg nektet ham det ikke.
- OTB
- Da kalte Israels konge sammen alle landets eldste og sa: "Vær så snill å legge merke til hvordan denne mannen søker trøbbel. Han sendte etter mine koner, mine barn, mitt sølv og mitt gull, og jeg nektet ham ikke."
- B1930
- Da kalte Israels konge alle landets eldste til sig og sa: Nu ser I vel grant at han bare vil oss ondt! Han sendte bud til mig og krevde mine hustruer og mine barn, mitt sølv og mitt gull, og jeg nektet ham det ikke.
Study notes (Tyndale)
Original text and word study
Cross references
2 Kings 5:7
And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
Read in contextDaniel 11:27
And both these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.
Read in contextProverbs 11:27
He that diligently seeketh good procureth favour: but he that seeketh mischief, it shall come unto him.
Read in context1 Chronicles 28:1
And David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies that ministered to the king by course, and the captains over the thousands, and captains over the hundreds, and the stewards over all the substance and possession of the king, and of his sons, with the officers, and with the mighty men, and with all the valiant men, unto Jerusalem.
Read in contextProverbs 11:14
Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.
Read in contextPsalms 140:2
Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.
Read in context1 Kings 8:1
Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
Read in context1 Chronicles 13:1
And David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader.
Read in context