2 Kings 6:24-33
Expanded Bible
A Great Famine
24 Later, Ben-Hadad king of Aram gathered his whole army and ·surrounded and attacked [besieged] Samaria. 25 There was a ·shortage of food [great famine] in Samaria. ·It was so bad [or The siege lasted so long] that a donkey’s head sold for ·about two pounds [L eighty shekels/or pieces] of silver, and ·half of a pint [L a fourth of a kab] of dove’s dung sold for ·about two ounces [L five shekels/or pieces] of silver. 26 As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman yelled out to him, “Help me, my ·master [lord] and king!”
27 The king said, “If the Lord doesn’t help you, how can I? Can I get help from the threshing floor or from the winepress [C he has neither food nor drink to offer]?” 28 Then the king said to her, “What is your ·trouble [complaint]?”
She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give up your son so we can eat him today. Then we will eat my son tomorrow.’ 29 So we ·boiled [cooked] my son and ate him. Then the next day I said to her, ‘Give up your son so we can eat him.’ But she has hidden him.”
30 When the king heard the woman’s words, he tore his clothes [C a sign of mourning or distress]. As he walked along the wall, the people looked and saw he had on ·rough cloth [sackcloth; burlap] under his clothes [C also a sign of mourning]. 31 He said, “May God ·punish me terribly [deal severely with me, and worse; L do to me, and even more] if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat ·isn’t cut off from his body [L remains on his shoulders] today [C the king blames Elisha for the situation]!”
32 The king sent a messenger to Elisha, who was sitting in his house with the elders [C an indication that Elisha is more powerful than the king]. But before the messenger arrived, Elisha said to them, “See, this murderer is sending men to ·cut off [L take away] my head. When the messenger arrives, shut the door and hold it; don’t let him in. ·The [L Is not the…?] sound of his ·master’s [lord’s] feet is behind him.”
33 Elisha was still talking with the leaders when the messenger arrived. The king said, “This ·trouble [misery; L evil] has come from the Lord. Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?”
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2 Kings 6:24-33
Amplified Bible
The Siege of Samaria—Cannibalism
24 But it came about after this, that Ben-hadad king of Aram (Syria) gathered his whole army together and went up and besieged Samaria. 25 Now there was a great famine in Samaria; and they [a]besieged it until a [b]donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and a fourth of a [c]kab of [d]dove’s dung for five shekels of silver. 26 As the king of Israel (Jehoram) was passing by on the [city] wall a woman cried out to him, “Help, my lord, O king!” 27 He said, “If the Lord does not help you, from where shall I get you help? From the threshing floor, or from the wine press?” 28 And the king said to her, “What is the matter with you?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give your son so we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’ 29 So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give your son so that we may eat him’; but she had hidden her son.” 30 When the king heard the woman’s words, he [e]tore his clothes—now he was still walking along on the wall—and the people looked [at him], and he had on [f]sackcloth underneath [his royal robe] next to his skin. 31 Then he said, “[g]May God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on him today!”
32 Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. And the king sent a man ahead of him [to behead Elisha]; but before the messenger arrived, Elisha told the elders, “Do you see how this son of [Jezebel] a murderer has sent [a man] to remove my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door and hold it securely against him. Is not the sound of his master’s feet [just] behind him?” 33 While Elisha was still talking with them, the messenger came down to him [followed by the king] and the king said, “This evil [situation] is from the Lord! Why should I wait for [help from] the Lord any longer?”
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- 2 Kings 6:25 The purpose of a siege was to starve out or weaken the inhabitants of a fortified city, minimizing risk to the attacking army. The success of the siege depended on whether the city was sufficiently stocked with food and water. Here, with a famine, not only does the city fall well short of adequate provisions, but those inhabitants who have a surplus of anything edible or useful make the situation even worse by engaging in price-gouging.
- 2 Kings 6:25 Apparently the famine was so severe that the inhabitants were purchasing products that were barely edible as well as being ceremonially unclean.
- 2 Kings 6:25 One kab is about two quarts.
- 2 Kings 6:25 Normally dung was used as fertilizer or for fuel; however, in this verse “dove’s dung” may be a nickname for a wild pealike vegetable.
- 2 Kings 6:30 Usually an act symbolizing grief or anguish.
- 2 Kings 6:30 A coarse cloth usually made of goat’s hair and worn as a sign of mourning.
- 2 Kings 6:31 Jehoram, the king of Israel, may have been angry at Elisha because the prophet had persuaded him not to kill the enemy army when he had the chance (v 22). He may also have blamed Elisha for the famine (or for failing to ask God to end it), though there is no indication that Elisha had called for it or announced it.
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