Micaiah alone foretells disaster at Ramoth-gilead against four hundred yes-men; disguised, Ahab is struck by a chance arrow, and the dogs lick his blood.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
And they continued three years without war between Aram and Israel.
verse value 2450
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 35 letters. Verse gematria: 2450 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "three" (שָׁלֹ֣שׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·remained" (וַיֵּשְׁב֖וּ, 5 letters). The root בין appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings); "between" (root בין, 107x in I Kings); "years" (root שנה, 72x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'years', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּשְׁב֖וּ [and·remained] (324) + שָׁלֹ֣שׁ [three] (630) + שָׁנִ֑ים [years] (400) + אֵ֚ין [nothing] (61) + מִלְחָמָ֔ה [battle] (123) + בֵּ֥ין [between] (62) + אֲרָ֖ם [Aram] (241) + וּבֵ֥ין [and·between] (68) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 2450.
Ralbag
“And they rested three years, there was no war.” This was because Ahab had submitted himself to the Name; therefore, God, blessed be He, extended [i.e., postponed] for him what He had said to him, that his life would be in exchange for the life of Ben-Hadad, until he fought against him three years later. And it seems that what He had said to him, “and your people for his people,” God, blessed be He, delayed until the time of Hazael.
Metzudat David
And they sat. Meaning: they sat in peace.
Malbim
"And they sat for three years" – this was explained in the previous section.
And the king of Israel said to his servants: ‘Know you that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we are still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Aram?’
verse value 4261
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 65 letters. The shortest word is "Ramoth" (רָמֹ֣ת, 3 letters) and the longest is "king·Israel" (מֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "do·you·know" (הַיְדַעְתֶּ֕ם), "that·is·ours" (כִּי־לָ֖נוּ), "stilling" (מַחְשִׁ֔ים). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·his·servants" (root איל, 125x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gilead', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ [king·Israel] (631) + אֶל־עֲבָדָ֔יו [to·his·servants] (123) + הַיְדַעְתֶּ֕ם [do·you·know] (529) + כִּי־לָ֖נוּ [that·is·ours] (116) + רָמֹ֣ת [Ramoth] (640) + גִּלְעָ֑ד [gilead] (107) + וַאֲנַ֣חְנוּ [and·we] (121) + מַחְשִׁ֔ים [stilling] (398) + מִקַּ֣חַת [from·taking] (548) + אֹתָ֔הּ [it] (406) + מִיַּ֖ד [from·hand·of] (54) + מֶ֥לֶךְ [king] (90) + אֲרָֽם [Aram] (241) = 4261.
Rashi
And we are silent. We are lazy, "siamu," "pigri" in the foreign tongue.
Radak
"For Ramoth-gilead is ours." "For it was ours," as it is written: "And Ramoth in Gilead was allotted to Gad." And it is stated in the midrash: Why is it called Ramoth Gilead? Because there were two pools of water before it, and the king of Aram had taken it from the king of Israel. And one might ask: Did not Ben-Hadad say to Ahab, "The cities which my father took from your father I will restore to you"? And if you say he did not keep his word — was there not peace between them for three years? Why then did he not wage this war when the cities were not returned to them? Furthermore, why did Ahab speak specifically about Ramoth Gilead more than the other cities? We say that the king of Aram did not take Ramoth Gilead from Omri, Ahab's father, but rather he had taken it before that time, and he [Ben-Hadad] said to him, "The cities which my father took from your father I will restore." And Ahab did not think at that time to ask him for Ramoth Gilead, for he also would have returned it to him, since in Damascus he had given him streets; all the more so would he have returned what was his. Rather, he simply did not think of it at that time, and afterward, when he remembered, he could not fight him over this, for he had sent him away under a covenant. Therefore, there was peace between them for three years. And now, when Ahab saw that the king of Judah was with him and said he would help him, he decided that they should go to war against the king of Aram to take Ramoth Gilead from him.
Ralbag
“Do you not know that Ramoth-Gilead belongs to us?” It is possible that when Ben-Hadad restored to him the cities that his father had taken from Israel, Ahab neglected to ask him also for Ramoth-Gilead. Therefore, he said to his servants, “Do you not know that Ramoth-Gilead belongs to us, and yet we remain silent and do not take it from the king of Aram?”
Metzudat David
Do you know. Do you give heed to know, that Ramoth-gilead is from our border; and we are silent from taking it, etc.?
Metzudat Zion
Machashim. Silent; like (Ecclesiastes 3:7) 'a time for silence' (at l'chashet):
Malbim
For us, and he had already promised (20:30) to restore the cities; however, he said to him, “I will send you away with a covenant,” and he did not request them at that time. And it relates how now what the prophet said has been fulfilled: “Your life shall be for his life,” and this became a snare for him.
And he said to Jehoshaphat: ‘Will you go with me to battle to Ramoth-gilead?’ And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel: ‘I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.’
verse value 4627
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 82 letters. Notable word values: "like·you" (כָמ֛וֹךָ) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "with·me" (אִתִּ֛י, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Jehoshaphat" (אֶל־יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "will·you·go" (הֲתֵלֵ֥ךְ), "like·me" (כָּמ֧וֹנִי), "as·my·people" (כְּעַמִּ֥י). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·Jehoshaphat" (root איל, 125x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gilead', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 10 words.
Ralbag
“Like me, like you.” He wished to say: Just as you will go, so will I go; and just as your troops will go [with you], so will my troops go [with me]; and just as you will bring your horses into battle, so will I bring my horses there.
Metzudat David
As you are, so am I. As you will go, so will I also go.
Malbim
"Like me" means: If from my side, I am like you, for we are in-laws; if from the side of the people, my people is like your people, the children of Israel; if from the side of the war, my horses are like your horses, for when you will be victorious, you will also help me when needed. And in Chronicles it says: "and your people for the war."
Cross-references: II Kings 3:7; II Chronicles 18:3
And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel: ‘Inquire, I pray you, at the word of Hashem today.’
verse value 2593
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 39 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "as·the·day" (כַיּ֖וֹם, 4 letters) and the longest is "Jehoshaphat" (יְהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "inquire·please" (דְּרׇשׁ־נָ֥א). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "word·of" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Israel', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֥אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יְהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט [Jehoshaphat] (410) + אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ [to·king] (121) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל [Israel] (541) + דְּרׇשׁ־נָ֥א [inquire·please] (555) + כַיּ֖וֹם [as·the·day] (76) + אֶת־דְּבַ֥ר [word·of] (607) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2593.
Ralbag
“Inquire now, this day, of the word of GOD.” Now, Jehoshaphat, because he was doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord, did not agree to do anything except according to the word of the Lord.
Metzudat David
Inquire, I pray, today. Meaning: if you are not accustomed to inquire of the word of the Lord, behold, inquire now.
Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them: ‘Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?’ And they said: ‘Go up; for Hashem will deliver it into the hand of the king.’
verse value 4892
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 92 letters. The shortest word is "man" (אִישׁ֒, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·prophets" (אֶֽת־הַנְּבִיאִים֮, 9 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "about·four" (כְּאַרְבַּ֣ע), "shall·I·go" (הַאֵלֵ֞ךְ), "against·Ramoth" (עַל־רָמֹ֥ת). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "against·Ramoth" (root על, 127x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'or·shall·I·forbear', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 6 words.
Metzudat David
The prophets. Prophets of Baal.
And the Lord will give. They said in the name of the Lord before Jehoshaphat, so that he would think they are prophets of the Lord.
Malbim
(6–12) The Questions: Why did they not initially prophesy with the words “Thus says the Lord” until afterwards? And why did they subsequently repeat their prophecy a second time? And why did they attach their statement to “Let the Lord give” (using the name Adonai), and afterwards phrase it as “Let the Eternal give” (using the name YHWH)?
About four hundred men — the prophets of Asherah were (18:19), who were not killed by Elijah (there, v. 40). And the Lord gives: whenever in this book it mentions the matter of the Lord, it mentions the Name YHWH, and all other names were at that time directed toward other powers. Likewise, in Chronicles it is written, "And God gave into the hand of the king," which was directed toward "God" and other powers. Therefore, they did not say now, "Go up to the heights of Gilead," because prophecy that comes through sorcery does not see everything clearly, and they did not see to which place he would go.
But Jehoshaphat said: ‘Is there not here besides a prophet of Hashem, that we might inquire of him?’
verse value 2029
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "here" (פֹּ֥ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "Jehoshaphat" (יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "nothing" (הַאֵ֨ין), "and·let·us·inquire" (וְנִדְרְשָׁ֖ה). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "of·Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "prophet" (root נביא, 49x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'still', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ [and·said] (257) + יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט [Jehoshaphat] (410) + הַאֵ֨ין [nothing] (66) + פֹּ֥ה [here] (85) + נָבִ֛יא [prophet] (63) + לַֽיהֹוָ֖ה [of·Hashem] (56) + ע֑וֹד [still] (80) + וְנִדְרְשָׁ֖ה [and·let·us·inquire] (565) + מֵאֹתֽוֹ [of·him] (447) = 2029.
Rashi
“Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here?” It was transmitted to me that two prophets do not prophesy in the same language, and yet all of these speak in the same language (Sanhedrin 89a).
Radak
"Is there no longer a prophet of the LORD here?" That is to say, these are not [true prophets] of the LORD — for Jehoshaphat recognized that they were prophets of Baal or of Asherah. He did not say explicitly that they were false prophets, out of respect for Ahab, deferring to him; rather he said, "Is there no longer a prophet of the LORD here?" And in the words of our Sages, of blessed memory: when Jehoshaphat said, "Is there no longer a prophet of the LORD here?", Ahab said to him, "All these are prophets of the LORD." Jehoshaphat said to him, "Thus have I received a tradition from the house of my father: one style may serve several prophets, but no two prophets prophesy in the same style. Obadiah said, 'The pride of your heart has deceived you'; Jeremiah said, 'Your horror has deceived you, the pride of your heart' — and all these [prophets] said one thing: 'Go up, and the LORD will give it into the king's hand.'" It turns out there is no substance in their words.
Ralbag
“Is there not yet another prophet of GOD here, that we may inquire of him?” It is fitting that it not escape his notice that Jehoshaphat had already perceived that those four hundred prophets were not prophets of the Lord. For if he had considered them to be prophets of the Lord, it would have been fitting for him to rely on the words of one of them. And if he did not rely on them despite there being four hundred, then it would certainly not have been fitting for him to rely on them if there were yet one more among them. Therefore, it appears that he inquired whether there was still a prophet of the Lord, so that he might hear the words of a prophet of the Lord regarding this matter. And behold, the word "still" (od) refers back to his statement "Is there a prophet here," and not to his statement "Is there a prophet of the Lord here."
Metzudat David
Is there not here a prophet of the Lord yet. Meaning: and have they all been killed by Jezebel, and is there no prophet of the Lord left? And our Sages of blessed memory said (Sanhedrin 89a): that Jehoshaphat discerned that they are not prophets of the Lord; for they all spoke in one style; and so is not the way of the prophets of the Lord.
Malbim
“Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here?” means: Since all of these are not prophets of the Lord, is there not even one prophet of the Lord remaining? And our Sages of blessed memory already stated that he discerned that they were false prophets because they all prophesied in the same style.
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: ‘There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Hashem, Micaiah the son of Imlah; but I hate him; for he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.’ And Jehoshaphat said: ‘Let not the king say so.’
verse value 6309
Insights
Verse structure: 23 words, 110 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֠י, 2 letters) and the longest is "king·Israel" (מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֣ל, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "man·one" (אִישׁ־אֶחָ֡ד), "I·hate·him" (שְׂנֵאתִ֗יו), "not·he·would·prophesy" (לֹא־יִתְנַבֵּ֨א). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings). First appearance of the root מיכיהו ("Micaiah") in I Kings. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'son·of·Imlah', dividing the verse into phrases of 18 and 5 words.
Rashi
"but if evil." Because it states, "Since you sent away the man of My ban," etc.
Radak
"Only evil." But did he not prophesy good about him, when he said to him, "Have you seen all this multitude? Behold, I will give it into your hand"? And so he told him a second time, as we have written. For our Sages, of blessed memory, said this prophet was Micaiah son of Imlah. Rather, the explanation is that he prophesied about him a third time: "Your life shall be for his life, and your people for his people" — he prophesied to him that he would fall into the hand of the king of Aram. From that day on, [Ahab] hated him, and said that he would not prophesy good about him — that is to say, [Ahab meant] "I know that he will not prophesy good for me."
Ralbag
For he would not prophesy concerning him good, but only evil. It seems that Micaiah son of Imlah was the prophet who disguised himself with ashes and prophesied evil to him concerning his sending Ben-Hadad away in peace.
Metzudat David
To inquire. That you can inquire of the Lord from him.
For he will not prophesy good concerning me. From the time I released Ben-hadad.
Let not the king say , etc. For what the Lord puts in his mouth, that he will speak.
Malbim
There is still one prophet for the Lord, yet I have hated him because he does not prophesy. This [the king] knew that his [Micaiah's] prophecies had thus far been unfavorable to him; therefore, in Chronicles he said that he does not prophesy good tidings for me, for all his days he [prophesies] only evil. From this, he concluded that even now he would not prophesy good. [The text responds:] Do not say so, for the prophet of the Lord is only one who speaks that which God places in his mouth.
Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said: ‘Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah.’
verse value 2057
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 43 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אֶחָ֑ד) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "king" (מֶ֣לֶךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·official" (אֶל־סָרִ֖יס, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "to·official" (אֶל־סָרִ֖יס), "haste" (מַהֲרָ֖ה). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'one', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּקְרָא֙ [and·called] (317) + מֶ֣לֶךְ [king] (90) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + אֶל־סָרִ֖יס [to·official] (361) + אֶחָ֑ד [one] (13) + וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מַהֲרָ֖ה [haste] (250) + מִיכָ֥יְהוּ [Micaiah] (91) + בֶן־יִמְלָֽה [son·of·Imlah] (137) = 2057.
Radak
"Hasten, Michaiah son of Imlah." The Targum of Jonathan [renders it]: "תבע" — [he] summoned Michaiah — and translates [the phrase]: "and he foretells future things for them," and "reveals what is destined for them."
Metzudat David
Hasten. Say to Micaiah that he come quickly.
Metzudat Zion
Saris. An official; likewise (Esther 1:10) 'the seven officials' (shivat hasarisim):
Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in a threshing-floor, at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.
verse value 5355
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 87 letters. The shortest word is "man" (אִ֨ישׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·the·prophets" (וְכׇ֨ל־הַנְּבִיאִ֔ים, 10 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "clothed" (מְלֻבָּשִׁ֤ים), "clothes" (בְּגָדִים֙), "in·threshing-floor·of" (בְּגֹ֔רֶן). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·king·of" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings); "before·them" (root פנים, 95x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Samaria', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Radak
"Clothed with garments." The explanation is: beautiful garments. For since it says "clothed," we already know that they were not naked; rather, the meaning is that they wore the beautiful garments of royalty. And similarly, [in the phrase] "men shall die" — meaning: young men — the word "men" is used elsewhere to mean old men [i.e., the plain word takes its precise sense from context, just as "garments" here specifically means beautiful ones].
"at the threshing floor." Explanation: "and they sat at the threshing floor." And so it is stated in Chronicles: "and they sat at the threshing floor." And the threshing floor was the gate of Samaria. Perhaps out of fear of their enemies, since they were constantly at war with Aram, they made threshing floors adjacent to the city. And in the words of our Sages of blessed memory, it is said: "Was the gate of Samaria really a threshing floor? Rather, was it not like a threshing floor?" As it is taught: "The Sanhedrin was like a semi-circular threshing floor, so that they could see one another." And the meaning is that Ahab and Jehoshaphat, along with their respective retinues, sat in a semi-circular arrangement like a threshing floor.
They prophesied before them. They would prophesy with this prophecy or with other words, prophesying for the moment, but not with the Divine Spirit, for they were false prophets, and they would boast in the prophecy of God, as Zedekiah said: “Thus says the Lord,” and the other prophets said, “The Lord has given into the hand of the king.” And Zedekiah did even more to validate his prophecy: he made for himself horns of iron as an allegory, as it is stated in Jeremiah: “Make you bonds and bars, and put them on your neck.”
Ralbag
"Clothed in garments." That is to say, they were clothed in royal garments. And behold, Micaiah answered Ahab: "Go up, and the Lord shall deliver [it] into the hand of the king," for it appears that they had indeed already succeeded in the battle. And even though Ahab had already died there, what Micaiah had told him was indeed true, but his answer was not sufficient according to the question, for he had still not revealed whether evil would befall Ahab in this matter or not. And it is not fitting for us to think that Micaiah told him a falsehood in the name of the Lord, for he would already be liable to death for this, as has been explained in the Torah.
Metzudat David
Robes. Meaning: garments of kingship.
In the threshing floor at the entrance. In the threshing floor standing opposite the entrance of the gate.
Malbim
"And the king" — behold, until now the prophecy was not in the name of the Lord; only when the angel went to summon Micaiah did the spirit fall upon the prophets in the presence of the two kings who were seated on their thrones. Even though they were not prepared for prophecy, neither on account of the place — for they were in the threshing floor and at the gate of the city, a place of public assembly, whereas prophecy requires seclusion — nor on account of their company, since they were in the presence of the kings while the kings were seated in their royal garments and on their royal thrones, such that the fear of the king would have prevented them from secluding themselves with their spirit — nevertheless, the spirit fell upon them (which is the spirit of falsehood that went forth from before the Lord, as will be explained later), and all the prophets prophesied before them in the presence of the kings.
Cross-references: I Samuel 14:2; II Chronicles 18:9
And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said: ‘Thus says Hashem: With these shall you gore the Arameans, until they be consumed.’
verse value 3731
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 59 letters. Notable word values: "for·himself" (ל֛וֹ) = 36, double chai. Verse gematria: 3731 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "for·himself" (ל֛וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "son·of·Chenaanah" (בֶֽן־כְּנַעֲנָ֖ה, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "Zedekiah" (צִדְקִיָּ֥ה), "horns·of" (קַרְנֵ֣י), "in·these" (בְּאֵ֛לֶּה). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "and·did" (root עשה, 143x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'iron', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיַּ֥עַשׂ [and·did] (386) + ל֛וֹ [for·himself] (36) + צִדְקִיָּ֥ה [Zedekiah] (209) + בֶֽן־כְּנַעֲנָ֖ה [son·of·Chenaanah] (247) + קַרְנֵ֣י [horns·of] (360) + בַרְזֶ֑ל [iron] (239) + וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ [and·said] (257) + כֹּה־אָמַ֣ר [thus·says] (266) + יְהֹוָ֔ה [Hashem] (26) + בְּאֵ֛לֶּה [in·these] (38) + תְּנַגַּ֥ח [you·shall·gore] (461) + אֶת־אֲרָ֖ם [the·Arameans] (642) + עַד־כַּלֹּתָֽם [until·consuming·them] (564) = 3731.
Metzudat David
Zedekiah. He was of the prophets of Baal.
With these. Meaning: strengthen yourself to overcome them, as though you gore them with horns of iron. And so was the way of the prophets of the Lord, to make similes and examples for the words of prophecy.
Metzudat Zion
Tangach. From the language of goring and striking:
Malbim
"And he made": The first upon whom the spirit of falsehood rested was Zedekiah, until he made for him horns of iron, as if through him the conduit and source for all [such false prophets] was opened, and after him:
And all the prophets prophesied so, saying: ‘Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for Hashem will deliver it into the hand of the king.’
verse value 2242
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "so" (כֵּ֖ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·all·the·prophets" (וְכׇ֨ל־הַנְּבִאִ֔ים, 9 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·all·the·prophets" (וְכׇ֨ל־הַנְּבִאִ֔ים), "spokesman" (נִבְּאִ֥ים). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "saying" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'saying', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְכׇ֨ל־הַנְּבִאִ֔ים [and·all·the·prophets] (164) + נִבְּאִ֥ים [spokesman] (103) + כֵּ֖ן [so] (70) + לֵאמֹ֑ר [saying] (271) + עֲלֵ֞ה [go·up] (105) + רָמֹ֤ת [Ramoth] (640) + גִּלְעָד֙ [gilead] (107) + וְהַצְלַ֔ח [and·prosper] (139) + וְנָתַ֥ן [and·He·will·give] (506) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + בְּיַ֥ד [in·hand·of] (16) + הַמֶּֽלֶךְ [king] (95) = 2242.
Malbim
All the prophets prophesied in this manner, and they elaborated on their words now in what is stated, “Ascend the heights of Gilead,” whereas initially they said simply “Ascend.” B. Initially they said “He will give” in the future tense, and here they say “He gave,” to clarify that it is also in the past tense, for the Lord has already given it into his hand, for His decree is the deed. C. That they said “The Lord gave,” indicating that the prophecy was in the name of the Tetragrammaton.
And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying: ‘Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good to the king with one mouth, let your word, I pray you, be like the word of one of them, and speak you good.’
verse value 3781
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 95 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אַחַ֥ד) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "spoke" (דִּבֶּ֤ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·prophets" (הַנְּבִיאִ֛ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 226: your·word, as·word·of. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·the·messenger" (וְהַמַּלְאָ֞ךְ), "that·went" (אֲשֶׁר־הָלַ֣ךְ), "to·call" (לִקְרֹ֣א). The root דבר appears 6 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·went" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "saying" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "let·it·be·please" (root היה, 196x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·king', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 8 words.
Metzudat David
With one mouth. In one agreement, the prophets prophesy good upon the king. Therefore prophesy like them for good.
And Micaiah said: ‘As Hashem lives, what Hashem says to me, that will I speak.’
verse value 2256
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 42 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֛ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "and·surely" (כִּ֠י, 2 letters) and the longest is "Micaiah" (מִיכָ֑יְהוּ, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "what" (אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֨ר). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "what" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "as·Hashem·lives" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Micaiah', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֖אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מִיכָ֑יְהוּ [Micaiah] (91) + חַי־יְהֹוָ֕ה [as·Hashem·lives] (44) + כִּ֠י [and·surely] (30) + אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֨ר [what] (902) + יֹאמַ֧ר [will·say] (251) + יְהֹוָ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + אֵלַ֖י [to·me] (41) + אֹת֥וֹ [it] (407) + אֲדַבֵּֽר [I·will·speak] (207) = 2256.
And when he was come to the king, the king said to him: ‘Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear?’ And he answered him: ‘Go up, and prosper; and Hashem will deliver it into the hand of the king.’
verse value 3001
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 87 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "go·up" (עֲלֵ֣ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·king" (אֶל־הַמֶּ֒לֶךְ֒, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "shall·we·go" (הֲנֵלֵ֞ךְ), "to·Ramoth" (אֶל־רָמֹ֥ת), "or·shall·we·forbear" (אִם־נֶחְדָּ֑ל). The root איל appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'or·shall·we·forbear', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 8 words.
Rashi
Go up and succeed. He did not say to him in the Name of the Lord:
"And He shall give." May He grant it into the hand of the king.
Radak
"Go up and succeed." [Micaiah] spoke to him mockingly, in the manner of the [false] prophets, and did NOT say to him, "Thus says the Lord" — for he had sworn that he would speak only what the Lord would say. The king of Judah (Jehoshaphat) recognized from his tone that he was speaking to him in a mocking way; therefore he [Ahab] said to him, "How many times must I adjure you?" And once he had adjured him, he told him the truth in the name of the Lord.
Metzudat David
Go and prosper. He said to him of his own accord in a blessing: may you succeed and the Lord deliver them into your hand. Or: he said in mockery and teasing, in the style of the prophets of Baal.
And the king said to him: ‘How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of Hashem?’
verse value 3569
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 56 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "I" (אֲנִ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "adjuring·you" (מַשְׁבִּיעֶ֑ךָ, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "until·how·many" (עַד־כַּמֶּ֥ה), "adjuring·you" (מַשְׁבִּיעֶ֑ךָ), "not·you·shall·speak" (לֹֽא־תְדַבֵּ֥ר). The root אל appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'adjuring·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵלָיו֙ [to·him] (47) + הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ [king] (95) + עַד־כַּמֶּ֥ה [until·how·many] (139) + פְעָמִ֖ים [times] (240) + אֲנִ֣י [I] (61) + מַשְׁבִּיעֶ֑ךָ [adjuring·you] (442) + אֲ֠שֶׁ֠ר [that] (501) + לֹֽא־תְדַבֵּ֥ר [not·you·shall·speak] (637) + אֵלַ֛י [to·me] (41) + רַק־אֱמֶ֖ת [only·truth] (741) + בְּשֵׁ֥ם [in·name·of] (342) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 3569.
Ralbag
And the king said to him, "How many times must I adjure you?" This means: How many times will I need to adjure you that you shall speak to me only the true and correct word in the name of the Lord? Now, Ahab used to adjure him because he knew that the prophets of the Lord hated him, since Jezebel had killed the prophets of the Lord. And even though it was not possible for them to utter a falsehood, it was still possible that they would withhold information that would harm the king. Likewise, in this instance, it was possible that he withheld what would harm the king, because he did not inform him of what would befall him personally there. And this is not the [full] truth relative to the question, since he fell short of answering as he should have. And even though there was no falsehood in what he did inform him, nevertheless, Micaiah answered him with what will be explained from it, namely that the king would die in battle. And he did not wish to state this explicitly, in order to honor the monarchy.
Metzudat David
How many times. Meaning: I swear to you now; not once and not twice, but how many times -- that you will speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord; and not a lie in mockery and teasing; and not of your own accord in a blessing. And on account that the prophet did not say 'thus says the Lord, go and prosper,' he discerned that it is not the word of the Lord; and he was doubtful whether he said in mockery, whether he said in a blessing.
Malbim
"How many times" — for he [the king] sensed that he [Micaiah] should have said, "Thus says the Lord," and saw that he was merely putting him off. And he made him swear: 1. that he would speak only truth; 2. only in the name of the Lord, not his own words. For regarding what is written, "Go up and prosper," we can say that he told him in the manner of a blessing, blessing him that he should succeed and that the Lord should grant success into his hand.
And he said: ‘I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and Hashem said: These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace.’
verse value 5450
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 85 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 5450 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·Israel" (אֶת־כׇּל־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "scattered" (נְפֹצִ֣ים), "to·the·mountains" (אֶל־הֶהָרִ֔ים), "as·the·flock" (כַּצֹּ֕אן). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'pasturing', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Rashi
These have no master. You alone will die in battle, as it is stated (below, verse 31): "You shall not fight against small or great, but only against the king of Israel." And even though it is stated (above, 20:42): "And your people shall be under his people," a drop that came forth from that righteous man, Micaiah, whom his companion struck and wounded, served as an atonement for all Israel. Thus it is expounded in the Aggadah (Jerusalem Talmud, Sanhedrin 10:5):
Radak
They shall return each man to his house in peace. And behold, we saw above that the prophet said to him, "your people in place of his people." It is possible that this was so in other wars, but in this war none of Israel died — yet since the battle lasted all day, it is impossible that none of them died; rather, only a few died of Israel, and many died of Aram. This is what is meant by "in peace."
Metzudat David
I saw. In the vision of prophecy.
They have no shepherd. To lead them together.
There are no masters to these. Meaning: since they have no master, they will return, etc. And as though saying that their king Ahab will die; and the people will return in peace.
Metzudat Zion
Nofutzim. Scattered:
El haharim. Upon the mountains:
Malbim
The Questions: If Micaiah had a prophecy from the Lord, why did he wish to conceal it? And a prophet who suppresses his prophecy is liable to death. And what was the matter with this vision, and the counsel that the Lord devised to entice Ahab? And what was the matter with the spirit that became a spirit of falsehood? And the general matter is a difficult and obscure one.
"I saw" — meaning: no word came to me from the Lord, for if it had, he would not have been permitted to conceal his prophecy; rather, I was a watcher and I saw a vision, from which it could be understood that the king would die and the people would be saved.
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: ‘Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?’
verse value 3051
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "but" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "king·Israel" (מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "I·utteranced" (אָמַ֣רְתִּי), "not·he·will·prophesy" (לוֹא־יִתְנַבֵּ֥א). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "concerning·me" (root על, 127x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Jehoshaphat', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֥אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [king·Israel] (631) + אֶל־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֑ט [to·Jehoshaphat] (441) + הֲלוֹא֙ [did·not] (42) + אָמַ֣רְתִּי [I·utteranced] (651) + אֵלֶ֔יךָ [to·you] (61) + לוֹא־יִתְנַבֵּ֥א [not·he·will·prophesy] (500) + עָלַ֛י [concerning·me] (110) + ט֖וֹב [good] (17) + כִּ֥י [but] (30) + אִם־רָֽע [but·evil] (311) = 3051.
Ralbag
Have I not said to you that he will not prophesy good concerning you, but only evil? Now, Micaiah brought some suspicion upon himself by his own words; except that what he possibly concealed from Jehoshaphat was that he was [indeed] a prophet. Nevertheless, Ahab already feared the words of Micaiah and changed his garment in a manner so that he would not be recognized as king, in order to escape from what Micaiah had prophesied against him, for he thought that his prophecy was that the army of Aram would not aim to kill anyone except the king of Israel, and when they would not recognize him, he would escape this fate.
Metzudat David
Did I not tell you , etc. Meaning: out of hatred he says so; and it is not the word of the Lord.
And he said: ‘Therefore hear you the word of Hashem. I saw Hashem sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right hand and on his left.
verse value 3899
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 69 letters. The shortest word is "therefore" (לָכֵ֖ן, 3 letters) and the longest is "word·of·Hashem" (דְּבַר־יְהֹוָ֑ה, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·all·the·host·of" (וְכׇל־צְבָ֤א), "right" (מִֽימִינ֖וֹ), "and·on·his·left" (וּמִשְּׂמֹאלֽוֹ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "word·of·Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "by·him" (root על, 127x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'word·of·Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 10 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + לָכֵ֖ן [therefore] (100) + שְׁמַ֣ע [hear] (410) + דְּבַר־יְהֹוָ֑ה [word·of·Hashem] (232) + רָאִ֤יתִי [I·have·seen] (621) + אֶת־יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (427) + יֹשֵׁ֣ב [dwelling] (312) + עַל־כִּסְא֔וֹ [on·his·throne] (187) + וְכׇל־צְבָ֤א [and·all·the·host·of] (149) + הַשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ [heaven] (395) + עֹמֵ֣ד [standing] (114) + עָלָ֔יו [by·him] (116) + מִֽימִינ֖וֹ [right] (156) + וּמִשְּׂמֹאלֽוֹ [and·on·his·left] (423) = 3899.
Rashi
"From His right hand and from His left." Does God above have a left side? Is it not stated (Psalms 118:16), "The right hand of the Lord is exalted; the right hand of the Lord does valiantly"; and (Exodus 15:6), "Your right hand, O Lord, is majestic in power; Your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy"? Rather, these stand to the right and these stand to the left: those on the right argue in favor of acquittal, and those on the left argue in favor of guilt. (Midrash Tanhuma, Exodus 18)
Radak
"I saw the Lord sitting upon His throne." This is like a parable: Just as a king sits upon his throne, and his servants stand before him, to his right and to his left.
The host of heaven. They are the angels:
"Standing beside Him." Near to Him; and likewise "those standing beside him," and other cases similar to them.
"From His right hand and from His left hand." This is a metaphorical expression, and in the words of our Sages of blessed memory: Is there truly a right and a left above? Rather, those [angels] on the right argue in favor of acquittal, and those on the left argue in favor of guilt.
Ralbag
"I saw the LORD sitting on His throne." This statement is made by way of parable, and its entire intent is that God directed the flow of the emanation upon the diviners as an instrument to bring down Ahab at Ramoth-Gilead, for there is a deficiency in divination, as we have already explained in the second [treatise] of [Ralbag's own] Wars of the Lord (Milchamot Hashem). And since divination comes from the emanation flowing from the host of heaven, as we explained there, it is said that all the host of heaven were standing beside Him. And since some of what emanates from them is directed by specific intent, while some of it is not directed except by way of necessity—and this is that which emanates from them of evils—it is said that the host of heaven were standing beside Him, on His right and on His left. This is because that which emanates from them with specific intent is from the right hand of the Name, blessed be He, and the remainder is from His left. Now, that which was lacking from them in that divination was the death of Ahab, which was specifically intended by God, as He had previously decreed that his soul would be given in exchange for the soul of Ben-Hadad.
Metzudat David
Therefore. Meaning: since you suspected me of this, I will explain to you the source of the matter; and you will discern that the truth is with me.
On his right hand and on his left. Our Sages of blessed memory said (Midrash Tanhuma, Exodus 18): on his right hand -- a hint to those who teach merit; and on his left -- a hint to those who teach guilt.
Metzudat Zion
Alav. Adjacent to it:
Malbim
Therefore, according to the simple meaning of this vision, it is told by way of parable: When the upper decree issued from the Lord that Ahab would fall at the heights of Gilead, the heavenly host—the agents of Divine providence, prepared to fulfill the decree of the Lord—stood around the Lord to carry out His decree. And through the "spirit," meaning the will and spirit of Ahab to go out to war, the false prophets prophesied according to his desire that he would ascend and succeed; and this was the cause of his downfall. And according to the form [of the vision], behold, the sin itself descends and acts as the accuser, and it is the sin that punishes the sinner through the very hand of his sin. And Ahab, who had committed great abominations, the prophet saw that the Lord was seated on a throne of judgment to judge him, and all the heavenly host were standing around Him. For there is a host standing to His right, which are the angels of miraculous providence, attributed to the right side, and a host to His left, which are the angels of natural providence, attributed to the left side.
And Hashem said: Who shall entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead. And one said: On this manner; and another said: On that manner.
verse value 2814
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 56 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "who?" (מִ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "Ahab" (אֶת־אַחְאָ֔ב, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "will·entice" (יְפַתֶּה֙), "Ahab" (אֶת־אַחְאָ֔ב). The root אמר appears 3 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "this" (root זה, 75x in I Kings). First appearance of the root פתה ("will·entice") in I Kings. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gilead', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 6 words.
Radak
And He said, "Who shall entice Ahab?" These words are a great perplexity to one who understands them literally. The truth is that God aroused the spirit of the false prophets to entice Ahab to go to Ramoth-Gilead, because he had become liable to death from Heaven. It was not that prophecy came to any of them, but rather an inspiration of spirit and a desire to speak to Ahab these words. This is what Micaiah said: "Behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours," and "the Lord has spoken evil concerning you," and the rest of the words, such as "This one says thus, and this one says thus," and "The spirit went out and said, 'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.'" All these are rhetorical expressions. Micaiah stated them by way of proposing a scenario, not that Micaiah actually saw or heard these things, for the spirit of prophecy is nothing but truth in the name of the Lord. Nevertheless, I will write according to the homiletical interpretation, as is also written in the Targum of the Tosefta: "And the spirit went out" — the spirit of Naboth went out and stood before the Lord and said, "I beg of You, let my blood be avenged, for I am able to deceive him and destroy him from the world." And the Lord said to him, "By what means are you able?" And he said, "I will go out and be a lying spirit in Zedekiah son of Chenaanah and in the rest of his false prophets." And because it was not the desire of the Holy One, blessed be He, that His servants perform falsehood, and He did not desire it, He said to Naboth, "Since you have relied upon falsehood, go out from My academy and do your will" — because it was not pleasing before Him to speak lies. And the great scholar Maimonides, of blessed memory, wrote thus: When the sins and merits of Ahab were arranged before the God of spirits, no sin was found that obligated him [to death], nor was there any other matter weighed against it, except the blood of Naboth, as it is said: "And the spirit went out and stood before the Lord," etc. And the spirit is the spirit of Naboth.
Metzudat David
Who will entice. Since the judgment was decreed for guilt, he said: who will entice him to go up to war, to receive there the punishment [and all these matters were said in a parable, to explain to the ear; in the manner of the habits of people].
And this one said so. Which of them said in this manner and which in another.
Malbim
And the Lord said, “Who shall entice Ahab?” That is to say: since his sins are numerous, which specific sin will the angel of punishment use to bring him down, such that the cause of his downfall will be that very sin? And because the sinner destroys the Divine governance—which is His host—He asked, “Who from among My host will deceive him?” And each one said, “I will do so in this way,” and another said, “I will do so in that way.” For through his sins he touched the holy host and all the orders of governance, until they were all prepared against him for a day of evil.
And there came forth the spirit, and stood before Hashem, and said: I will entice him.
verse value 1884
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "I" (אֲנִ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·stood" (וַֽיַּעֲמֹד֙, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "I·will·entice·him" (אֲפַתֶּ֑נּוּ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "to·him" (root אל, 102x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·will·entice·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּצֵ֣א [and·came·forth] (107) + הָר֗וּחַ [the·spirit] (219) + וַֽיַּעֲמֹד֙ [and·stood] (130) + לִפְנֵ֣י [to·face·of] (170) + יְהֹוָ֔ה [Hashem] (26) + וַיֹּ֖אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֲנִ֣י [I] (61) + אֲפַתֶּ֑נּוּ [I·will·entice·him] (537) + וַיֹּ֧אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יְהֹוָ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + אֵלָ֖יו [to·him] (47) + בַּמָּֽה [what] (47) = 1884.
Rashi
And the spirit went out. The spirit of Naboth (Sanhedrin 89a):
Metzudat David
The spirit. Our Sages of blessed memory said (Sanhedrin 89a): the spirit of Naboth the Jezreelite.
Malbim
And he went out — but after the blood of Naboth, which he shed through false testimony, was the sin most ready to corrupt him; therefore, the spirit of Naboth went out and stood before the Lord to demand his judgment, and said, "I will tempt him, and through me he shall be punished." And the Lord asked, "In what manner?" meaning that the punishment must be measure for measure.
And Hashem said to him: Wherewith? And he said: I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And He said: You shall entice him, and shall prevail also; go forth, and do so.
verse value 4014
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 55 letters. Verse gematria: 4014 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "go·out" (צֵ֖א, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·his·prophets" (כׇּל־נְבִיאָ֑יו, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "I·will·go·out" (אֵצֵא֙), "all·his·prophets" (כׇּל־נְבִיאָ֑יו), "you·shall·entice" (תְּפַתֶּה֙). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "and·I·will·be" (root היה, 196x in I Kings); "and·do·thus" (root עשה, 143x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'all·his·prophets', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֗אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵצֵא֙ [I·will·go·out] (92) + וְהָיִ֙יתִי֙ [and·I·will·be] (441) + ר֣וּחַ [spirit·of] (214) + שֶׁ֔קֶר [lie] (600) + בְּפִ֖י [in·mouth·of] (92) + כׇּל־נְבִיאָ֑יו [all·his·prophets] (129) + וַיֹּ֗אמֶר [and·said] (257) + תְּפַתֶּה֙ [you·shall·entice] (885) + וְגַם־תּוּכָ֔ל [and·also·you·shall·prevail] (505) + צֵ֖א [go·out] (91) + וַעֲשֵׂה־כֵֽן [and·do·thus] (451) = 4014.
Metzudat David
And I will be a lying spirit. Meaning: I will speak lies in the mouth of all his prophets, to assure him of success.
You shall entice and also prevail. In this you will entice him; and also you will overcome him; for he will be deceived and will go to war.
Go out and do so. He returned to hasten him on the matter.
Metzudat Zion
Tuchal. From the language of ability:
Malbim
And he answered: "Just as I went out—my spirit—and was put to death through false testimony that Ahab arranged, [so] this falsehood shall be poured out upon his prophets, until even they shall declare falsehoods to him, and thereby he shall fall—measure for measure, just as I fell." And the Lord consented to this punishment, for it was fitting to his character, and said: 'You shall seduce him, and you shall also be able [to do so],' for this punishment is prepared for him by virtue of his transgression. 'Go out and do so.' This means that since the Lord's seal is truth, you cannot be a spirit of falsehood until you go forth from My domain, as our Sages of blessed memory stated.
Now therefore, behold, Hashem has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; and Hashem has spoken evil concerning you.’
verse value 2795
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 49 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2795 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "they" (הִנֵּ֨ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·your·prophets" (כׇּל־נְבִיאֶ֣יךָ, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "all·your·prophets" (כׇּל־נְבִיאֶ֣יךָ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "has·spoken" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings); "concerning·you" (root על, 127x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'these', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעַתָּ֗ה [now] (481) + הִנֵּ֨ה [they] (60) + נָתַ֤ן [gave] (500) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + ר֣וּחַ [spirit·of] (214) + שֶׁ֔קֶר [lie] (600) + בְּפִ֖י [in·mouth·of] (92) + כׇּל־נְבִיאֶ֣יךָ [all·your·prophets] (143) + אֵ֑לֶּה [these] (36) + וַֽיהֹוָ֔ה [and·Hashem] (32) + דִּבֶּ֥ר [has·spoken] (206) + עָלֶ֖יךָ [concerning·you] (130) + רָעָֽה [evil] (275) = 2795.
Metzudat David
Behold, the Lord has given. Meaning: by providence came the matter.
And the Lord has spoken. But the Lord has spoken against you, evil, as I will speak in the name of the Lord.
Malbim
And now there is no contradiction between my prophecy and the prophecy of your prophets, for what it states that they saw that you would succeed, this is the cause of your punishment, for thereby a spirit of falsehood was placed in the mouths of your prophets, and this came about because the Lord spoke evil against you to punish you for having killed Naboth through false testimony.
Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and smote Micaiah on the check, and said: ‘Which way went the spirit of Hashem from me to speak to you?’
verse value 3373
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 66 letters. The shortest word is "passed" (עָבַ֧ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "Micaiah" (אֶת־מִיכָ֖יְהוּ, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "Zedekiah" (צִדְקִיָּ֣הוּ), "on·the·cheek" (עַל־הַלֶּ֑חִי), "spirit·of·Hashem" (רֽוּחַ־יְהֹוָ֛ה). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "spirit·of·Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "to·speak" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'on·the·cheek', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיִּגַּשׁ֙ [and·approached] (319) + צִדְקִיָּ֣הוּ [Zedekiah] (215) + בֶֽן־כְּנַעֲנָ֔ה [son·of·Chenaanah] (247) + וַיַּכֶּ֥ה [and·struck] (41) + אֶת־מִיכָ֖יְהוּ [Micaiah] (492) + עַל־הַלֶּ֑חִי [on·the·cheek] (153) + וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵי־זֶ֨ה [where?·this] (23) + עָבַ֧ר [passed] (272) + רֽוּחַ־יְהֹוָ֛ה [spirit·of·Hashem] (240) + מֵאִתִּ֖י [from·me] (451) + לְדַבֵּ֥ר [to·speak] (236) + אוֹתָֽךְ [you] (427) = 3373.
Rashi
"Which way did the spirit of the LORD pass?" [i.e.,] which is the way it passed. And this is an elliptical verse; in Chronicles (II 18:23) it is written: "Which is the way that it passed," etc.
Metzudat David
Which way did it pass. Meaning: which is the way it passed, etc.?
Metzudat Zion
Ha-lechi. It is the place near the eye:
Malbim
And he approached, for it was Zedekiah who was the leader among them (as stated above, verse 11), and he opened the conduit for all of them; how then did he know what we do not know?
And Micaiah said: ‘Behold, you shall see on that day, when you shall go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.’
verse value 2084
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "they" (הִנְּךָ֥, 3 letters) and the longest is "Micaiah" (מִיכָ֔יְהוּ, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "you·come" (תָּבֹ֛א), "to·be·withdrawed" (לְהֵחָבֵֽה). The root חדר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "when" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "you·come" (root בוא, 109x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'that', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מִיכָ֔יְהוּ [Micaiah] (91) + הִנְּךָ֥ [they] (75) + רֹאֶ֖ה [seeing] (206) + בַּיּ֣וֹם [in·the·day] (58) + הַה֑וּא [that] (17) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [when] (501) + תָּבֹ֛א [you·come] (403) + חֶ֥דֶר [chamber] (212) + בְּחֶ֖דֶר [in·chamber] (214) + לְהֵחָבֵֽה [to·be·withdrawed] (50) = 2084.
Radak
"to hide." It is written with a he instead of an aleph:
Ralbag
You see, on that day, he will enter room after room to hide. This refers to the fact that even though Israel succeeded in the battle, the false prophet will hide room after room on account of the death of Ahab, because he went there on the strength of his assurance.
Metzudat David
Behold, you shall see. On the day of the war you will see that so it will be; for which you will hide yourself so that you not be killed, for being the cause of all this.
Metzudat Zion
Hincha. Behold, you:
L'chava. From the language of hiding and concealment:
Malbim
"You see," he replied to him in a rhetorical manner, "you ask why, having gazed with the spirit as I did, you did not see the vision that I saw. And I will answer you: I beheld what is taking place on high at this very moment, and I saw the vision: 'The Lord sits upon His throne,' etc. But you did not pay attention to the present, only to the future—to the day when the king of Israel would be at Ramoth-Gilead; to the day when, on that day, you would hide in the chambers. It is of that day that you saw. And you see (in your prophetic vision) that future day, when you will go chamber within chamber. And in this foreseeing, the spirit of falsehood deceived you into seeing that day of victory. But regarding what is taking place in the heavens now, you did not direct your attention to see it."
Cross-references: I Kings 20:30; II Chronicles 18:24
And the king of Israel said: ‘Take Micaiah, and carry him back to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king’s son;
verse value 3230
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "take" (קַ֚ח, 2 letters) and the longest is "Micaiah" (אֶת־מִיכָ֔יְהוּ, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·return·him" (וַהֲשִׁיבֵ֖הוּ), "to·Amon" (אֶל־אָמֹ֣ן), "prince·of·the·city" (שַׂר־הָעִ֑יר). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·Amon" (root איל, 125x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'prince·of·the·city', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ [and·said] (257) + מֶ֣לֶךְ [king] (90) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + קַ֚ח [take] (108) + אֶת־מִיכָ֔יְהוּ [Micaiah] (492) + וַהֲשִׁיבֵ֖הוּ [and·return·him] (334) + אֶל־אָמֹ֣ן [to·Amon] (122) + שַׂר־הָעִ֑יר [prince·of·the·city] (785) + וְאֶל־יוֹאָ֖שׁ [and·to·Joash] (354) + בֶּן־הַמֶּֽלֶךְ [son·of·the·king] (147) = 3230.
Radak
"And return him to Amon." It appears that he had been held prisoner there on a previous occasion.
Ralbag
"And return him unto Amon, the governor of the city." This means: return him to the city and bring him there to Amon, the governor of the city.
Metzudat David
And bring him back. Perhaps he had dwelt there once; and for this reason he said: bring him back there.
Malbim
"And return him" – for he had already been imprisoned once by the commander of the city.
and say: Thus says the king: Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with scant bread and with scant water, until I come in peace.’
verse value 3213
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 59 letters. Notable word values: "I·come" (בֹּאִ֥י) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "thus" (כֹּ֚ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·feed·him" (וְהַאֲכִלֻ֜הוּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 128: oppression, oppression. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "this" (אֶת־זֶ֖ה), "imprisonment" (הַכֶּ֑לֶא), "and·feed·him" (וְהַאֲכִלֻ֜הוּ). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·you·shall·say" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "house·of" (root בית, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'imprisonment', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 8 words.
Ralbag
"And they gave him bread of affliction and water of affliction." This means that they did not provide him with sufficient provisions of bread and water, but only what would barely suffice him in a state of distress.
Metzudat David
In the prison. In the house of prisoners.
Bread of affliction. Meaning: in difficulty; only enough to sustain his soul.
Metzudat Zion
Lachatz. A matter of pressing; I mean: in restriction:
And Micaiah said: ‘If you return at all in peace, Hashem has not spoken by me.’ And he said: ‘Hear, you peoples, all of you.’
verse value 2981
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "by·me" (בִּ֑י, 2 letters) and the longest is "Micaiah" (מִיכָ֔יְהוּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·said, and·said. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "not·he·spoke" (לֹא־דִבֶּ֥ר), "peoples" (עַמִּ֥ים), "all·of·them" (כֻּלָּֽם). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "not·he·spoke" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֣אמֶר [and·said] (257) + מִיכָ֔יְהוּ [Micaiah] (91) + אִם־שׁ֤וֹב [if·return] (349) + תָּשׁוּב֙ [you·will·return] (708) + בְּשָׁל֔וֹם [in·peace] (378) + לֹא־דִבֶּ֥ר [not·he·spoke] (237) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + בִּ֑י [by·me] (12) + וַיֹּ֕אמֶר [and·said] (257) + שִׁמְע֖וּ [hear] (416) + עַמִּ֥ים [peoples] (160) + כֻּלָּֽם [all·of·them] (90) = 2981.
Radak
"The LORD has not spoken by me." [Meaning:] then you will say that the LORD did not speak through me, and that I said this of my own mind. And so did Moses our teacher, peace be upon him, say: "If these die the death of all men... then the LORD has not sent me."
"Hear, all you peoples." This is a manner of speech, like [the verse] "Be their arm every morning, our salvation too in time of trouble" [Isaiah 33:2].
Metzudat David
The Lord has not spoken in me. Meaning: then you will say that I speak from my heart, and not from the Lord.
And he said. He said his word to make heard to all; and he said: hear, O peoples, all of you. Meaning: all the tribes; for each tribe is called 'a people.'
Cross-references: I Kings 1:2; Micah 1:2; II Chronicles 18:27
So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
verse value 2030
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 34 letters. The shortest word is "Ramoth" (רָמֹ֥ת, 3 letters) and the longest is "king·Israel" (מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל, 8 letters). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·went·up" (root עלה, 60x in I Kings). Full calculation: וַיַּ֧עַל [and·went·up] (116) + מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל [king·Israel] (631) + וִיהוֹשָׁפָ֥ט [and·Jehoshaphat] (416) + מֶלֶךְ־יְהוּדָ֖ה [king·of·Judah] (120) + רָמֹ֥ת [Ramoth] (640) + גִּלְעָֽד [Gilead] (107) = 2030.
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: ‘I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put you on your robes.’ And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.
verse value 4624
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 72 letters. Verse gematria: 4624 = 68². The shortest word is "king" (מֶ֨לֶךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Jehoshaphat" (אֶל־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֗ט, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 541: Israel, Israel. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "disguise·myself" (הִתְחַפֵּשׂ֙), "put·on" (לְבַ֣שׁ), "your·robes" (בְּגָדֶ֑יךָ). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·Jehoshaphat" (root איל, 125x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·robes', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Rashi
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Disguise yourself and come into the battle.” “Disguise yourself and come”: I will disguise myself; I will change my royal garments so that they will not recognize me, for if they recognize me, they will come against me to fight.
“And you, put on your garments.” This means the garments that are already upon you, for you are not the king of Israel, but rather the king of Judah, and your people have no quarrel [with Aram].
Radak
"He disguised himself and came to battle." The king of Israel said [that he intended] to disguise himself and come to battle so that they would not recognize him. And he said to Jehoshaphat, "But you, put on your garments, for you do not need to disguise yourself; but I must disguise myself, because they are my adversaries and they hate me." And stratagems are of no avail without the will of God, for the one who drew the bow at random killed him. And the Targum [renders it]: "I will disguise myself, I will change [my appearance], and I will enter into battle."
Ralbag
“Disguise yourself and go into battle, and you, put on your garments.” Behold, [the word] “disguise yourself” is an infinitive, and the intent is that, on account of Micaiah, it was fitting for him to change his garments and go into battle in a manner such that the army of Aram would not recognize him. But you, put on your royal garments, for you have no reason to fear, since all agreed for good concerning the battle; only regarding Ahab alone did Micaiah prophesy evil.
Metzudat David
Disguise yourself and come. Meaning: it is fitting for me to disguise and come to war, unrecognized in a change of garments; so that the men of Aram not recognize me. But you can wear your garments designated for you; for you have nothing to fear if they recognize you; for the prophet did not prophesy the evil except upon me and not upon any other. And although he did not believe the prophet, nevertheless he was concerned about his words.
Metzudat Zion
Hitchafesh. A matter of changing clothing:
Malbim
"Hithchapes" (He disguised himself): 1. So that they would not recognize him and fight against him, for he feared that they had spies who had heard the matter of the prophecy, as indeed happened. 2. He feared the words of the prophet. And you might ask: If so, what benefit would there be in his disguising himself? For in this way, the prophecy's directive would be fulfilled in part, since he came under the category of a commoner, wearing the garments of a commoner, and is not a king at this moment, nor are there masters to these [i.e., "these have no master," echoing the vision]. For he reasoned that just as a heavenly directive, if fulfilled in part, has the remainder of its directive nullified—as Pharaoh saw that evil was before your faces, and it was nullified by the blood of circumcision; and Egypt saw that the savior of Israel would be stricken by water, and the decree was nullified by his being cast into the Nile, and similar cases—so he thought it would be with the words of the Lord.
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying: ‘Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.’
verse value 6140
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 75 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֚א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·great" (וְאֶת־גָּד֑וֹל, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "you·shall·fight" (תִּלָּ֣חֲמ֔וּ), "small" (אֶת־קָטֹ֖ן), "and·great" (וְאֶת־גָּד֑וֹל). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which·he·had" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "and·king·of" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "saying" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·great', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 4 words.
Radak
"You shall not fight." And his intention was not to show mercy to the people of Israel, but rather: if they were to fight against the rest of the people, and the king of Israel would see that the battle would be severe in any case, he would escape from their hands. Therefore, he said to them that all their fighting should be only against the king alone, until they would kill him, and afterward against the rest of the people.
Ralbag
"You shall not fight against the small and the great, but only against the king of Israel alone." Behold, the Name, blessed be He, placed this desire in the heart of the king of Aram, to bring down Ahab at Ramoth-Gilead. And God did not consent that even one from Israel should die in the battle. Therefore, the army of the king of Aram did not wish to strike Jehoshaphat, once they realized that he was not the king of Israel.
Malbim
“the king of Israel” – because he had spies who heard the prophet’s words.
And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said: ‘Surely it is the king of Israel’; and they turned aside to fight against him; and Jehoshaphat cried out.
verse value 4287
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "indeed" (אַ֣ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "Jehoshaphat" (אֶת־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֗ט, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "Jehoshaphat" (אֶת־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֗ט), "and·they·turned" (וַיָּסֻ֥רוּ), "and·he·cried·out" (וַיִּזְעַ֖ק). 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king·Israel" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "they·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "and·it·was" (root היה, 196x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·fight', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 2 words.
Rashi
And Jehoshaphat cried out. To the Holy One, blessed be He:
Radak
"And Jehoshaphat cried out." And they recognized his voice, that it was indeed Jehoshaphat. And this is what is meant by "And it came to pass when they saw," namely, "when they understood," similar to [the verse] "And my heart saw much wisdom and knowledge."
Metzudat David
Only the king of Israel. Meaning: this is not a commoner; but the king of Israel it is. And this is on account that they saw him in royal garments.
And he cried out. To his men to come to his aid.
Malbim
(32-33) 'And he cried out.' In Chronicles [it is written], 'And Jehoshaphat cried out, and the Lord helped him, and God diverted them away from him' — the meaning is that he cried out in prayer, and the Lord helped him by not allowing them to kill him immediately upon surrounding him. During this time, they recognized him, and God diverted them away from him so that they would not kill him, for He placed it in their hearts that there would be benefit for them in not killing the king of Judah, who had been in a covenant with them until now, even though he was now fighting against them (for this is the definition of 'diverting' everywhere it appears: to show benefit). Therefore, when the commanders of the chariots saw that it was Jehoshaphat, they turned back from pursuing him.
And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
verse value 2694
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "the·captains·of" (שָׂרֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "that·not·king" (כִּי־לֹא־מֶ֥לֶךְ, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "that·not·king" (כִּי־לֹא־מֶ֥לֶךְ), "and·they·returned" (וַיָּשׁ֖וּבוּ). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·not·king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·it·was" (root היה, 196x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֗י [and·it·was] (31) + כִּרְאוֹת֙ [when·seeing] (627) + שָׂרֵ֣י [the·captains·of] (510) + הָרֶ֔כֶב [the·chariots] (227) + כִּי־לֹא־מֶ֥לֶךְ [that·not·king] (151) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + ה֑וּא [it] (12) + וַיָּשׁ֖וּבוּ [and·they·returned] (330) + מֵאַחֲרָֽיו [from·after·him] (265) = 2694.
Metzudat David
And it came to pass when they saw , etc. For they saw that only the men of Judah came to his aid; and from this they knew that this is not the king of Israel.
And a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the lower armour and the breastplate; wherefore he said to the driver of his chariot: ‘Turn your hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am sore wounded.’
verse value 5407
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 86 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·bring·me·out" (וְהוֹצִיאֵ֥נִי, 8 letters). 12 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "he·drew" (מָשַׁ֤ךְ), "in·the·bow" (בַּקֶּ֙שֶׁת֙), "in·his·simplicity" (לְתֻמּ֔וֹ). The root בין appears 2 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'body armour', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 8 words.
Rashi
“And a man drew” – this refers to Naaman.
“In his innocence.” He did not know that he was the king of Israel.
Between the attached pieces and the armor there are coats of mail that are made of scales upon scales, as it is stated (1 Samuel 17:5): "and a scale armor," and the scales fall upon the holes of the armor and seal them, and they are called "attached pieces."
Radak
"Le-tummo" [at random]. Without intending [to hit] Ahab. And the Targum renders "le-tummo" as "le-qivleih" [opposite him] — and this does not mean opposite Ahab, but rather opposite himself, straight ahead of his own face: that he did not turn his bow to the right or to the left, but shot the arrow just as he was drawing the bow. And according to the midrash, [the word] "le-tummo" [alludes to] "tammu" [were fulfilled] — the two visions of Elijah and of Micaiah, both of whom prophesied concerning the death of Ahab.
"Between the joints and the armor." As its Targum [renders it]: "beyn divkei u-veyn shirina" [between the joints and the coat of mail].
"To his charioteer." The attendant of the chariot.
“Turn your hands.” It is written with a yod and read without a yod. The sense of the verse is that sometimes a person will need both of his hands, and it is read “your hand” because sometimes one will suffice.
"Ki hachaleti" (For I am wounded/ill). The chataf-qamats shifted onto the chet to widen [the guttural's vowel], and its meaning is "I am ill from the wound." And my father and teacher, of blessed memory, explained that he did not wish to reveal even to his charioteer that he had been struck; rather he told him that he had become ill, not that he had been struck. And this is indeed the sense of the verse, which says "I am ill" and does not say "I was struck." And Targum Yonatan [renders]: "ari mera ana" ["for I am sick"].
Ralbag
“And a certain man drew a bow at random.” This means that he did not intend to strike any specific person, but it was from God that the arrow was directed in such a way that it struck the king of Israel “between the joints” and “between the scales.” The meaning of this is that it struck him between one scale and another of the scales of the armor. And the intent in his saying “and between the scales” is an explanation of what he said “between the joints,” for the joints are the scales. Or perhaps over the scales there was another piece of armor made of pieces of iron attached and overlapping one upon the other. And it was from God that the arrow came between the joints, for otherwise the arrow could not have entered into it. And after this, it also happened that the place where it struck the scales was between the scales of the armor, in such a manner that the arrow entered into his body.
“for I was stricken”: He did not wish to say “for I was struck” so as not to weaken the heart of Israel; rather, he said that the illness had come upon him. For this reason, the king stood in his chariot before Aram all that day, so that Israel would not turn away from the battle and would strengthen themselves to fight against Aram.
Metzudat David
At random. In simplicity; not intending for Ahab. For he was not recognizable.
Between the attached pieces and the armor. This armor, its construction is of iron like a garment; and it is made full of holes; and attached to it are shell-like pieces resembling scales, as it is said (I Samuel 17:5): 'and he was clad in a coat of scale armor.' And they are made to close the holes of the armor, so that an arrow not enter through them; and these are the ones called 'attached pieces,' for they are attached to the armor. And for this reason he said that the arrow came between one of the scales and the armor, and it entered into the hole of the armor and lodged in the body.
To his charioteer. It is the one driving the chariot.
Turn your hand. To turn back.
I am ill. I became ill. And he did not reveal to the charioteer that he was struck; lest he terrify him, and it become known to all and they flee from the war.
Cross-references: II Kings 9:23; II Chronicles 18:33
And the battle increased that day; and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Arameans, and died at even; and the blood ran out of the wound into the bottom of the chariot.
verse value 3003
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 70 letters. Verse gematria: 3003 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "was" (הָיָ֧ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "battle" (הַמִּלְחָמָה֙, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "foothold" (מׇעֳמָ֛ד), "against" (נֹ֣כַח), "and·poured" (וַיִּ֥צֶק). 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·the·king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "was" (root היה, 196x in I Kings); "to·bosom" (root איל, 125x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Aram', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 6 words.
Rashi
The standing in the chariot. He strengthens himself and stands, so that the people of Israel should not recognize his wound and flee, for the beginning of a downfall is flight:
Radak
"And the battle went up." It was going and growing stronger, and there are many like it, and behold, waters are rising.
"Standing firm in the chariot." This means that he did not lean over due to the wound; rather, he strengthened himself and maintained his posture as he had been while riding in the chariot, so that the Israelites would not recognize that he was wounded and their hearts would not be weakened in the battle against Aram, like the rest of the combatants.
"Into the lap of the chariot." As its Targum [Yonatan] renders it: "Into the midst of the chariot."
Ralbag
“And the battle grew fierce.” This means that it had already become firmly established and greatly intensified.
"And the blood of the wound poured into the hollow of the chariot." The meaning is that due to the abundance of his blood being shed, it flowed down into the hollow of the chariot in which he was riding.
Metzudat David
And the battle went up. It went up higher; for the formations strengthened, formation against formation.
He stood. When he was outside the camp, he strengthened himself to stand in the chariot against Aram, so that his men would not notice him and their hearts would not melt.
The lap of the chariot. Meaning: the middle of the place, the deepest in it.
Malbim
'And it rose' — its sense is: the battle rose on that day facing Aram (that the battle arose between them), and the king was stationed in the chariot. And R. Yitzchak Abarbanel explained that the battle rose upward, because the hand of Israel was strong and rising in the battle, and they did not know of Ahab's wound until he died, and then 'the shout passed.'
And there went a cry throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying: ‘Every man to his city, and every man to his country.’
verse value 2865
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "when·entering" (כְּבֹ֥א, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·his·city" (אֶל־עִיר֖וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 317: to·his·city, and·man. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "the·ringing·cry" (הָֽרִנָּה֙), "when·entering" (כְּבֹ֥א), "sun" (הַשֶּׁ֖מֶשׁ). The root איש appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "saying" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·his·city" (root איל, 125x in I Kings); "when·entering" (root בוא, 109x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'saying', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיַּעֲבֹ֤ר [and·passed·through] (288) + הָֽרִנָּה֙ [the·ringing·cry] (260) + בַּֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה [in·the·camp] (105) + כְּבֹ֥א [when·entering] (23) + הַשֶּׁ֖מֶשׁ [sun] (645) + לֵאמֹ֑ר [saying] (271) + אִ֥ישׁ [man] (311) + אֶל־עִיר֖וֹ [to·his·city] (317) + וְאִ֥ישׁ [and·man] (317) + אֶל־אַרְצֽוֹ [to·his·land] (328) = 2865.
Radak
"And the cry passed through." As its Targum renders it: "a herald." The word "passed" is masculine, while "the voice" is feminine. The masculine form applies to the sound itself, as in "and they caused a sound to pass through the camp." Alternatively, it refers to the person who causes the sound to pass. And in the midrash: "And the cry passed" — "when the wicked perish, there is joy" (Proverbs 11:10).
"Every man to his city." This means that they should no longer fight. This proclamation went forth in the camp of Israel, or in both camps, yet Scripture does not specify who were the victors and the prevailing side—whether Israel or Aram. Since the prophet said, "They shall return, every man to his house, in peace," it appears that no Israelites died; and if any did die, they were few in number. As for what the prophet said, "and your people instead of his people," that was fulfilled in other wars.
Ralbag
And the cry passed through. The intention is that the sound of the cry passed through, and it is the shout, and its meaning is the voice of the herald.
Metzudat David
Every man to his city. And they will fight no more; for the king died.
Metzudat Zion
Harena. The voice of a herald; so Jonathan translated:
Malbim
'And it came to pass' – this means that upon Ahab's death, a sound of rejoicing went forth through the camp, as they sang out, saying, 'Every man to his city,' for all rejoiced over his defeat. And they said: What is the meaning of the verse, 'There is a song in the downfall of the wicked'? This refers to Ahab, son of Omri. 'Every man to his city' refers to the children of Israel, and 'every man to his land' refers to the children of Judah. From this was fulfilled what is said, 'these have no master; let every man return to his home in peace,' for no casualties fell from the house of Israel at that time. Therefore, they were able to go to their homes, and the enemy did not pursue them.
So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria.
verse value 2590
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "and·he·died" (וַיָּ֣מׇת, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·they·buried" (וַיִּקְבְּר֥וּ, 6 letters). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "and·he·came" (root בוא, 109x in I Kings); "and·he·died" (root מות, 59x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Samaria', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיָּ֣מׇת [and·he·died] (456) + הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ [king] (95) + וַיָּב֖וֹא [and·he·came] (25) + שֹׁמְר֑וֹן [Samaria] (596) + וַיִּקְבְּר֥וּ [and·they·buried] (324) + אֶת־הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ [the·king] (496) + בְּשֹׁמְרֽוֹן [in·Samaria] (598) = 2590.
And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood; the harlots also washed themselves there; according to the word of Hashem which He spoke.
verse value 4798
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 62 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "by" (עַ֣ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·chariot" (אֶת־הָרֶ֜כֶב, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·washed" (וַיִּשְׁטֹ֨ף), "the·chariot" (אֶת־הָרֶ֜כֶב), "and·they·lapped" (וַיָּלֹ֤קּוּ). The root דבר appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "as·word·of" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·washed', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁטֹ֨ף [and·washed] (405) + אֶת־הָרֶ֜כֶב [the·chariot] (628) + עַ֣ל [by] (100) + בְּרֵכַ֣ת [blessing] (622) + שֹׁמְר֗וֹן [Samaria] (596) + וַיָּלֹ֤קּוּ [and·they·lapped] (152) + הַכְּלָבִים֙ [the·dogs] (107) + אֶת־דָּמ֔וֹ [his·blood] (451) + וְהַזֹּנ֖וֹת [and·that·fornications] (474) + רָחָ֑צוּ [they·washed] (304) + כִּדְבַ֥ר [as·word·of] (226) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [which] (501) + דִּבֵּֽר [He·spoke] (206) = 4798.
Rashi
"And the dogs licked up his blood." And I say that this is the place where Naboth was killed, for the prophet said, "In the place where the dogs licked up Naboth's blood" (1 Kings 21:19).
“And the harlots washed themselves.” And they washed the weapons of war there of the blood; this is how Jonathan [ben Uzziel] rendered it in the Targum. And our Sages said (Sanhedrin 39b): “Ahab was a cold-tempered man, and Jezebel made for him the likeness of two harlots in his chariot.”
Radak
"And he flushed [it]." [Used impersonally, meaning] "the one who flushes," like [the impersonal use in] "and it was told to Joseph" and "and it was told to Jacob."
"And the harlots washed." [This clause] refers back to the earlier clause, "and he flushed the chariot" — meaning: they flushed the chariot, and the harlots washed, at the pool of Samaria; and flushing is a stronger [action] than washing.
“And the dogs licked up his blood.” This means the blood of Ahab, for all this blood was Ahab’s. “And the dogs licked up his blood,” as the word of the Lord which He spoke: “In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, there the dogs shall lick up your blood.” And “the harlots” – its meaning is as its Targum [renders it]: “mane zina” [vessels of war]. And in the words of our Sages of blessed memory, it is said that Ahab was cold-tempered, so Jezebel made for him images of harlots in his chariot, so that he would see them and become aroused. And furthermore, they interpreted “the harlots” as “visions.” Two visions arrived: that of Elijah and that of Micaiah. Elijah said, “In the place where the dogs licked up…” And Micaiah said, “If you return at all…” And one might ask: How did he say, “Behold, by the word of the Lord, Naboth was stoned in Jezreel, and the dogs licked up Ahab’s blood in Samaria”? And it appears that Jezreel is close to Samaria, and from the pool of Samaria they went down to Jezreel, and the waters came red with blood all the way to Jezreel, and there the dogs licked up the blood.
Ralbag
And he shall wash the chariot at the pool of Samaria. This means that when he passed by there, he washed the chariot in the waters of the pool, and the chariot was cleansed of the blood, which became mixed with the water. There, the dogs licked up his blood as they drank from those waters. Furthermore, there was for him an additional disgrace, in that the harlot women who bathed in that pool bathed in his blood, which had become mixed with those waters.
As the word of the Lord which He spoke. The meaning is: that his soul was already under the soul of Ben-Hadad, as the word of the Lord which He spoke; and he fell in Ramoth-Gilead, as the word of the Lord which He spoke; and the dogs licked up his blood, as the word of the Lord which He spoke. Behold, this is the elucidation of what requires elucidation in this passage, whose elucidation we have delimited in this place. However, the benefits derived from this are:
The first benefit is in matters of character traits: to inform that one must deliberate on every matter before the deed or the answer, so that it may be in the fitting manner. For this reason, it relates that Israel came to Rehoboam and asked him to lighten the yoke of his father and serve him. He asked them to wait three more days and then he would answer them.
The second is to inform that good counsel is found among the elders and is lacking among the youths. This is because the length of days gives the elders good counsel, due to what they have seen of matters in their days, for this establishes for them the beginnings and causes through which they arrive at the desired ends. With this, wisdom is also found more abundantly for this same reason. From this it is clarified that good counsel cannot be complete in children, unless in a strange manner.
The third is in matters of character traits, and it is to inform that through a person’s self-humiliation he acquires for himself greatness and dominion, and through his arrogance he removes greatness and honor from himself. For this reason, it relates that the counsel of the elders was: if today you will be a servant to this people and listen to them, they will be your servants. It also relates that because he did not agree to this and desired to be arrogant and boastful, the kingship of the ten tribes departed from him.
The fourth is to inform of the fulfillment of the prophecy of God, blessed be He, that the kingship of the ten tribes would be cut off from the seed of Solomon and would be given to Jeroboam.
The fifth is to inform of the righteousness of Rehoboam’s matter at the beginning, until he already refrained from fighting with Israel immediately after the word of God, blessed be He, came to him in writing. And behold, it is written in the Book of Chronicles that Rehoboam persisted in doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord for three years.
The sixth is to inform of the wickedness of Jeroboam’s matter from the beginning of his kingship, until he made for himself gods of gold, drove out the priests and the Levites from his land in that he caused them to be dismissed from serving the Lord, as if he devised wisdom to act against the Torah according to what was possible. Upon him and his faction was fulfilled what the Torah prophesied in saying, “Lest there be among you a man or a woman…” For God, blessed be He, will destroy that man and cut off his name from under the heavens. And thus it called Jeroboam, Baasha, and Omri, that no remnant or survivor remained of them.
The seventh is to publicize the miracles and wonders performed by the man of God who came from Judah, and which were renewed through his cause. They are: the drying up of Jeroboam’s hand when he stretched it out to seize the prophet; the tearing of the altar and the pouring out of the ashes; the restoration of the king’s hand when the prophet prayed for him; and what happened to him when he transgressed his own word by the word of the Lord, that the lion killed him but did not eat the carcass and did not break the donkey. For through belief in the miracles, a strong pillar of the Torah is established.
The eighth is to inform that when God, blessed be He, commanded something in prophecy, He does not turn back from that command. This is indicated by what happened to the prophet from Judah, who was punished for eating bread and drinking water in that city, from which God, blessed be He, had warned him. And even though the old prophet who was in Beth-El told him that an angel came to him by the word of the Lord and said to him to return him to his house and eat bread and drink water: if it were possible for God, blessed be He, to turn back from His first command, it would not have been fitting for the prophet from Judah to be punished, for he was not a sinner. But the prophet who lied to him sinned. If one doubts this from the Binding of Isaac, where it seems that God turned back from His first command, the intention in the words of God, blessed be He, was other than what Abraham understood from them.
The ninth is to inform that God, blessed be He, does not punish very wicked men for their sin in a manner that the not-very-wicked are punished. For this reason, you will find that the old prophet, because of the very nature of his sins, was not punished for speaking a lie in the name of the Lord intentionally, whereas the prophet from Judah was punished for transgressing his own word, even though this was in error, for he believed that it was the word of the Lord what the old prophet said to him. He was punished for not deliberating in his heart to realize that this was impossible. For this same reason, you will find that Jeroboam was not punished for the excess of his sins, but Rehoboam was punished, about one year after he began to sin, for then Shishak, king of Egypt, came up against him and captured the fortified cities of Judah and took the treasures of the House of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house. And even after this, he was in great fear, until the bronze shields which he had made were carried by the runners whenever they came to the House of the Lord, and afterward they returned them to the chamber of the runners.
The tenth is to publicize the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite to the wife of Jeroboam and its fulfillment afterward, as mentioned here, and the matter of the miracle included in it, which is that the prophet delimited that when her feet entered the city, she would rise and go immediately to her house, and immediately upon being in her house, the child would die. For this was a wondrous miracle, for her steps on this road were the measure of his life: whether she walked quickly or slowly.
The eleventh is to inform that the cause was in Rehoboam’s sin, that he was the son of Naamah the Ammonitess. For this reason, the narrative is doubled, saying, “The name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonitess.” And by this, the reasons mentioned in the Torah for why it warned against marrying from the nations are clarified, which is that they will turn your son away from following Me. And behold, Naamah was as if she had not converted, for Solomon’s wives from the nations of the land returned to their evil ways, as previously related in this.
The twelfth is to inform that the cause was in the sin of Abijam, that he was the son of a wicked woman, and she was Maacah, daughter of Absalom, for she made an abomination for an Asherah, as mentioned afterward. And from this place, we stood upon the wickedness of Absalom, for the verse attributed her to him to liken her to his deeds.
The thirteenth is to inform that the years of the wicked are shortened, and length of days is for those who serve God, blessed be He. For this reason, you will find that Abijam did not live in kingship but for three years, and Asa, who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, lengthened his days on his kingdom. And for this same reason, you will find that Asa saw in his days some eight kings in Israel, and they are Jeroboam, Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, Tibni, Omri, and Ahab.
The fourteenth is to inform that it is not fitting for a person to place his trust in the flesh of his arm, but it is fitting that he place his trust in the Lord, all the more so when he finds himself aided by Him, blessed be He. For this reason, you will find that Asa was punished when he placed his trust in the flesh of his arm, when he sent to Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, silver and gold to break his covenant with Baasha, king of Israel, so that he would depart from upon him, as mentioned in the Book of Chronicles. And for this same reason, it is likened that he became sick in his feet, as we have explained.
The fifteenth is to clarify the intensity of the providence of God, blessed be He, over Israel because of His covenant with the fathers, until you will find that even though Israel were worthy that God, blessed be He, should hide His face from them and abandon them due to the intensity of their sins, behold, when it was revealed to God, blessed be He, from the multitude of Ahab’s deeds that they were entirely inclined to remove Israel completely from following God, blessed be He, He showed them matters by which they would take a lesson, and this in degrees. First, He showed Ahab and Israel the truth of the words of the prophets and their curses, for they saw that the curse which Joshua cursed upon whoever would build Jericho was fulfilled. And this was for them as a sign that the curses written in the Torah for whoever does not fulfill its words will be fulfilled. And since they did not take a lesson from this, God, blessed be He, showed them that the curses of His prophets would be fulfilled immediately if they did not return to God, blessed be He. For this reason, it relates that Elijah already said to Ahab that there would be no dew or rain in those years except by the word of God, blessed be He, and this would be when they return to His service, blessed be He. And when He saw that they did not take a lesson from this, and even though they saw the fulfillment of the prophet’s prophecies and curses, He caused Elijah to return to Ahab and do what will be clarified from it, that the Lord is God, due to the wondrous miracle that would be renewed in it, and it would be clarified thereby that Baal is vanity, to the end that all Israel would return to the service of God, blessed be He, and they would kill the prophets of Baal. And when God, blessed be He, saw that Ahab was not subdued by this, He showed him wonders in the doing of good deeds, so that he would know that He is the Lord, and He promised him this good through His prophet, until he conquered with a few men the king of Aram with all the kings who were with him. And He repeated this deed until the belief in God, blessed be He, was strengthened in his heart. And in all this, he did not take a lesson, and therefore the evil that happened to him occurred.
The sixteenth is to publicize the intensity of the wonders that God, blessed be He, performed through Elijah, and it is that the ravens continued to bring him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening at the Brook Cherith, where he hid himself for a year. And from the jar of flour in which there was a little flour and the cruse of oil in which there was a little oil, Elijah and the widow and her household were sustained for a year, and the jar of flour did not end and the cruse of oil did not lack. And he revived the son of the widow after his death, and he brought down fire from heaven to consume the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and to lick up the water which was in the trench, with the abundance of water that was poured there and the excessive rain when Elijah prayed to God, blessed be He, with the intensity of the drought that was then. And what God, blessed be He, brought to Elijah through the angel, a cake baked on coals and a cruse of water, and that he stood forty days and forty nights without food and drink. And behold, these wonders are related, for through belief in them, a strong pillar of the pillars of the Torah is established.
The seventeenth is to teach us that it is already possible for a prophet to transgress some commandments of the Torah by the word of the Lord for the time being. For this reason, it relates that the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he ate the meat by the word of the Lord, even though he did not know if it was kosher. For this reason, you will find that he offered a burnt offering outside during the time when altars were forbidden. For this reason, the Torah hinted at this root in what it said to him, “You shall listen to Him,” as we have explained in our commentary on the words of the Torah.
The eighteenth is to publicize the intensity of the doubling of the miracles performed through Elijah, until you will find that God did not bring from the flour in the jar of flour and from the oil except that it would suffice for one time, so that the miracle would be doubled more and this would be publicized to the widow in this manner, for this miracle continued for a year. And thus you will find that the ravens brought him for a year bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and they did not bring him at one time for one day or two days or more. And with this, there is a hint that God, blessed be He, chose for His prophet this manner of this matter, so that the food would be healthier and further from mold. And with these two matters, there is a benefit to clarify that the righteous should not seek advantages, but the necessary alone should suffice for them.
The nineteenth is to inform that it is fitting for a person to flee from danger when he can do so, and not to rely on a miracle when it is possible for him to escape by another side. Do you not see that even the prophet, when he feared Ahab, God, blessed be He, commanded him to go forward and hide at the Brook Cherith, and there no person would see him, with his food being there, and he would drink from the brook, and the ravens would bring him bread and meat. For if his food came to him through a person there, perhaps he would inform this to the king, for every matter is not hidden from the king, for each of those who know his place would inform him of this to find favor in his eyes. And this continued for him for a year. And then the brook dried up, and God did not strive to bring water there, for He did not need such a wondrous hiding anymore, for the king had already despaired of him in some manner, and the hiding in the widow’s house sufficed for him, and she was preparing for him his food in a fitting manner. And for this same reason, it relates that when Elijah feared Jezebel, he arose and went for his life in the wilderness, a day’s journey, so that no person would see him. For this is because even though God, blessed be He, has dominion in performing miracles, He does not perform them except at the time of necessity, as we have explained in many places in what preceded.
The twentieth is to inform that just as those attached to the righteous are provided for, in that God, may He be exalted, brings good upon them due to his merit, so too does providence adhere more from their side to bring punishment upon the sinners, on the side of reproof, as it says, “Among those near to Me I will be sanctified.” And for this reason, the Zarephath woman said, “What have I to do with you, man of God, that you have come to me to remember my iniquity?”
The twenty-first is to inform that the sinner is already provided for due to the merit of the righteous man who is provided for, if the righteous man suffers from the evil that happens to that man, for to save him from the suffering, the sinner is saved from the evil. For this reason, he said, “Has evil happened to the widow with whom I am dwelling, to kill her son?” For because of this, Elijah would suffer from the evil that happens to her. And for this reason, he exerted himself to contend for the child three times, to place his mouth upon his mouth, his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands, and likewise in this manner. And for this same reason, he exerted himself to bring the rain when he crouched to the ground, and placed his face between his knees, so that they would be saved from this suffering, and God, blessed be He, would bring rain upon the land. And from this side, the prayer of the righteous man benefits another, due to his suffering from the evil that happens to him, as we have mentioned this root in many places.
The twenty-second is in matters of character traits, and it is to inform that whoever does something for a certain end, it is fitting that he not shorten from bringing all the causes that aid in bringing that end, and from removing all the causes that prevent its attainment. For this reason, you will find that when Elijah desired rain to come upon the land on the side of providence, he devised with all his strength to uproot the corrupted belief due to which Israel was punished in that their rain was withheld. For this reason, he wanted the prophets of Baal and the prophets of Asherah to be put to the test before the people, that the word of the Baals is vanity and there is no benefit in them. And he already used this examination in every aspect of the aspects that it was possible for him, so that no doubt would remain to them in it. For this reason, he chose that the sacrifices be bulls, due to what Israel fell into from the error after the golden calves. And he desired that the prophets of Baal choose one of the bulls, so that they could not say, “If we had that bull which remained for Elijah, Baal would have heard our voice.” And he also desired that they do it first, so that they would not say that their god was angry because they placed him last. For this reason, he did not answer them. And he desired that they call upon the name of their god, so that it would be publicized to all that they are calling upon a god and there is no voice and no answer and no attention, and they would not be able to excuse themselves and say that this is why He did not answer them with fire, because they did not call upon Him. And for this same reason, he desired that they call with a loud voice, in a manner that no excuse would remain to them in this. And after this, he raised up the altar of the Lord which was broken down, to hint that to Him alone is the service fitting, and He is One alone. For this reason, he did not desire to show that in the place itself where they served Him at first, they would serve Him now, for He is One alone, without multiplicity. Just as the Torah warned not to serve Him except in the place which the Lord will choose, where He will place His name, and it is the Temple, so too did Elijah desire, when the necessity brought him to offer outside by the command of God, to liken it to the Temple in the ways of the Torah, as we have mentioned. And he already built it for the name of the Lord, so that all would recognize that all his deeds were for the name of the Lord. For this reason, He answered him with fire, and he raised in it from the stones according to the number of the tribes of Israel, as if he hinted thereby that Israel in their entirety are fitting to be for God, blessed be He, for He took them for Himself as a people. And as if it were a sign that they would all return to His belief. And he commanded him to pour there from the waters in great quantity, so that the intensity of the might of God, blessed be He, would be clarified to Israel more in His bringing down fire to consume the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and to lick up the waters which were in the trench. And the number of the jars was twelve, for the same reason that the number of the stones was twelve.
The twenty-third is in opinions, and it is to inform that there is no motion and change in God, blessed be He. And this is a great root in the matter of God, blessed be He, as has been clarified in its places. And this we learned from the mockery with which Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal, in saying, “Perhaps he is musing, or perhaps he has gone aside, or perhaps he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and will wake.” We learned from this that these occurrences are devoid of God, blessed be He.
The twenty-fourth is in opinions, and it is to inform that the miracles God, blessed be He, performs through His prophet are by means of prayer. And this is a root of great benefit, which our Sages of blessed memory have already mentioned. And we have already learned this from what is mentioned in this place from the prayer of Elijah for the son of the Zarephath woman to revive him, and from the prayer of Elijah which God, blessed be He, answered with fire before all Israel, and from his prayer that the rain would come with the intensity of the drought that was then. And by this it is clarified that it was not delimited at the time of the creation of the world that these miracles would be renewed at the time they were renewed, as people think from what our Sages of blessed memory said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, made a condition with the work of creation.” For if the matter were left thus, disgraceful matters would be obligated from which there is no escape. If, first, it would be obligated that the prayer of the prophet concerning them would be in vain. And if, second, it would be obligated that they would also be renewed at the time their renewal was delimited without a prophet and without one striving. And this would already be obligated, for there is no one who would say that it was also delimited then that a prophet would be found then, for this is impossible, for the prophet is not except in righteousness, which they acquire in their majority by His choice, that He acquires them and that He does not acquire them. And if we assumed that it would be obligated then that there would be a prophet, behold, we have nullified the nature of the possible, and it would be obligated that this man would in any case be a possessor of righteousness, in which it is possible that he be a prophet. And if, third, because the miracles are found to be renewed due to some benefits according to the occurrences and the attainments found then for people, and it would be obligated that when the renewal of these miracles at that time is assumed in the way of necessity, that the renewal of those occurrences and attainments due to which these miracles were renewed would also be on the side of necessity. And the example is: if the matter were assumed thus, behold, because the miracle of the descent of fire from heaven upon the burnt offering and upon the wood and upon the stones and consuming them and licking up the waters which were in the trench was for the end that Israel would remove themselves from the service of Baal and return to God, blessed be He, behold, it would have been obligated according to this assumption that Israel would then be serving Baal, and they would thus be forced to sin, and this would nullify the nature of choice and the nature of the possible, and the Torah would fall in its entirety, for one of the great pillars upon which it is built is that man has choice, which rules over him to do what is arranged for him from the choice, whether transgression or merit, all is before him, the life and the good and the death and the evil.
The twenty-fifth is to inform that it is not fitting for the righteous to have pity on the wicked who cause others to sin and remove them from following God, blessed be He, for pitying them is cruelty to the good. For this reason, you will find that it relates that Elijah already commanded to seize all the prophets of Baal in a manner that no man of them would escape, and he brought them down to the Brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.
The twenty-sixth is to inform that it is fitting for every person to divide honor to the kingship. Do you not see that Elijah, with the intensity of his merit in prophecy, girded his loins to run before Ahab until he came to Jezreel? And indeed, he divided him honor then, not before this, for it seemed that even he had then departed from following Baal and believed in God, blessed be He. For this reason, he agreed with Elijah in the killing of the prophets of Baal. But before this, when he was at the extreme of wickedness, he did not divide him honor. And likewise, he did not divide him honor when he sinned in the matter of Naboth.
The twenty-seventh is what we learned from what was with Elijah, that he had a wondrous length of days. For this reason, he said, “Take my soul, for I am not better than my fathers.” And from this we have straightened ourselves to believe that Phinehas is Elijah, and that Elijah did not die, as we have explained in our commentary on this narrative.
The twenty-eighth is to inform of the intensity of the preparation of Mount Sinai to attain there the prophecy. For this reason, it relates that when he arrived at the cave there, the word of the Lord came to him in this wondrous manner.
The twenty-ninth is to inform that the intention in the existence of the prophet is for providence over whoever is a prophet among them. And when this prophet uses this for another end other than that intended in it, the divine wisdom does not agree that there be a prophet for that people. For this reason, you will find that it relates that when God, blessed be He, saw Elijah seeking evil for Israel, He straightened them to understand that God, blessed be He, does not desire the bringing of evils. For this reason, He saw in the prophetic vision the wind and the earthquake and the fire, and the Lord was not in them. And after this, He showed him His glory. Then He asked him again, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” And it seemed that due to the multitude of Elijah’s anger at the sins of Israel, he did not devise to stand upon the divine intention in this vision which God, blessed be He, showed him. For this reason, he answered again to God, blessed be He, like the first answer. And when God, blessed be He, saw that he was using his prophecy to bring evil upon Israel, contrary to what was intended in it, then He informed him that he should anoint Elisha as prophet in his place. And with this, He already informed him how God, blessed be He, would take His vengeance from Israel for abandoning His covenant, through Hazael and Jehu and Elisha.
The thirtieth is to inform that the majority of desire in seeking perfection and wisdom brings man to perfection. Do you not see that Elisha, due to the strength of his desire for human perfection, came to this wondrous degree mentioned in this narrative? And he already revealed the intensity of his desire for this, that he left his father’s house, which was very rich, immediately after Elijah threw his mantle upon him, and abandoned his father and mother for this end, and strove to be a servant to Elijah so that he would always learn from him. And from the multitude of his joy in this, he slaughtered a pair of oxen and cooked the meat in the vessels of the oxen and gave to the people to eat. And with all this, to hint that he was separating completely and entirely from these manual occupations, and from now on, all his striving would be in the seeking of wisdom and perfection. For this reason, he did not desire that the things in which he was plowing remain.
The thirty-first is in matters of character traits, and it is to inform that it is not fitting for a person to separate from his father’s and mother’s house without their knowledge, so as not to pain their hearts when they do not know where he is. For this reason, you will find that with the great desire that Elisha had to go after Elijah, behold, he was aroused to go to his father and mother to kiss them and to inform them of his separation from them.
The thirty-second is in matters of character traits, for before the breaking comes pride, meaning that pride is the cause of the breaking, and that he who trusts in his strength and his might will be defeated. For this reason, it relates that Ben-Hadad, because he was very arrogant, asked the king of Israel that his silver and his gold be his, and his wives and his children, the good ones, be his. And the king of Israel agreed to him, and he was not appeased with this, due to the multitude of his trust in his strength, but he desired to take every desirable thing that would be in the king’s house and in the house of his servants. And when the king of Israel did not agree to this, he said, trusting in his strength, that the dust of Samaria would not suffice for handfuls for all the people who were at his feet. And because he trusted in his strength, God, blessed be He, showed him that the way is not for man, and He caused that with a few men Ahab defeated him in two battles, one after the other. And behold, God, blessed be He, placed his trust in his strength in order to fall him in the first battle. For because of this, he commanded to seize alive the men of valor coming out of Israel, and they went out of the army of Aram, each man against every man of them to seize him alive, for he was not afraid that the sons of Israel would strike them. And this was a cause that they struck each his man, and Aram fled from this, and Israel defeated them. And it came to Ben-Hadad at the end of the matter that no man of the army in which he trusted in their strength remained.
The thirty-third is to inform of the strength of the striving of the divine wisdom to draw Israel near to His service. And this is that at the time when they straightened themselves to believe that the Lord is God due to the wondrous miracle that Elijah showed them, He showed them their defeating the multitude of the army of Aram wondrously with a few men, so that they would know that the Lord is God, and their belief in Him would be strengthened more, as mentioned in this place.
The thirty-fourth is to inform that it is fitting for a person, when one who is always a thorn in his side and in his people’s side falls into his hand in war, not to have pity on him, but to exterminate him from the land, lest he find for himself a place after this, if he escapes, to destroy him and his people according to his ability. And for this reason, you will find that the Torah commanded to strike the Midianites, due to what has been clarified that they are adversaries to Israel in their schemes. And it commanded also to blot out the memory of Amalek for this same reason. For this reason, it relates that because the king of Israel sent Ben-Hadad, whom God, blessed be He, made as his anvil and his threshing sledge and his winnowing fork, God, blessed be He, was angry with him and said to him that his soul would be under his soul, and his people under his people.
The thirty-fifth is to inform that it is not fitting for a person to harden his heart. Do you not see what happened to Naboth due to his hardness of heart, that he did not agree to exchange his vineyard for the king for a better vineyard, and he also did not desire to hand it over to him.
The thirty-sixth is to publicize that due to Ahab being king of Samaria, he ruled over Israel and moved them to do what he desired. For this reason, the elders who agreed to the death of Naboth in this disgraceful manner were not punished so much. And this is because the sons of the elders of the provinces were with Ahab in Samaria, and for this reason, their fathers were forced to do his will so that he would not kill their sons. For this reason, it is mentioned that the young men of the elders of the provinces were with Ahab in Samaria. And for this same reason, he also called Ahab king of Samaria, for due to his being king in Samaria, he was king over all ten tribes. And for this same reason, it says, “Arise, go down to meet Ahab, king of Israel, who is in Samaria,” as we have explained in our commentary on this passage.
The thirty-seventh is to publicize the sin of Ahab in the matter of Naboth and his wondrous punishment for this sin and his other sins, and the punishment of Jezebel for this sin, as Elijah will testify to him. For all of this and its like in this narrative fulfills that the Lord, blessed be He, judges man according to his deeds, and it is a strong pillar of the pillars of the Torah.
The thirty-eighth is to inform that the property of those executed by the kingdom belongs to the kingdom. For this reason, Jezebel sent concerning the matter of Naboth that they testify against him that he cursed God and the king, so that he would be liable to death, and because of his cursing the king. And for this reason, Ahab could inherit his vineyard. And it is possible to say that Naboth was already killed and he had no sons. For this reason, he said, “If I did not see yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,” and they are the sons he was destined to beget. And it seemed that Ahab was close to him. And for this reason, Ahab descended to inherit. And for this same reason, Jezebel said to him that Naboth is not alive but dead, indicating that since he is dead in any case, Ahab will be his heir.
The thirty-ninth is to inform that when God, blessed be He, prophesied an evil prophecy to a man for his sin, and he is subdued before God, blessed be He, behold, God, blessed be He, repents of that evil. For this reason, you will find that it is mentioned that because Ahab was subdued before God, blessed be He, He said that He would not bring the evil He prophesied to him in his days.
The fortieth is to inform that the place of stoning is outside the city. For this reason, it says, “And they brought him out outside the city and stoned him with stones, and he died.”
The forty-first is to publicize the wickedness of Ahab’s disposition, that with all that preceded from these matters, which he should have taken a lesson from and returned to God, blessed be He, behold, you will find that when Jehoshaphat said to him to inquire of the word of the Lord, he was satisfied with the prophets of Asherah that he had, and did not inquire of the mouth of the Lord from a prophet of the Lord.
The forty-second is to inform that the counsel of the Lord will stand, and no scheme will avail to escape from it, except on the side of repentance to God, blessed be He, for then He will repent of the evil. For this reason, it relates that it did not avail Ahab that he disguised himself and came to war, so that he would not fall in what God, blessed be He, prophesied to him through His prophet. And because many prophecies were already fulfilled in his death, as we have explained, it says, “As the word of the Lord which He spoke,” and it did not say, “As the word of the Lord which He spoke by the hand of His servant So-and-so.”
The forty-third is to inform that there is in what is emanated from the heavenly host what is from the right hand of God, blessed be He, and in it what is from His left hand. And generally, the evils arranged from Him are as if they are from the left hand of God, blessed be He, due to their being unintentional in themselves, as we have explained in the Book of the Wars of the Lord. And the good things emanating from them are intentional in themselves.
Metzudat David
And he flushed [it]. The one driving the chariot washed and rinsed the chariot from its blood in the waters of the pool; and the dogs drank his blood mixed with the waters of the pool.
The prostitutes. Women prostitutes bathing in the waters of the pool bathed in his blood mixed with the waters; and even this is considered a disgrace.
According to the word of the Lord. That He said (above 21:19): 'in the place where the dogs licked' etc. 'the dogs shall lick' etc. And it seemed that that place was near Jezreel, the place where Naboth was killed; and the blood came there with the running of the waters.
Metzudat Zion
Birkat. A place built of stone and mortar, where water collects; like (II Samuel 2:13) 'at the pool of Gibeon' (al birkat Giv'on):
Viluku. A matter of licking; like (Judges 7:5) 'everyone who licks with his tongue' (chol asher yilak b'l'shono):
Malbim
'And he washed': After having related how the prophecy of Micaiah was fulfilled—that Ahab would die and the people would return in peace—he now relates how the prophecy of Elijah was fulfilled, namely that the dogs would lick up his blood. For the chariot went to be washed at the pool of Samaria, and then the prostitutes—meaning, women who were prostitutes—washed at the pool, and thus he could not wash the chariot. And at that very time, when the prostitutes were washing at the pool, the dogs licked up the blood that was on the chariot, and the word of the Lord was fulfilled.
Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
verse value 6043
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 84 letters. The shortest word is "did" (עָשָׂ֗ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·the·cities" (וְכׇל־הֶעָרִ֖ים, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 501: which, that. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "tooth" (הַשֵּׁן֙), "and·all·the·cities" (וְכׇל־הֶעָרִ֖ים). The root אשר appears 3 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·all·that" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "words·of" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'he·built', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 7 words.
Rashi
And the house of the tooth. The tooth [tusk] of an elephant, [i.e., ivory]:
Radak
And the house of ivory. From the tusk of an elephant they make utensils, and Ahab built from it one or two houses, for “house” is a general term; and similarly it is said in the prophecy of Amos: “And the houses of ivory shall perish.” And what we have said, that “house” is stated in a general sense, we find a similar case in: “A woman shall not dwell for me in the house of David, for they are holy.”
So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.
verse value 1904
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "his·son" (בְנ֖וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "with·his·fathers" (עִם־אֲבֹתָ֑יו, 7 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·reigned" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "with·his·fathers" (root עם, 95x in I Kings); "his·son" (root בן, 72x in I Kings). First appearance of the root אחזיהו ("Ahaziah") in I Kings. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·his·fathers', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁכַּ֥ב [and·he·slept] (338) + אַחְאָ֖ב [Ahab] (12) + עִם־אֲבֹתָ֑יו [with·his·fathers] (529) + וַיִּמְלֹ֛ךְ [and·he·reigned] (106) + אֲחַזְיָ֥הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + בְנ֖וֹ [his·son] (58) + תַּחְתָּֽיו [in·his·stead] (824) = 1904.
And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel.
verse value 2448
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 43 letters. Verse gematria: 2448 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "he·reigned" (מָלַ֖ךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·Jehoshaphat" (וִיהֽוֹשָׁפָט֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 90: he·reigned, king. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "son·of·Asa" (בֶּן־אָסָ֔א). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·reigned" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "over·Judah" (root על, 127x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'over·Judah', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וִיהֽוֹשָׁפָט֙ [and·Jehoshaphat] (416) + בֶּן־אָסָ֔א [son·of·Asa] (114) + מָלַ֖ךְ [he·reigned] (90) + עַל־יְהוּדָ֑ה [over·Judah] (130) + בִּשְׁנַ֣ת [in·year·of] (752) + אַרְבַּ֔ע [four] (273) + לְאַחְאָ֖ב [of·Ahab] (42) + מֶ֥לֶךְ [king] (90) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 2448.
Ralbag
And Jehoshaphat, the son of Asa, reigned over Judah in the fourth year until Amaziah, his son, reigned in his stead.
Metzudat David
In the fourth year. Meaning: four years to Ahab have already passed. And as is said (II Kings 9:29): 'and in the 11th year of Joram' etc. reigned Ahaziah. And we are forced to say: eleven years have already passed. For in another place it is said (there 8:25): 'in the 12th year of Joram' etc. reigned Ahaziah. And so it is said 'in the fourth year,' meaning: four years to Ahab have already passed; for Ahab reigned in the 38th year to Asa; behold he reigned four years, until Asa died in the 41st year. If so, Jehoshaphat reigned in the fifth year to Ahab; immediately after the completion of four.
Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.
verse value 5195
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 65 letters. The shortest word is "year" (שָׁנָה֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "son·of·thirty" (בֶּן־שְׁלֹשִׁ֨ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 355: year, year. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "son·of·thirty" (בֶּן־שְׁלֹשִׁ֨ים), "Azubah" (עֲזוּבָ֖ה), "daughter·of·Shilhi" (בַּת־שִׁלְחִֽי). The root חמש appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·his·reigning" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "son·of·thirty" (root בין, 107x in I Kings); "year" (root שנה, 72x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·Jerusalem', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: יְהוֹשָׁפָ֗ט [Jehoshaphat] (410) + בֶּן־שְׁלֹשִׁ֨ים [son·of·thirty] (732) + וְחָמֵ֤שׁ [and·five] (354) + שָׁנָה֙ [year] (355) + בְּמׇלְכ֔וֹ [in·his·reigning] (98) + וְעֶשְׂרִ֤ים [and·twenty] (626) + וְחָמֵשׁ֙ [and·five] (354) + שָׁנָ֔ה [year] (355) + מָלַ֖ךְ [he·reigned] (90) + בִּירוּשָׁלִָ֑ם [in·Jerusalem] (588) + וְשֵׁ֣ם [and·name·of] (346) + אִמּ֔וֹ [his·mother] (47) + עֲזוּבָ֖ה [Azubah] (90) + בַּת־שִׁלְחִֽי [daughter·of·Shilhi] (750) = 5195.
And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of Hashem;
verse value 2339
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 43 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "Asa" (אָסָ֥א, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·all·way" (בְּכׇל־דֶּ֛רֶךְ, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "not·he·turned·aside" (לֹא־סָ֣ר). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "to·do" (root עשה, 143x in I Kings); "and·went" (root הלך, 115x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·it', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּ֗לֶךְ [and·went] (66) + בְּכׇל־דֶּ֛רֶךְ [in·all·way] (276) + אָסָ֥א [Asa] (62) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + לֹא־סָ֣ר [not·he·turned·aside] (291) + מִמֶּ֑נּוּ [from·it] (136) + לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת [to·do] (806) + הַיָּשָׁ֖ר [straight] (515) + בְּעֵינֵ֥י [in·eyes·of] (142) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2339.
however the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places.
verse value 1928
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "indeed" (אַ֥ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·burned·incense" (וּֽמְקַטְּרִ֖ים, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·burned·incense" (וּֽמְקַטְּרִ֖ים). The root במה appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·people" (root עם, 95x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'not·they·turned·aside', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. Full calculation: אַ֥ךְ [indeed] (21) + הַבָּמ֖וֹת [the·high·places] (453) + לֹא־סָ֑רוּ [not·they·turned·aside] (297) + ע֥וֹד [still] (80) + הָעָ֛ם [the·people] (115) + מְזַבְּחִ֥ים [sacrificing] (107) + וּֽמְקַטְּרִ֖ים [and·burned·incense] (405) + בַּבָּמֽוֹת [in·the·high·places] (450) = 1928.
Metzudat David
The high places. High places of individuals made for the Most High; forbidden from the time the house was built.
Malbim
(44-45) 'But' means that Jehoshaphat did what was right, yet in two matters he did not do what was right: 1. The high places were not removed; 2. That he made peace with the king of Israel, who was wicked, as it is stated (2 Chronicles 19:2): "Should you help the wicked, and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, wrath is upon you from before the Lord."
And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
verse value 1537
Insights
Verse structure: 4 words, 21 letters. The shortest word is "and·made·peace" (וַיַּשְׁלֵ֥ם, 5 letters) and the longest is "Jehoshaphat" (יְהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·made·peace" (וַיַּשְׁלֵ֥ם), "with·king" (עִם־מֶ֥לֶךְ). 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "with·king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). Full calculation: וַיַּשְׁלֵ֥ם [and·made·peace] (386) + יְהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט [Jehoshaphat] (410) + עִם־מֶ֥לֶךְ [with·king] (200) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 1537.
Rashi
"And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel." Because there had been war between his father Asa and Baasha, king of Israel, he was compelled to say so:
Radak
“And Jehoshaphat was at peace.” For his father had war with the king of Israel, and he made peace with him. The reason for this narrative is that it became known that he made peace with him, as indeed he assisted him; all the more so was he at peace with him. Rather, the reason for this narrative, and that they wrote it after the statement “yet the high places were not removed,” is to say: Furthermore, another evil was found in him, that he made peace with the king of Israel and assisted him, as the prophet said to him: “Shall you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord?”
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his might that he showed, and how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
verse value 4856
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "and·remainder·of" (וְיֶ֨תֶר, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·his·might" (וּגְבוּרָת֥וֹ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 216: words·of, words·of. The root דבר appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·he·did" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "of·the·kings·of" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "words·of" (root דבר, 191x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'is·fighting', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְיֶ֨תֶר [and·remainder·of] (616) + דִּבְרֵ֧י [words·of] (216) + יְהוֹשָׁפָ֛ט [Jehoshaphat] (410) + וּגְבוּרָת֥וֹ [and·his·might] (623) + אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂ֖ה [that·he·did] (876) + וַאֲשֶׁ֣ר [and·how] (507) + נִלְחָ֑ם [is·fighting] (128) + הֲלֹא־הֵ֣ם [not·they] (81) + כְּתוּבִ֗ים [written] (478) + עַל־סֵ֛פֶר [in·the·book·of] (440) + דִּבְרֵ֥י [words·of] (216) + הַיָּמִ֖ים [day] (105) + לְמַלְכֵ֥י [of·the·kings·of] (130) + יְהוּדָֽה [Judah] (30) = 4856.
And the remnant of the sodomites that remained in the days of his father Asa, he put away out of the land.
verse value 2878
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·the·land" (מִן־הָאָֽרֶץ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 62: in·days·of, Asa. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "remained" (נִשְׁאַ֔ר), "he·removed" (בִּעֵ֖ר). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "in·days·of" (root יום, 100x in I Kings); "his·father" (root אב, 74x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְיֶ֙תֶר֙ [and·remainder·of] (616) + הַקָּדֵ֔שׁ [apartness] (409) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [that] (501) + נִשְׁאַ֔ר [remained] (551) + בִּימֵ֖י [in·days·of] (62) + אָסָ֣א [Asa] (62) + אָבִ֑יו [his·father] (19) + בִּעֵ֖ר [he·removed] (272) + מִן־הָאָֽרֶץ [from·the·land] (386) = 2878.
Rashi
And the rest of the consecrated ones [male cult prostitutes]. They practice adultery in public:
Radak
And the remainder of the consecrated [male temple-prostitutes]. Targum Yonatan renders it: "u-she'ar nafkat bara" ["and the rest were 'ones who go outside,'" i.e., harlots] — in his view, [the term] is a general term for [female] temple-prostitutes and harlots.
Ralbag
The people were still offering sacrifices and burning incense on the high places. This means that they did so in the name of the Lord, but they were sinning because the high places had already been prohibited after the construction of the Temple. And the remainder of the cult prostitutes that remained in the days of Asa: behold, there were males who were available for lying down with anyone who came, and some of them had remained in the days of Asa, and Jehoshaphat eradicated them from the land.
Metzudat Zion
Ha-kadesh. Prostitution; likewise (Deuteronomy 23:18) 'there shall be no prostitute' (lo yihye kadesh):
Va'ar. He removed [it] from the world:
Verse structure: 5 words, 18 letters. Verse gematria: 442 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "nothing" (אֵ֛ין, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·Edom" (בֶּאֱד֖וֹם, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "standing" (נִצָּ֥ב). The root מלך appears 2 times in this verse. 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·king" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "nothing" (root אין, 25x in I Kings). Full calculation: וּמֶ֥לֶךְ [and·king] (96) + אֵ֛ין [nothing] (61) + בֶּאֱד֖וֹם [in·Edom] (53) + נִצָּ֥ב [standing] (142) + מֶֽלֶךְ [king] (90) = 442.
Rashi
And there was no king in Edom. In the days of David, the governor was the king, and here it is written [as it is], because in the days of Jehoram his son, who acted wickedly, in his days Edom rebelled and they appointed a king for themselves, but in the days of Jehoshaphat they were still subject to him.
Radak
“Nitzav melek” (A king stood). [The commentator] says that in the days of Jehoshaphat there was no king in Edom, because Edom had been under the dominion of Judah since the days of David, and the kings of Judah appointed governors over them, and the governor was their king. And since in the days of his son Jehoram they rebelled and came out from under the hand of the kings of Judah, [the commentator] says that in the days of Jehoshaphat Edom was still under their hand, but in the days of his son they transgressed and came out from under their hand, because his son went in an evil way.
Ralbag
“And there was no king in Edom; a governor was their king.” This means that until this point there had been no king in Edom, but the governor whom the kings of the House of David had appointed over Edom was the ruler over them. This had been the case since the days of David, for he had appointed governors in Edom, as previously stated. And since the Edomites rebelled in the days of Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, this is mentioned in this place, as if to say that until the end of the reign of Jehoshaphat, this matter continued to be so, and not afterwards.
Metzudat David
A viceroy acted as king. For from the time David conquered Edom, he removed from them the kings; and he placed over them viceroys; meaning: officers under his hand, to reign over them and rule them. And the matter continued until the days of Jehoshaphat; for also in his days there was a viceroy in place of a king.
Malbim
(48-49) "And there was no king in Edom" — this refers to the period after Edom, Moab, and Ammon had fallen before Jehoshaphat (II Chronicles 20). Consequently, Jehoshaphat built ships at Ezion-Geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom (above, 9:26), because Edom was subjugated under his rule. "And he did not go" — he did not begin to sail, for immediately the ships were broken on the shore at Ezion-Geber, where they had been built. It is explained (II Chronicles 20) that these ships were a joint venture with Ahaziah. The prophet prophesied that when he joined himself to the wicked, God would break his deeds, and thus the ships were broken.
Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold; but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber.
verse value 5989
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 67 letters. The shortest word is "ten" ((עשר), 3 letters) and the longest is "for·were·broken" (כִּֽי־נִשְׁבְּר֥וּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 467: ships·of, ships. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "to·Ophir" (אֹפִ֛ירָה), "to·the·gold" (לַזָּהָ֖ב), "for·were·broken" (כִּֽי־נִשְׁבְּר֥וּ). The root אניה appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "did" (root עשה, 143x in I Kings); "to·go" (root הלך, 115x in I Kings); "and·not" (root לא, 90x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'he·went', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Rashi
"For the vessels were broken." Because he allied himself with Ahaziah in this matter, therefore the vessels were broken. And so the prophet said to him in Chronicles (II 20:37): "Because you allied yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord has broken your work."
Radak
Jehoshaphat [had] ten ships. So it is written [ketiv: “eser”], and the reading [kri] is “he made”; and the text means that he made ten ships. And because he joined with the ships of the King of Israel, who was wicked, they were broken, as it is written in Chronicles: “in your joining with Ahaziah.” For when Ahaziah said to him that he should join with him a second time with ships, Jehoshaphat refused.
“[It] was broken” [ketiv: nishberah]. So it is written; and the kri [reading] is “nishberu” [they were broken]. This implies that they were not broken in one manner, but rather each one was broken individually by itself.
Ralbag
“Jehoshaphat made ten ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir.” It would seem that he made ten ships, and therefore the ketiv is written “עשר” [ten], while the keri reads “עשה” [made]. Now, it was already mentioned in the Book of Chronicles that, because he joined with Ahaziah in them, the blessed God broke his works. Therefore, Jehoshaphat did not consent that his servants should go again with the servants of Ahaziah.
Metzudat David
Ships of Tarsish. Meaning: ships made in the pattern of ships of Tarsish.
To go to Ophir. And in Chronicles (II 20:36) it is said 'to go to Tarshish.' And there too it is said that he sent with Ahaziah; and perhaps what is said there was on another occasion, and it is not what is said here.
For gold. To bring gold, as Solomon brought.
And he did not go. To Ophir.
Cross-references: Psalms 48:8; II Chronicles 20:36
Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab to Jehoshaphat: ‘Let my servants go with your servants in the ships.’ But Jehoshaphat would not.
verse value 2083
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "my·servants" (עֲבָדַ֛י) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "then" (אָ֠ז, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·Jehoshaphat" (אֶל־יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 37: Ahaziah, and·not. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "let·them·go" (יֵלְכ֧וּ), "in·ships" (בׇּאֳנִיּ֑וֹת), "he·was·willing" (אָבָ֖ה). The root עבד appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "said" (root אמר, 324x in I Kings); "to·Jehoshaphat" (root איל, 125x in I Kings); "let·them·go" (root הלך, 115x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·ships', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָ֠ז [then] (8) + אָמַ֞ר [said] (241) + אֲחַזְיָ֤הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + בֶן־אַחְאָב֙ [son·of·Ahab] (64) + אֶל־יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט [to·Jehoshaphat] (441) + יֵלְכ֧וּ [let·them·go] (66) + עֲבָדַ֛י [my·servants] (86) + עִם־עֲבָדֶ֖יךָ [with·your·servants] (216) + בׇּאֳנִיּ֑וֹת [in·ships] (469) + וְלֹ֥א [and·not] (37) + אָבָ֖ה [he·was·willing] (8) + יְהוֹשָׁפָֽט [Jehoshaphat] (410) = 2083.
Metzudat David
And he would not. And perhaps on account that he sent with him to Tarshish, as is said in Chronicles, and the ships were broken; and the prophet rebuked him for having joined with Ahaziah -- for this reason he did not desire to send with him to Ophir.
Metzudat Zion
Ulo ava. He did not want:
Malbim
"Then he said" — that is to say, after he [Ahaziah] saw that because he had partnership in the ships themselves, they were broken, as the prophet stated, he requested that at least his servants should go with your servants (in the ships) of Jehoshaphat, so that Ahaziah would have no share in the hull of the ships themselves, only his servants would go. But Jehoshaphat refused, fearing that even this might cause harm.
And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.
verse value 3688
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "David" (דָּוִ֣ד, 3 letters) and the longest is "with·his·fathers" (עִם־אֲבֹתָ֔יו, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 529: with·his·fathers, with·his·fathers. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "Jehoram" (יְהוֹרָ֥ם). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·reigned" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "with·his·fathers" (root עם, 95x in I Kings); "his·father" (root אב, 74x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּשְׁכַּ֤ב [and·he·slept] (338) + יְהוֹשָׁפָט֙ [Jehoshaphat] (410) + עִם־אֲבֹתָ֔יו [with·his·fathers] (529) + וַיִּקָּבֵר֙ [and·he·was·buried] (318) + עִם־אֲבֹתָ֔יו [with·his·fathers] (529) + בְּעִ֖יר [in·city·of] (282) + דָּוִ֣ד [David] (14) + אָבִ֑יו [his·father] (19) + וַיִּמְלֹ֛ךְ [and·he·reigned] (106) + יְהוֹרָ֥ם [Jehoram] (261) + בְּנ֖וֹ [his·son] (58) + תַּחְתָּֽיו [in·his·stead] (824) = 3688.
Radak
“In the city of David his father.” [Scripture] calls him [David] “his father” because he [Jehoshaphat] walked in his ways.
Ralbag
“in the city of his father David.” This refers to the fact that he walked in his ways.
Ahaziah, son of Ahab, reigned over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat. Here, a difficulty arises: for in the fourth year of Ahab it is stated that Jehoshaphat reigned, and yet Ahab still reigned for eighteen years, since he reigned for twenty-two years in total, plus the remainder of his fourth year. How then can it be said that Ahaziah reigned in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat? Now, what appears to me is that all the years listed for the reigns of the kings of Israel were calculated according to the years of the kings of David. Thus, when a king began to reign at the end of one year of a Davidic king, and then at the beginning of the subsequent year, it would be said that he had already reigned for two years. Given this understanding, what is stated as “in the fourth year of Ahab” was actually the fifth year when the years are counted according to the reigns of the kings of David. According to that reckoning, it is said of Ahab that he reigned for twenty-two years, for he began to reign in the thirty-eighth year of Asa, and the remainder of that year was counted as his first year. Asa reigned for three years after that year, since he reigned for a total of forty-one years. Given this situation, four years of Ahab’s reign had passed according to the count of the twenty-two years attributed to him, and the fifth year had begun. It seemed as though a small portion of that year had already passed when Jehoshaphat began to reign, for Jehoshaphat did not begin to reign immediately at the moment of his father’s death. After this, seventeen complete years of Jehoshaphat’s reign had not yet elapsed when Ahab entered slightly into his twenty-second year. Nevertheless, the eighteenth year was indeed beginning when counted from the death of Asa. It is also possible—and more accurate—to say that the intention of “in the fourth year of Ahab” is that four years had already passed for Ahab. In this way, we find that it is stated “in the eleventh year of Joram, son of Ahab,” meaning that eleven years had already passed for him. For this reason, in another place it says “in the twelfth year of Joram” instead. Similarly, what is stated as “in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat” means that seventeen years had already passed for him. Likewise, what is stated that Joram, son of Ahab, reigned in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat means that eighteen years had already passed for him, and it was actually the nineteenth year.
Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel.
verse value 5236
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 71 letters. The shortest word is "he·reigned" (מָלַ֤ךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·Israel" (עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 641: upon·Israel, upon·Israel. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "to·Jehoshaphat" (לִיהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט). The root מלך appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·reigned" (root מלך, 341x in I Kings); "upon·Israel" (root על, 127x in I Kings); "in·year·of" (root שנה, 72x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Judah', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 3 words. Full calculation: אֲחַזְיָ֣הוּ [Ahaziah] (37) + בֶן־אַחְאָ֗ב [son·of·Ahab] (64) + מָלַ֤ךְ [he·reigned] (90) + עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ [upon·Israel] (641) + בְּשֹׁ֣מְר֔וֹן [in·Samaria] (598) + בִּשְׁנַת֙ [in·year·of] (752) + שְׁבַ֣ע [seven] (372) + עֶשְׂרֵ֔ה [ten] (575) + לִיהוֹשָׁפָ֖ט [to·Jehoshaphat] (440) + מֶ֣לֶךְ [king] (90) + יְהוּדָ֑ה [Judah] (30) + וַיִּמְלֹ֥ךְ [and·he·reigned] (106) + עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [upon·Israel] (641) + שְׁנָתָֽיִם [years] (800) = 5236.
Rashi
"In the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat." Some are astonished by this verse, for it is stated of Ahab that he reigned twenty-two years, and of Jehoshaphat it is stated that he began to reign in the fourth year of Ahab; thus, the days of Ahab ended in the nineteenth year of Jehoshaphat. Yet here it says that Ahaziah began to reign in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat. However, I have investigated and found in the chronicles of the kings of Israel that it is not precise in counting their years. If one began to reign at the end of a year, that year is counted for him at the beginning of his reign, and it is not counted for him elsewhere. Therefore, I say that the "fourth year of Ahab" mentioned in connection with the beginning of Jehoshaphat’s reign did not include Ahab’s first year. Likewise, you find this to be the case with most of them. Moreover, the year in which Jehoshaphat began to reign was not counted among these seventeen years.
Radak
In the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat. But was it not in the fourth year of Ahab that Jehoshaphat began to reign? And Ahab reigned for twenty-two years. If you subtract those four years, eighteen remain. The matter is that the twenty-second year of Ahab did not complete its term for him, and it was counted to his son.
"Two years." This does not mean that there were two complete years, for the verse states below: "Jehoram, the son of Ahab, began to reign in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat." Rather, since Ahaziah had not completed his second year, that year was counted both for him and for his brother and for his father.
Metzudat David
In the seventeenth year. Meaning: seventeen years to Jehoshaphat have already passed. For Jehoshaphat reigned in the fifth year to Ahab; and Ahab was killed in the 22nd year of his reign; and it is after the completion of seventeen to Jehoshaphat; and in the beginning of the 18th. And then Ahaziah the son of Ahab reigned.
Two years. And they were partial.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of Hashem, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherein he made Israel to sin.
verse value 3562
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֑ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 3562 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "the·evil" (הָרַ֖ע, 3 letters) and the longest is "Israel" (אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 232: and·in·way·of, and·in·way·of. The root דרך appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "and·did" (root עשה, 143x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 11 words.
Ralbag
“And in the way of his mother.” She is Jezebel, for he was the son of Jezebel.
And he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked Hashem, the God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.
verse value 3516
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֑וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֑וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·bowed·down" (וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֖ה, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in I Kings. Unique to this verse in I Kings (hapax): "and·bowed·down" (וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֖ה), "and·he·provoked" (וַיַּכְעֵ֗ס). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·he·did" (root אשר, 375x in I Kings); "Hashem" (root יהוה, 254x in I Kings); "Israel" (root ישראל, 120x in I Kings). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַֽיַּעֲבֹד֙ [and·he·served] (92) + אֶת־הַבַּ֔עַל [Baal] (508) + וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֖ה [and·bowed·down] (735) + ל֑וֹ [to·him] (36) + וַיַּכְעֵ֗ס [and·he·provoked] (166) + אֶת־יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (427) + אֱלֹהֵ֣י [the·God·of] (46) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + כְּכֹ֥ל [as·them] (70) + אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂ֖ה [that·he·did] (876) + אָבִֽיו [his·father] (19) = 3516.
Ralbag
Metzudat David
Malbim