1 Kings 20:40

31-43 This encouragement sinners have to repent and humble themselves before God; Have we not heard, that the God of Israel is a merciful God? Have we not found him so? That is gospel repentance, which flows from an apprehension of the mercy of God, in Christ; there is forgiveness with him. What a change is here! The most haughty in prosperity often are most abject in adversity; an evil spirit will thus affect a man in both these conditions. There are those on whom, like Ahab, success is ill bestowed; they know not how to serve either God or their generation, or even their own true interests with their prosperity: Let favour be showed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness. The prophet designed to reprove Ahab by a parable. If a good prophet were punished for sparing his friend and God's when God said, Smite, of much sorer punishment should a wicked king be thought worthy, w...

EXPOSITION THE INVASIONS OF ISRAEL BY THE SYRIANS AND THEIR RESULTS.—The insertion of this chapter, which contains an account of two invasions of Israel by the hosts of Syria, and of the utter defeat of the latter, and which therefore constitutes a break in the history of Elijah, which has occupied the historian up to the end of 1 Kings 19:1; and which is resumed with 1 Kings 21:1.—the insertion of this twentieth chapter in this place is apparently due to the compiler of these records, who seems to have adopted this arrangement as the more chronological. It is not absolutely certain, however, that we owe this disposition

AND AS THY SERVANT WAS BUSY HERE AND THERE, HE WAS GONE,.... Employed in one thing or another relative to the battle, his prisoner committed to his care made his escape: AND THE KING OF ISRAEL SAID UNTO HIM, SO SHALL THY JUDGMENT BE, THYSELF HAST DECIDED IT; the sentence was plain and open against him, that either he must die or pay the money, for he himself had agreed to it....

4. KING AHAB: HIS WICKED REIGN AND END CHAPTER 20 Ahab's War with the Syrians and His Victory _ 1. The siege and relief of Samaria (1 Kings 20:1)_ 2. The victory at Aphek (1 Kings 20:22) 3. A prophet's symbolical action and his message (1 Kings 20:35) Two expeditions of Ben-hadad (son of the Sun) against Israel are recorded in this chapter. When Ben-hadad forced the war and insulted the King of Israel, Ahab prepared for the battle. Then a prophet came to Ahab, most likely one of those who had been hidden by Obadiah. He brought a message from the Lord. “Thus saith Jehovah, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold I will deliver it into thine hand this day; and thou sha

AHAB'S DEATH FORETOLD FOR SPARING BENHADAD. This section reminds us of 1 Samuel 15, Saul's sparing of Agag. It does not appear to be part of the foregoing narrative, but may be of great antiquity. The sin of Ahab, like that of Saul, seems commendable in our eyes, but to the Hebrews it was the most deadly of all the violation of the _herem_ or ban (pp. 99, 114), the sparing of a person devoted to Yahweh (1 Kings 20:42). The sons of the prophets are mentioned here for the first time in the Bible (1 Kings 20:35)....

_he was gone_ The sentence would of course continue thus: -Let me however find grace and let not thy servant suffer for this neglect". _So_shall _thy judgement_be] i.e. As he laid down who entrusted his prisoner to thy care. The LXX. rendering here is utterly without sense, and it is impossible to conceive whence it was derived, ἰδοὺ καὶ τὰ ἔνεδρα παρʼ ἐμοὶ ἐφόνευσας....

B. THE BATTLE OF APHEK 20:23-43 It was not long before the intelligence reports reaching Ahab's military advisers confirmed the warnings of the man of God. Benhadad was massing new troops, reorganizing his forces, and obviously planning a new campaign against Israel. As the narrative of the second crisis unfolds, the historian discusses (1) the Aramean war counsels (1 Kings 20:23-25); (2) the confrontation at Aphek (1 Kings 20:26-30 a); (3) the clemency granted Benhadad (1 Kings 20:30 b - 1 Kings 20:34); and (4) the prophetic condemnation of Ahab ...

WAR BETWEEN ISRAEL AND SYRIA The Syrians besiege Samaria, but a sally being made from the city by the direction of a prophet, they are driven off, and the next year are beaten at Aphek. Ahab, having spared Benhadad the Syrian king, is rebuked by a prophet in the name of the Lord....

GOD’S LESSONS FROM HISTORY 1 KINGS _PHILIP SMITH_ CHAPTER 20 GOD ALLOWS AHAB’S ARMY TO DEFEAT THE ARMY FROM SYRIA V1 Benhadad, king of Syria gathered his whole army. Then 32 other kings with their horses and *chariots joined him. They attacked Samaria and they surrounded it. Nobody could enter or leave. V2 He sent people with messages into the city to Ahab king of *Israel. This is what they said. ‘Benhadad says this. V3 “I want to have all your silver and gold. I want to have the best of your wives and children.” ’ V4 This is how the king of *Israel replied. ‘Tell this to the king. He can have me and everything that I own.’...

וַ יְהִ֣י עַבְדְּךָ֗ עֹשֵׂ֥ה הֵ֛נָּה וָ הֵ֖נָּה וְ ה֣וּא אֵינֶ֑נּוּ וַ יֹּ֨אמֶר אֵלָ֧יו מֶֽלֶךְ...