King James Version:
(The Lord speaking is red text)
So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and [put] ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, [Is] he yet alive? he [is] my brother.
Complete Jewish Bible:
So they put sackcloth around their waists and ropes on their heads, went to the king of Isra'el and said, "Your servant Ben-Hadad says, 'Please spare my life.'" And he answered, "He's still alive? He is my brother."
Berean Standard Bible:
So with sackcloth around their waists and ropes around their heads, they went to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-hadad says, ‘Please spare my life.’” And the king answered, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.”
American Standard Version:
So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
KJV with Strong’s Numbers:
So they girded{H2296} sackcloth{H8242} on their loins{H4975}, and put ropes{H2256} on their heads{H7218}, and came{H935} to the king{H4428} of Israel{H3478}, and said{H559}, Thy servant{H5650} Benhadad{H1130} saith{H559}, I pray thee, let me live{H2421}{H5315}. And he said{H559}, Is he yet alive{H2416}? he is my brother{H251}.
Cross-References (KJV):
1 Kings 20:3
- Thy silver and thy gold [is] mine; thy wives also and thy children, [even] the goodliest, [are] mine.
1 Kings 20:6
- Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, [that] whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put [it] in their hand, and take [it] away.
Obadiah 1:3
- The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation [is] high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?
Obadiah 1:4
- Though thou exalt [thyself] as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.
Daniel 5:20
- But when his heart was lifted up, and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:
Daniel 5:23
- But hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, thy wives, and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know: and the God in whose hand thy breath [is], and whose [are] all thy ways, hast thou not glorified:
Isaiah 10:12
- Wherefore it shall come to pass, [that] when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
Explore This Verse Across Other Resources:
Commentary for 1 Kings 20:32
1 Kings 20:32 is part of a larger narrative found in 1 Kings 20, which details the conflict between the kingdom of Israel, under King Ahab, and the Aramean kingdom, under King Ben-hadad. The historical context of this verse is set during a period of repeated military confrontations between these neighboring kingdoms, with Ben-hadad laying siege to Samaria, the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
In the verses leading up to 1 Kings 20:32, Ahab has successfully repelled Ben-hadad's forces through a combination of military strategy and divine intervention. Ben-hadad, facing defeat, seeks to save his life by sending envoys to Ahab. In the cultural context of the time, wearing sackcloth and ropes on the head were signs of humility and supplication, indicating a plea for mercy. The envoys, dressed in this manner, convey Ben-hadad's desperate plea to Ahab, asking for his life to be spared.
Upon hearing Ben-hadad's request, Ahab's response, "Is he yet alive? he is my brother," reflects a recognition of kinship or diplomatic alliance, suggesting a possible shift from enmity to amity. Ahab's use of the term "brother" indicates a desire to establish peace or a treaty, which was a common practice among ancient Near Eastern rulers to secure political and military stability.
The themes present in this verse include humility in the face of defeat, the request for mercy, and the potential for reconciliation between former adversaries. It also touches on the complexity of international relations in the ancient world, where shifting alliances and personal relationships between monarchs could alter the course of history. This moment of potential rapprochement between Ahab and Ben-hadad sets the stage for the subsequent narrative, where Ahab's decision to spare Ben-hadad's life leads to further prophetic interactions and divine judgments, highlighting the interplay between political decisions and religious consequences in the biblical narrative.
*This commentary is produced by Microsoft/WizardLM-2-8x22B AI model
Strong's Numbers and Definitions:
Note: H = Hebrew (OT), G = Greek (NT)
- Strong's Number: H2296
There are 40 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: חָגַר
Transliteration: châgar
Pronunciation: khaw-gar'
Description: a primitive root; to gird on (as a belt, armor, etc.); be able to put on, be afraid, appointed, gird, restrain, [idiom] on every side. - Strong's Number: H8242
There are 46 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: שַׂק
Transliteration: saq
Pronunciation: sak
Description: from שָׁקַק; properly, a mesh (as allowing a liquid to run through), i.e. coarse loose cloth or sacking (used in mourning and for bagging); hence, a bag (for grain, etc.); sack(-cloth, -clothes). - Strong's Number: H4975
There are 45 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: מֹתֶן
Transliteration: môthen
Pronunciation: mo'-then
Description: from an unused root meaning to be slender; properly, the waist or small of the back; only in plural the loins; [phrase] greyhound, loins, side. - Strong's Number: H2256
There are 58 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: חֶבֶל
Transliteration: chebel
Pronunciation: kheh'-bel
Description: or חֵבֶל; from חָבַל; a rope (as twisted), especially a measuring line; by implication, a district or inheritance (as measured); or a noose (as of cords); figuratively, a company (as if tied together); also a throe (especially of parturition); also ruin; band, coast, company, cord, country, destruction, line, lot, pain, pang, portion, region, rope, snare, sorrow, tackling. - Strong's Number: H7218
There are 548 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: רֹאשׁ
Transliteration: rôʼsh
Pronunciation: roshe
Description: from an unused root apparently meaning to shake; the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itc.); band, beginning, captain, chapiter, chief(-est place, man, things), company, end, [idiom] every (man), excellent, first, forefront, (be-)head, height, (on) high(-est part, (priest)), [idiom] lead, [idiom] poor, principal, ruler, sum, top. - Strong's Number: H935
There are 2307 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: בּוֹא
Transliteration: bôwʼ
Pronunciation: bo
Description: a primitive root; to go or come (in a wide variety of applications); abide, apply, attain, [idiom] be, befall, [phrase] besiege, bring (forth, in, into, to pass), call, carry, [idiom] certainly, (cause, let, thing for) to come (against, in, out, upon, to pass), depart, [idiom] doubtless again, [phrase] eat, [phrase] employ, (cause to) enter (in, into, -tering, -trance, -try), be fallen, fetch, [phrase] follow, get, give, go (down, in, to war), grant, [phrase] have, [idiom] indeed, (in-) vade, lead, lift (up), mention, pull in, put, resort, run (down), send, set, [idiom] (well) stricken (in age), [idiom] surely, take (in), way. - Strong's Number: H4428
There are 1922 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: מֶלֶךְ
Transliteration: melek
Pronunciation: meh'-lek
Description: from מָלַךְ; a king; king, royal. - Strong's Number: H3478
There are 2229 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: יִשְׂרָאֵל
Transliteration: Yisrâʼêl
Pronunciation: yis-raw-ale'
Description: from שָׂרָה and אֵל; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity; Israel. - Strong's Number: H559
There are 4434 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אָמַר
Transliteration: ʼâmar
Pronunciation: aw-mar'
Description: a primitive root; to say (used with great latitude); answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call, certify, challenge, charge, [phrase] (at the, give) command(-ment), commune, consider, declare, demand, [idiom] desire, determine, [idiom] expressly, [idiom] indeed, [idiom] intend, name, [idiom] plainly, promise, publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), [idiom] still, [idiom] suppose, talk, tell, term, [idiom] that is, [idiom] think, use (speech), utter, [idiom] verily, [idiom] yet. - Strong's Number: H5650
There are 714 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: עֶבֶד
Transliteration: ʻebed
Pronunciation: eh'-bed
Description: from עָבַד; a servant; [idiom] bondage, bondman, (bond-) servant, (man-) servant. - Strong's Number: H1130
There are 24 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: בֶּן־הֲדַד
Transliteration: Ben-Hădad
Pronunciation: ben-had-ad'
Description: from בֵּן and הֲדַד; son of Hadad; Ben-Hadad, the name of several Syrian kings; Benhadad. - Strong's Number: H2421
There are 235 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: חָיָה
Transliteration: châyâh
Pronunciation: khaw-yaw'
Description: a primitive root (compare חָוָה, חָיָה); to live, whether literally or figuratively; causatively, to revive; keep (leave, make) alive, [idiom] certainly, give (promise) life, (let, suffer to) live, nourish up, preserve (alive), quicken, recover, repair, restore (to life), revive, ([idiom] God) save (alive, life, lives), [idiom] surely, be whole. - Strong's Number: H5315
There are 683 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: נֶפֶשׁ
Transliteration: nephesh
Pronunciation: neh'-fesh
Description: from נָפַשׁ; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental); any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, [idiom] dead(-ly), desire, [idiom] (dis-) contented, [idiom] fish, ghost, [phrase] greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, [idiom] jeopardy of) life ([idiom] in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, [phrase] slay, soul, [phrase] tablet, they, thing, ([idiom] she) will, [idiom] would have it. - Strong's Number: H2416
There are 452 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: חַי
Transliteration: chay
Pronunciation: khah'-ee
Description: from חָיָה; alive; hence, raw (flesh); fresh (plant, water, year), strong; also (as noun, especially in the feminine singular and masculine plural) life (or living thing), whether literally or figuratively; [phrase] age, alive, appetite, (wild) beast, company, congregation, life(-time), live(-ly), living (creature, thing), maintenance, [phrase] merry, multitude, [phrase] (be) old, quick, raw, running, springing, troop. - Strong's Number: H251
There are 636 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אָח
Transliteration: ʼâch
Pronunciation: awkh
Description: a primitive word; a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father)); another, brother(-ly); kindred, like, other. Compare also the proper names beginning with 'Ah-' or 'Ahi-'.