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2. A lord on whose hand the king leaned.'-At the present day in Western Asia, when a king walks any short distance on foot, or remains standing, it is usual for him to support himself by resting his hand upon the arm of the highest officer of state who happens to be present.

THE SULTAN SUPPORTED.

We recollect to have seen the late Turkish sultan, after alighting from his horse, walk thus supported up the steps of the mosque at Orta Khir, which he was then visiting to perform his noontide devotions in public on a Friday.

3. Four leprous men.'--The Jews think these were Gehazi and his three sons; and this is not impossible, though we see no evidence either for or against this notion. The law of Moses excluded lepers from the camp; and it is probable that they were afterwards, in like manner, excluded from the towns. It is difficult to understand otherwise than as hypothetical, the statement in verse 4, which seems to imply that these leprous persons were at liberty to have re-entered the town if they had so pleased. It seems that they had been recently expelled, whether on account of their leprosy, or to relieve the town from the charge of their maintenance, or else that they had for some time been living without the town as lepers, and now ceased to receive from the besieged that scanty provision with which it is probable that they had hitherto been sup plied. In either case, as the enclosing lines of the Syrian army shut them in between the besiegers and the town, and prevented them from seeking their living elsewhere, there seemed no other alternative than to throw themselves upon the compassion of the Syrians.

10. Horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were.'-Here the lepers, in describing what they found in the camp when they approached it, mention the cattle first; whereas the description of the flight of the Syrians from their camp (verse 7), mentions the horses and asses last. This is therefore one of many circumstances which we find in the Scripture to intimate that the ancient Oriental camps were arranged much on the same principle as at present-with the cattle outside the whole, tied by their feet to ropes or chains, extended between pegs of wood or iron driven into the ground. Thus the cattle form a sort of outer border to the camp; and this arrangement enables them to be taken abroad for forage or water, without interfering with the order of the camp, while they are the

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more in readiness to be mounted and ridden off on any sudden occasion that may arise. This mode of tying the cattle suggests that it would have taken more time than the terrified Syrians could afford to undo cattle thus secured, and therefore fled without them. It is to be noticed that only asses and horses are thus secured, apart from each other. The camels are seldom secured at all; and accordingly in the present text, no camels are described as being tied.'

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12. I will now shew you what the Syrians have done.' -Here we have a stratagem of war attributed to the Syrians, several examples of which might be adduced from the ancient and modern history of the East. The best perhaps is that quoted by Harmer, from the history of the revolt of Ali Bey; and it is the more interesting from its having been practised upon the Syrians. The pasha of Damascus found his enemy, the sheikh Daher, encamped near the sea of Tiberias. The engagement was deferred to the next day, but during the night the sheikh divided his forces into three troops, and silently moved

from his camp, leaving the fires burning, with all the tents and stores as they were, including plenty of provisions and strong liquors. At midnight the pasha, thinking to surprise the sheikh, marched in silence to his camp, and, to his great astonishment, found it completely abandoned, and that too in such haste, that the baggage and stores had been left behind. Rejoicing in his bloodless success, the pasha determined to stay there and refresh his soldiers. They soon fell to plunder, and drank so freely of the liquors, that, overcome by the fatigue of the day's march and the fumes of the spirits, it was not long before they were all in a sound sleep. Then the supposed fugitives, who were well informed of these proceedings, marched back silently to the camp, and rushing suddenly from all sides upon the confused and sleeping enemy, obtained an easy victory over them. They slew eight thousand of their number, and the remainder, with the pasha at their head, escaped with great difficulty to Damascus, leaving all their own baggage behind them.-This was what the king of Israel feared,

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THEN spake Elisha unto the woman, 'whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine houshold, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn for the LORD hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.

2 And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God: and she went with her houshold, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.

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3 And it came to pass at the seven years' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land. 4 And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.

5 And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.

6 And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain 'officer, saying, Restore all that

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was her's, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until

now.

7¶ And Elisha came to Damascus ; and Ben-hadad the king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither.

8 And the king said unto Hazael, Take a present in thine hand, and go, meet the man of God, and enquire of the LORD by him, saying, Shall I recover of this disease?"

9 So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Thy son Benhadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying, Shall I recover of this disease?

10 And Elisha said unto him, Go, say unto him, Thou mayest certainly recover: howbeit the LORD hath shewed me that he shall surely die.

11 And he settled his countenance 'stedfastly, until he was ashamed: and the man of God wept.

12 And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child.

13 And Hazael said, But what, is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The LORD hath shewed me that thou shalt be king over Syria.

14 So he departed from Elisha, and came to his master; who said to him, What said

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Elisha to thee? And he answered, He told me that thou shouldest surely recover.

15 And it came to pass on the morrow, that he took a thick cloth, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died and Hazael reigned in his stead.

16 And in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being then king of Judah, 'Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign. 17 Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

18 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for the daughter of Ahab was his wife: and he did evil in the sight of the LORD.

19 Yet the LORD would not destroy Judah for David his servant's sake, 'as he promised him to give him alway a light, and to his children.

20 In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves.

21 So Joram went over to Zair, and all the chariots with him: and he rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots and the people fled into their tents.

22 Yet Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time.

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23 ¶ And the rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

24 And Joram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and 'Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.

25 In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign.

26 Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri king of Israel.

27 And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did evil in the sight of the LORD, as did the house of Ahab: for he was the son in law of the house of Ahab.

28 And he went with Joram the son of Ahab to the war against Hazael king of Syria in Ramoth-gilead; and the Syrians wounded

Joram.

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Verse 1. The Lord hath called for a famine.'--We incline to the opinion, which has been adopted by many commentators, that Elisha said this before the circumstances recorded in the two last chapters; and that now the woman's return, after the restoration of plenty, affords occasion to mention the prediction which, seven years before, had induced her to leave her country. The famine in the city of Samaria, which has just been recorded, would then seem to have been a result not merely of the siege, but of the general dearth and the consequent distress.

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3. To cry unto the king for her house.'-Perhaps the estates of those who left the country without permission were confiscated to the king. It is true that there is nothing of this in the law of Moses; but when the regal government was established, and the kings found that confiscation was almost the only process by which a royal demesne could be formed, they would naturally be anxious to fix this penalty as the consequence of certain measures or offences (see the note on 1 Kings xxi. 15). Probably this, of being absent in a foreign country beyond a given time, might be of the number. Such a law has existed, and does exist, among different nations; and the kings of Israel might think themselves the more warranted in adopting it, because the evident spirit of the law of Moses was to keep the nation as much as possible within its own territory, apart and separate from strangers. No such law, however, existed before the time of the Kings, for we

sce, in the book of Ruth, that after Elimelech's family had resided ten years in the land of Moab-for the same reason which induced the Shunammite to remain seven years in the land of the Philistines-and after the father and his two sons had died there, the surviving females retained the family estate (Ruth i. 4; iv. 5). Some think that the next of kin had seized the Shunammite's lands; and others, that her agent had been unfaithful; but the explanation we have given seems the most satisfactory.

4. The king talked with Gehazi.'-Some consider this a proof that the whole transaction occurred at a still earlier period than we have supposed, that is, before the visit of Naaman to Elisha, aud consequently before Gehazi became a leper, particularly as he is still called 'the servant of the man of God.' This is not impossible; but we do not think the leprosy of Gehazi, taken alone, rendered such an explanation indispensably necessary. If he was at this time a leper, there was nothing to prevent him from speaking to the king at a proper distance, since contact only, conveyed ceremonial pollution. And if lepers were excluded from towns, it is not difficult to imagine many circumstances under which the king may have conversed with him outside the town. The king might, for instance, in going to one of his gardens, have had his attention directed to Gehazi, as one who was erewhile Elisha's servant, and had been miraculously smitten with leprosy; and, in his desire to be informed of the particu. lars, may have required him to relate them on the spot,

or, which is more probable, to follow him to the garden for the purpose. Either way, the relation of one of Elisha's miracles would naturally lead to the mention of another, until that of the Shunammite came to be narrated, just at the time when the woman herself appeared to prefer her petition; the good providence of God directing this concurrence of circumstances to establish the evidence of his own power and compassion, as well as to procure from the king that attention to her request, which she might not otherwise have obtained.

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9. Forty camels' burden.'-This introductory gift must have been very valuable. It does not however necessarily follow that every camel carried the full load it would bear, since it is a very common practice in the East, for the sake of parade, to employ a far greater number of men and animals in the conveyance of a gift than is actually required. It will be useful, however, to mention what is to be considered a camel's burden. This is no determinate weight, since the burden depends on various circumstances. We copy Burckhardt's statement, which we believe to be substantially correct, being corroborated by our own information, so far as it extends :-The common load of an Arabian camel is from four to five hundred pounds upon a short journey, and from three to four hundred pounds on a journey of considerable distance. The camels employed between Djidda and Tayf, in the year 1814 or 1815, for carrying provisions to Mohammed Ali, had loads not exceeding 250 pounds. The well-fed and well-watered Egyptian camels are equal in strength to the Anadolian;

those of the largest size at Cairo will carry three bales of coffee, or fifteen hundredweight, from the town to the waterside, about three miles distant. From Cairo to Suez, the same camels will carry ten hundredweight; and that space is a journey of three days. The longer the journey to be undertaken, and the fewer wells to be found in the way, the lighter are the loads. The Darfur camels are distinguished for their size and great strength in bearing heavy loads; and in this latter quality they surpass all the camels of north-eastern Africa. Those which accompany the Darfur caravan to Egypt are seldom loaded with more than four quintals. The Sennar camels generally carry three and a half, and are not equal in size to those of Darfur. (Notes on the Bedouins,' p. 258.) It is a pity that, from such various data, Burckhardt did not determine something of an average.. What he does say, however, rather confirms our own information, which leads us to conclude that, taking into consideration the difference of breeds and circumstances, the average of a camel's burden may be stated as somewhere between six and eight hundred pounds. The camel kneels to receive its burden, and will never consent to take more than it is well able to carry. The males are stronger and carry heavier loads than the females; but the latter support thirst better, which is a consideration of great importance in the East.

15. He took a thick cloth,' etc.-There is an ambiguity in the original, which renders it grammatically uncertain whether it was the king himself who ordered this to be

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LADEN CAMELS.

done, and, by this ill-advised attempt to allay the burning heat of his fever (supposing it a fever), gave a fatal turn to his disease -or that it was Hazael who did it, either under such a pretence of affording him relief, or in order to murder him outright. Some prefer the first-mentioned interpretation; but we think that it is safest to follow the current of ancient and modern interpretation in deciding the ambiguity against Hazael. Then-supposing him directly or indirectly the murderer-it seems that it was his object to slay the king without having any marks of violence which might lead to detection. It is evident, from the circumstances of preparation, that he slew him under some pretence of assistance: and the following explanation furnishes what seems to us the most probable interpretation. It seems that what our translation calls 'a thick cloth' (ṣọp makbir), means some part of the bed-furniture, probably the thick quilted coverlet, or, as Michaelis thinks, a gnat-curtain or net: most likely the former, as a mosquito-curtain would be more likely to be sprinkled with water than dipped into it. Now, it is the custom in some kinds of fever to wet the bedding, and that with good effect; while in other cases this would be dangerous, if not fatal. With respect to the former,

CHAPTER IX.

1 Elisha sendeth a young prophet with instructions to anoint Jehu at Ramoth-gilead. 4 The prophet, having done his message, fleeth. 11 Jehu, being made king by the soldiers, killeth Joram in the field of Naboth. 27 Ahaziah is slain at Gur, and buried at Jerusalem. 30 Proud Jezebel is thrown down out of a window, and eaten by dogs.

AND Elisha the prophet called one of the children of the prophets, and said unto him, Gird up thy loins, and take this box of oil in thine hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead:

2 And when thou comest thither, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and carry him to an 'inner chamber;

3 Then take the box of oil, and pour it on his head, and say, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not. 4 So the young man, even the young man the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead.

5 And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said, I have an errand to thee, O captain. And Jehu said, Unto which of all us? And he said, To thee, O captain.

6 And he arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel.

7 And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all

1 Heb. chamber in a chamber.

Bruce, speaking of the disorders common in the region of the Red Sea, says: Violent fevers, called there nedad, make the principal figure in this fatal list, and generally terminate the third day in death. If the patient survives till the fifth day, he very often recovers by drinking water only, and throwing a quantity of cold water upon him, even in his bed, where he is permitted to lie, without any attempt to make him dry, or to change his bed, till another deluge adds to the first.' Now, we may suppose, that the king's disorder was not of this kind, and that Hazael recommended a similar treatment with the knowledge that it was calculated to produce a fatal effect; or else that the complaint was of this description and was thus treated, and that Hazael took the opportunity of smothering or strangling the king under pretence of laying over him a coverlet fresh dipped in water. It must not be forgotten, that the coverlets in the East are in general very thickly quilted with wool or cotton, as blankets are unknown. And this thickness, with its great weight when soaked in water, made it the fittest instru ment for such a wicked purpose that could be found about an Oriental bed.

the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel.

8 For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel:

9 And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of "Baasha the son of Ahijah:

10 And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her. And he opened the door, and fled.

11 Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said unto him, Is all well? wherefore came this mad fellow to thee? And he said unto them, Ye know the man, and his communication.

12 And they said, It is false; tell us now. And he said, Thus and thus spake he to me, saying, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee king over Israel.

13 Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with trumpets, saying, Jehu 'is king.

14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had kept Ramoth-gilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria.

15 But 'king 'Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel.

1 Kings 19. 16. 31 Kings 21. 15. 41 Kings 14. 10, and 21, 21. 1 Kings 16. 3. 7 Heb. reigneth. 3 Chap. 8. 29. 9 Heb. Jehoram, 10 Heb. smote.

51 Kings 14. 10, and 21. 22. 11 Heb. let no escaper go, &c.

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