When they came down to him, Elisha prayed to Yahweh, and said, “Please strike this people with blindness.” He struck them with blindness according to Elishah’s word.
Parallel Translations
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When they came down to him, Elisha prayed to Yahweh, and said, “Please strike this people with blindness.” He struck them with blindness according to Elishah’s word.
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And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
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And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said: 'Smite this people, I pray Thee, with blindness.' And He smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
Cross-references (8)
Passages linked to 2 Kings 6:18 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Acts 13:11 Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is on you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a season!” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him. He went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
- John 12:40 “He has blinded their eyes and he hardened their heart, lest they should see with their eyes, and perceive with their heart, and would turn, and I would heal them.”
- Genesis 19:11 They struck the men who were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
- John 9:39 Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.”
- Deuteronomy 28:28 Yahweh will strike you with madness, with blindness, and with astonishment of heart.
- Job 5:14 They meet with darkness in the day time, and grope at noonday as in the night.
- Zechariah 12:4 In that day,” says Yahweh, “I will strike every horse with terror, and his rider with madness; and I will open my eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.
- Romans 11:7 What then? That which Israel seeks for, that he didn’t obtain, but the chosen ones obtained it, and the rest were hardened.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Meaning, the Syrians his enemies, which came down, thinking…
Meaning, the Syrians his enemies, which came down, thinking themselves sure of him.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 2Ki 6:18 And when they came down to him,…
2Ki 6:18 And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
Ver. 18. And he smote them with blindness.] Scotomate, non αορασια sed ακρισια not with bodily blindness, but a dizziness and defect in their judgments, or a dazzling and deluding their senses, that seeing they saw, and yet perceived not. The like befell those sodomites in Gen 19:11 God who made the senses, can either hold or delude them, at his pleasure.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain When they came down to him; either in the…
When they came down to him; either in the city, into which they easily got admission, when they declared that the only end of their coming was to take Elisha; or in the field without the city, whither he went to meet them.
He smote them with blindness; not with a total blindness, that they could see nothing, for then they would not have followed him; but with a partial blindness, that they could not distinctly discern the man they sought; which might be by some alteration made by God in their brain, or in the air. See Poole "Gen 19:11".
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And it came to pass, when they were come…
And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see,.... So as to know where they were:
and the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw, and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria; the gates being thrown open for them, and they led into the very heart of the city; for, no doubt, Elisha sent his servant before, to acquaint the king of Israel with what he was doing; who got a sufficient number of armed men to enclose them, and fall upon them, when put into his hands, as appears by what follows.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 18. Smite this people - with blindness] Confound…
Verse 18. Smite this people - with blindness] Confound their sight so that they may not know what they see, and so mistake one place for another.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain 2Ki 6:18. And when they came down to him…
2Ki 6:18. And when they came down to him — Either in the city, into which they easily got admission, when they declared that the only end of their coming was to take Elisha; or rather, in the field, without the city, whither he went to meet them. Elisha prayed, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness — Not of the eyes, or, at least, not with total blindness, for in that case they could not have seen to have followed him; but rather with blindness of the mind, or imagination, which was rendered stupid and confused, or with that dimness and confusion in their sight, which prevented their distinguishing one object from another; the city of Dothan, for instance, from the city of Samaria. We have a similar case Gen 19:11. Thus it happens to several men in their liquor, that though their eyes are open, and they can perceive the several objects which surround them, yet they cannot discern wherein they differ. And if we may suppose that the Syrian army was under the same αορασια, as the Greeks happily term such a degree of blindness or want of distinct vision, we need no more wonder that they readily accepted a guide who offered his service, than that a drunkard, after having lost his way, and found himself bewildered, should be thankful to any hand which should undertake to conduct him safe home — Houbigant and Dodd.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain They came down to him - The Syrians, who…
They came down to him - The Syrians, who had been encamped on rising ground opposite the hill of Dothan, now descended and drew near to the city.
The blindness with which they were smitten was not real - blindness actual loss of sight - but a state of illusion in which a man sees things otherwise than as they are (compare 2Ki 6:20).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Blindness. The blindness here spoken of was of a…
Blindness. The blindness here spoken of was of a particular kind, which hindered them from seeing the objects that were really before them; and represented other different object to their imagination; so that they no longer perceived the city of Dothan, nor were able to know the person of Eliseus; but were easily led by him, whom they took to be another man, to Samaria. Sot that he truly told them; this is not the way, neither is this the city, &c., because he spoke with relation to the way, and to the city which was represented to them. (Challoner) --- Stratagems in war are lawful. (St. Chrysostom, &c.) (Grotius, Jur. iii. 1, 17.) The words of the prophet might be merely ironical. --- Blindness, Septuagint Greek: aorasia, "not seeing" certain objects, while they could perceive others; as was the case of the men who sought Lot’s door at Sodom; (Genesis xix. 11.; Calmet) and the eyes of the disciples were held, that they might not know our Saviour. Eliseus had left his house, going towards Samaria to meet the soldiers; and when they asked him where the prophet dwelt, he answered truly, This, &c. For he was then near the royal city, and is above was at Dothan. (Salien) (Haydock) --- The reprobate will thus acknowledge their error, when it is too late, at the last day.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain HIS ARMY SMITTEN WITH BLINDNESS. (Kg2 6:18-23)
HIS ARMY SMITTEN WITH BLINDNESS. (Kg2 6:18-23)
Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness--not a total and material blindness, for then they could not have followed him, but a mental hallucination (see Gen 19:11) so that they did not perceive or recognize him to be the object of their search.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 18. When they came down to him — When…
18. When they came down to him — When the Syrian host came down to Elisha to capture him.
Smote them with blindness — The same Divine power which, in answer to prayer, opened the spiritual eyes of the young man, closed and blinded even the natural eyes of the enemies of Elisha. Jehovah blesses his servants with enlarged visions of his power and glory, but curses his enemies with blindness. Compare Gen_19:11; Act_13:11.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 18. And when they came down to him] As…
18. And when they came down to him] As the words stand, ‘they’ must refer to the Syrian troops, and to understand the sentence we must suppose that Elisha and his servant, the latter encouraged by the heavenly vision, had come forth from the city and been able to pass the gate. After this the Syrians followed them, and on their approach Elisha prayed that they might be smitten with blindness. Some have however thought that ‘to him’ is an error for ‘to them’, and have referred the verb to Elisha and his servant. Thus the sense would be: ‘When Elisha and his servant came down to the enemy, as they were emboldened to do, then Elisha prayed &c.’ But there is no such great difficulty in understanding the existing text, as to warrant us in accepting a conjecture which seems only supported by one, the Syriac, version. It was quite in the character of Elisha to go forth with his now courageous servant, and the Syrians at first would let them pass out so far that they might be surrounded directly by the waiting troops.
Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness] What seems to have been sent upon the men was an illusion which prevented them from seeing correctly what was before them. Josephus explains it as a mist (ἀχλὺς) whereby they were prevented from recognising Elisha. The word, which is plural in form, occurs only here and in Gen_19:11. It denotes the seeing of something unreal instead of the true image. Thus these men could go with Elisha to Samaria, not knowing to what place he was leading them.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (18) And when they came down to him.—This would…
(18) And when they came down to him.—This would mean that the Syrians came down to Elisha. But the prophet was, to begin with, in the city, which lay on the top of the hill; and the heavenly host intervened between him and his enemies, so that the latter must have occupied the lower position. The reading of the Syriac and Josephus ύs, “and they (i.e., Elisha and his servant) went down to them”—i.e., to the Syrian force; and this is apparently right. The sight of the heavenly host guarding his master had inspired the prophet’s follower with courage to face any danger in his master’s company.
Elisha prayed.—And Elisha; prayed—mentally, as he approached his foes.
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This people.—Perhaps in the sense of multitude.
Blindness.—Sanwçrîm: the term used in Gen_19:11, and nowhere besides. It denotes not so much blindness as a dazing effect, accompanied by mental bewilderment and confusion. “They saw, but knew not what they saw” (Rashi). Ewald pronounces the passage in Genesis the model of the present one.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And when they came down to him. Keil and…
And when they came down to him. Keil and others suppose this to mean that the Syrians "came down" to Elisha; hut, if they were in the plain that surrounds the hill whereon Dothan was built, as appears from ver. 15, they would have had to ascend in order to reach Elisha, not to descend. We must, therefore, with F. Meyer, Thenius, and Bahr, translate, "When they Elisha and his servant came down to them the Syrians either changing wyl; ae into as Thenius does, or understanding wylae to refer to the "host" (lyij) of the Syrians. Elisha prayed unto the Lord, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. Not literal blindness, or they could not have followed Elisha"s lead, and marched a distance of twelve miles to Samaria; but a state of confusion and Bewilderment, in which" seeing they saw, but did not perceive". (compare the "blindness" of the men of Sodom, in Gen_19:11) And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.