1 Kings 11:23

1Ki 11:23 And God stirred him up [another] adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah:

Ver. 23. And God stirred him up, &c.] See on 1Ki 11:14.

Which fled from his lord Hadadezer.] Whom David had beaten. {2Sa 10:18; 2Sa 8:3-4} False friends will be the causes, but not companions of calamity.

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.

1Ki 11:23-24. Which fled from his lord Hadadezer — When David had defeated him. King of Zobah — A part of Syria, between Damascus and Euphrates. And he gathered men unto him — Some of those that fled when David defeated Hadadezer, 2Sa 10:18. And became captain over a band — Who listed themselves under him as their commander, with others, who readily joined them, and lived by robbery, as many Arabians did. And they went to Damascus — And took it while Solomon was wallowing in luxury: David had put a garrison into Damascus, and brought the people under tribute, 2Sa 8:5-6; and so they probably continued during his life, and were subject to Solomon after his death, till that prince, doting upon strange women, minded not the defence of his conquests. This Rezon took advantage of, and invaded and got possession of Damascus, and reigned there, as Hadad did in Edom.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11:23-25 Solomon’s second adversary was Rezon, an Aramean who had served under King Hadadezer of Aram-zobah. When David had defeated Hadadezer (2 Sam 8:3-7), Rezon escaped, gained a group of followers, and went to Damascus. He maintained himself there when Solomon campaigned in Hamath-zobah (2 Chr 8:3-4) and eventually became king of Damascus. Like Hadad, Rezon remained a bitter enemy of Israel and was troublesome to Solomon.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

When David had discomfited Hadadezer and his army.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 23. Rezon the son of Eliadah] Thus God fulfilled his threatening by the prophet Nathan: If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men; 2Sa 7:14.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(23) Rezon the son of Eliadah.—The name Rezon, which is not unlike the “Rezin” of 2 Kings 16, appears to signify “prince,” and might naturally mark the founder of a new power. In 1Ki_20:18 we read of a Hezion, king of Damascus, who would belong to this generation, and may be identical with Rezon. The tradition quoted by Josephus (Ant. vii. 5, 2) from Nicolaus of Damascus, that for ten generations from the days of David, all the kings of Syria bore the name of Hadad, probably means only that the title Hadad was the official title of the monarchy.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23–25. Another adversary raised up against Solomon (Not in Chronicles)

23. And God stirred him up another adversary] R.V. raised up, as in 1Ki_11:14. There it is said ‘the Lord (i.e. Jehovah)’ raised up the adversary; here it is ‘God (Elohim)’ who does it. There are some who see in this variation an indication of two different sources for the text, the earlier using ‘Elohim,’ the later ‘Jehovah.’ Such an interchange might well be found in a text written even in the days of Solomon, much more so, at the date when this narrative was set down, and is much too slender a thread of evidence to hang so serious a judgement upon.

Rezon the son of Eliadah] The latter name should be written Eliada (as R.V.). There is nothing more known with certainty about this Rezon. The events to which allusion is made in this verse are related 2Sa_8:3-8. There Hadadezer is called ‘the son of Rehob.’ He was thoroughly defeated by David, who thereupon put garrisons in Syria of Damascus. It cannot therefore have been immediately after the overthrow of Hadadezer that Rezon and his party established themselves in Damascus. For a time, at all events (2Sa_8:6), ‘the Syrians became servants to David and brought gifts.’ Rezon most likely escaped when his master was defeated, and waited till a convenient opportunity offered, and then tried, as here narrated, to establish himself as king over Syria. Henceforth for centuries Syria was the determined foe of Israel. In a later chapter (1Ki_15:18) Benhadad, a subsequent king of Syria, in Asa’s time, is described as a grandson of Hezion. The name Hezion חזיון is not very unlike Rezon רזון in the characters of the original. Hence some have conjectured that they are the same person. But there seems no sufficient foundation for the opinion.

fled from his lord] This flight may have taken place before David’s attack on Hadadezer, though what has been said in the previous note seems more probable.

king of Zobah] This kingdom is mentioned in the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon, but then is heard of no more. It comprised the country east of Cœle-Syria, and extended northward and eastward towards the Euphrates. See 1Sa_14:47; 2Sa_8:3; 2Sa_23:36; 1Ch_18:3; 1Ch_19:6; 2Ch_8:3.

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.

And he gathered men unto him,.... Perhaps some of the scattered forces of his master:

and became captain over a band, when David slew them of Zobah; some that escaped enlisted under this man, and lived by plunder the remainder of David's reign, and so in the reign of Solomon unto his old age, when his heart was turned away from God to idols, by his wives:

and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus; Rezon and his men went thither, not in David's time, for he put a garrison there, Sa2 8:6 but towards the close of Solomon's days, and when Hadad set up in Edom, which gave him the hint to do the same at Damascus, of which he became king, and was the founder of that kingdom; after him there was a long race of kings there.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Rezon - Possibly the same as the Hezion of 1Ki 15:18; but probably one who interrupted the royal line of the Damascene Hadads, which was restored after his death. We may arrange the Damascus-kings of this period as follows:

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Hadadezer (or Hadad I), about 1040 B.C. (conquered by David).

Rezon (usurper) was contemporary with Solomon.

Hezion (Hadad II) was contemporary with Rehoboam.

Tabrimon (Hadad III) was contemporary with Abijam.

Ben-hadad (Hadad IV) was contemporary with Asa.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Razon. He must have been now about 94 years old; unless this was the son of Aderezer’s general. (Salien) (Menochius)

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).

When David had defeated him: see 2Sa 10:10, &c.

Zobah; a part of Syria between Damascus and Euphrates; of which see 1Sa 14:47; 2Ch 8:3; Psa 60:1.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

23. Rezon — What office or position under Hadadezer he held, to what particular part of his dominions he belonged, or what instigated his revolt from his lord, does not clearly appear. Possibly he belonged to that “border at the river Euphrates,” which revolted from the king of Zobah while he went to assist the Ammonites. See 2Sa_8:3; 2Sa_10:6, and notes there.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And God stirred him up another adversary almost identical with ver. 14, Rezon the son of Eliadah Often identified with the Hezion of 1Ki_15:18, but on insufficient grounds. Whether he was a usurper, who had dethroned Hadad (see Jos., Ant., 6:5. 2), or an officer of Hadadezer"s, who escaped either before or after the battle of, 2Sa_8:3-5, is uncertain. The following words agree equally well with either supposition which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah .

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who fled - When David had defeated him. Zobah - A part of Syria, between Damascus and Euphrates.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Rezon ... Eliada ... Hadadezer

These are the names of men. (See: How to Translate Names)

Zobah ... Damascus ... Aram

These are the name of locations. (See: How to Translate Names)

when David defeated

Here "David" refers to David and his army. AT: "when David's army overcame" (See: Synecdoche)

all the days of Solomon

"during the time that Solomon was alive" or "all the days of Solomon's life"

Rezon abhorred Israel

"Rezon hated Israel very much"

translationWords

God

raise

adversary

Solomon

lord

king

Damascus

life

Israel

trouble

reign

Aram

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

And God raised up a rival against him [Shlomo]. Against Shlomo. And this is what Noson the prophet said to Dovid, “so that when he goes astray, I will chasten him with the rod of men.”

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.