1 Kings 22:11

1Ki 22:11 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron: and he said, Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them.

Ver. 11. Made him horns of iron.] After the manner of the true prophets of God, who usually, to the word they spake, added such outward sensible signs.

With these shalt thou push the Syrians.] Thus this horned beast vapoured and vaunted. Augustine observed of Primianus and Maximianus, that they were jolly fellows in a faction. Else, said he, Primianus might have been Postremianus, and Maximianus Minimianus.

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 22:11. Zedekiah made him horns of iron — Fit emblems of the power and victory of these two kings. The devil is God’s ape, and the false prophets imitated the true, who, when they declared God’s mind by words, did also sometimes confirm it by sensible signs, Isa 20:2; Jer 27:2. Thus saith the Lord — Hebrew, Jehovah, in whose name he pretends to speak, to gain the more credit and countenance to his words.

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

The true Prophets of God were accustomed to use signs for the confirmation of their doctrine, Isa. 20:2; Jer. 7:2. Wherein the false Prophets did imitate them, thinking thereby to make their doctrine more commendable.

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

Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron--Small projections, of the size and form of our candle extinguishers (worn in many parts of the East as military ornaments), were worn by the Syrians of that time, and probably by the Israelite warriors also. Zedekiah, by assuming two horns, personated two heroes, and, pretending to be a prophet, wished in this manner to represent the kings of Israel and Judah in a military triumph. It was a symbolic action, to impart greater force to his language (see Deu 33:17); but it was little more than a flourish with a spontoon [CALMET, Fragments].

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 11. Zedekiah - made him horns of iron] This was in imitation of that sort of prophecy which instructed by significative actions. This was frequent among the prophets of the Lord.

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

(11) Zedekiah.—The name itself (“righteousness of Jehovah”) must certainly imply professed devotion to the true God, whose Name here is first uttered by him. Symbolic action was not unfrequent in the prophets. (See Note on 1Ki_11:30.) The use of the horns, as emblems of victorious strength, is also familiar, as in the utterance of Balaam (Num_23:22), in the blessing of Moses (Deu_33:17), in the song of Hannah (1Sa_3:1), in the visions of Daniel and Zechariah (Dan_8:3-10; Zec_1:18-19).

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

11. Zedekiah] In 1Ki_22:24 we see that Zedekiah was the leader of Ahab’s prophets. His action here is one of those symbolical proceedings not uncommon with the prophets. Thus Ahijah significantly rent his garment into twelve pieces (1Ki_11:30) and gave Jeroboam ten. Zedekiah’s language, addressed to Ahab, is probably an allusion to the blessing of Ephraim in Deu_33:17. By this time Ephraim had become the representative tribe of the Northern Kingdom, and of him Moses had said ‘his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth.’ By such language not only Ahab, but Jehoshaphat might be encouraged to trust more to the prophecies of success.

until thou have consumed them] R.V. until they be consumed. There is nothing in the original to warrant ‘thou.’

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 Micaiah said, as the Lord liveth,.... He swore by the living God, for the confirmation of what he was about to say:

what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak; truly and faithfully, keeping nothing back, nor adding anything, whether it be good or evil, pleasing or displeasing; it looks as if as yet he had no instruction from the Lord what to say, and yet the vision he later declares seems to have been had by him before, Kg1 22:17.

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

Horns of iron - The horn in Scripture is the favorite symbol of power; and pushing with the horn is a common metaphor for attacking and conquering enemies (see Deu 33:17; Compare Psa 44:5; Dan 8:4). Zedekiah, in employing a symbolic action, was following the example of a former Israelite prophet 1Ki 11:30.

Thus saith the Lord - Or, יהוה yehovâh. Zedekiah lays aside the unmeaningful “Lord” אדני 'ǎdonāy of the general company of Israelite prophets 1Ki 22:6, and professes to have a direct message from Yahweh to Ahab. He may have believed his own words, for the “lying spirit” 1Ki 22:22 may have seemed to him a messenger from Yahweh. All the rest followed his example 1Ki 22:12.

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

Push, "with the horn," (Greek: keratiseis; Septuagint) and throw into the air, (Menochius) like a bull. (Calmet) --- Nothing shall withstand thy power. The actions of Sedecias were of the same import as his words. (Haydock) --- See Jeremias xxvii. 2., and xxviii. 10. --- Such horns were shewn to Zacharias; (i. 18.) as false prophets often do, like the true ones. (Worthington)

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).

Horns of iron; fit emblems of the power and victory of these two kings. The devil is God’s ape, and the false prophets sometimes imitating the true, who when they declared God’s mind by words, did also oftentimes confirm it by sensible signs. See Isa 20:2; Jer 27:2.

Thus saith the Lord, Heb. Jehovah; whose name he pretends, to gain the more credit and countenance to his words. See Poole "1Ki 21:7".

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

11. Zedekiah — One of the four hundred false prophets.

Made him horns of iron — In order to prophesy by symbol as well as by word.

With these shalt thou push the Syrians — Here was an embodying of the imagery of Deu_33:17, where of the triumph of Joseph it is said: “His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns; with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth.” Not only do Zedekiah’s words and action bear witness to the existence of the Pentateuch at that time, but also show his desire to strengthen his prophecy by embodying in it an old promise to the most prominent tribe in Israel.

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

And Zedekiah This name =" Justice of Jehovah," is one of the proofs that these cannot have been prophets of Baal, as Stanley and others suppose the son of Chenaanah =" Canaanitess." But we gather 1Ch_7:10 that this, like Shelomith, was a man"s name. The Benjamite there mentioned may be identical with the father (or ancestor) of Zedekiah made him Rawlinson would translate, had made him," He says that the horns must have "been made previously, in expectation of some such occasion as that now afforded him." But it is quite conceivable that during the prophesyings, which clearly lasted some time, the idea occurred to Zedekiah, and it would not take long to put it into execution horns of Iron Thenius understands that these were iron spikes held on the forehead. But the reference is clearly to the horns of a bullock, and the appropriateness of the prophetic act is only manifest when we remember that Ephraim is compared to a bullock, (Deu_33:17) and more, that Moses spake beforehand of the strength of his horns, and predicted that with them he should push the people together to the ends of the earth." Not only, that is to say, was the horn a familiar Oriental symbol of power (1Sa_2:1, 1Sa_2:10; 2Sa_22:3; Psa_89:24 Psa_92:10; Dan_7:21 Dan_8:8, etc.) but it was identified in a peculiar manner with the powerful tribe of Ephraim; in ether words, with the kingdom of Israel This symbolical act was not necessarily an imitation of the action of Ahijah. (1Ki_11:30) Such acted parables were not uncommon among the prophets (2Ki_13:15; Isa_20:2; Jer_13:1 Jer_19:10 Jer_32:9 sqq.; Eze_4:5; Act_21:11) and he said, Thus saith the Lord Heb. Jehovah. He now uses the sacred name; no doubt because of Jehoshaphat"s demand, ver. 7, With these shalt thou push the word of (Deu_33:17) the Syrians, until thou have consumed then.

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