2 Kings 3:26

2Ki 3:26 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through [even] unto the king of Edom: but they could not.

Ver. 26. To break through even unto the king of Edom.] Either because that quarter was weakest, or because his rage was most against the Edomites for helping the Israelites against him.

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.

2Ki 3:26. He took with him seven hundred men — to break through, &c. — He made a sally with seven hundred stout men, upon the quarter of the king of Edom, which he thought the weakest side, hoping to break through and escape. But they were repulsed, and compelled to retreat.

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

3:26 The reason for the Moabite king’s attempt to break through the enemy lines might have been to avenge himself against the Edomite king or to escape through a perceived weakness in the allied lines.

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

Verse 26. Seven hundred men] These were no doubt the choice of all his troops, and being afraid of being hemmed up and perhaps taken by his enemies, whom he found on the eve of gaining possession of the city, he made a desperate sortie in order to regain the open country; and supposing that the quarter of the Edomites was weakest, or less carefully guarded, he endeavoured to make his impression there; but they were so warmly received by the king of Edom that they failed in the attempt, and were driven back into the city. Hence he was led to that desperate act mentioned in the following verse.

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

(26) The battle was too sore for him.—The garrison was giving way under the destructive fire of the slingers.

To break through even unto the king of Edom.—Because the Edomite contingent seemed to be the most vulnerable point in the allied army, or because he hoped that these unwilling allies of Israel would allow him to escape through their ranks.

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

26. he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords] R.V. sword. In this phrase the singular is of the more frequent occurrence in A.V. The Moabite king desired to cut his way through the besiegers and so to escape, and he made the attempt in the direction of the king of Edom’s troops, either because that was the weaker side of the allied host, or else because he thought he might be received by the Edomite king, and that they together might turn against the combined forces of Israel and Judah. Josephus suggests the former reason, saying he made his sally where the guard was relaxed. The expression ‘break through unto the king of Edom’ seems to hint that he thought to find there an ally.

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.

To break through, even unto the king of Edom - Either because he thought that the king of Edom would connive at his escape or to take vengeance on him for having deserted his former allies (2Ki 3:8 note).

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

Edom, hoping that he would favour their escape, or because that part seemed the weakest.

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).

That being unable to defend the city longer, he might make an escape; which he chose to do on the king of Edom’s quarter, because he thought either that his was the weakest side, or that he would more willingly suffer him to escape, because he was not so hearty in the war as the rest, but only forced to it, and he might hereafter have some occasion of the king of Moab to join with him, as before he had, 2Ch 20:22.

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

26. To break through unto the king of Edom — He probably expected to receive less opposition from the king of Edom than from the other kings, and the Edomite forces were probably the weakest of the three armies that were encamped against the city.

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

And when the King of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for himi.e. that he could not hope to maintain the defense much longer, but would be forced to surrender the fortresshe took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through even unto the King of Edom. Perhaps he regarded the King of Edom as the weakest of the three confederates, and the least likely to offer effectual resistance; perhaps he viewed him as a traitor, since Edom had been his ally a little earlier, (2Ch_20:10, 2Ch_20:22) and wished to wreak his vengeance on him. But they could not. The attempt failed; Edom was too strong, and he was forced to throw himself once more into the beleaguered town.

Vers. 26, 27.

The heartlessness of heathenism.

1. Heathenism blights the natural affections. Christianity honors and sanctifies them.

2. Heathenism disregards human life. What sacrifice of life by cannibalism, under the car of Juggernaut, in the suttees of India! What disregard of human life in the exposure of Chinese infants, in the aged and the sick left alone to die on the banks of the Indian rivers! Christianity has changed all this. It takes high views of human life. The body is the dwelling-place of an immortal soul. Care for the sick and for the dying is due to the influences of the gospel. Where are the hospitals, the philanthropic movements, of heathenism or of agnosticism? Even for the comforts of the present life we owe much to Christianity. C.H.I.

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

To break thro' - That he might make an escape: which he chose to do on the king of Edom's quarter; because he thought his was the weakest side.

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

King Mesha

Translate the name of this king the same as you did in 2 Kings 3:4.

that the battle was lost

"that his army was being defeated"

seven hundred swordsmen

"700 swordsmen" (See: Numbers)

swordsmen

soldiers who fight with swords

break through

"force their way through." There were many soldiers fighting on the battlefield which made it difficult to move though the crowd.

offered him as a burnt offering

King Mesha burned his son with fire until he died. He did this as an offering to Chemosh, the false god of Moab. The full meaning of this statement can be made explicit. (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

So there was great anger against Israel

Here the word "anger" can be expressed as a verb. There are two possibilities for who is angry here: 1) The Moabite soldiers. AT: "So the Moabite soldiers were very angry with Israel" or 2) God. AT: "So God was very angry with Israel" (See: Abstract Nouns)

translationWords

reign

sacrifice

anger

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