2 Kings 5:23

2Ki 5:23 And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid [them] upon two of his servants; and they bare [them] before him.

Ver. 23. Be content, take two talents.] Which amount to seven hundred and fifty pounds sterling. God saith as much in effect to his suitors, pressing and heaping mercies upon them. {Joh 16:24}

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.

in two bags--People in the East, when travelling, have their money, in certain sums, put up in bags.

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 23. He - bound two talents of silver] It required two servants to carry these two talents, for, according to the computation above, each talent was about 120lbs. weight.

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

(23) Be content.—Be willing, consent to take. The Vatican LXX. omits; the Alexandrian renders αὐτοῦ, owing to a transposition of the Hebrew letters (hãlô’ for hô’êl).

Bound.—Deu_14:25.

Bags.—Only here and in Isa_3:22, where it means “purses.”

Laid them upon two.—Gave them to two of his (i.e., Naaman’s) young men. The courtesy of the act is obvious.

Before him.—Gehazi.

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

23. bound two talents of silver in two bags] The money was put into the bag, and the opening tied up. The word translated ‘bags’ (LXX., θύλακοι) occurs in the list of female finery in Isa_3:22 and is rendered by R.V. ‘satchels’. Probably the bag was of an ornamental character, as the root word signifies ‘to engrave’. Perhaps there was some embroidery, or network in its formation.

laid them upon two of his servants] For the money must have been of considerable weight, and Naaman having had no opportunity of doing honour to Elisha, would be the more anxious to pay all attention to Gehazi.

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 Naaman said, be content,.... Or be pleased; do not object to it:

take two talents: a talent for each young man, which amounted to between three hundred and four hundred pounds apiece:

and he urged; pressed him hard, insisted upon his taking them, who might pretend a great deal of modesty, and a strict regard to his master's orders:

and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments; for each young man:

and laid them upon two of his servants, the servants of Naaman, not choosing to burden Elisha's servant with them; for such a quantity of money and clothes was pretty heavy:

and they bare them before him; both for his ease, and for his honour.

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

Be content - i. e. “consent.”

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

Him. The weight must have been considerable, (6000 sicles, ver. 26., and Exodus xxxviii. 25.; Haydock) otherwise Giezi would have preferred carrying them himself, that his master might not know. (Calmet) --- He had pretended a reluctance to take more than one talent, not to swerve from his master’s injunctions. (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).

He urged him, who at first refused it upon a pretence of modesty and obedience to his master’s command.

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

23. Naaman said… take two talents — Worth about three thousand three hundred and twenty dollars.

Upon two of his servants — Naaman’s servants. Comp. 2Ki_5:24. The gift was a weight which one could not well carry.

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

And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents; rather, consent, take two talents. Do not oppose thyself to my wishes consent to receive double what thou hast asked. Naaman is anxious to show his gratitude by giving as much as he can induce the ether side to accept. He suggests two talents, probably because the strangers who are said to have arrived are two. And he urged him. Gehazi must have made some show of declining the offer. And bound two talents of silver in two bagsi.e. put up two talents separately in two bags, closing the month Of the bag in each case by "binding" it round with a stringwith two changes of garments as asked for (ver. 22)and laid them upon two of his servants. If the Hebrew silver talent was worth as Keil supposes, or even as Thenius reckons, it would be pretty well as much as an ordinary slave could carry, being somewhat over a hundredweight. And they bare them before him; i.e. they the servants bare the two sacks of money before him Gehazi.

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

Urged him - Who at first refused it upon a pretense of modesty.

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

But Naaman forced him to accept two talents (קח הואל, be pleased to take; and כּכּרים, with the dual ending, ne pereat indicium numeri - Winer) in two purses, and two changes of raiment, and out of politeness had these presents carried by two of his servants before Gehazi.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

two talents

This can be written in modern measurements. This talents are of silver. AT: "two talents of silver" or "66 kilograms of silver" (See: Biblical Weight and Ellipsis)

laid them on two

"gave them to"

Naaman urged Gehazi

Naaman urged him to take gifts. AT: "Naaman urged Gehazi to take the gifts" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

Your servant

Gehazi refers to himself here as Elisha's servant.

translationWords

servant

Elisha

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

“Please.” Swear that he sent you.

In two bags. Types of garments and kerchiefs, as in, “and the kerchiefs and the pouches [=חֲרִיטִים].” Menachem classified it thus. But [Targum] Yonoson rendered this as “פַּלְדָּסִין [=sheets],” and the one [חֲרִיטִים] in the Book of Yeshayahu, [he rendered] as “מְחַכַּיָּא [=a plate covering the genitals].” The exegetes say that “בִּשְׁנֵי חֲרִיטֵי,” means “in two long pockets,” brides, in O.F.

His two servants. Na’amon’s.

And they carried them before him. Before Geichazi.

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.