2 Kings 8:21

2Ki 8:21 So Joram went over to Zair, and all the chariots with him: and he rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots: and the people fled into their tents.

Ver. 21. So Joram went over to Zair.] That is, To Idumea, then a flourishing country; now it liveth by fame only, being wholly swallowed up, as very many other countries are, in the greatness of the Turkish empire.

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 8:21. Joram went over to Zair — This word is written differently from Seir, and therefore, it seems, does not signify any part of the country of Edom, but some city near to it. And smote the Edomites which compassed him about — The Edomites were not wanting in their own defence, but had surrounded him with an army; through which he broke in the night, and routed them. And the people fled, &c. — The common soldiers of the Edomites herein following the example of their captains. Yet Edom revolted — Notwithstanding this victory, Joram could not recover his dominion over this country; probably because he was recalled by the revolt of some of his own subjects, who had taken the occasion of his absence to rebel, and he feared that others would follow their example if they had the like opportunity. So that Edom continued a kingdom under its own king. Unto this day — When this record was written. Indeed, they were not brought again under the power of the Jews till after their return from the captivity of Babylon. Then Libnah revolted — A considerable city in Judah belonging to the priests. For the reason why they revolted, see 2Ch 21:10-11. It is probable they returned to their obedience, because those words, unto this day, which are added to the former clause, are omitted here.

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

Verse 21. Joram went over to Zair] This is the same as Seir, a chief city of Idumea. So Isa 21:11: The burden of Dumah (Idumea.) He calleth to me out of Seir.

Smote the Edomites] It appears that the Israelites were surrounded by the Idumeans; and that in the night Joram and his men cut their way through them, and so got every man to his tent, for they were not able to make any farther head against these enemies; and therefore it is said, that Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day.

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

(21) So Joram went over to Zair.—No town called Zair is otherwise known. Hitzig and Ewald would read Zoar, but Zoar lay in Moab, not in Edom. (Jer_48:34; Isa_15:5; Gen_19:30; Gen_19:37.) The Vulg. has Seira, and the Arabic Sâ‘îra, which suggest an original reading, “to Seir,” the well-known mountain chain which was the headquarters of the Edomite people. Perhaps the reading of the text Çâ‘îrâh represents a dialectic pronunciation. (Comp. the forms Yishâq and Yiçhâq for Isaac.)

And he rose by night.—There may be a lacuna of a few lines in the text here, or the compiler, in his desire to be brief, may have become obscure. Jehoram appears to have been hemmed in by the Edomites in the mountains, and to have attempted escape under cover of night.

Smote the Edomites which compassed him about.—Cut his way through their ranks.

And the captains of the chariots.—Part of the object of the verb “smote.” Jehoram smote (cut his way through) the Edomites—that is to say, the captains of the Edomite war-chariots which hemmed him and his army in.

And the people fled into (unto) their tents.—That is to say, the army of Jehoram was glad to escape from the scene of its ill success, and made its way homeward as best it could. (Comp. for the proverbial expression, “to their tents,” 1Sa_20:1; 1Ki_8:66.) From Joe_3:19 (“Edom shall be a desolate wilderness for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land”) it has been conjectured that when the Edomites revolted they massacred the Jews who had settled in the country in the time of subjection. (Comp. Gen_27:40.)

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

21. So Joram went [R.V. Then Joram passed] over to Zair] The name Zair is only found here. In the parallel passage of 2 Chronicles 21. we find ‘with his princes’ instead of ‘to Zair’, and as there is some similarity of sound between the two Hebrew forms, it has been thought by some that there is a mistake in Kings from some misreading of the scribe. Others have suggested that ‘Zair’ is for ‘Zoar’, through which place troops marching from Judæa into Edom would have to pass. Others with much more probability have taken Zair (צעיר), to be a miswriting for Seir (שׂעיר) the name of the mountain ridge which extends southward from the Dead Sea through the desert. It is true ‘Seir’ is not named elsewhere by the writer of Kings, but there seems to be no occasion where he might be expected to mention it.

and he rose [R.V. inserts up] by night and smote the Edomites which compassed him about] Joram appears to have been surrounded by the Edomite forces, and for some time to have had the worst of the contest. It was only by a sudden sally in the night time that he forced his way out, and escaped. The captains of the Edomite chariots, mentioned here, most likely formed the outer circle of the enclosing force, and through them Joram passed last.

and the people fled into [R.V. to] their tents] ‘The people’ are the army of Joram, which after escaping from their encircling enemy made the best of their way home, feeling that Edom was too strong for 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.

So Joram went over to Zair,.... A city in Edom, the same with the Zaara of Ptolemy (i); some take it to be the same with Seir, the mountain or country of that name:

and all the chariots with him; all the chariots of war he had:

and he rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about; who came out of their cities in great numbers, and surrounded him, he having entered into their country in an hostile way, to subdue them:

and the captains of the chariots: which belonged to the Edomites; those he smote, Ch2 21:9.

and the people fled into their tents; the army being routed.

(i) Geograph. l. 5. c. 17.

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

Zair - Perhaps Seir, the famous mountain of Edom Gen 14:6.

The people - i. e., The Edomites. Yet, notwithstanding his success, Joram was forced to withdraw from the country, and to leave the natives to enjoy that independence 2Ki 8:22, which continued until the time of John Hyrcanus, who once more reduced them.

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

Seira, or Idumea, Genesis xiv. 6. --- Defeated. The Syriac and Arabic explain it in a contrary sense, as the Hebrew may well signify, and the sequel seems to prove, as the Edomites became independent. Hebrew, "He rose....and attacked Edom that surrounded him, (with superior numbers) and the princes... and the people (of Israel) fled." But the text will also bear the sense of the Vulgate, which is conformable to 2 Paralipomenon xxi. 9., which does not say the people, &c., though these words may be understood of the Edomites. Joram could not derive such advantage from his victory, as to reduce the nation under his obedience. (Calmet)

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).

i.e. The common soldiers of the Edomites, herein following the example of their captains.

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

21. Zair — This some have thought identical with Zoar, others a corruption of Seir, and others an erroneous reading of שׂריו, his princes, which is found in the parallel passage. 2Ch_21:9. But these are all conjectures. It was doubtless the name of a place in the borders of Edom, which is now unknown.

Smote the Edomites which compassed him about — He was victorious in this particular night engagement, but he failed to subdue the rebellion or subjugate the country.

And the captains of the chariots — The captains of the enemies’ chariots; from which it appears that on this occasion the Edomites, as well as the Hebrews, fought with chariots.

The people fled into their tents — That is, the Jewish people, the warriors of Joram. The whole passage is obscure from its brevity, but the general meaning is: Joram went with a great host, particularly strong in war-chariots, to subdue the revolt of the Edomites. Having arrived in their country, he is suddenly surrounded by the enemy, and makes a night attack upon them; smites many of them, especially the captains of their chariots, and succeeds in breaking through their ranks, when his whole army give over the battle and run away to their homes. The Edomites thus threw off the yoke of Judah, and fulfilled the ancient prophecy of Isaac. Gen_27:40.

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

So Joram went over to Zair. Naturally, Joram did not allow Edom to become independent without an attempt to reduce it. He invaded the country in full force, taking up a position at a place called Zair, which is not otherwise known. Zair (ryix) can scarcely be Zoar (rwOx), which, wherever it was, was certainly not in Edom; and it is hardly likely to be a corruption of "Seir" (ryix;), since the utterly unknown ryx would scarcely be put by a copyist in the place of the well-known ryc. Moreover, if Mount Seir were intended, it would probably have had the prefix rh, as in 1Ch_4:42; 2Ch_20:10, 2Ch_20:22, 2Ch_20:23; Eze_35:2, Eze_35:3, Eze_35:7, Eze_35:15. "Seir" alone is poetical rather than historical, especially in the language of the later books of the Old Testament. And all the chariots with him; or, all his chariots (Revised Version) The article has the force of the possessive pronoun. And he rose by night, and smote the Edomites which compassed him about. Josephus understands the writer to mean that Joram made his invasion by night, and smote the Edomites on all sides ("Ant. Jud:," 9:5. but it seems better to suppose, with most modern commentators, that the meaning is the following: Soon after Joram invaded the country, he found himself surrounded and blocked in by the Edomite troops, and could only save himself by a night attack, which was so far successful that he broke through the enemy"s lines and escaped; his army, however, was so alarmed at the danger it had run, that it at once dispersed and returned home. And the captains of the chariots; i.e. the captains of the Edomite chariots. They too were "smitten," having probably taken the chief part in trying to prevent the escape. And the people fled into their tents; i.e. dispersed to their homes. Compare the cry of Jeroboam, (1Ki_12:16) "To your tents, O Israel!"

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

That were surrounding him. Those near the border.

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.