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Nach YomiII Kings · מלכים ב׳Chapter 6

II Kings 6

מלכים ב׳ פרק ו׳

Section: נביאים · נביאים ראשונים | Book: II Kings | Chapter: 6 of 25 | Day: 128 of 742

Date: June 19, 2026

קלאוד על הנ״ך

II Kings 6 is one of the longest and most varied chapters in the Elisha cycle, holding together three episodes that together trace a remarkable arc: from a small private miracle for a community of disciples, to the prophet’s strategic role in international warfare, to the chapter’s harrowing closing scene of cannibalism in besieged Samaria. The chapter opens in the intimate world of the bnei ha-nevi’im, the prophetic guild whose study hall has grown too cramped, and closes with a king walking the city wall in sackcloth swearing to take Elisha’s head. The narrative breadth — private/public, Israelite/foreign, miraculous/political, providential/horrific — displays the full range of what the book’s authors understood prophecy to be doing in the ninth century BCE.

The opening episode (verses 1-7) of the floating ax-head is one of the most modest miracles in Tanakh, and that modesty is its theological point. A young disciple of the prophets, working with borrowed tools, loses an iron blade in the Jordan and cries out in distress — not for his life, but because the tool was on loan and he had no means to repay. Elisha cuts a piece of wood, throws it in, and the iron floats. Chazal, cited by Rashi and Radak, anchor the placement of this miracle at the start of the chapter in the previous chapter’s conclusion: now that Gehazi has been expelled from Elisha’s circle, the prophetic guild has expanded so dramatically that they need new quarters. The chapter therefore opens by registering the moral cleansing of chapter 5 in concrete demographic terms: more disciples, a more crowded study hall, a need to expand. Radak preserves a fascinating mechanical reading of the miracle from his father (cited in his comment on verse 6): Elisha cut not just any stick but a fitted handle that found the eye of the blade and lifted it back up, an artisanal miracle rather than a sheer suspension of natural law.

The chapter’s middle section (verses 8-23) shifts to the international stage. The king of Aram repeatedly plans secret ambushes against Israel; Elisha repeatedly forewarns the king of Israel by ru’ach ha-kodesh; the king of Aram, suspecting a leak in his own court, learns instead that a prophet in Samaria can hear the words spoken in his bedchamber. He sends a strike force to seize Elisha at Dothan — and here the chapter delivers its most cinematic image. The prophet’s terrified attendant rises in the morning to find the city ringed by chariots, and Elisha prays that his eyes be opened to see the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire surrounding the prophet. Metzudat David offers a striking practical reading: this vision was not actually the operative miracle (the blinding came next), but a way to silence the attendant’s panicked cries before they betrayed Elisha’s location. The episode then moves into one of the great prophetic set-pieces: Elisha leads the blinded Aramean army into the heart of Samaria, opens their eyes, and — against the king of Israel’s eager call to slaughter them — prescribes a generous feast and free passage home. The result, the verse tells us with rare specificity, is that the Aramean raiding bands stopped invading Israel.

But the chapter’s structural irony is that this peaceful resolution does not hold. Verse 24 opens “after this” — and Aram returns, this time not as ambush parties but as a full national army under Ben-Hadad, besieging Samaria so completely that famine sets in, donkey heads sell for eighty shekels, and the most loathsome substances become luxury foods. The shocking closing scene (verses 26-31) is the actualization of the curse of Devarim 28:53-57: two women have made a pact to eat their children in turn, one woman has cooked and eaten her son, and now demands the other fulfill the bargain. The king’s tearing of his garments reveals sackcloth beneath — a private piety that the people had not seen — and yet his oath turns not toward repentance but toward Elisha’s head. Rashi and Radak both read the king’s accusation as the indictment of a man who fails to do what is in his power: Elisha could pray, as Eliyahu had prayed, to break the famine, and the king reads his silence as complicity.

The chapter ends suspended on a knife edge: a messenger arrives at Elisha’s home with the king close behind, and the king’s bitter cry — “Behold this evil is from God; what more can I hope for from God?” — is left hanging at the verse’s close. Rashi reads this as despairing renunciation; Targum Yonatan, cited by Radak, reads ochil from the root chalah, “to entreat” — “what more can I plead before God?” — a more open reading that points toward chapter 7’s resolution. The chapter’s structural genius is to bind together three completely different tonal registers — the ax-head miracle, the chariots-of-fire vision, and the cannibalism scene — into a single sustained meditation on how prophetic vision functions in the world: opening eyes, blinding eyes, and confronting the kings whose eyes refuse to see.

פרק ו׳ · Chapter 6

פסוק א׳ · Verse 1

Hebrew:

וַיֹּאמְר֥וּ בְנֵֽי־הַנְּבִיאִ֖ים אֶל־אֱלִישָׁ֑ע הִנֵּה־נָ֣א הַמָּק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֨ר אֲנַ֜חְנוּ יֹשְׁבִ֥ים שָׁ֛ם לְפָנֶ֖יךָ צַ֥ר מִמֶּֽנּוּ׃

English:

The disciples of the prophets said to Elisha, “See, the place where we live under your direction is too cramped for us.

The chapter opens with the prophetic guild outgrowing its study hall and proposing an expansion. Rashi and Radak both cite the rabbinic reading (Sotah 47a) that ties this growth directly to chapter 5's events: while Gehazi was Elisha's attendant his harshness drove disciples away, but with Gehazi expelled the bnei ha-nevi'im flocked to Elisha and the bet midrash became too cramped. Metzudat David glosses ha-makom simply as their bet midrash, the formal study hall.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיֹּאמְרוּ בְנֵי הַנְּבִיאִים. נִסִּים שֶׁנַּעֲשׂוּ לוֹ מְסַדֵּר וְהוֹלֵךְ. רַבּוֹתֵינוּ אָמְרוּ: מִכָּאן שֶׁהָיָה גֵּיחֲזִי דּוֹחֶה הַתַּלְמִידִים מִלְּפָנָיו, וּכְשֶׁנִּטְרַד בָּאוּ תַּלְמִידִים רַבִּים, וְנִדְחַק הַמָּקוֹם מֵהֶם.
The disciples of the prophets said. The miracles that were performed through him, he continues to list. Our Rabbis said, that from here [we deduce] that Geichazi would reject the students [who came] before him,1I.e., many of the students who came previously, found Geichazi's behavior and bad character repulsive and did not stay while he was around. and when he was banished, many students came, and the place became cramped on account of them.2See Maseches Sotah 47a.

פסוק ב׳ · Verse 2

Hebrew:

נֵלְכָה־נָּ֣א עַד־הַיַּרְדֵּ֗ן וְנִקְחָ֤ה מִשָּׁם֙ אִ֚ישׁ קוֹרָ֣ה אֶחָ֔ת וְנַעֲשֶׂה־לָּ֥נוּ שָׁ֛ם מָק֖וֹם לָשֶׁ֣בֶת שָׁ֑ם וַיֹּ֖אמֶר לֵֽכוּ׃

English:

Let us go to the Jordan, and let us each get a log there and build quarters there for ourselves to live in.” “Do so,” he replied.

The disciples propose a practical solution -- go to the wooded banks of the Jordan, each bring back a beam, and build expanded quarters. Metzudat David clarifies that misham refers to the forest adjacent to the Jordan. Elisha consents with a single word, lechu (go), reflecting the relaxed spiritual leadership of the post-Gehazi era: the disciples take initiative, the master assents.

פסוק ג׳ · Verse 3

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ הָאֶחָ֔ד ה֥וֹאֶל נָ֖א וְלֵ֣ךְ אֶת־עֲבָדֶ֑יךָ וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אֲנִ֥י אֵלֵֽךְ׃

English:

Then one of them said, “Will you please come along with your servants?” “Yes, I will come,” he said;

One of the disciples requests that Elisha himself accompany them. Rashi glosses ho'el as 'be willing' or 'agree' -- the verb of consent rather than command. The request anticipates the miracle to come: had Elisha not been there when the ax head fell into the water, no one would have been able to retrieve it.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
הוֹאֶל. הִתְרַצֶּה.
Agree. Be willing.

פסוק ד׳ · Verse 4

Hebrew:

וַיֵּ֖לֶךְ אִתָּ֑ם וַיָּבֹ֙אוּ֙ הַיַּרְדֵּ֔נָה וַֽיִּגְזְר֖וּ הָעֵצִֽים׃

English:

and he accompanied them. So they went to the Jordan and cut timber.

פסוק ה׳ · Verse 5

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֤י הָֽאֶחָד֙ מַפִּ֣יל הַקּוֹרָ֔ה וְאֶת־הַבַּרְזֶ֖ל נָפַ֣ל אֶל־הַמָּ֑יִם וַיִּצְעַ֥ק וַיֹּ֛אמֶר אֲהָ֥הּ אֲדֹנִ֖י וְה֥וּא שָׁאֽוּל׃

English:

As one of them was felling a trunk, the iron ax head fell into the water. And he cried aloud, “Alas, master, it was a borrowed one!”

As one disciple chops wood, the iron blade flies off its handle and disappears into the Jordan, prompting his anguished cry: ahah adoni, ve-hu sha'ul -- 'alas, master, it was borrowed!' Rashi and Metzudat David both highlight that the man's distress is specifically over the borrowed status of the tool: he had no means to repay its owner. Radak resolves a grammatical puzzle about the word et and confirms the same point -- the speaker's pain is the pain of someone who cannot make good on his obligation, the cry of an honest poor man.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וְאֶת הַבַּרְזֶל. הַנְּסֹרֶת. וְהוּא שָׁאוּל. שְׁאִלְתִּיו, וְאֵין לִי מִמַּה לְשַׁלֵּם.
The iron [ax blade]. The ax head. It is borrowed. I borrowed it, and I have no funds to pay [for it].

פסוק ו׳ · Verse 6

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אִישׁ־הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים אָ֣נָה נָפָ֑ל וַיַּרְאֵ֙הוּ֙ אֶת־הַמָּק֔וֹם וַיִּקְצׇב־עֵץ֙ וַיַּשְׁלֶךְ־שָׁ֔מָּה וַיָּ֖צֶף הַבַּרְזֶֽל׃

English:

“Where did it fall?” asked the agent of God. He showed him the spot; and he cut off a stick and threw it in, and he made the ax head float.

Elisha asks where the blade fell, cuts a piece of wood, throws it in, and the iron floats. Rashi glosses the unusual va-yatzef simply as 'it floated to the surface.' Radak preserves a remarkable mechanical reading from his own thinking: the prophet did not throw any random stick, but cut a fitted handle whose dimensions matched the eye of the blade; the new handle entered the iron's socket underwater and lifted it up. Metzudat David adds that ha-makom in the disciple's gesture refers to the precise spot of the loss -- the miracle is targeted, not generic. Radak also offers a textual subtlety: va-yatzef can be read as either intransitive (it floated) or causative (the prophet caused it to float).
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיָּצֶף. צָף עַל הַמַּיִם.
Floated up. Floated upon the water.3Elisha cut a new handle to fit the head of the ax and threw it into the water. The new handle found the hole in the blade, went into it, and floated back up with the blade attached.—Radak

פסוק ז׳ · Verse 7

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֖אמֶר הָ֣רֶם לָ֑ךְ וַיִּשְׁלַ֥ח יָד֖וֹ וַיִּקָּחֵֽהוּ׃ {פ}

English:

“Pick it up,” he said; so he reached out and took it.

Elisha tells the disciple to lift the blade himself: harem lakh. Metzudat David glosses harem lakh as 'lift the iron up to yourself.' The miracle's grace lies in its restraint: Elisha does not retrieve the ax for him but enables him to do it, restoring not just the tool but the disciple's own agency.

פסוק ח׳ · Verse 8

Hebrew:

וּמֶ֣לֶךְ אֲרָ֔ם הָיָ֥ה נִלְחָ֖ם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיִּוָּעַץ֙ אֶל־עֲבָדָ֣יו לֵאמֹ֔ר אֶל־מְק֛וֹם פְּלֹנִ֥י אַלְמֹנִ֖י תַּחֲנֹתִֽי׃

English:

While the king of Aram was waging war against Israel, he took counsel with his officers and said, “I will encampaI will encamp Meaning of Heb. uncertain. in such and such a place.”

The chapter pivots to the international stage: the king of Aram is at war with Israel and instructs his officers that he will encamp at 'such-and-such a place,' using the cryptic phrase peloni almoni -- a verbal placeholder. Rashi unpacks peloni from the root pala (hidden), and almoni as 'nameless,' explaining the king's intent to keep the ambush location secret even from his own retinue. Metzudat David adds that the goal was to ambush the king of Israel, and Radak (citing Targum Yonatan) confirms the rendering 'a hidden and concealed place.'
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
פְּלֹנִי אַלְמֹנִי. כָּסֵי וְטָמִיר, פְּלוֹנִי, לְשׁוֹן: כִּי יִפָּלֵא 'יִתְכַּסֵּי'. אַלְמוֹנִי. מִבְּלִי שֵׁם, שֶׁלֹּא הָיָה רוֹצֶה לְהִתְגַּלּוֹת. תַּחֲנֹתִי. שָׁם אֶחֱנֶה, וְאֶאֱרֹב אֶת מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל אוֹ אֶת גְּדוּדָיו הָעוֹבְרִים לִשְׁלֹל בְּאַרְצִי דֶּרֶךְ אוֹתוֹ הַמָּקוֹם.
Concealed, secret. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] "covered and hidden." "פלוני" is an expression of, "If it be concealed [=יפלא],"4Devarim 17:8. it will be covered.5See Megillas Rus 4:1 and Rashi there. Secret. Without a name, for he did not want it to be revealed. I will make my camp. There I will encamp and ambush the king of Yisroel or his bands who pass to plunder in my land through that place.

פסוק ט׳ · Verse 9

Hebrew:

וַיִּשְׁלַ֞ח אִ֣ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים אֶל־מֶ֤לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר הִשָּׁ֕מֶר מֵעֲבֹ֖ר הַמָּק֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה כִּי־שָׁ֖ם אֲרָ֥ם נְחִתִּֽים׃

English:

But the agent of God sent word to the king of Israel, “Take care not to pass through that place, for the Arameans are encamped there.”

Elisha sends a private warning to the king of Israel about the planned ambush. Rashi glosses nechitim simply as chonim (encamped). Radak takes the unusual word nechitim as deriving from the root meaning 'descend,' suggesting the Arameans had taken position in a low place -- a depression -- precisely so as to remain hidden. The prophet's intelligence-gathering is shown to be more granular than the king of Aram's own concealment.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
מֵעֲבֹר הַמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה. מִלֶּכֶת שָׁם. נְחִתִּים. חוֹנִים.
Not to pass by this place. From going there. Are encamped. Are encamped.

פסוק י״ · Verse 10

Hebrew:

וַיִּשְׁלַ֞ח מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל אֶֽל־הַמָּק֞וֹם אֲשֶׁ֨ר אָמַר־ל֧וֹ אִישׁ־הָאֱלֹהִ֛ים וְהִזְהִירֹ֖ה וְנִשְׁמַ֣ר שָׁ֑ם לֹ֥א אַחַ֖ת וְלֹ֥א שְׁתָּֽיִם׃

English:

So the king of Israel sent word to the place of which the agent of God had told him. Time and againbTime and again Lit. “not once or twice.” he alerted such a placecsuch a place Heb. “it.” and took precautions there.

The king of Israel verifies Elisha's warnings by sending scouts, finds them true, and avoids the ambush sites repeatedly. Rashi reads va-yishlach as the king sending scouts to confirm the prophet's intelligence. Metzudat David and Radak unpack the closing phrase 'not once and not twice' -- an idiom meaning many times. The repetition itself is the mechanism by which Aram realizes a leak exists.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּשְׁלַח מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל. הָיָה שׁוֹלֵחַ וְרוֹאֶה אִם אֱמֶת הוּא. וְהִזְהִירֹה. שֶׁהִזְהִיר אִישׁ הָאֱלֹהִים מֵעֲבֹר שָׁם. לֹא אַחַת וְלֹא שְׁתָּיִם. עָשָׂה לוֹ כָּךְ, כִּי אִם פְּעָמִים רַבּוֹת.
The king of Yisroel dispatched [scouts]. He would send and see whether it was true. And warned him. The man of God had warned him passing there. Not once and not twice. Did he do so for him, but many times.

פסוק י״א · Verse 11

Hebrew:

וַיִּסָּעֵר֙ לֵ֣ב מֶלֶךְ־אֲרָ֔ם עַל־הַדָּבָ֖ר הַזֶּ֑ה וַיִּקְרָ֤א אֶל־עֲבָדָיו֙ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם הֲלוֹא֙ תַּגִּ֣ידוּ לִ֔י מִ֥י מִשֶּׁלָּ֖נוּ אֶל־מֶ֥לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

English:

Greatly agitated about this matter, the king of Aram summoned his officers and said to them, “Tell me! Who of us is on the side of the king of Israel?”

The king of Aram is shaken to his core (va-yissa'er, like a storm-tossed wind) and demands his officers identify the traitor. Rashi captures the question in compact form: who is revealing my secret? Metzudat David parses va-yissa'er as a tremor that overtook him 'like a storm wind.' Radak offers the parallel image: he 'was raging' over this matter. The verse captures the precise psychological moment of paranoia -- a leader who cannot conceive that the leak could come from beyond his own court.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
עַל הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה. מִי הוּא מְגַלֶּה סוֹדוֹ.
Over this situation. Who was revealing his secret.

פסוק י״ב · Verse 12

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אַחַ֣ד מֵעֲבָדָ֔יו ל֖וֹא אֲדֹנִ֣י הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ כִּֽי־אֱלִישָׁ֤ע הַנָּבִיא֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל יַגִּיד֙ לְמֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֶ֨ת־הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר תְּדַבֵּ֖ר בַּחֲדַ֥ר מִשְׁכָּבֶֽךָ׃

English:

“No one, my lord king,” said one of the officers. “Elisha, that prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.”

One officer corrects the king: there is no traitor; rather Elisha the prophet of Israel reports to his king the very words you speak in your bedchamber. Metzudat David's gloss is precise: lo means 'there is no one of ours leaking secrets,' and the prophet 'tells the king of Israel because he knows by prophecy.' The verse is the chapter's first articulation of the central principle: prophetic vision penetrates not just public action but the most private speech.

פסוק י״ג · Verse 13

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לְכ֤וּ וּרְאוּ֙ אֵיכֹ֣ה ה֔וּא וְאֶשְׁלַ֖ח וְאֶקָּחֵ֑הוּ וַיֻּגַּד־ל֥וֹ לֵאמֹ֖ר הִנֵּ֥ה בְדֹתָֽן׃

English:

“Go find out where he is,” he said, “so that I can have him seized.” It was reported to him that [Elisha] was in Dothan;

The king of Aram orders Elisha located, intending to seize him. Rashi simply glosses eikho as eichan (where), and Radak notes the unusual cholam vocalization (eikho rather than eichah). Reports come back: the prophet is in Dothan, a small town northeast of Samaria. The king's miscalculation -- thinking he can capture a man whose vision had just been demonstrated to penetrate his bedroom -- becomes the engine of the next scene.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אֵיכֹה. הֵיכָן הוּא.
Where he is. Where he is.6See Shir Hashirim 1:7 for a similar expression.7According to Malbim, this was not a hostile act. The king sent his men to invite Elisha to his court in the hope of winning him over.

פסוק י״ד · Verse 14

Hebrew:

וַיִּשְׁלַח־שָׁ֛מָּה סוּסִ֥ים וְרֶ֖כֶב וְחַ֣יִל כָּבֵ֑ד וַיָּבֹ֣אוּ לַ֔יְלָה וַיַּקִּ֖פוּ עַל־הָעִֽיר׃

English:

so he sent horses and chariots there and a strong force. They arrived at night and encircled the town.

פסוק ט״ו · Verse 15

Hebrew:

וַ֠יַּשְׁכֵּ֠ם מְשָׁרֵ֨ת אִ֥ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִים֮ לָקוּם֒ וַיֵּצֵ֕א וְהִנֵּה־חַ֛יִל סוֹבֵ֥ב אֶת־הָעִ֖יר וְס֣וּס וָרָ֑כֶב וַיֹּ֨אמֶר נַעֲר֥וֹ אֵלָ֛יו אֲהָ֥הּ אֲדֹנִ֖י אֵיכָ֥ה נַעֲשֶֽׂה׃

English:

When the attendant of the agent of God rose early and went outside, he saw a force, with horses and chariots, surrounding the town. “Alas, master, what shall we do?” his servant asked him.

Elisha's attendant rises early, steps outside, and finds the city ringed by an army with horses and chariots. He cries out in panic to his master: 'alas, my lord, what shall we do?' Metzudat David glosses eichah na'aseh as 'how shall we manage to escape?' The attendant -- presumably Elisha's new attendant after Gehazi's banishment -- is a foil to Elisha throughout the scene: panicked sight versus prophetic sight.

פסוק ט״ז · Verse 16

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אַל־תִּירָ֑א כִּ֤י רַבִּים֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִתָּ֔נוּ מֵאֲשֶׁ֖ר אוֹתָֽם׃

English:

“Have no fear,” he replied. “There are more on our side than on theirs.”

Elisha responds with the chapter's central reassurance: 'do not fear, for those with us are more than those with them.' Rashi clarifies that 'those with us' means the heavenly host arrayed in our aid. Metzudat David emphasizes the comparison: the chariots aiding us are more numerous than the chariots aiding them. The verse anticipates the vision Elisha will pray for in verse 17 and articulates the principle that material force is never the only force in play.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אֲשֶׁר אִתָּנוּ. בְּעֶזְרָתֵנוּ.
Those who are with us. To help us.

פסוק י״ז · Verse 17

Hebrew:

וַיִּתְפַּלֵּ֤ל אֱלִישָׁע֙ וַיֹּאמַ֔ר יְהֹוָ֕ה פְּקַח־נָ֥א אֶת־עֵינָ֖י�� וְיִרְאֶ֑ה וַיִּפְקַ֤ח יְהֹוָה֙ אֶת־עֵינֵ֣י הַנַּ֔עַר וַיַּ֗רְא וְהִנֵּ֨ה הָהָ֜ר מָלֵ֨א סוּסִ֥ים וְרֶ֛כֶב אֵ֖שׁ סְבִיבֹ֥ת אֱלִישָֽׁע׃

English:

Then Elisha prayed: “ETERNAL One, open his eyes and let him see.” And GOD opened the servant’s eyes and he saw the hills all around Elisha covered with horses and chariots of fire.

Elisha prays that the attendant's eyes be opened, and Hashem opens them: he sees the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire surrounding Elisha. Metzudat David offers a remarkable practical observation: the chariots of fire were not actually the operative miracle (the next verse's blinding would do the real work), but were granted to silence the attendant's panicked cries lest the Arameans realize Elisha was inside the city. Radak addresses a geographical puzzle -- Elisha was inside the city while the chariots of fire are described as around him on the mountain -- and explains that this was a vision granted specifically to the attendant to strengthen his heart, not a literal physical surrounding.

פסוק י״ח · Verse 18

Hebrew:

וַיֵּרְדוּ֮ אֵלָיו֒ וַיִּתְפַּלֵּ֨ל אֱלִישָׁ֤ע אֶל־יְהֹוָה֙ וַיֹּאמַ֔ר הַךְ־נָ֥א אֶת־הַגּוֹי־הַזֶּ֖ה בַּסַּנְוֵרִ֑ים וַיַּכֵּ֥ם בַּסַּנְוֵרִ֖ים כִּדְבַ֥ר אֱלִישָֽׁע׃

English:

[The Arameans] came down against him, and Elisha prayed to GOD: “Please strike this people with a blinding light.” And they were struck with a blinding light, as Elisha had asked.

The Arameans descend toward Elisha, and he prays for them to be struck with sanverim, a kind of disorienting blindness. Rashi makes a sharp grammatical observation: in the curse Elisha does not invoke God's name, but in both moments of opening eyes (the attendant's and the army's) he does, since it is improper to invoke God's name in association with curses. He defines sanverim as 'a sickness of confusion -- one sees but does not know what one is seeing.' Metzudat David draws the parallel to Sodom in Bereishit 19:11, where the same affliction caused the mob to grope for Lot's door without finding it.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיֹּאמַר הַךְ נָא וְגוֹ'. עַל הַקְּלָלָה לֹא הִזְכִּיר אֶת הַשֵּׁם, אֲבָל עַל הַפְּקִיחָה הִזְכִּיר אֶת הַשֵּׁם עַל שְׁתֵּיהֶן, עַל שֶל נַעַר וְעַל שֶל גְּדוּד. סַנְוֵרִים. חֹלִי שֶׁל שִׁמָּמוֹן, רוֹאֶה וְאֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ מַה הוּא רוֹאֶה.
And said, "Please strike, etc." On the curse he did not mention the Name [of God],8Because it is not proper that G's Name be associated with evil and curses. See Bereishis Rabbah 3:6. but for opening [the eyes] he mentioned the Name [of God] on both of them, concerning opening the attendant's [eyes], and concerning opening the troop's eyes. With blindness. A sickness of confusion; one sees, yet does not know what he sees.9See Bereishis 19:11.

פסוק י״ט · Verse 19

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֜ם אֱלִישָׁ֗ע לֹ֣א זֶ֣ה הַדֶּ֘רֶךְ֮ וְלֹ֣א זֹ֣ה הָעִיר֒ לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרַ֔י וְאוֹלִ֣יכָה אֶתְכֶ֔ם אֶל־הָאִ֖ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תְּבַקֵּשׁ֑וּן וַיֹּ֥לֶךְ אוֹתָ֖ם שֹׁמְרֽוֹנָה׃

English:

Elisha said to them, “This is not the road, and that is not the town; follow me, and I will lead you to the man you want.” And he led them to Samaria.

Elisha addresses the disoriented Arameans, telling them they have come to the wrong road and the wrong city, and offering to lead them to the man they seek. Rashi catches the technical truthfulness: this is not the city where the prophet is found -- because Elisha himself has by then left it. Metzudat David expands the reading: 'you have wandered from the road on your way to Dothan, and this is not the city of Dothan.' The prophet's words are layered -- false to surface intent but technically true in their literal sense.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וְלֹא זֹה הָעִיר. שֶׁהַנָּבִיא בְּתוֹכָהּ, וֶאֱמֶת אָמַר לָהֶם, שֶׁכְּבָר יָצָא מִמֶּנָּה.
Nor is this the city. Wherein the prophet is found. He told them the truth because he had already left it.

פסוק כ׳ · Verse 20

Hebrew:

וַיְהִי֮ כְּבֹאָ֣ם שֹׁמְרוֹן֒ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלִישָׁ֔ע יְהֹוָ֕ה פְּקַ֥ח אֶת־עֵֽינֵי־אֵ֖לֶּה וְיִרְא֑וּ וַיִּפְקַ֤ח יְהֹוָה֙ אֶת־עֵ֣ינֵיהֶ֔ם וַיִּרְא֕וּ וְהִנֵּ֖ה בְּת֥וֹךְ שֹׁמְרֽוֹן׃

English:

When they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “O ETERNAL One, open the eyes of these men so that they may see.” GOD opened their eyes and they saw that they were inside Samaria.

Once they have entered Samaria, Elisha prays that their eyes be opened, and they see -- they are inside the enemy capital. Metzudat David glosses pekach as 'let the affliction of sanverim be removed.' Radak addresses an orthographic detail (the spelling of ke-vo'am with kaf rather than bet). The reversal is total: an army sent to capture Elisha now finds itself the captives of the king they were attacking.

פסוק כ״א · Verse 21

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר מֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֶל־אֱלִישָׁ֔ע כִּרְאֹת֖וֹ אוֹתָ֑ם הַאַכֶּ֥ה אַכֶּ֖ה אָבִֽי׃

English:

When the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, “Father, shall I strike them down?”

The king of Israel, upon seeing them, addresses Elisha as avi (my father, my master) and asks eagerly whether to strike them down -- ha-akkeh akkeh? Metzudat David reads the doubled verb as expressing a strong question: 'should I really strike?' Radak again notes a kri orthographic detail. The king's eagerness for slaughter is the foil for Elisha's response in the next verse.

פסוק כ״ב · Verse 22

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לֹ֣א תַכֶּ֔ה הַאֲשֶׁ֥ר שָׁבִ֛יתָ בְּחַרְבְּךָ֥ וּֽבְקַשְׁתְּךָ֖ אַתָּ֣ה מַכֶּ֑ה שִׂים֩ לֶ֨חֶם וָמַ֜יִם לִפְנֵיהֶ֗ם וְיֹֽאכְלוּ֙ וְיִשְׁתּ֔וּ וְיֵלְכ֖וּ אֶל־אֲדֹנֵיהֶֽם׃

English:

“No, do not,” he replied. “Did you take them captive with your sword and bow that you would strike them down? Rather, set food and drink before them, and let them eat and drink and return to their master.”

Elisha forbids the slaughter with a sharp question: would you kill those whom you took with your sword and your bow? Rashi and Radak read this as an argument from custom and right -- you do not have the moral or legal claim of a captor over them, since you did not actually capture them militarily. Metzudat David sharpens the religious dimension: they were brought here by miracle, and a miracle is not a license for revenge. The prescription that follows -- give them food and water, send them home -- is the chapter's most ethically striking moment.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
הַאֲשֶׁר שָׁבִיתָ וְגוֹ'. וְכִי דַּרְכְּךָ לַהֲרֹג אוֹתָם שֶׁאַתָּה מֵבִיא שִׁבְיָה.
[Would you slay] those you captured, etc. Is it your custom to slay those whom you bring into captivity (and destroy them)?

פסוק כ״ג · Verse 23

Hebrew:

וַיִּכְרֶ֨ה לָהֶ֜ם כֵּרָ֣ה גְדוֹלָ֗ה וַיֹּֽאכְלוּ֙ וַיִּשְׁתּ֔וּ וַֽיְשַׁלְּחֵ֔ם וַיֵּלְכ֖וּ אֶל־אֲדֹֽנֵיהֶ֑ם וְלֹא־יָ֤סְפוּ עוֹד֙ גְּדוּדֵ֣י אֲרָ֔ם לָב֖וֹא בְּאֶ֥רֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ {פ}

English:

So he prepared a lavish feast for them and, after they had eaten and drunk, he let them go, and they returned to their master. And the Aramean bands stopped invading the land of Israel.

The king prepares a great feast (kerah gedolah), feeds them, and sends them home, and the Aramean raiding bands cease invading Israel. Rashi explains va-yikhreh as a verb for arranging a banquet. Metzudat David explains the political result: Aram saw that the prophet was revealing their secrets and stopped attempting that mode of warfare. Radak addresses an apparent textual problem: the verse says 'they did not come again,' yet verse 24 says they did -- and explains that 'no more' here means 'no more in this same way' or 'no more during this period,' not absolutely forever. The chapter's miracle of unexpected mercy produces a real, if temporary, peace.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּכְרֶה. לְשׁוֹן תִּקּוּן סְעוּדָה.
He prepared. An expression of preparing a meal.

פסוק כ״ד · Verse 24

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ אַֽחֲרֵי־כֵ֔ן וַיִּקְבֹּ֛ץ בֶּן־הֲדַ֥ד מֶלֶךְ־אֲרָ֖ם אֶת־כׇּל־מַחֲנֵ֑הוּ וַיַּ֕עַל וַיָּ֖צַר עַל־שֹׁמְרֽוֹן׃

English:

Sometime later, King Ben-hadad of Aram mustered his entire army and marched upon Samaria and besieged it.

But peace is short-lived. The chapter pivots sharply with va-yehi acharei chen (and it came to pass after this), and Ben-Hadad king of Aram returns -- this time with his entire army and a full siege of Samaria. Metzudat David captures the strategic shift: 'he assembled his entire army to come openly and publicly,' learning from his earlier failure that ambush would not work against a prophet who reads bedrooms. Aram now opts for sheer mass and visibility.

פסוק כ״ה · Verse 25

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֨י רָעָ֤ב גָּדוֹל֙ בְּשֹׁ֣מְר֔וֹן וְהִנֵּ֖ה צָרִ֣ים עָלֶ֑יהָ עַ֣ד הֱי֤וֹת רֹאשׁ־חֲמוֹר֙ בִּשְׁמֹנִ֣ים כֶּ֔סֶף וְרֹ֛בַע הַקַּ֥ב (חרי) [דִּב־]יוֹנִ֖ים בַּחֲמִשָּׁה־כָֽסֶף׃

English:

There was a great famine in Samaria, and the siege continued until a donkey’s head sold for eighty [shekels] of silver and a quarter of a kab of doves’ dungddoves’ dung Apparently a popular term for “carob pods,” as in Akkadian. for five shekels.

The siege produces extreme famine: a donkey's head sells for eighty shekels of silver, and a quarter-kab of dove-dung (or carob pods, as the modern translation notes) for five shekels. Rashi explains divyonim as 'dung that flows from doves,' used as fuel when wood ran out. Metzudat David adds that the famine had two compounding causes -- the underlying grain shortage and the siege's blockade preventing food from entering. Radak preserves three complementary readings of divyonim: dove-dung used as fuel, the contents of doves' crops (i.e., grain doves had eaten elsewhere and brought into the city), and the kri/ktiv variant suggesting modesty in language. The famine is not a backdrop but a moral crucible.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
דִּבְיוֹנִים. זֶבֶל הַזָּב מִן הַיּוֹנִים.
Pigeon dung. Dung that flows from the doves.10When they no longer had wood to cook with, they used dung for fuel.

פסוק כ״ו · Verse 26

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל עֹבֵ֖ר עַל־הַחֹמָ֑ה וְאִשָּׁ֗ה צָעֲקָ֤ה אֵלָיו֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר הוֹשִׁ֖יעָה אֲדֹנִ֥י הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃

English:

Once, when the king of Israel was walking on the city wall, a woman cried out to him: “Help me, Your Majesty!”

The king walks the city wall and a woman cries out to him: hoshi'ah adoni ha-melech! Rashi captures the king's misreading: he thought she was begging for food. The misperception is itself revealing -- the king has reduced his role to that of a food-distributor, and even that capacity has collapsed.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
הוֹשִׁיעָה אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ. כְּסָבוּר שֶׁשּׁוֹאֶלֶת מְזוֹנוֹת.
"Save me, my master, the king!" He thought that she was asking for food.

פסוק כ״ז · Verse 27

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אַל־יוֹשִׁעֵ֣ךְ יְהֹוָ֔ה מֵאַ֖יִן אוֹשִׁיעֵ֑ךְ הֲמִן־הַגֹּ֖רֶן א֥וֹ מִן־הַיָּֽקֶב׃

English:

“Don’t [ask me],” he replied. “Let GOD help you! Where could I get help for you, from the threshing floor or from the winepress?

The king's response is bitter: let Hashem help you -- from where would I draw help? From the threshing floor or the wine press? Metzudat David captures the king's logic precisely: he assumed her plea was for food, replied that Hashem alone could help, and added that even his own granaries and wine vats are bare. The verse paints a king at the end of his temporal resources, who can name God's name only as the address for problems beyond his solving.

פסוק כ״ח · Verse 28

Hebrew:

וַיֹּאמֶר־לָ֥הּ הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ מַה־לָּ֑ךְ וַתֹּ֗אמֶר הָאִשָּׁ֨ה הַזֹּ֜את אָמְרָ֣ה אֵלַ֗י תְּנִ֤י אֶת־בְּנֵךְ֙ וְנֹאכְלֶ֣נּוּ הַיּ֔וֹם וְאֶת־בְּנִ֖י נֹאכַ֥ל מָחָֽר׃

English:

But what troubles you?” the king asked her. The woman answered, “That woman said to me, ‘Give up your son and we will eat him today; and tomorrow we’ll eat my son.‘

The king reverses and asks the woman what is actually troubling her, and her answer arrives with terrifying specificity. Metzudat David explains the king's renewed question: 'he thought perhaps she was asking for something else.' What follows is the actualization of the Torah's most dreadful curse (Devarim 28:53-57): two women had made a pact to consume their children in turn.

פסוק כ״ט · Verse 29

Hebrew:

וַנְּבַשֵּׁ֥ל אֶת־בְּנִ֖י וַנֹּאכְלֵ֑הוּ וָאֹמַ֨ר אֵלֶ֜יהָ בַּיּ֣וֹם הָאַחֵ֗ר תְּנִ֤י אֶת־בְּנֵךְ֙ וְנֹ֣אכְלֶ֔נּוּ וַתַּחְבִּ֖א אֶת־בְּנָֽהּ׃

English:

So we cooked my son and we ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give up your son and let’s eat him’; but she hid her son.”

The woman completes the horror: yesterday they cooked and ate her son; today the other has hidden hers. Rashi reads the hiding as a calculated act -- the second woman wants to eat her son alone. Radak preserves both possibilities: she hid him to eat him alone, or she hid him out of maternal compassion to save his life. Either way, the human covenant has dissolved into mutual betrayal under the pressure of starvation.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַתַּחְבִּא אֶת בְּנָהּ. מֵת, וְרוֹצָה לְאָכְלוֹ לְבַדָּהּ.
But she has hidden her son. [Who was] dead, and she wants to eat him by herself.11Alternatively, the other woman's child was alive and she was hiding him to save his life.—Radak

פסוק ל׳ · Verse 30

Hebrew:

וַיְהִי֩ כִשְׁמֹ֨עַ הַמֶּ֜לֶךְ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֤י הָֽאִשָּׁה֙ וַיִּקְרַ֣ע אֶת־בְּגָדָ֔יו וְה֖וּא עֹבֵ֣ר עַל־הַחֹמָ֑ה וַיַּ֣רְא הָעָ֔ם וְהִנֵּ֥ה הַשַּׂ֛ק עַל־בְּשָׂר֖וֹ מִבָּֽיִת׃

English:

When the king heard what the woman said, he rent his clothes; and as he walked along the wall, the people could see that he was wearing sackcloth underneath.

The king tears his garments in horror as he walks the wall, and the people see that beneath his royal clothing he is wearing sackcloth. Rashi captures the visual mechanics: through the tear, the people glimpse the sackcloth underneath. Metzudat David and Radak both gloss mi-bayit as 'from inside' -- the sackcloth had been hidden beneath his garments, a private penitence the king had not displayed publicly. The moment captures both the king's authentic distress and his prior failure to lead his people in open repentance.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיַּרְא הָעָם. דֶּרֶךְ הַקֶּרַע, אֶת הַשַּׂק תַּחַת בְּגָדָיו.
The people saw. Through the tear [they saw] the sackcloth under his garments.

פסוק ל״א · Verse 31

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֕אמֶר כֹּֽה־יַעֲשֶׂה־לִּ֥י אֱלֹהִ֖ים וְכֹ֣ה יוֹסִ֑ף אִֽם־יַעֲמֹ֞ד רֹ֣אשׁ אֱלִישָׁ֧ע בֶּן־שָׁפָ֛ט עָלָ֖יו הַיּֽוֹם׃

English:

He said, “Thus and more may God do to me if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat remains on his shouldersehis shoulders Lit. “him.” today.”

The king swears an oath against Elisha's life: may God do thus and more if Elisha's head remains on him today. Rashi explains the king's reasoning: Elisha had the power to pray for mercy and break the famine, as Eliyahu had done in I Kings 18, and was failing to do so. Metzudat David and Radak both read the oath as the explosion of a king who, rather than turn his fury on his own sins, redirects it onto the prophet whose silence he reads as complicity.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אִם יַעֲמֹד רֹאשׁ אֱלִישָׁע. שֶׁהַיְכֹלֶת בְּיָדוֹ לְבַקֵּשׁ רַחֲמִים.
If the head of Elisha son of Shophot stands. For he is able to beg for mercy.12He could have ended the hunger through prayer as Eliyahu had done. See I Melochim 18:41-45. But he failed to do so.

פסוק ל״ב · Verse 32

Hebrew:

וֶאֱלִישָׁע֙ יֹשֵׁ֣ב בְּבֵית֔וֹ וְהַזְּקֵנִ֖ים יֹשְׁבִ֣ים אִתּ֑וֹ וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח אִ֜ישׁ מִלְּפָנָ֗יו בְּטֶ֣רֶם יָבֹא֩ הַמַּלְאָ֨ךְ אֵלָ֜יו וְה֣וּא ׀ אָמַ֣ר אֶל־הַזְּקֵנִ֗ים הַרְּאִיתֶם֙ כִּֽי־שָׁלַ֞ח בֶּן־הַֽמְרַצֵּ֤חַ הַזֶּה֙ לְהָסִ֣יר אֶת־רֹאשִׁ֔י רְא֣וּ ׀ כְּבֹ֣א הַמַּלְאָ֗ךְ סִגְר֤וּ הַדֶּ֙לֶת֙ וּלְחַצְתֶּ֤ם אֹתוֹ֙ בַּדֶּ֔לֶת הֲל֗וֹא ק֛וֹל רַגְלֵ֥י אֲדֹנָ֖יו אַחֲרָֽיו׃

English:

Now Elisha was sitting at home and the elders were sitting with him. The kingfThe king Heb. “He.” had sent one of his men ahead; but before that messenger arrived, ElishagElisha Heb. “he.” said to the elders, “Do you see—that murderer has sent someone to cut off my head! Watch when the messenger comes, and shut the door and hold the door fast against him. No doubt the sound of his master’s footsteps will follow.”

The chapter cuts to Elisha sitting in his house with the elders -- a small council scene that mirrors the king's wall scene above. The king dispatches a messenger to behead him, and Elisha, seeing the situation by ru'ach ha-kodesh, warns the elders to bar the door against the messenger and to expect the king's footsteps right behind. Rashi explains the sequence: the king sent a man to kill Elisha, and before the messenger arrived, the prophet was shown the plan by the Holy Spirit. Metzudat David glosses ben ha-meratze'ach (son of the murderer) as a reference to Achav, complicit in Izevel's slaughter of the prophets, and adds that Elisha already 'hears the king's footsteps following.' Radak parses the syntactic difficulty in the verse and confirms the prophetic reading.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּשְׁלַח אִישׁ מִלְּפָנָיו. הַמֶּלֶךְ שָׁלַח לְהָרְגוֹ, וּבְטֶרֶם יָבֹא אוֹתוֹ הַמַּלְאָךְ אֶל אֱלִישָׁע, וְהוּא נִגְלָה לוֹ בְּרוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ, וְאָמַר אֶל הַזְּקֵנִים: וְהִנֵּה הַמַּלְאָךְ יוֹרֵד אֵלָיו וְהַמֶּלֶךְ אַחֲרָיו.
And he sent a man from his presence. The king sent [a man] to kill him, and before the messenger had come to Elisha, it was revealed to him through the Divine Spirit, and he said to the elders, etc., [after which Scripture states,] "and behold the messenger was coming down to him," and the king was after him.

פסוק ל״ג · Verse 33

Hebrew:

עוֹדֶ֙נּוּ֙ מְדַבֵּ֣ר עִמָּ֔ם וְהִנֵּ֥ה הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ יֹרֵ֣ד אֵלָ֑יו וַיֹּ֗אמֶר הִנֵּה־זֹ֤את הָרָעָה֙ מֵאֵ֣ת יְהֹוָ֔ה מָה־אוֹחִ֥יל לַיהֹוָ֖ה עֽוֹד׃ {פ}

English:

While he was still talking to them, the messengerhmessenger Emendation yields “king.” came to him and said, “This calamity is from GOD. What more can I hope for from GOD ?”

The chapter ends mid-action: while Elisha is still speaking, the messenger arrives, and the king's bitter cry comes immediately after: 'behold this evil is from God; what more can I hope for from God?' Rashi reads the king's words as despairing renunciation -- naming the famine as the actualization of the Torah's curse in Devarim 28:53, and concluding that further hope is futile. Metzudat David offers a more diplomatic reading, in which the messenger speaks first and the king himself voices the same despair, with the messenger covering for the king's outburst by attributing it to himself. Radak preserves Targum Yonatan's striking alternative: ochil from the root chalah (to entreat) -- 'what more can I plead before Hashem?' -- which leaves the door open to the resolution that will come on chapter 7. The chapter ends suspended on this knife edge.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיֹּאמֶר. הַמֶּלֶךְ. הִנֵּה זֹאת הָרָעָה מֵאֵת ה'. זֹאת אַחַת מִן הַקְּלָלוֹת שֶׁקִּלֵּל עַל יְדֵי משֶׁה: וְאָכַלְתָּ פְּרִי בִטְנְךָ בְּמָצוֹר וּבְמָצוֹק וְגוֹ'. מָה אוֹחִיל לַה' עוֹד. לְהוֹשִׁיעַ, הֲלֹא לֹא יוֹעִיל.
He said. The king. "Behold, this tragedy is from Adonoy." This is one of the curses that He cursed through Moshe, "And you will eat the flesh of your womb, etc., in the siege and in the distress, etc."13Devarim 28:53. What more can I hope for from Adonoy? To save, it will surely not avail.14Alternatively, מָה אוֹחִיל means "what more can I pray [=אוֹחִיל] before God?"—Targum

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