the king of Aram sent horses, chariots, and a great army. They went there by night and surrounded the city.
Parallel translations
- WEB Therefore he sent horses, chariots, and a great army there. They came by night, and surrounded the city.
- KJV Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
- NKJV Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
- NASB So he sent horses and chariots and a substantial army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
- NLT So one night the king of Aram sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A large Syrian force surrounds Dothan by night to capture one prophet. The disproportion highlights how seriously the enemy feared Elisha's God-given insight.
Overview
Horses, chariots, and a great army are deployed against a single man, encircling the city under cover of darkness. The overwhelming show of strength sets up the contrast with the far greater, invisible army of heaven. It dramatizes the world's reliance on visible might against the people of God. The scene prepares for the lesson that faith perceives realities unseen by fear.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- John 18:3–6So Judas brought a band of soldiers and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees. They arrived at the garden carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons.
- Matt 26:55At that time Jesus said to the crowd, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would an outlaw? Every day I sat teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest Me.
- Matt 26:47While Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived, accompanied by a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and elders of the people.
- 1 Sam 24:2So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to look for David and his men in the region of the Rocks of the Wild Goats.
- 1 Sam 23:26Saul was proceeding along one side of the mountain, and David and his men along the other side. Even though David was hurrying to get away, Saul and his men were closing in on David and his men to capture them.
- 2 Kgs 18:17Nevertheless, the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh, along with a great army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They advanced up to Jerusalem and stationed themselves by the aqueduct of the upper pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.
- 2 Kgs 1:9–13Then King Ahaziah sent to Elijah a captain with his company of fifty men. So the captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king declares, ‘Come down!’”
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 6:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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