One day as the king of Israel was walking along the wall of the city, a woman called to him, “Please help me, my lord the king!”
Parallel translations
- WEB As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!”
- KJV And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.
- BSB As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, “Help me, my lord the king!”
- NKJV Then, as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!”
- NASB And as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord the king!”
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 starving woman cries to the king for help as he passes on the wall. Her appeal voices the city's desperation.
Overview
The king, surveying the besieged city, is accosted by a woman in dire need. Her cry sets up a horrifying account that exposes the depth of the famine. The scene shows a ruler powerless to relieve suffering apart from God. It leads to the king's confession that only the Lord can truly help.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- 2 Sam 14:4When the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, showed respect, and said, “Help, O king!”
- Isa 10:3What will you do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth?
- Luke 18:3A widow was in that city, and she often came to him, saying, ‘Defend me from my adversary!’
- Acts 21:28crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place. Moreover, he also brought Greeks into the temple, and has defiled this holy place!”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 6:26 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.