Berean BlueApp preview

C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch on 2 Kings 6:26

Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. Browse this work.

2 Kings6:26

2Ki 6:26

As the king was passing by upon the wall to conduct the defence, a woman cried to him for help; whereupon he replied: אל־יושׁעך יי, “should Jehovah not help thee, whence shall I help thee? from the threshing-floor or from the wine-press?” It is difficult to explain the אל which Ewald (§355, b.) supposes to stand for אם לא. Thenius gives a simpler explanation, namely, that it is a subjective negation and the sentence hypothetical, so that the condition would be only expressed by the close connection of the two clauses (according to Ewald, §357). “From the threshing-floor or from the wine-press?” i.e., I can neither help thee with corn nor with wine, cannot procure thee either food or drink. He then asked her what her trouble was; upon which she related to him the horrible account of the slaying of her own child to appease her hunger, etc.

C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament, 2 Kings 6:26. Public domain.

Permanent link. Source edition.

Read 2 Kings 6. Compare commentaries on this chapter.

Source and publication rights

Public domain. Public Domain. Source edition.

Berean Blue opens December 1, 2026. Explore this passage in the app preview.