2 Kings 18 · Verse 23

2 Kings 18:23

Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.
2 Kings 18:23, King James Version

2 Kings 18:23 in other translations

BSBNow, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!
WEBNow therefore, please give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses if you are able on your part to set riders on them.
ASVNow therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.
YLT‘And, now, give a pledge for thee, I pray thee, to my lord the king of Asshur, and I give to thee two thousand horses, if thou art able to give for thee riders on them.
DARBYAnd now, engage, I pray thee, with my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou canst set the riders upon them.
BBEAnd now, take a chance with my master, the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able to put horsemen on them.
WebsterNow therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou shalt be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

What does 2 Kings 18:23 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 23 I will deliver thee two thousand horses - Another insult: Were I to give thee two thousand Assyrian horses, thou couldst not find riders for them. How then canst thou think that thou shalt be able to stand against even the smallest division of my troops?

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 2 Kings 18:17-37

Rabshakeh tries to convince the Jews, that it was to no purpose for them to stand it out. What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? It were well if sinners would submit to the force of this argument, in seeking peace with God. It is, therefore, our wisdom to yield to him, because it is in vain to contend with him: what confidence is that which those trust in who stand out against him? A great deal of art there…

Read the full comment on 2 Kings 18:17-37 →

2 Kings 18:23 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְעַתָּה֙ve.'a.Tahand thereforeH6258
הִתְעָ֣רֶבhit.'A.revmake a wagerH6148
נָ֔אNa'pleaseH4994
אֶת\־'et-withH854
אֲדֹנִ֖י'a.do.Nimaster myH113
אֶת\־'et-withH854
מֶ֣לֶךְMe.lekh[the] king ofH4428
אַשּׁ֑וּר'a.ShurAssyriaH804
וְאֶתְּנָ֤הve.'e.te.Nahand let me giveH5414
לְךָ֙le.Khato you
אַלְפַּ֣יִם'al.Pa.yimtwo thousandH505
סוּסִ֔יםsu.SimhorsesH5483
אִם\־'im-ifH518
תּוּכַ֕לtu.Khalyou will be ableH3201
לָ֥תֶתLa.tetto putH5414
לְךָ֖le.Kha<for> yourself
רֹכְבִ֥יםro.khe.VimridersH7392
עֲלֵיהֶֽם\׃'a.lei.Hemon themH5921

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 2 Kings 18:23

  • 1 Kings 20:10

    And Ben–hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.

  • 1 Kings 20:18

    And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.

  • Isaiah 36:8-9

    Now therefore give pledges, I pray thee, to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?

  • Isaiah 10:13-14

    For he saith, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I am prudent: and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man: And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people: and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.

  • 1 Samuel 17:44

    And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

  • Nehemiah 4:2-5

    And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity: And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.

  • Psalms 123:3-4

    Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us: for we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud.

  • 1 Samuel 17:42

    And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
pledges. Heb. hostages.
I will deliver.
1Sa 17:42,44; 1Ki 20:10,18; Ne 4:2-5; Ps 123:3,4; Isa 10:13,14
Isa 36:8,9

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 2 Kings 18:22

    But if ye say unto me, We trust in the Lord our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?

  • 2 Kings 18:23

    Now therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them.

  • 2 Kings 18:24

    How then wilt thou turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?

Read all of 2 Kings 18

2 Kings 18:23 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Por tanto, ahora yo te ruego que des rehenes á mi señor, el rey de Asiria, y yo te daré dos mil caballos, si tú pudieres dar jinetes para ellos.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et maintenant, fais un accord, je te prie, avec le roi d’Assyrie, mon seigneur, et je te donnerai 2 000 chevaux si tu peux donner des cavaliers pour les monter.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und nun, laß dich doch ein mit meinem Herrn, dem König von Assyrien: Ich will dir zweitausend Rosse geben, wenn du dir Reiter darauf setzen kannst.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Nunc igitur transite ad dominum meum regem Assyriorum, et dabo vobis duo millia equorum, et videte an habere valeatis ascensores eorum.