John Gill's Exposition on 2 Kings 2:19

A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.

Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.

And the men of the city said unto Elisha, etc.] The inhabitants of Jericho, perceiving him to be a prophet, and endowed with a power of working miracles: behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth; in a plain, surrounded with gardens and orchards, with vineyards, oliveyards, and groves of palm trees, and other odoriferous ones: but the water is naught, and the ground barren; that is, that part of it where this water was, or ran, for from thence it became barren; or “caused to miscarry”, as the word signifies f16; not only trees cast their fruit, which it watered, but women became abortive that drank of it, as Josephus says f17 , and so cattle. Abarbinel thinks it was so from the times of Joshua, being cursed by him; but, if so, it would not have been inhabited again; rather this was owing to a new curse, upon its being rebuilt; though this might affect only a small part of the ground, not the whole, as before observed.

Read 2 Kings 2:19 →Read the full chapter →Barnes' Notes →Wesley's Explanatory Notes →Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge →

How to use this source
This excerpt is attributed to its named commentary. It is included as a historical study resource and should be evaluated in light of Scripture and other relevant evidence.