18:26 Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah said to the chief adviser, “Speak to your servants in Aramaic, 1 for we understand it. Don’t speak with us in the Judahite dialect 2 in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”
10:6 He wrote them a second letter, saying, “If you are really on my side and are willing to obey me, 3 then take the heads of your master’s sons and come to me in Jezreel at this time tomorrow.” 4 Now the king had seventy sons, and the prominent 5 men of the city were raising them.
1 sn Aramaic was the diplomatic language of the empire.
2 tn Or “Hebrew.”
3 tn Heb “If you are mine and you are listening to my voice.”
4 sn Jehu’s command is intentionally vague. Does he mean that they should bring the guardians (those who are “heads” over Ahab’s sons) for a meeting, or does he mean that they should bring the literal heads of Ahab’s sons with them? (So LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and some
5 tn Heb “great,” probably in wealth, position, and prestige.