2 Kings 10:15

10:15 When he left there, he met ¹  Jehonadab, son of Rekab, who had been looking for him. ²  Jehu greeted him and asked, ³  “Are you as committed to me as I am to you?” ⁴  Jehonadab answered, “I am!” Jehu replied, “If so, give me your hand.” ⁵  So he offered his hand and Jehu ⁶  pulled him up into the chariot.

2 Kings 10:1

Jehu Wipes Out Ahab’s Family

10:1 Ahab had seventy sons living in Samaria. ⁷  So Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria to the leading officials of Jezreel and to the guardians of Ahab’s dynasty. This is what the letters said, ⁸ 

2 Kings 2:1

Elijah Makes a Swift Departure

2:1 Just before ⁹  the Lord took Elijah up to heaven in a windstorm, Elijah and Elisha were traveling from Gilgal.

[10:15]  ¹ tn Heb “found.”

[10:15]  ² tn Heb “and he went from there and found Jehonadab son of Rekab [who was coming] to meet him.”

[10:15]  ³ tn Heb “and he blessed him and said to him.”

[10:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “Is there with your heart [what is] right, as my heart [is] with your heart?”

[10:15]  ⁵ tc Heb “Jehonadab said, ‘There is and there is. Give your hand.’” If the text is allowed to stand, there are two possible ways to understand the syntax of וָיֵשׁ (vayesh), “and there is”: (1) The repetition of יֵשׁ (yesh, “there is and there is”) could be taken as emphatic, “indeed I am.” In this case, the entire statement could be taken as Jehonadab’s words or one could understand the words “give your hand” as Jehu’s. In the latter case the change in speakers is unmarked. (2) וָיֵשׁ begins Jehu’s response and has a conditional force, “if you are.” In this case, the transition in speakers is unmarked. However, it is possible that וַיֹּאמֶר (vayyo’mer), “and he said,” or וַיֹּאמֶר יֵהוּא (vayyo’mer yehu), “and Jehu said,” originally appeared between יֵשׁ and וָיֵשׁ and has accidentally dropped from the text by homoioarcton (note that both the proposed וַיֹּאמֶר and וָיֵשׁ begin with vav, ו). The present translation assumes such a textual reconstruction; it is supported by the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate.

[10:15]  ⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:1]  ⁷ map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.

[10:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “to the officers of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of Ahab, saying.” It is not certain why the officials of Jezreel would be in Samaria. They may have fled there after they heard what happened to Joram and before Jehu entered the city. They would have had time to flee while Jehu was pursuing Ahaziah.

[2:1]  ⁹ tn Or “when.”