Why he said to the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that you did send for to your servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again. Treasury of Scripture Let not him, etc. This was no doubt a proverbial mode of expression. Jonathan renders it: `Let not him who girds himself, and goes down to battle, boast as one who has conquered and returned from it.' 1 Samuel 14:6,12,13 And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armor, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised... 1 Samuel 17:44-47 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field... Proverbs 27:1 Boast not yourself of to morrow; for you know not what a day may bring forth. Ecclesiastes 9:11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise... Isaiah 10:15,16 Shall the ax boast itself against him that hews therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shakes it... Matthew 26:33-35 Peter answered and said to him, Though all men shall be offended because of you, yet will I never be offended... Matthew 26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said to him, Before the cock crow, you shall deny me thrice. And he went out... harness The word harness is an obsolete word for armour, derived from the French harnois Exodus 13:18 But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea...
Context Ahab's Wars with Syria
1And Benhadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. 2And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said to him, Thus said Benhadad, 3Your silver and your gold is mine; your wives also and your children, even the best, are mine. 4And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to your saying, I am yours, and all that I have. 5And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaks Benhadad, saying, Although I have sent to you, saying, You shall deliver me your silver, and your gold, and your wives, and your children; 6Yet I will send my servants to you to morrow about this time, and they shall search your house, and the houses of your servants; and it shall be, that whatever is pleasant in your eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away. 7Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeks mischief: for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not. 8And all the elders and all the people said to him, Listen not to him, nor consent. 9Why he said to the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that you did send for to your servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again. 10And Benhadad sent to him, and said, The gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me. 11And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girds on his harness boast himself as he that puts it off. 12And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said to his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city. Parallel Verses American Standard Version
Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do; but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Wherefore he answered the messengers of Benadad: Tell my lord the king: All that thou didst send for to me thy servant at first, I will do: but this thing I cannot do.
Darby Bible Translation
And he said to the messengers of Ben-Hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do; but this thing I cannot do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
King James Bible
Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
Young's Literal Translation
And he saith to the messengers of Ben-Hadad, 'Say to my lord the king, All that thou didst send for unto thy servant at the first I do, and this thing I am not able to do;' and the messengers go and take him back word.
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