The Meaning of 1 Kings 20:30 Explained

1 Kings 20:30

KJV: But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.

YLT: And those left flee to Aphek, unto the city, and the wall falleth on twenty and seven chief men who are left, and Ben-Hadad hath fled, and cometh in unto the city, into the innermost part.

Darby: And the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand men of them that were left. And Ben-Hadad fled, and came into the city, from chamber to chamber.

ASV: But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand men that were left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

But the rest  fled  to Aphek,  into the city;  and [there] a wall  fell  upon twenty  and seven  thousand  of the men  [that were] left.  And Benhadad  fled,  and came  into the city,  into an inner  chamber. 

What does 1 Kings 20:30 Mean?

Study Notes

inner
Heb. "a chamber in a chamber." 1 Kings 22:25 .

Context Summary

1 Kings 20:16-30 - The God Both Of Hills And Valleys
What is God to us? Is He only the God of the hills? We expect religion to serve us when we come to the great summits of experience. There are times of rapture and of vision when we seem naturally to stand with God on the holy mountains. We have our Moriah, our Pisgah, our Tabor, our Hermon. But is that all?
No! God is with us in the valleys. When we descend into the valley of weeping, Psalms 84:6, r.v., the valley of the shadow of death, the valley of obscurity and loneliness, the valley of conflict, we can say with the psalmist, "Thou art with me," Psalms 23:4. Most of us, perhaps, spend the larger part of life in the valleys, walking among commonplace duties. Let us see to it that in these shadowed days we walk in close companionship with the Divine Friend; that, when the path ascends and the mountain-breeze is on our faces and the view widens, we may stand with God on our high places as with hinds' feet. See Habakkuk 3:19.
1 Kings 20:1-43 - A Prosperous Nation
What a picture is here given of national contentment and prosperity! We can almost hear the gladsome voice of the myriad-peopled land, teeming with young life and laden with golden harvests. It was the summer of their national existence. The sacred scribe enumerates first the high officials of the court, then the daily provision of the king, his studies, and his fame. Abundant proof was yielded by all these circumstances to the manner in which God kept the pledges which had been made to David, his father.
Here is Solomon "in all his glory," but as we turn from him to the lowly Carpenter of Nazareth, who had nowhere to lay His head; who found His friends among the poor; and who ultimately laid down His life a ransom for many, we realize that, even apart from His divine nature, His was the nobler ideal and the richer existence. "A greater than Solomon is here." Who can measure His empire or resources? What tongue can recount His wisdom? Happy and safe are they that sit at His table, hear His words, and are joint-heirs with Him in His Kingdom! Romans 8:17. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Kings 20

1  Ben-Hadad, not content with Ahab's homage, besieges Samaria
13  By the direction of a prophet, the Syrians are slain
22  As the prophet forewarned Ahab, the Syrians come against him in Aphek
28  By the word of the prophet, and God's judgment, the Syrians are smitten again
31  The Syrians submit; Ahab sends Ben-Hadad away with a covenant
35  The prophet, under the parable of a prisoner,
39  making Ahab judge himself, denounces God's judgment against him

What do the individual words in 1 Kings 20:30 mean?

But fled the rest to Aphek into the city then fell a wall on twenty and seven thousand of the men [who were] left And Ben-hadad fled and went the city into an inner into an inner chamber -
וַיָּנֻ֨סוּ הַנּוֹתָרִ֥ים ׀ אֲפֵקָה֮ אֶל־ הָעִיר֒ וַתִּפֹּל֙ הַחוֹמָ֔ה עַל־ עֶשְׂרִ֨ים וְשִׁבְעָ֥ה אֶ֛לֶף אִ֖ישׁ הַנּוֹתָרִ֑ים וּבֶן־ הֲדַ֣ד נָ֔ס וַיָּבֹ֥א הָעִ֖יר חֶ֥דֶר בְּחָֽדֶר ס

וַיָּנֻ֨סוּ  But  fled 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: נוּס  
Sense: to flee, escape.
הַנּוֹתָרִ֥ים ׀  the  rest 
Parse: Article, Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: יָתַר  
Sense: to be left over, remain, remain over, leave.
אֲפֵקָה֮  to  Aphek 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: אֲפֵק  
Sense: a Canaanite city near Jezreel.
אֶל־  into 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
הָעִיר֒  the  city 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
וַתִּפֹּל֙  then  fell 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: נָפַל  
Sense: to fall, lie, be cast down, fail.
הַחוֹמָ֔ה  a  wall 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: חֹומָה  
Sense: wall.
עֶשְׂרִ֨ים  twenty 
Parse: Number, common plural
Root: עֶשְׂרִים  
Sense: twenty, twentieth.
וְשִׁבְעָ֥ה  and  seven 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, masculine singular
Root: שֶׁבַע  
Sense: seven (cardinal number).
אֶ֛לֶף  thousand 
Parse: Number, masculine singular
Root: אֶלֶף 
Sense: a thousand.
אִ֖ישׁ  of  the  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
הַנּוֹתָרִ֑ים  [who  were]  left 
Parse: Article, Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: יָתַר  
Sense: to be left over, remain, remain over, leave.
הֲדַ֣ד  Ben-hadad 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: בֶּן־הֲדַד  
Sense: the king of Syria, contemporary with Asa of Judah.
נָ֔ס  fled 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נוּס  
Sense: to flee, escape.
וַיָּבֹ֥א  and  went 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
הָעִ֖יר  the  city 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
חֶ֥דֶר  into  an  inner 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֶדֶר  
Sense: chamber, room, parlour, innermost or inward part, within.
בְּחָֽדֶר  into  an  inner  chamber 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֶדֶר  
Sense: chamber, room, parlour, innermost or inward part, within.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation