The Meaning of 2 Kings 10:16 Explained

2 Kings 10:16

KJV: And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So they made him ride in his chariot.

YLT: and saith, 'Come with me, and look on my zeal for Jehovah;' and they cause him to ride in his chariot.

Darby: and said, Come with me, and see my zeal for Jehovah. So they made him ride in his chariot.

ASV: And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for Jehovah. So they made him ride in his chariot.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And he said,  Come  with me, and see  my zeal  for the LORD.  So they made him ride  in his chariot. 

What does 2 Kings 10:16 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Kings 10:12-24 - Wiping Out Baal-Worship
For the well-being of the race it is sometimes necessary to cut off evil-doers, lest they spread such a contagion of evil as to involve the whole body politic. The actual brethren of Ahaziah were slain by the Arabians, 2 Chronicles 22:1. Jehu's work seems to have been complemented by an invasion of the Bedouins: the men mentioned here were probably, as the margin suggests, cousins or acquaintances. "Brethren" is a wide word, covering many degrees of blood-relationship.
Jehonadab was head of a remarkable tribe, and himself a man of unusual strength of character. The influence of his example and precepts left its mark on following generations, 1 Chronicles 2:55; Jeremiah 35:1-19. Jehu evidently respected Jehonadab's good opinion, and was careful to advertise his own zeal for Jehovah. But the really good man has no need to parade his excellencies; and certainly Jehu could not count that his manner of going to work would be acceptable to the Most High. He might have achieved the same results by less objectionable methods. We must, of course, remember that this Baal-worship was very licentious, and that every Israelite who entered that temple did so in direct defiance of repeated warnings from Elijah and others. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 10

1  Jehu, by his letters, causes seventy of Ahab's sons to be beheaded
8  He excuses the fact by the prophecy of Elijah
12  At the shearing house he slays forty-two of Ahaziah's brothers
15  He takes Jehonadab into his company
18  By subtilty he destroys all the worshippers of Baal
29  Jehu follows Jeroboam's sins
32  Hazael oppresses Israel
34  Jehoahaz succeeds Jehu

What do the individual words in 2 Kings 10:16 mean?

And he said come with me and see my zeal for Yahweh So they had ride him in his chariot
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לְכָ֣ה אִתִּ֔י וּרְאֵ֖ה בְּקִנְאָתִ֣י לַיהוָ֑ה וַיַּרְכִּ֥בוּ אֹת֖וֹ בְּרִכְבּֽוֹ

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙  And  he  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לְכָ֣ה  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
אִתִּ֔י  with  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֵת 
Sense: with, near, together with.
וּרְאֵ֖ה  and  see 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
בְּקִנְאָתִ֣י  my  zeal 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: קִנְאָה  
Sense: ardour, zeal, jealousy.
לַיהוָ֑ה  for  Yahweh 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וַיַּרְכִּ֥בוּ  So  they  had  ride 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: רָכַב  
Sense: to mount and ride, ride.
בְּרִכְבּֽוֹ  in  his  chariot 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: רֶכֶב  
Sense: a team, chariot, chariotry, mill-stone, riders.