1 Kings 20:23 kjv
And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.
1 Kings 20:23 nkjv
Then the servants of the king of Syria said to him, "Their gods are gods of the hills. Therefore they were stronger than we; but if we fight against them in the plain, surely we will be stronger than they.
1 Kings 20:23 niv
Meanwhile, the officials of the king of Aram advised him, "Their gods are gods of the hills. That is why they were too strong for us. But if we fight them on the plains, surely we will be stronger than they.
1 Kings 20:23 esv
And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, "Their gods are gods of the hills, and so they were stronger than we. But let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.
1 Kings 20:23 nlt
After their defeat, Ben-hadad's officers said to him, "The Israelite gods are gods of the hills; that is why they won. But we can beat them easily on the plains.
1 Kings 20 23 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Kgs 20:28 | And a man of God came near and spoke... "Because the Syrians have said, 'The LORD is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys,' therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD." | YHWH refutes localized deity claim. |
| Jer 23:23-24 | "Am I a God at hand," declares the LORD, "and not a God afar off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?" declares the LORD. "Do I not fill heaven and earth?" declares the LORD. | God's omnipresence. |
| Ps 139:7-12 | Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! | God's pervasive presence. |
| Isa 40:21-22 | ...It is he who sits above the circle of the earth... | God's supreme transcendence. |
| 2 Chr 20:15 | ...Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's. | The battle belongs to the Lord. |
| 1 Sam 17:47 | ...that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the LORD saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the LORD's... | God fights for His people, revealing Himself. |
| Deut 10:14 | Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. | God's absolute ownership over creation. |
| Isa 44:6-20 | ...I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god... | YHWH as the unique, sole God. |
| Ps 115:3-8 | Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. | God's omnipotence vs. impotent idols. |
| Acts 17:24-25 | The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands... | God's universal lordship, not localized. |
| Ex 15:11 | "Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?" | God's incomparable greatness among 'gods'. |
| Jer 10:10-16 | But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King... Their idols are worthless. | True God vs. worthless idols. |
| 1 Cor 8:4-6 | ...there is no god but one... For us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. | Monotheism in the New Testament. |
| Ex 9:16 | But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth. | God reveals His power to Gentiles. |
| Josh 2:9-11 | I know that the LORD has given you the land... for the LORD your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. | Rahab's confession of YHWH's universal reign. |
| Dan 2:47 | The king answered Daniel and said, "Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings..." | Nebuchadnezzar acknowledges God's supremacy. |
| Dan 4:34-37 | ...His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation... | Nebuchadnezzar's praise of God's universal sovereignty. |
| Jonah 1:9-10 | He said to them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land." | Jonah declares God as creator of all domains. |
| Prov 21:30 | No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the LORD. | Human plans against God's will are futile. |
| Isa 8:9-10 | Plot together, but it will come to nothing; speak a word, but it will not stand, for God is with us. | Futility of plans without God. |
| Ps 2:4 | He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. | God's sovereign contempt for human folly. |
1 Kings 20 verses
1 Kings 20 23 Meaning
The Syrian officials, having experienced defeat by Israel, falsely concluded that Israel’s God (YHWH) was a localized deity, specifically powerful in hilly terrain. Based on this limited understanding of divine power common in their polytheistic worldview, they believed that if they engaged in battle on a plain, their own deities, whom they thought presided over flat lands, would grant them victory. This reveals their ignorance of the true nature of YHWH as the one sovereign God over all creation and every place.
1 Kings 20 23 Context
This verse occurs after Israel's unexpected victory over Aram (Syria) during Ben-Hadad's siege of Samaria. Ahab, the king of Israel, had initially agreed to harsh terms but later, empowered by a prophet, decisively defeated the Aramean army. The Arameans, influenced by their polytheistic worldview which typically confined deities to specific geographical regions, natural phenomena, or human activities, concluded that Israel's initial victory was due to their deity being "gods of the hills" (where the first battle likely took place near Samaria's elevated environs). This verse sets the stage for a second, larger confrontation, which God orchestrates specifically to demonstrate His universal sovereignty, explicitly countering the Arameans' limited theological understanding in the following verses (1 Kgs 20:28). The immediate historical context involves constant warfare and shifting regional power dynamics between the kingdoms of Israel and Aram.
1 Kings 20 23 Word analysis
- And the servants of the king of Syria said to him: These were the advisors or military commanders of Ben-Hadad, reflecting the collective pagan understanding. Syria, or Aram, was a powerful kingdom north of Israel.
- Their gods (אֱלֹהֵיהֶם – Elohehem): The plural
Elohim(אֱלֹהִים), which can mean "God" or "gods." Here, it refers to the deity or deities worshipped by Israel, implying a polytheistic assumption on the part of the Syrians, consistent with the ancient Near Eastern context. They would naturally assume Israel's power derived from specific deities, just as their own derived from Hadad, Baal, and other regional gods. - are gods of the hills (אֱלֹהֵי הָרִים – Elohei harim): Literally "gods of mountains." This reflects a pervasive ancient Near Eastern religious belief where deities were often associated with specific places, natural features, or territories. For example, Baal was frequently worshipped on high places and associated with storms. This shows the Syrians projecting their own polytheistic and territorial theology onto Israel's God, failing to grasp the unique nature of YHWH. The earlier battle might have taken place on elevated terrain, reinforcing their misconception.
- and so they were stronger than we (חָזְקוּ מִמֶּנּוּ – ḥāzeqū mimmenu): They attributed Israel's superior strength and their own defeat not to Israel's military might or YHWH's intrinsic power, but to the terrain-specific advantage of Israel's "hill gods." This reveals their immediate and simple explanation for a divinely ordained outcome.
- But let us fight against them in the plain (בַּמִּישׁוֹר – bammišor):
Mishorrefers to level ground or a plateau. This was a strategic shift aimed at nullifying Israel's perceived divine advantage. By moving to different terrain, they believed they could invoke their own deities (who they perhaps associated with plains or universal domains) or at least neutralize YHWH's perceived power. - and surely we shall be stronger than they (וְחָזַקְנוּ מֵהֶם – wəḥāzaqnū mēhem): This expresses their conviction that a change in terrain would reverse their fortunes. Their confidence was rooted in a deep theological misunderstanding rather than military strategy alone. This sets up the grand display of YHWH's omnipresent power in the next part of the narrative.
1 Kings 20 23 Bonus section
This incident is not just a strategic miscalculation but a theological challenge initiated by pagan ignorance that YHWH readily accepts. The subsequent battle (1 Kgs 20:29) occurred in the plain of Aphek, where Israel, with only 7,000 soldiers, routed Aram's forces, slaying 100,000. This served as YHWH's definitive response to the Syrians' theological error (1 Kgs 20:28), emphatically demonstrating that He is indeed God "of the valleys also," and of every place, ultimately showing His complete authority over all of creation and not bound by any physical location or human concept. The episode powerfully teaches that God's power and presence are not contingent upon human-defined territories or attributes, contrasting sharply with the syncretistic tendencies common in Israel at the time which sought to combine YHWH worship with Baal, often associated with specific fertility sites.
1 Kings 20 23 Commentary
This verse profoundly illustrates the theological clash between ancient Near Eastern polytheistic, localized deity beliefs and the unique, universal sovereignty of YHWH, the God of Israel. The Aramean officials, rooted in a worldview where gods had limited domains – like the storm god Hadad over weather, or regional deities tied to specific lands – could not comprehend a God unbounded by geography or specific phenomena. Their reasoning that Israel's "gods" were stronger only on hills exposed their profound ignorance of YHWH's nature. YHWH is not merely a "god of the hills" or valleys, but the creator and sovereign Lord of all heaven and earth, omnipresent and omnipotent. Their proposed shift to the plain was an act of tactical polytheism, aiming to bypass one divine limitation and activate another, playing into YHWH's hand to spectacularly demonstrate His unrestricted dominion. This incident serves as a crucial polemic against idolatry and the false limitations humans often impose on the Almighty.