Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Kings 14:13
And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
13. took Amaziah ] i.e. Took him prisoner. And there is some difficulty in deciding what became of Amaziah at this time and afterwards. In 2Ch 25:23 it is added that Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem, and the Kethib (= they came) in this verse is intended to give that idea. Both A.V. and R.V. have translated the Keri (= he came). Josephus ( Ant. IX. 9. 3) has given an account which makes Amaziah be brought as a captive into his own capital. ‘When the troops (of Judah) were scattered in alarm, Amaziah was left alone and was taken prisoner by the enemy. Then Jehoash threatened to put him to death unless he persuaded the people of Jerusalem to open their gates and admit him with his army into the city. And Amaziah through necessity and in fear for his life caused the enemy to be received. And Jehoash having broken down about four hundred cubits of the walls, drove in his chariot through the opening into Jerusalem, bringing Amaziah as his prisoner.’ This is a picture in which the imagination has added to the details of the sacred narrative. Yet the very formal way in which Amaziah is mentioned in this verse, both here and by the Chronicler, as ‘Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah’, seems to indicate that some crisis in the reign of this king is marked by the defeat at Beth-shemesh. Perhaps he was kept a prisoner till the death of Jehoash. The way in which it is said in verse 17 that Amaziah lived (not reigned) after the death of Jehoash, seems also, from its unusual nature, to mark an exceptional state of things.
from the gate of Ephraim ] This portion of the wall was on the north of the city, opening towards the kingdom of Israel, and the demolition of a large part of the wall on that side was meant to leave the city exposed to the entry of the Israelites if they were desirous to come in. The gate was where now is ‘the Damascus gate’.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The object of breaking down the wall was to leave Jerusalem at the mercy of her rival; and it must have been among the conditions of the peace that the breach thus made should not be repaired.
Gates in Oriental cities are named from the places to which they lead. The gate of Ephraim must therefore have been a north gate: perhaps also known, later on, by the name of the gate of Benjamin Jer 37:13; Zec 14:10. The corner gate was probably a gate at the northwest angle of the city, where the north wall approached the Valley of Hinnom. The entire breach was thus in the north wall, on the side where Jerusalem was naturally the weakest. Josephus says that Joash drove his chariot through the breach into the town, a practice not unusual with conquerors.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 13. Took Amaziah king of Judah] It is plain that Amaziah afterwards had his liberty; but how or on what terms he got it, is not known. See on the following verse.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Came to Jerusalem; commanding entrance in Amaziahs name, and with his consent, which he durst not deny.
The gate of Ephraim; which led to Ephraim.
Four hundred cubits; which was done, partly in scorn and contempt, and partly that he might re-enter and retake it, if they should attempt to renew the war.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Bethshemesh,…. And then they looked one another in the face indeed, but Amaziah must look very silly:
and came to Jerusalem; the metropolis of Judah, with his royal prisoner:
and broke down the wall of Jerusalem; in at the breach of which he went with his chariot, as Josephus says e, in triumph:
from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits; the gate of Ephraim was to the north of the city, towards the tribe of Ephraim, from whence it had its name; and the corner gate was that which joined the northern and western walls together, or rather the northern and eastern walls; for Rauwolff says f, there is still the corner gate in its old place, where the north and east walls meet on large and high rocks, and is still called by some the gate of Naphtali.
e Antiqu. l. 9. c. 9. sect. 3. f Travels, par. 3. ch. 3. p. 228. by Ray.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(13) Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah.Comp, 2Ki. 14:8. Thenius thinks the formal specification of Amaziahs descent indicates that this narrative was derived from the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. At all events, it emphasises the importance of the incident, which is further indicated in the original by the order of the words: And Amaziah king of Judah . . . did Jehoash king of Israel take . . .
Came.So the Hebrew margin. The Hebrew text has, brought him (wayb; a rare form). So Chronicles and the Vulg., but not the other versions. Jehoash brought Amaziah a prisoner to his own capital.
Brake down the wall.Or, made a breach in the wall. No resistance appears to have been offered. Josephus relates that Amaziah was induced by menaces of death to order the gates to be thrown open to the enemy; a needless assumption, considering that the army had been routed and the king was a captive. He adds, that Jehoash rode in his chariot through the breach in the walls, leading Amaziah as a prisoner.
From the gate.So Chronicles and the Syriac, Vulg., and Arabic here. The Hebrew text has, at the gate, which is due to the common confusion of the letters b and m (be, in; min, from). The following unto shows that from is right.
Of Ephraim.This gate lay on the north side of the city, and was also called the Gate of Benjamin. It answers to the modern Damascus gate.
The corner gate.This gate was at the north-west corner of the wall at the point where it trended southwards.
Four hundred cubits.That is, about 222 yards. The insolence of a victorious enemy is sufficient to account for this conduct of Jehoash. It was also a forcible way of convincing Amaziah that even his strongest city was not proof against the prowess of Ephraim. Thenius thinks that Jehoash wanted to make room for the triumphal entry of his troops.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
13. Brake down the wall of Jerusalem The northern wall.
Gate of Ephraim The same, doubtless, as the gate of Benjamin, (Jer 37:13; Zec 14:10,) and so called from being the principal entrance to the city in the direction of these tribes. Its location was probably not far from the modern Damascus gate. Compare Neh 8:16; Neh 12:39.
Corner gate Situated probably at the northwestern corner of the same wall. Compare Jer 31:38; Zec 14:10.
Four hundred cubits About seven hundred feet.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2Ki 14:13 And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Bethshemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
Ver. 13. And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah. ] Whom he used nothing so courteously as Alexander, Prince of the Bulgarians, did Andronicus II, Emperor of Constantinople, who had sent him a challenge, as here Amaziah did Jehoash. But when Alexander had beaten him out of the field, he nevertheless offered him a peace, and suffered him to return home with his shattered army, advising him to be better advised for the future, and to consider that in each year there are four different seasons; and that in a short moment there may be great changes in human affairs. a
a Val. Max., Christ, 59.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
cubits. See App-51.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
took Amaziah: 2Ki 25:6, 2Ch 33:11, 2Ch 36:6, 2Ch 36:10, Job 40:11, Job 40:12, Pro 16:18, Pro 29:23, Isa 2:11, Isa 2:12, Dan 4:37, Luk 14:11
the gate of Ephraim: 2Ch 25:23, 2Ch 25:24, Neh 8:16, Neh 12:39
the corner: Jer 31:38, Zec 14:10
Reciprocal: 2Ch 26:9 – the corner gate
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2Ki 14:13-14. Jehoash took Amaziah king of Judah, &c. Amaziahs pedigree comes in here somewhat abruptly. The son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah Because perhaps he had gloried in the dignity of his ancestors, or now smarted for their iniquity. And came to Jerusalem Which tamely opened to him; probably because he demanded entrance in Amaziahs name, and with his consent. And brake down the wall of Jerusalem In reproach to them; and that he might, when he pleased, take possession of the royal city. Josephus says, that he drove his chariot in triumph through the breach. And he took all the gold and silver, &c. He plundered Jerusalem, and took away all that was valuable, spoiling both the house of the Lord, and the kings house, of all their treasures. And hostages To ensure their peaceable conduct. And returned to Samaria He did not keep Jerusalem, nor seek to gain the possession and dominion of that kingdom; partly, because he thought he could not keep it, considering the difficulty he found in defending his own from such potent and near enemies as the Syrians were, and the great affection which all Judah bore to Davids house; and partly, because God so inclined his heart, that he might make good his promise to David and his family.