1 Kings 20:6
New International Version
But about this time tomorrow I am going to send my officials to search your palace and the houses of your officials. They will seize everything you value and carry it away.’”

New Living Translation
But about this time tomorrow I will send my officials to search your palace and the homes of your officials. They will take away everything you consider valuable!’”

English Standard Version
Nevertheless I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants and lay hands on whatever pleases you and take it away.’”

Berean Standard Bible
But about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to search your palace and the houses of your servants. They will seize and carry away all that is precious to you.’”

King James Bible
Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.

New King James Version
but I will send my servants to you tomorrow 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 will put it in their hands and take it.’ ”

New American Standard Bible
but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and they will take in their hands everything that is pleasing to your eyes, and take it all away.’”

NASB 1995
but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and whatever is desirable in your eyes, they will take in their hand and carry away.’”

NASB 1977
but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and it shall come about, whatever is desirable in your eyes, they will take in their hand and carry away.’”

Legacy Standard Bible
but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and whatever is desirable in your eyes, they will put in their hand and carry away.’”

Amplified Bible
but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and they will take with their hands (confiscate) whatever is desirable in your eyes and carry it away.’”

Christian Standard Bible
But at this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your palace and your servants’ houses. They will lay their hands on and take away whatever is precious to you.’ ”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But at this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your palace and your servants’ houses. They will lay their hands on and take away whatever is precious to you.’”

American Standard Version
but I will send my servants unto thee to-morrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.

Contemporary English Version
But tomorrow at this time, I will send my officials into your city to search your palace and the houses of your officials. They will take everything else that you own."

English Revised Version
but I will send my servants unto thee tomorrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
At this time tomorrow I'm going to send my servants to search your palace and your servants' houses. They will take anything that you consider valuable.'"

Good News Translation
Now, however, I will send my officers to search your palace and the homes of your officials, and to take everything they consider valuable. They will be there about this time tomorrow."

International Standard Version
About this time tomorrow, I'll send my servants to you, and they'll search through your palace and your servants' houses. Whatever is important to you will be seized and taken away.'"

Majority Standard Bible
But about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to search your palace and the houses of your servants. They will seize and carry away all that is precious to you.’”

NET Bible
But now at this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you and they will search through your palace and your servants' houses. They will carry away all your valuables."

New Heart English Bible
but I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house, and the houses of your servants; and it shall be, that whatever is pleasant in their eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away."'"

Webster's Bible Translation
Yet I will send my servants to thee to-morrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatever is pleasant in thy eyes, they shall take it in their hand, and carry it away.

World English Bible
but I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants. Whatever is pleasant in your eyes, they will put it in their hand, and take it away.”’”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
for if, at this time tomorrow, I send my servants to you, then they have searched your house, and the houses of your servants, and it has been [that] every desirable thing of your eyes they place in their hand, and have taken [them] away.”

Young's Literal Translation
for if, at this time to-morrow, I send my servants unto thee then they have searched thy house, and the houses of thy servants, and it hath been, every desirable thing of thine eyes they place in their hand, and have taken away.'

Smith's Literal Translation
But about the time to-morrow I will send my servants to thee, and they searched thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it was all the delight of thine eyes they shall put in their hand and take.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
To morrow therefore at this same hour I will send my servants to thee, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants: and all that pleaseth them, they shall put in their hands, and take away.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, tomorrow, at this same hour, I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants. And all that pleases them, they will put in their hands and take away.”

New American Bible
But now I say: At this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they shall ransack your house and the houses of your servants. They shall seize and take away whatever you consider valuable.’ ”

New Revised Standard Version
nevertheless I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants, and lay hands on whatever pleases them, and take it away.”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Yet I will send my servants to you tomorrow at about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants; and whatsoever pleases them, they shall take in their hands and bring back.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Tomorrow at this time I shall send my Servants to you and they will search your houses and the houses of your Servants, and they shall take in their hands everything of the lust of their eyes, and they shall come.”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
but I will send my servants unto thee tomorrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For at this time to-morrow I will send my servants to thee, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants, and it shall be that all the desirable objects of their eyes on which they shall lay their hands, they shall even take them.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Ben-Hadad Attacks Samaria
5The messengers came back and said, “This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘I have sent to you to demand your silver, your gold, your wives, and your children. 6But about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to search your palace and the houses of your servants. They will seize and carry away all that is precious to you.’” 7Then the king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, “Please take note and see that this man is looking for trouble, for when he demanded my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold, I did not deny him.”…

Cross References
Exodus 3:22
Every woman shall ask her neighbor and any woman staying in her house for silver and gold jewelry and clothing, and you will put them on your sons and daughters. So you will plunder the Egyptians.”

Exodus 12:35-36
Furthermore, the Israelites acted on Moses’ word and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold, and for clothing. / And the LORD gave the people such favor in the sight of the Egyptians that they granted their request. In this way they plundered the Egyptians.

2 Kings 18:31-32
Do not listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat from his own vine and his own fig tree and drink water from his own cistern, / until I come and take you away to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey—so that you may live and not die. But do not listen to Hezekiah, for he misleads you when he says, ‘The LORD will deliver us.’

2 Kings 24:13-14
As the LORD had declared, Nebuchadnezzar also carried off all the treasures from the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and he cut into pieces all the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD. / He carried into exile all Jerusalem—all the commanders and mighty men of valor, all the craftsmen and metalsmiths—ten thousand captives in all. Only the poorest people of the land remained.

Isaiah 39:6-7
The time will surely come when everything in your palace and all that your fathers have stored up until this day will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD. / And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood, will be taken away to be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

Jeremiah 15:13
Your wealth and your treasures I will give up as plunder, without charge for all your sins within all your borders.

Jeremiah 20:5
I will give away all the wealth of this city—all its products and valuables, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah—to their enemies. They will plunder them, seize them, and carry them off to Babylon.

Jeremiah 27:19-22
For this is what the LORD of Hosts says about the pillars, the sea, the bases, and the rest of the articles that remain in this city, / which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he carried Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem. / Yes, this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says about the articles that remain in the house of the LORD, in the palace of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem: ...

Ezekiel 7:21-22
And I will hand these things over as plunder to foreigners and loot to the wicked of the earth, who will defile them. / I will turn My face away from them, and they will defile My treasured place. Violent men will enter it, and they will defile it.

Ezekiel 12:12-13
And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he cannot see the land. / But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.

Matthew 24:43
But understand this: If the homeowner had known in which watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.

Luke 12:39
But understand this: If the homeowner had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.

Luke 19:43-44
For the days will come upon you when your enemies will barricade you and surround you and hem you in on every side. / They will level you to the ground—you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”

John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.

Acts 2:45
Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need.


Treasury of Scripture

Yet 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.

and they shall search

1 Samuel 13:19-21
Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears: …

2 Samuel 24:14
And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man.

2 Kings 18:31,32
Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me, and then eat ye every man of his own vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his cistern: …

pleasant [heb] desirable

Genesis 27:15
And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:

Ezra 8:27
Also twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold.

Isaiah 44:9
They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.

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Carry Desirable Eyes Hand Hands House Houses Lay Morrow Nevertheless Officials Palace Pleasant Pleases Pleasing Search Searched Seize Servants Sight Time Tomorrow To-Morrow Whatever Whatsoever
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Carry Desirable Eyes Hand Hands House Houses Lay Morrow Nevertheless Officials Palace Pleasant Pleases Pleasing Search Searched Seize Servants Sight Time Tomorrow To-Morrow Whatever Whatsoever
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














But about this time tomorrow
This phrase sets a specific timeframe, indicating the immediacy and certainty of the impending action. In the Hebrew context, time references often underscore the urgency and seriousness of a situation. The phrase suggests a looming threat, emphasizing the pressure and fear that King Ben-hadad of Aram intended to instill in King Ahab of Israel. It reflects the ancient Near Eastern practice of issuing ultimatums, which were often used to assert dominance and control.

I will send my servants
The term "servants" here refers to agents or messengers acting on behalf of a king. In the ancient world, a king's servants were extensions of his authority, carrying out his will and commands. This reflects the hierarchical structure of ancient monarchies, where the king's word was law, and his servants were instruments of his power. The use of "servants" also implies a sense of impersonal force, as they are merely executing orders without personal involvement.

to search your palace
The act of searching the palace signifies an invasion of privacy and a violation of sovereignty. In ancient Israel, the palace was not only the king's residence but also a symbol of his rule and authority. The Hebrew word for "search" can imply a thorough and intrusive examination, indicating that nothing would be left untouched. This action would have been seen as a direct challenge to King Ahab's authority and an affront to his dignity.

and the houses of your officials
This phrase extends the threat beyond the king to his officials, indicating a comprehensive and systematic plundering. In the ancient Near Eastern context, officials were integral to the administration of the kingdom, and their houses would contain valuable resources and symbols of their status. By targeting the officials, Ben-hadad aimed to destabilize the entire governance structure of Israel, not just the king.

They will seize everything you value
The word "seize" conveys a forceful and aggressive action, implying that the taking would be done without consent. The phrase "everything you value" highlights the personal and economic impact of the threat. In the Hebrew context, what one values often includes not only material wealth but also items of cultural and religious significance. This would have been a devastating prospect for Ahab, as it threatened both his personal wealth and the cultural heritage of his people.

and carry it away
The act of carrying away implies a complete removal, leaving nothing behind. In the ancient world, such actions were common in warfare, where victors would plunder the defeated to enrich themselves and weaken their enemies. This phrase underscores the totality of the threat, suggesting that Ahab would be left impoverished and humiliated. It serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of defying a more powerful adversary.

(6) Whatsoever is pleasant.--The demand, which is virtually for the plunder of Samaria, probably neither expects nor desires acceptance, and is therefore a refusal of all but unconditional surrender. It is notable that in the last extremity Ahab falls back on an exceptional appeal to the patriotism of the people.

The "elders of the land" (evidently present in Samaria at this time) were the representatives in the northern kingdom of the ancient assembly of the "elders of Israel," existing from the time of Moses downwards as a senate, having power not only of advice, but of concurrence, in relation to the Judge or King. (See Exodus 3:16; Exodus 12:21; Exodus 24:1; Deuteronomy 27:1; Deuteronomy 31:9; Joshua 7:6; 2Samuel 5:3; 1Kings 8:3). The solemn appointment of the seventy in Numbers 11:24-25 seems to be simply the re-constitution and consecration of the original body. Each tribe and each town had also its lesser body of elders. (See 1Samuel 30:26, "the elders of Judah;" Deuteronomy 19:12; Deuteronomy 21:3, &c., "the elders of the city.") The authority of all these assemblies must have been at all times largely overborne by the royal power (see 1Kings 21:11), and must have varied according to time and circumstance. . . .

Verse 6. - Yet I will send my servants unto thee tomorrow about this time [This proposal was definite and immediate, the first demand was vague and general. "In the first Ahab was to send what he thought fit to give; in the second, Ben-hadad's servants were to take into their own hands whatsoever they thought fit to sieze" (Wordsworth)], and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in [Heb. the desire of] thine eyes [The LXX. and some other versions have a plural suffix - their eyes. But the Hebrew text is to be preferred. The object of Ben-hadad was to couch his message in the most oftensive and humiliating terms, and "the desire of thine eyes" would be likely to cut deeper and wound more than "the desire of their eyes"], they shall put it in their hand, and take it away. [If Ahab ever hoped by his abject submission to conciliate the Syrian king, he now finds that his words have had just the opposite effect. For all that the latter concluded from it was that Ahab was one upon whom he might trample at pleasure, and this servility encouraged Ben-hadad to renew his demands in a still more galling and vexatious form. This second message discloses to us still more plainly the royal bully and braggart, and shows us what the "comity of nations" in the old world was often like.]

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
But
כִּ֣י ׀ (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

about
אִם־ (’im-)
Conjunction
Strong's 518: Lo!, whether?, if, although, Oh that!, when, not

this time
כָּעֵ֣ת (kā·‘êṯ)
Preposition-k, Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 6256: Time, now, when

tomorrow
מָחָ֗ר (mā·ḥār)
Adverb
Strong's 4279: Deferred, the morrow, tomorrow, hereafter

I will send
אֶשְׁלַ֤ח (’eš·laḥ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7971: To send away, for, out

my servants
עֲבָדַי֙ (‘ă·ḇā·ḏay)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 5650: Slave, servant

to search
וְחִפְּשׂוּ֙ (wə·ḥip·pə·śū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 2664: To seek, to conceal oneself, mask

your palace
בֵּ֣יתְךָ֔ (bê·ṯə·ḵā)
Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 1004: A house

and
וְאֵ֖ת (wə·’êṯ)
Conjunctive waw | Direct object marker
Strong's 853: Untranslatable mark of the accusative case

the houses
בָּתֵּ֣י (bāt·tê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1004: A house

of your servants.
עֲבָדֶ֑יךָ (‘ă·ḇā·ḏe·ḵā)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 5650: Slave, servant

They will seize
יָשִׂ֥ימוּ (yā·śî·mū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7760: Put -- to put, place, set

and take away
וְלָקָֽחוּ׃ (wə·lā·qā·ḥū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 3947: To take

all that
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

is
וְהָיָה֙ (wə·hā·yāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

precious
מַחְמַ֣ד (maḥ·maḏ)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4261: Delightful, a delight, object of affection, desire

to you.’”
עֵינֶ֔יךָ (‘ê·ne·ḵā)
Noun - cdc | second person masculine singular
Strong's 5869: An eye, a fountain


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OT History: 1 Kings 20:6 But I will send my servants (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg)
1 Kings 20:5
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