1 Kings 22:31 Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, "Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel."

◄ 1 Kings 22:31 ►

New International Version
Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.”

New Living Translation
Meanwhile, the king of Aram had issued these orders to his thirty-two chariot commanders: “Attack only the king of Israel. Don’t bother with anyone else!”

English Standard Version
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, “Fight with neither small nor great, but only with the king of Israel.”

Berean Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.”

King James Bible
But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

New King James Version
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”

New American Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two commanders of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with the small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”

NASB 1995
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with small or great, but with the king of Israel alone.”

NASB 1977
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with small or great, but with the king of Israel alone.”

Legacy Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two commanders of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with small or great, but with the king of Israel alone.”

Amplified Bible
Now the king of Aram (Syria) had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with [anyone, either] small or great, but with [Ahab] the king of Israel alone.”

Christian Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone at all except the king of Israel.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had ordered his 32 chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone at all except the king of Israel.”

American Standard Version
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

Contemporary English Version
The king of Syria had ordered his 32 chariot commanders to attack only Ahab.

English Revised Version
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The king of Aram had given orders to the 32 chariot commanders. He said, "Don't fight anyone except the king of Israel."

Good News Translation
The king of Syria had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders to attack no one else except the king of Israel.

International Standard Version
Meanwhile, the king of Aram had issued these orders to 32 of his chariot commanders: "Don't attack unimportant soldiers or ranking officers. Go after only the king of Israel."

Majority Standard Bible
Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, ?Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.?

NET Bible
Now the king of Syria had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, "Do not fight common soldiers or high-ranking officers; fight only the king of Israel."

New Heart English Bible
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, except only with the king of Israel.

Webster's Bible Translation
But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

World English Bible
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Don’t fight with small nor great, except only with the king of Israel.”

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And the king of Aram commanded the thirty-two heads of the charioteers whom he has, saying, “You do not fight with small or with great, but with the king of Israel by himself.”

Young's Literal Translation
And the king of Aram commanded the heads of the charioteers whom he hath -- thirty and two -- saying, 'Ye do not fight with small or with great, but with the king of Israel by himself.'

Smith's Literal Translation
And the king of Aram commanded the chiefs of the chariots which were to him, thirty and two, saying, Ye shall not fight with little and with great, but with the king of Israel alone.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king of Syria had commanded the two and thirty captains of the chariots, saying: You shall not fight against any, small or great, but against the king of Israel only.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Now the king of Syria had instructed the thirty-two commanders of the chariots, saying, “You shall not fight against anyone, small or great, except against the king of Israel alone.”

New American Bible
In the meantime the king of Aram had given his thirty-two chariot commanders the order, “Do not fight with anyone, great or small, except the king of Israel alone.”

New Revised Standard Version
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
But the king of Aram commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And the King of Edom commanded his thirtytwo Captains of chariots, and he said: “You shall not fight with small neither with great, but only with the King of Israel!”

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying: 'Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the king of Syria had charged the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight not against small or great, but against the king of Israel only.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Ahab's Defeat and Death
…30And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your royal robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. 31Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.” 32When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “Surely this is the king of Israel!” So they turned to fight against him, but Jehoshaphat cried out.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

2 Chronicles 18:30
Now the king of Aram had ordered his chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.”

2 Chronicles 18:29
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your royal robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

2 Chronicles 18:31
When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “This is the king of Israel!” So they turned to fight against him, but Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him. God drew them away from him.

2 Kings 3:7
And he sent a message to Jehoshaphat king of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?” “I will go,” replied Jehoshaphat. “I am as you are, my people are your people, and my horses are your horses.”

2 Kings 9:14-15
Thus Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. (Now Joram and all Israel had been defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram, / but King Joram had returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he had suffered at the hands of the Arameans in the battle against Hazael their king.) So Jehu said, “If you commanders wish to make me king, then do not let anyone escape from the city to go and tell it in Jezreel.”

2 Samuel 10:18
But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, who died there.

1 Samuel 31:2
The Philistines hotly pursued Saul and his sons, and they killed Saul’s sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua.

Isaiah 31:1
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in their abundance of chariots and in their multitude of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel; they do not seek the LORD.

Jeremiah 46:3-4
“Deploy your shields, small and large; advance for battle! / Harness the horses; mount the steeds; take your positions with helmets on! Polish your spears; put on armor!

Ezekiel 38:4
I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws, and bring you out with all your army—your horses, your horsemen in full armor, and a great company armed with shields and bucklers, all brandishing their swords.

Matthew 26:3-4
At that time the chief priests and elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, / and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.

Matthew 27:1
When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.

Mark 14:1
Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were two days away, and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a covert way to arrest Jesus and kill Him.

Mark 15:1
Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrin devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate.

Luke 22:2
and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a way to put Jesus to death, for they feared the people.

Treasury of Scripture

But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.

thirty and two

1 Kings 20:24
And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms:

2 Chronicles 18:30
Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots that were with him, saying, Fight ye not with small or great, save only with the king of Israel.

Fight

1 Kings 20:33-42
Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it: and they said, Thy brother Benhadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Benhadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot…

small nor great

Genesis 19:11
And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.

1 Samuel 30:2
And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.

Jeremiah 16:6
Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them:

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1 Kings 22

1. Ahab, seduced by false prophets, by Michaiah's word, is slain at Ramoth Gilead
37. The dogs lick up his blood, and Ahaziah succeeds him
41. Jehoshaphat's good reign
45. His acts
46. Jehoram succeeds him
51. Ahaziah's evil reign

Berean Study Bible

Now the king of Aram
The "king of Aram" refers to Ben-Hadad II, the ruler of the Aramean kingdom, which was located in present-day Syria. Historically, Aram was a significant power in the region, often in conflict with Israel. The Hebrew root for Aram is "אֲרָם" (Aram), which is associated with the highlands or elevated places, reflecting the geographical terrain of the region. This highlights the ongoing geopolitical tensions and the strategic importance of alliances and enmities in the ancient Near East.

had ordered
The phrase "had ordered" indicates a command or directive given with authority. In Hebrew, the root word is "צָוָה" (tsavah), meaning to command or charge. This reflects the hierarchical structure of ancient military operations, where the king's word was law, and obedience was expected without question. It underscores the king's strategic intent and the seriousness of the military campaign.

his thirty-two chariot commanders
The "thirty-two chariot commanders" signifies a substantial military force, as chariots were the elite units of ancient armies, akin to modern-day tanks. The number thirty-two suggests a well-organized and formidable force. Historically, chariots were a symbol of power and technological advancement in warfare, indicating the king's commitment to achieving his objectives through superior military might.

Do not fight with anyone, small or great
This directive to avoid engaging with anyone "small or great" reveals a focused military strategy. The Hebrew words "קָטֹן" (qaton) and "גָּדוֹל" (gadol) mean small and great, respectively, emphasizing the exclusivity of the target. This strategy reflects the king's intent to minimize unnecessary conflict and concentrate efforts on a singular, high-value target, demonstrating a calculated approach to warfare.

except the king of Israel
The phrase "except the king of Israel" identifies Ahab, the king of Israel, as the primary target. This focus on Ahab highlights the personal and political animosity between the two kingdoms. Historically, Ahab was known for his alliances and conflicts with surrounding nations, and this directive underscores the Aramean king's desire to eliminate a key adversary. Theologically, it reflects the divine orchestration of events, as Ahab's fate was intertwined with God's judgment on his reign.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(31)His thirty and two captains.--See 1Kings 20:16; 1Kings 20:24. The power of Syria had already recovered itself, and is directed with singular virulence against the person of the king who had unwisely spared it. Ahab is represented as the mover of the whole war, and as fighting bravely to the death.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 31. - But the king of Syria commanded [rather, had commanded. These words are of the nature of a parenthesis. "Now the king," etc. צִוָּה is so rendered in 2 Chronicles 18:30] his thirty and two captains [mentioned in 1 Kings 20:24. It does not follow, however (Wordsworth), that these very men had been spared by Ahab] that had rule over his chariots [Heb. chariotry. Another indication that the chariots were regarded as the most important arm of the Syrian service], saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel. [This Orientalism, translated into Western ideas, means, "Direct your weapons against the king." What Ahab had done to provoke such resentment is not quite clear. Rawlinson supposes that Ben-hadad's "defeat and captivity were still rankling in his mind, and he wished to retaliate on Ahab the humiliation which he considered himself to have suffered." But it is impossible to see in Ahab's generous conduct towards him a sufficient reason for the fierce hatred which these words disclose. It is much more probable that some affront had subsequently been offered to the Syrian monarch, possibly in the shape of the reproaches which Ahab may have addressed to him on account of his retention of Ramoth-Gilead, and the gross violation of the treaty of 1 Kings 20:34. It is also possible that he hoped that the death of Ahab would terminate the war (Bahr).]

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

Now the king
וּמֶ֣לֶךְ (ū·me·leḵ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4428: A king

of Aram
אֲרָ֡ם (’ă·rām)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 758: Aram -- Syria

had ordered
צִוָּ֣ה (ṣiw·wāh)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6680: To lay charge (upon), give charge (to), command, order

his thirty-two
שְׁלֹשִׁ֤ים (šə·lō·šîm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 7970: Thirty, thirtieth

chariot
הָרֶ֨כֶב (hā·re·ḵeḇ)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 7393: A vehicle, a team, cavalry, a rider, the upper millstone

commanders,
שָׂרֵי֩ (śā·rê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 8269: Chieftain, chief, ruler, official, captain, prince

“Do not
לֹ֚א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

fight
תִּלָּ֣חֲמ֔וּ (til·lā·ḥă·mū)
Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 3898: To feed on, to consume, to battle

with anyone,
אֶת־ (’eṯ-)
Preposition
Strong's 854: Nearness, near, with, by, at, among

small
קָטֹ֖ן (qā·ṭōn)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6996: Small, young, unimportant

or great,
גָּד֑וֹל (gā·ḏō·wl)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 1419: Great, older, insolent

except
כִּ֛י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

the king
מֶ֥לֶךְ (me·leḵ)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4428: A king

of Israel.”
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל (yiś·rā·’êl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

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OT History: 1 Kings 22:31 Now the king of Syria had commanded (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg)