Bible Strands
2 Kings 16:6
At that time Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath for Aram, drove out the men of Judah, and sent the Edomites into Elath, where they live to this day.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — This narrative statement occurs during the Syro-Ephraimite war when Rezin and Pekah besiege Jerusalem but fail to breach its defenses.
The words — The text uses הֵ֠שִׁיב (He.shiv) to describe Rezin’s military recovery of the port city of אֵילַת֙ ('ei.Lat) for Aram.
The thread — The account contrasts with 2 Kings 14:22, where Judah previously held Elath, and places the city within Edom as noted in 1 Kings 9:26 and Deuteronomy 2:8.
Why it lands — The verse records a concrete geopolitical shift that removes Judah’s southern harbor, directly prompting King Ahaz to request Assyrian aid in the following passage.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.
Cross-references
- 2 Kings 14:22 Azariah was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.
- Deuteronomy 2:8 So we passed by our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion-geber, and traveled along the road of the Wilderness of Moab.
- 1 Kings 9:26 King Solomon also assembled a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.
- 2 Chronicles 26:2 Uzziah was the one who rebuilt Eloth and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.