And he arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he was at the shearing house in the way,

2 KINGS 10:12KJV
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2 Kings 10:12 (KJV)

What does 2 Kings 10:12 mean?

2 Kings 10:12 places Jehu on the road to Samaria, where his campaign against King Ahab’s family continues. A stop at a place connected with sheep shearing sets the scene for an encounter that begins in the next verse.

The narrator tells the story rather than recording anyone’s speech in this verse. The KJV sentence ends with a comma because the action at the shearing house continues in verses 13–14.

The Hebrew behind 2 Kings 10:12

  • “shearing” — רָעָה (raʿah): This word often refers to tending or pasturing a flock. Its use in the place name connects the site with shepherding, while the KJV calls it a “shearing house.”
  • “house” — בֵּית עֵקֶד (bet ʿeqed): This expression is often understood as a place where animals were gathered or bound. In the verse, it forms part of the name of a roadside location.

Why 2 Kings 10:12 matters

  • The journey is part of Jehu’s campaign, not merely a change of location. The preceding verse places him at Jezreel, and his destination is Samaria, another important city in the kingdom.
  • The roadside setting explains how Jehu encounters people before reaching the city. Verse 13 identifies them as relatives of Ahaziah, king of Judah, who are traveling to visit members of the royal household.

Where else these words appear

“house” Hebrew H1044 · used in 2 verses

  • 2 Kings 10:14 And he said, Take them alive. And they took them alive, and slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them.

“Samaria” Hebrew H8111 · used in 101 verses

  • 1 Kings 13:32 For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.
  • 2 Kings 13:1 In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah king of Judah Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.
  • 2 Chronicles 28:9 But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose name was Oded: and he went out before the host that came to Samaria, and said unto them, Behold, because the LORD God of your fathers was wroth with Judah, he hath delivered them into your hand, and ye have slain them in a rage that reacheth up unto heaven.

“shearing” Hebrew H7462 · used in 144 verses

  • Genesis 4:2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
  • Psalms 49:14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.
  • Jeremiah 33:12 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.