He slew of Edom in the valley of salt ten thousand, and took Selah by war, and called the name of it Joktheel unto this day.

2 KINGS 14:7KJV
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2 Kings 14:7 (KJV)

What does 2 Kings 14:7 mean?

2 Kings 14:7 records a military success of Amaziah, king of Judah. He defeated men of Edom, Judah’s neighbor to the south, and captured a place called Selah. The verse presents the victory as a notable event in Amaziah’s reign.

The narrator reports that Amaziah gave Selah a new name, Joktheel. “Unto this day” means that the name was still in use when the account was written.

The Hebrew behind 2 Kings 14:7

  • “Selah” — סֶלַע (selaʿ): This word can mean “rock” or “cliff.” As a place name, it suggests a rocky site.
  • “Joktheel” — יָקְתְאֵל (yoqteʾel): The name is often understood to mean “God subdues.” The new name may have expressed how Amaziah understood his victory.

Why 2 Kings 14:7 matters

  • The verse shows Amaziah’s success on two fronts: he killed ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and he took Selah in war.
  • The surrounding account gives the victory a place in a larger sequence. After the success against Edom, Amaziah challenged Jehoash, king of Israel, and Judah was defeated in the fighting that followed (2 Kings 14:8–12).
  • A parallel account adds detail to the brief report. 2 Chronicles 25:11–12 describes both the ten thousand killed in the Valley of Salt and other captives killed afterward.

Where else these words appear

“Selah” Hebrew H5554 · used in 2 verses

  • Isaiah 16:1 Send ye the lamb to the ruler of the land from Sela to the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion.

“Joktheel” Hebrew H3371 · used in 2 verses

“salt” Hebrew H4417 · used in 26 verses

  • Genesis 14:3 All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.
  • Joshua 3:16 That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.
  • 2 Kings 2:21 And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the LORD, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

“valley” Hebrew H1516 · used in 54 verses

  • Numbers 21:20 And from Bamoth in the valley, that is in the country of Moab, to the top of Pisgah, which looketh toward Jeshimon.
  • 1 Chronicles 18:12 Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah slew of the Edomites in the valley of salt eighteen thousand.
  • Jeremiah 2:23 How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;