And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.

2 KINGS 3:19KJV
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2 Kings 3:19 (KJV)

What does 2 Kings 3:19 mean?

2 Kings 3:19 describes a command to completely devastate enemy territory: destroying fortified and important cities, cutting down good trees, blocking water sources, and ruining fertile land with stones. The verse outlines a strategy of total destruction to weaken the enemy’s ability to recover or resist.

The prophet Elisha is speaking to the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom as they prepare to fight Moab. This verse details the specific actions they are to take against Moab, going beyond just military victory to include environmental and agricultural ruin. The instructions show the seriousness of the conflict and the intent to leave Moab unable to sustain itself.

The Hebrew behind 2 Kings 3:19

  • "Smite" (נָכָה, nakah): This word means to strike or attack, often with the sense of inflicting a decisive blow. Here, it emphasizes not just fighting but thoroughly defeating the enemy’s strongholds.
  • "Fenced" (מִבְצָר, mivtsar): This refers to fortified or walled cities, highlighting that even the most secure places are to be attacked.
  • "Fell" (נָפַל, naphal): Used for cutting down trees, this word often means to cause something to fall. Destroying "every good tree" (עֵץ, etz) would cripple the land’s productivity and future harvests.
  • "Mar" (כָּלָה, kalah): This word means to ruin or spoil. The command to "mar every good piece of land with stones" (אֶבֶן, even) means to cover fertile fields with rocks, making them unusable for farming.

Why 2 Kings 3:19 matters

  • The verse clarifies that the campaign against Moab was not just about winning a battle, but about crippling the nation’s ability to recover, showing the severity of ancient warfare.
  • The detailed instructions reveal the prophet’s role in guiding not just spiritual matters, but also military strategy, reflecting the close link between faith and national affairs in ancient Israel.
  • Understanding the original Hebrew words helps show the thoroughness of the destruction: it was not just military, but also agricultural and environmental, ensuring Moab’s long-term weakness.

Where else these words appear

“choice” Hebrew H4004 · used in 2 verses

  • 2 Kings 19:23 By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his Carmel.

“mar” Hebrew H3510 · used in 8 verses

  • Genesis 34:25 And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males.
  • Job 14:22 But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn.
  • Proverbs 14:13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.

“stop” Hebrew H5640 · used in 14 verses

  • Genesis 26:15 For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.
  • 2 Chronicles 32:4 So there was gathered much people together, who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?
  • Lamentations 3:8 Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.

“wells” Hebrew H4599 · used in 23 verses

  • Genesis 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
  • 2 Chronicles 32:4 So there was gathered much people together, who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?
  • Proverbs 8:24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water.