And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD.

2 KINGS 7:16KJV
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2 Kings 7:16 (KJV)

What does 2 Kings 7:16 mean?

2 Kings 7:16 describes how the people of Samaria went out and took goods from the abandoned Syrian camp, leading to an immediate drop in food prices just as God had promised. The verse shows that the word of the LORD about the end of the famine and the sudden availability of food came true exactly as stated.

The setting is the city of Samaria, which had been under siege by the Syrians and suffering from severe famine. After God caused the Syrians to flee, the people found the enemy camp deserted and full of supplies. This sudden abundance fulfilled the prophecy Elisha had given earlier, showing both the reliability of God's word and the dramatic reversal of the city's situation.

The Hebrew behind 2 Kings 7:16

  • "Spoiled" (בָּזַז, bazaz) means to plunder or take as loot. This word highlights that the people did not just find the goods but actively took them from the enemy’s tents, emphasizing the total reversal of fortune.
  • "Measure" (סְאָה, se'ah) refers to a specific unit of dry measure, showing that the prices were now normal and affordable, not inflated by scarcity.
  • "Word" (דָּבָר, davar) means a spoken thing, matter, or command. The verse stresses that what happened was in direct fulfillment of what God had declared through His prophet.
  • "LORD" (יְהוָה, YHWH) is the personal name of Israel’s God, underlining that this event was not random but orchestrated by the God of Israel.

Why 2 Kings 7:16 matters

  • This verse clears up any doubt about whether the prophecy given earlier in the chapter would come true, showing that God’s promises are trustworthy even when circumstances seem impossible.
  • The verse emphasizes the dramatic change from famine to abundance, highlighting how quickly God can change a desperate situation.
  • 2 Kings 7:16 connects to the wider story by confirming Elisha’s role as a true prophet and reinforcing the theme of God’s power over nations and events.

Where else these words appear

“measure” Hebrew H5429 · used in 6 verses

  • Genesis 18:6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.
  • 1 Samuel 25:18 Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses.
  • 2 Kings 7:1 Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.

“barley” Hebrew H8184 · used in 32 verses

  • Exodus 9:31 And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled.
  • Ruth 3:17 And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law.
  • 2 Chronicles 2:15 Now therefore the wheat, and the barley, the oil, and the wine, which my lord hath spoken of, let him send unto his servants:

“spoiled” Hebrew H962 · used in 39 verses

  • Genesis 34:27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister.
  • 2 Chronicles 14:14 And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; for the fear of the LORD came upon them: and they spoiled all the cities; for there was exceeding much spoil in them.
  • Isaiah 42:22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore.

“flour” Hebrew H5560 · used in 52 verses

  • Genesis 18:6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.
  • Numbers 6:15 And a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread anointed with oil, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings.
  • Numbers 28:5 And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil.