Then the king of Syria warred. — Rather, Now the king of Syria (Aram) was warring, i.e., continually. The time intended cannot be the reign of Jehoahaz, for here the Syrians achieve nothing of importance. (Comp. 2 Kings 6:32.)
Took counsel with. — Comp. 2 Chronicles 20:21.
Such and such. — The compound Hebrew expression (pělônî ’almônî) means “a certain one, I will not mention which;” the Greek, ὁ δεῖνα.
My camp. — Heb., tahănôthî; a difficult expression, found only here. Its form is anomalous, and probably corrupt. The Targum renders “house of my camp:” but the Syriac, “Set ye an ambush, and lurk;” the Vulg., “ponamus insidias:” and similarly the Arabic. This has suggested that the true reading is “hide ye,” i.e., lie in ambush (tçhâbû, i.e., tçhâbĕ᾽û: Thenius). It is, however, a more obvious change to read, “ye shall go down” (tinhâthû: Psalms 38:3). This agrees better with the construction, “Unto (’el) such and such a place shall ye go down,” i.e., on a plundering incursion.