1 Kings 20:23 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Their gods are gods of the hills— See Numbers 23:27 and Virgil, En. viii. ver. 698, &c. Bishop Warburton observes, that when Ben-hadad, whose forces consisted of chariots and horsemen, had warred with ill success against the king of Israel, his ministers, in a council of war, delivered their advice to him in the terms included in this verse. From this passage, says he, I collect, 1. That the army of Israel, consisting all of infantry, had chosen the situation of the hills; and this with proper military skill. 2. That their constant success with such a disposition of their forces occasioned this advice of the ministers of Ben-hadad. These men, possessed with the general notion of local tutelary deities, finding the arms of Israel always successful on the hills, took it for the eminent manifestation of the powers of their gods; Their gods, say they, are gods of the hills. Their superstition dictated the first part of their opinion, and their skill in war the second; Let us fight them in the plains. The operations of war had been hitherto most absurd: they had attacked an army of infantry with one of cavalry on hills and defiles. The advice of these ministers was truly good; but how to put it in execution was the question; for, they being the assailants, the Israelites were masters of the ground: so that, after all, there was no other way of bringing them into the plains, than by beating them from the hills; and there they must have stuck till famine and desertion had ended their quarrel. In this exigence, their blasphemy against the God of Israel enabled them to put their counsels against him into execution. They fancied, according to the superstition of that time, and so gave out, that he was God of the hills, but not of the vallies. His omnipotence being thus disputed, he placed his people in the plains, and sent his prophet, 1 Kings 20:28 to predict the coming vengeance on his enemies; and their defeat was a singular and undeniable confirmation both of his divine omnipotence and veracity. Div. Leg. vol. 3: p. 290, &c.