2 Kings 9:32

And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(32) Who is on my side? who?—This hardly implies, as Thenius thinks, that Jezebel had made preparations for resistance. Jehu knew that the imperious and cruel queen was well hated by the palace officials. The “two or three eunuchs,” who a moment before had crouched in servile dread before Jezebel, would now be eager to curry favour with the regicide, and, at the same time, wreak their malice upon their former tyrant. (The repetition, “Who is on my side? who?” accords well with Jehu’s character. The LXX. has the strange reading, “he saw her, and said, Who art thou? Come down with me.” Josephus adopts this; but Thenius shows clearly that it has originated in easy corruptions of the present Hebrew text.)

Benson Commentary

2 Kings 9:32-33. He said, Who is on my side? — He had been called out by God to the work of punishing those who had corrupted the land, and he here calls out for assistance in doing it. And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs — Or chamberlains, for such used to attend upon queens in their chambers. “And by their great fidelity and obsequiousness, they generally gained the esteem, and were admitted to the confidence, of those they served; and so, very often, into places of great trust and profit. It is remarkable, however, of Jezebel’s eunuchs, that they were far from being faithful to her; to let us see how suddenly courtiers are wont to change with the fortune of their masters.” He said, Throw her down. So they threw her down — Being mercenary creatures, they quickly comply with Jehu’s command, sacrificing her life to save their own. “Thus, as she had done, so she suffered. She had commanded Naboth to be stoned, and now she is stoned herself: for there were two ways of stoning among the Hebrews, either by throwing stones at malefactors till they were knocked down and killed, or by throwing them down from a high place, and so dashing them to pieces.” — Dodd, who refers to Patrick and Calmet on the punishments of the Jews. And he trode her under foot — Houbigant renders it, they, that is, the horses, trod her under foot, after she had been dashed against the wall and pavement, which, with the horses, were besmeared with her blood.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

9:30-37 Instead of hiding herself, as one afraid of Divine vengeance, Jezebel mocked at fear. See how a heart, hardened against God, will brave it out to the last. There is not a surer presage of ruin, than an unhumbled heart under humbling providences. Let those look at Jezebel's conduct and fate, who use arts to seduce others to commit wickedness, and to draw them aside from the ways of truth and righteousness. Jehu called for aid against Jezebel. When reformation-work is on foot, it is time to ask, Who sides with it? Her attendants delivered her up. Thus she was put to death. See the end of pride and cruelty, and say, The Lord is righteous. When we pamper our bodies, let us think how vile they are; shortly they will be a feast for worms under ground, or beasts above ground. May we all flee from that wrath which is revealed from heaven, against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Painted her face - literally, "put her eyes in antimony " - i. e., dyed the upper and under eyelids, a common practice in the East, even at the present day. The effect is at once to increase the apparent size of the eye, and to give it unnatural brilliancy. Representations of eyes thus embellished occur on the Assyrian sculptures, and the practice existed among the Jews (marginal reference; and Jeremiah 4:30).

Tired her head - Dressed (attired) her head, and no doubt put on her royal robes, that she might die as became a queen, in true royal array.

A window - Rather, "the window." The gate-tower had probably, as many of those in the Assyrian sculptures, one window only.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

30. Jezebel painted her face—literally, "her eyes," according to a custom universal in the East among women, of staining the eyelids with a black powder made of pulverized antimony, or lead ore mixed with oil, and applied with a small brush on the border, so that by this dark ligament on the edge, the largeness as well as the luster of the eye itself was thought to be increased. Her object was, by her royal attire, not to captivate, but to overawe Jehu.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

For such used to attend upon queens in their chambers.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And he lifted up his face to the window,.... On hearing the above words:

and said, who is on my side, who? and will assist in taking vengeance on this haughty, imperious, and abusive woman:

and there looked out to him two or three eunuchs; who used to wait on her, as such did on women of quality, and attend them in their bedchambers; these, by their looks, signified they were ready to do any thing Jehu should direct them, Jezebel having been, perhaps, a very cruel mistress to them, and so was hated by them; and they might hope, by pleasing Jehu, to be continued at court in their office.

Geneva Study Bible

And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

32. to the window] Here the LXX. adds ‘and saw her’. After which it continues, ‘And he said, Who art thou? Come down with me. And there looked out &c.’ Josephus makes Jezebel’s remark to be: ‘A pretty servant you, who have killed your master!’ and then describes Jehu’s reply in much the same way as the LXX. The Hebrew as represented in our version is exactly like the impetuous sentence of such a man as Jehu was.

two or three eunuchs] There is no conjunction in the original, as the italics in A.V. indicate. But in all languages the omission of connecting particles between numerals is common. There have however been several explanations offered; as that at first two looked forth and, soon after, another; or that two looked out at one window and three at another. Most likely the omission is a colloquial form of expression. ‘Twothree’, as one word, is used in some English dialects for ‘several’. See Halliwell’s Glossary s.v.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 32. - And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? Whatever Jezebel's intention, Jehu yielded not a jot; he was deaf to her flatteries, blind to her seductions. He had made up his mind for "war to the knife" before he embarked upon his enterprise, and the feeble attempts of a queen whose part was played out, whose age he knew, and whom he no doubt regarded as an old woman, had no power on him. Instead of responding to her blandishments, he took a stern and hard line. He would not see her privately. He summoned to his aid the menials of the palace - the eunuchs -those on whom beauty has least influence. "Who is on my side? who?" he exclaimed (literally, "Who is with me? who?"); thus calling on the court servants to desert their masters, the guards to turn their swords against their employers, the menials to consummate an intra-palatial revolution. We cannot deny to Jehu the credit of vigor, promptness, audacity, the talent to seize on the opportunity of the moment, and to make the most of it; but he must ever present himself to us as the rough soldier, with no courtesy, with no chivalry, bent on accomplishing his own ends, and shrinking from no deed of blood, no precedent pessimi exempli, if thereby his ends might be brought about. And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs. Eunuchs had become an integral part both of the Jewish and of the Israelite courts from the time of David (1 Chronicles 28:1). They are an institution which almost necessarily accompanies polygamy; and they had long held high office in. Egypt, in Babylon, and in Assyria. A position outside nature, at variance with all men's natural feelings and aspirations, of necessity depraves the character, weakens the moral principle, and ends by debasing the class. In Oriental history, the lowest, vilest part is always played by the eunuchs of the palace, who are ever ready to take part in any intrigues, in any conspiracies, and who seem to be almost wholly devoid of the ordinary feelings of humanity. The eunuchs who "looked out" to Jehu were probably the chief eunuchs of the palace, who had authority over the others, and indeed over the court officials generally. 2 Kings 9:32

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

But Jehu did not deign to answer the worthless woman; he simply looked up to the window and inquired: "Who is (holds) with me? who?" Then two, three chamberlains looked out (of the side windows), and by Jehu's command threw the proud queen out of the window, so that some of her blood spirted upon the wall and the horses (of Jehu), and Jehu trampled her down, driving over her with his horses and chariot.