Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 7
The four men now understood that Aram’s soldiers had left their camp. Nobody was guarding the camp, in which there remained gold and silver, clothes, animals, and much food. Only those four men knew about it – so, they had the opportunity to become very rich. They could freely take whatever they wanted from the camp.
However in their city, Samaria, the people were very hungry. They had to remain inside the city because Aram’s army had surrounded it. They were truly desperate – they did not know that Aram’s army had gone away.
The men saw that it would be wrong for them simply to collect the valuable things from the camp for themselves. While they were becoming rich, people in Samaria were starving. God had given good news to these four men, which the inhabitants of Samaria needed to know. So, the four men had a duty to declare it. God’s judgment would be against them if they kept that news secret for their own selfish benefit.
It was still night. The men discussed whether they could wait until morning to declare their good news. There were still several hours before dawn, when they could continue to collect these valuable things. Nobody would ever know that they had delayed to declare the news. Even that, the men considered to be wrong. The lives of many people depended on their good news. God would know about the wrong thing that they had done.
So, the men decided that they would not delay. At once they would go to the city, and they would report their good news to the king.
Next part: The king doubts the report (2 Kings 7:10-12)
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