2 Kings 8:2
And he defeated Moab, and measured them with a line, casting them down to the earth: and he measured with two lines, one to put to death, and one to save alive: and Moab was made to serve David under tribute.
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- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Et percussit Moab, et mensus est eos funiculo, coæquans terræ : mensus est autem duos funiculos, unum ad occidendum, et unum ad vivificandum : factusque est Moab David serviens sub tributo.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- καὶ ἐπάταξεν Δαυεὶδ τὴν Μωάβ, καὶ διεμέτρησεν αὐτοὺς ἐν σχοινίοις, κοιμίσας αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν· καὶ ἐγένετο τὰ δύο σχοινίσματα τοῦ θανατῶσαι, καὶ τὰ δύο σχοινίσματα ἐζώγρησεν· καὶ ἐγένετο Μωὰβ τῷ Δαυεὶδ εἰς δούλους φέροντας ξένια.
- Hebrew (WLC)
- וַיַּ֣ךְ אֶת מוֹאָ֗ב וַֽיְמַדְּדֵ֤ם בַּחֶ֨בֶל֙ הַשְׁכֵּ֣ב אוֹתָ֣ם אַ֔רְצָה וַיְמַדֵּ֤ד שְׁנֵֽי חֲבָלִים֙ לְהָמִ֔ית וּמְלֹ֥א הַחֶ֖בֶל לְהַחֲי֑וֹת וַתְּהִ֤י מוֹאָב֙ לְדָוִ֔ד לַעֲבָדִ֖ים נֹשְׂאֵ֥י מִנְחָֽה
Haydock's commentary
Earth, like criminals condemned to die. (Theodoret)
Some of them he chose to spare, and made tributary, having levelled the strong places with the ground. (Denis the Carthusian)
Septuagint intimate that half were destroyed. (Calmet)
But the Hebrew rather implies that the greatest part was saved, "a full cord to save alive;" (Menochius) unless there were three lots, and only one of them, larger indeed than the rest, spared. (Haydock)
Death, or slavery, were the portion of all who were taken in war. (Grotius, Jur. iii. 4, 20.)
Lex nulla capto parcit aut pœnam impendit. (Seneca)
Tribute. Hebrew, "brought gifts," which is a softer term. The Moabites were thus punished for former and, probably, for some recent offences. (Haydock)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.