2 Kings 6:18
“And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →God can humble our enemies with the very blindness we fear, turning our terror into their confusion.
Context
The Syrian army, seeing only the city, advanced on Elisha and his servant. Elisha then prayed a second prayer: not 'protect us' but 'make them blind.' This reversal of conditions—the one who could see now blinded, the one who feared now secure—is instantaneous.
What Does 2 Kings 6:18 Mean?
The prayer is startling in its confidence. Elisha does not beg for mercy or ask God to weigh options. He asks God to do something very specific, and says it as though he knows it will happen. 'Smite this people with blindness,' and immediately, 'he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.' This is not magic; it is the speech of someone who has learned to listen so carefully to God's heart that his own words become the echo of God's will. He does not impose his will on God; rather, he has so aligned himself with God that when he speaks, God acts. The Syrians lost their advantage—not their lives, not their freedom, but their sight, their orientation, their power to harm.
Christ does this too, spiritually. He blinds our enemies—not with malice but with confusion. Sin seems to see clearly what it wants, but Christ has bound the strong man and blinded the father of lies. When we belong to Christ, our real enemies are disoriented. They cannot find what truly matters in us: our faith, our hope, our love. They rage at flesh but cannot touch the spirit. We are hidden in Christ. And because He is with us, those who rise against us are rendered powerless, not by cruelty but by a mercy that says, 'You shall not prevail.'
In the Original Language
sanverim (סַנְוֵרִים), 'blindness' -- a particular kind of blindness involving dazzlement or confusion, not total darkness
Application
When enemies surround you—whether addiction, slander, illness, or fear—know that Christ has already disoriented them. They cannot see what matters. Your worth, your calling, your future are hidden from their sight. Pray boldly, as Elisha did: 'Lord, blind my enemies to every hook they cast at me.' Then trust the blindness.