2 Kings 1:5

1:5 When the messengers returned to the king,¹ he asked them, “Why have you returned?”

2 Kings 2:25

2:25 From there he traveled to Mount Carmel and then back to Samaria.²

2 Kings 3:16

3:16 and he said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Make many cisterns in this valley,’³

2 Kings 3:18

3:18 This is an easy task for the Lord;⁴ he will also hand Moab over to you.

2 Kings 4:11

4:11 One day Elisha⁵ came for a visit; he went⁶ into the upper room and rested.⁷

2 Kings 5:19

5:19 Elisha⁸ said to him, “Go in peace.”

When he had gone a short distance,⁹

2 Kings 6:4

6:4 So he went with them. When they arrived at the Jordan, they started cutting down trees.

2 Kings 6:16

6:16 He replied, “Don’t be afraid, for our side outnumbers them.”¹⁰

2 Kings 13:15

13:15 Elisha told him, “Take a bow and some arrows,” and he did so.¹¹

2 Kings 15:3

15:3 He did what the Lord approved, just as his father Amaziah had done.¹²

2 Kings 15:34

15:34 He did what the Lord approved, just as his father Uzziah had done.¹³

2 Kings 18:3

18:3 He did what the Lord approved, just as his ancestor David had done.¹⁴

2 Kings 19:32

19:32 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:

“He will not enter this city,

nor will he shoot an arrow here.¹⁵

He will not attack it with his shield-carrying warriors,¹⁶

nor will he build siege works against it.

2 Kings 20:2

20:2 He turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord,

2 Kings 21:20

21:20 He did evil in the sight of¹⁷ the Lord, just like his father Manasseh had done.

2 Kings 22:11

22:11 When the king heard the words of the law scroll, he tore his clothes.

2 Kings 23:32

23:32 He did evil in the sight of¹⁸ the Lord as his ancestors had done.¹⁹

2 Kings 23:37

23:37 He did evil in the sight of²⁰ the Lord as his ancestors had done.

2 Kings 24:6

24:6 He passed away²¹ and his son Jehoiachin replaced him as king.

2 Kings 24:9

24:9 He did evil in the sight of²² the Lord as his ancestors had done.

2 Kings 24:19

24:19 He did evil in the sight of²³ the Lord, as Jehoiakim had done.²⁴

¹tn Heb “to him.”

sn The narrative is elliptical and telescoped here. The account of Elijah encountering the messengers and delivering the Lord’s message is omitted; we only here of it as the messengers report what happened to the king.

²sn The two brief episodes recorded in vv. 19-25 demonstrate Elisha’s authority and prove that he is the legitimate prophetic heir of Elijah. He has the capacity to bring life and blessing to those who recognize his authority, or death and judgment to those who reject him.

map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.

³tn Heb “making this valley cisterns, cisterns.” The Hebrew noun גֵּב (gev) means “cistern” in Jer 14:3 (cf. Jer 39:10). The repetition of the noun is for emphasis. See GKC 396 §123.e. The verb (“making”) is an infinitive absolute, which has to be interpreted in light of the context. The translation above takes it in an imperatival sense. The command need not be understood as literal, but as hyperbolic. Telling them to build cisterns is a dramatic way of leading into the announcement that he would miraculously provide water in the desert. Some prefer to translate the infinitive as an imperfect with the Lord as the understood subject, “I will turn this valley [into] many pools.”

⁴tn Heb “and this is easy in the eyes of the Lord.”

⁵tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶tn Heb “turned aside.”

⁷tn Or “slept there.”

⁸tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹tn Heb “and he went from him a distance of land.” The precise meaning of כִּבְרַה (kivrah) “distance,” is uncertain. See BDB 460 s.v. כִּבְרַה, and HALOT 459-60 s.v. II *כְּבָרַה, and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 65.

¹⁰tn Heb “for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

¹¹tn Heb “and he took a bow and some arrows.”

¹²tn Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord, according to all which Amaziah his father had done.”

¹³tn Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord, according to all which Uzziah his father had done.”

¹⁴tn Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord, according to all which David his father had done.”

¹⁵tn Heb “there.”

¹⁶tn Heb “[with] a shield.” By metonymy the “shield” stands for the soldier who carries it.

¹⁷tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

¹⁸tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

¹⁹tn Heb “according to all which his fathers had done.”

²⁰tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

²¹tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”

²²tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

²³tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

²⁴tn Heb “according to all which Jehoiakim had done.”