2 Kings 4:24

24 She saddled the female donkey, and she said to her servant, "Drive along and go; you must not hold me back from riding, unless I tell you."

2 Kings 4:24 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 4:24

Then she saddled an ass
Her servant did it by her order:

and said to her servant, drive, and go forward;
make all the haste he could:

slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee;
do not be afraid of riding too fast for me; if thou dost, I will tell thee; till then, keep on a good pace: Abarbinel says she walked afoot all the way, and ordered the man not to slacken his pace in riding for her, unless she called to him; and the Targum seems to favour this sense,

``do not press me to ride unless I call to thee;''

so that the ass was for Elijah to ride on; but one would think, that, as she was in haste, quicker dispatch would be made by her riding than by walking, see ( 2 Kings 4:22 ) .

2 Kings 4:24 In-Context

22 She called to her husband and said, "Please send one of the servants and one of the female donkeys for me, so that I can go quickly up to the man of God and return."

23 And he said, "Why are you going to him today? [It is] neither the new moon nor the Sabbath!" And she said, "Peace."

24 She saddled the female donkey, and she said to her servant, "Drive along and go; you must not hold me back from riding, unless I tell you."

25 So she went and came to the man of God by Mount Carmel. It happened when the man of God saw her {at a distance}, he said to Gehazi his servant, "There is this Shunammite.

26 Now, please run to meet her and ask her, 'Is it peace for you? Is it peace for your husband? Is it peace for the boy?'" She said, "Peace."