2 Kings 8:4-14

4 Now the king was talking with ¹Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, "Please relate to me all the great things that Elisha has done."

5 As he was relating to the king ²how he had restored to life the one who was dead, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to life appealed to the king for her house and for her field. And Gehazi said, "My lord, O king, this is the woman and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life."

6 When the king asked the woman, she related it to him. So the king appointed for her a certain officer, saying, "Restore all that was hers and all the produce of the field from the day that she left the land even until now."

Elisha Predicts Evil from Hazael

7 Then Elisha came to ³Damascus. Now ⁴Ben-hadad king of Aram was sick, and it was told him, saying, "⁵The man of God has come here *."

8 The king said to ⁶Hazael, "⁷Take a gift in your hand and go to meet the man of God, and ⁸inquire of the LORD by him, saying, 'Will I recover from this sickness?' "

9 So Hazael went to meet him and took a gift in his hand, even every kind of good thing of Damascus, forty camels' loads; and he came and stood before him and said, "⁹Your son Ben-hadad king of Aram has sent me to you, saying, 'Will I recover from this sickness?' "

10 Then Elisha said to him, "¹⁰Go, say to him, 'You will surely recover,' but the ¹¹LORD has shown me that he will certainly die."

11 He fixed his gaze steadily on him ¹²until he was ashamed, and ¹³the man of God wept.

12 Hazael said, "Why does my lord weep?" Then he answered, "Because ¹⁴I know the evil that you will do to the sons of Israel: their strongholds you will set on fire, and their young men you will kill with the sword, and their little ones you ¹⁵will dash in pieces, and their women with child you will rip up."

13 Then Hazael said, "But what is your servant, ¹⁶who is but a dog, that he should do this great thing?" And Elisha answered, "¹⁷The LORD has shown me that you will be king over Aram."

14 So he departed from Elisha and returned to his master, who said to him, "What did Elisha say to you?" And he answered, "He told me that ¹⁸you would surely recover."

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2 Kings 8:4-14 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 8

This chapter gives an account of some advice Elisha had formerly given to the Shunammite woman, and of the success of it, 2Ki 8:1-6 and of the sickness of the king of Syria, who sent to Elisha, then being at Damascus, by Hazael, to know whether he should recover; by whom a message was returned, and Hazael was told by the prophet he should be king of Syria, and exercise great cruelty in Israel, 2Ki 8:7-15 and of the bad reign of Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, over Judah, 2Ki 8:16-24 and of the reign of his son Ahaziah, 2Ki 8:25-29.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 18

1. 2 Kings 4:12; 2 Kings 5:20-27
2. 2 Kings 4:35
3. 1 Kings 11:24
4. 2 Kings 6:24
5. 2 Kings 5:20
6. 1 Kings 19:15, 17
7. 1 Kings 14:3
8. 2 Kings 1:2
9. 2 Kings 5:13
10. 2 Kings 8:14
11. 2 Kings 8:15
12. 2 Kings 2:17
13. Luke 19:41
14. 2 Kings 10:32, 33; 2 Kings 12:17; 2 Kings 13:3, 7
15. 2 Kings 15:16; Nahum 3:10
16. 1 Samuel 17:43; 2 Samuel 9:8
17. 1 Kings 19:15
18. 2 Kings 8:10

Footnotes 5

[a]. Lit "cried out"
[b]. Lit "made his face stand fast and he set"
[c]. Lit "said"
[d]. Lit "said"
[e]. Lit "said"