2 Kings 4:23

23 “Why go today?” he asked. “It is neither a new moon festival nor a Sabbath.” But she said, “It will be all right.”

2 Kings 4:23 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 4:23

And he said, wherefore wilt thou go to him today?
&c.] What reason is there for it? what is the meaning of it?

it is neither new moon nor sabbath;
neither the first day of the month, nor the seventh day of the week, times which were religiously observed; so with the Heathens the new moon and the seventh of the week, and so the fourth, were sacred F21; which notions they borrowed from the Jews, (See Gill on 1 Samuel 20:5) and when, it seems, it was usual to frequent the house of the prophet, to hear the word of God read and explained, and other religious exercises performed, as praying and singing praise, and receiving some good instructions and advice. Joseph Kimchi gives a different sense of these words:

``there is not a month past, no, not a week, since thou sawest him;''

why therefore shouldest thou be in such haste to go to him? so the words for new moon and sabbath may signify:

and she said, it shall be well;
it was right for her to go, and it would be well for him and her, and the family; or, "peace" F23, be easy and quiet, farewell: it is much he had no mistrust of the death of the child, or that it was worse, since it went from him ill.


FOOTNOTES:

F21 Hesiod. Opera & Dies, l. 2.
F23 (Mwlv) "pax", Pagninus, Montanus

2 Kings 4:23 In-Context

21 She carried him up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and left him there.
22 She sent a message to her husband: “Send one of the servants and a donkey so that I can hurry to the man of God and come right back.”
23 “Why go today?” he asked. “It is neither a new moon festival nor a Sabbath.” But she said, “It will be all right.”
24 So she saddled the donkey and said to the servant, “Hurry! Don’t slow down unless I tell you to.”
25 As she approached the man of God at Mount Carmel, Elisha saw her in the distance. He said to Gehazi, “Look, the woman from Shunem is coming.
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