2 Kings 4:36-44

36 And he called Gehazi, and said to him, Call thou this Shunammite. And she was called, and entered to him. And he said, Take thy son.
37 She came, and felled down to his feet, and worshipped on the earth; and she took her son, and went out. (She came, and fell down at his feet, and bowed low to the ground; and she took her son, and went out.)
38 And Elisha turned again into Gilgal. Forsooth hunger was in the land, and the sons of (the) prophets dwelled before him. And Elisha said to one of his servants, Set thou a great pot (on the fire), and seethe thou pottage to the sons of (the) prophets . (And Elisha returned to Gilgal. And there was a famine in the land. And when the sons of the prophets sat before him, Elisha said to one of his servants, Put thou a great pot on the fire, and boil thou some broth, or some stew, for these sons of the prophets.)
39 And one went out into the field to gather herbs of the field; and he found as it were a wild vine, and he gathered thereof gourds of the field. And he [full-]filled his mantle, and he turned again, and shredded those into the pot of pottage; for he knew not what it was (And he filled his mantle, or his cloak, full, and he returned, and shredded them into the pot of broth, or of stew; but he did not know what it was).
40 Therefore they poured in to fellows to eat; and when they had tasted of the seething, they cried out, and said, Death is in the pot! death is in the pot! thou man of God. And they might not eat it. (And so they poured it out for the fellows to eat; but when they had tasted the broth, or the stew, they cried out, and said, Death is in the pot! death is in the pot, O man of God! And they could not eat it.)
41 And he said, Bring ye meal. And when they had brought, he put it into the pot, and said, Pour ye out to the company, that they eat; and anything of bitterness was no more in the pot. (And he said, Bring ye some meal. And when they had brought it, he put it into the pot, and said, Pour ye it out for the group, so that everyone can eat some; and there was no longer anything of bitterness in the pot.)
42 Forsooth some man came from Baalshalisha, and bare to the man of God loaves of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and thing made of corns, in his scrip. And the man of God said, Give thou to the people, that it eat. (And some man came from Baalshalisha, and brought in his bag, to the man of God, loaves of the first fruits, yea, twenty barley loaves, and some full ears of corn. And the man of God said, Give thou to the people, so that they can eat.)
43 And his servant answered to him, What is this, that I set before an hundred men? Again Elisha said, Give thou to the people, that it eat; for the Lord saith these things, They shall eat, and there shall leave [over]. (And his servant answered to him, This is not enough to put before a hundred men! But again Elisha said, Give thou to the people, so that they can eat; for the Lord saith these things, They shall eat, and there shall be some left over.)
44 Then he put before them, the which ate; and there (was) left (some) meat, after the word of the Lord. (Then he put it before them, and they ate; and indeed, there was some food left over, according to the word of the Lord.)

2 Kings 4:36-44 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 2 KINGS 4

This chapter treats of the miracles of Elisha, of his multiplying a poor widow's pot of oil for the payment of her husband's debts, 2Ki 4:1-7 of obtaining a son for a Shunamitish woman, who had been very hospitable to him, 2Ki 4:8-17, of his raising up her son to life when dead, 2Ki 4:18-37, of his curing the deadly pottage made of wild gourds, 2Ki 4:38-41, and of his feeding one hundred men with twenty barley loaves, 2Ki 4:42-44.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.