2 Kings 3:14

14 Elisha said, "As ADONAI-Tzva'ot lives, before whom I stand, if I didn't respect the fact that Y'hoshafat the king of Y'hudah is here, I wouldn't even look in your direction or take notice of you.

2 Kings 3:14 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 3:14

Elisha said, as the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand,
&c.] Whose minster and prophet he was, to whom he prayed, and whose service he was ready to perform:

surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king
of Judah;
revere him not only as a king, but as a pious prince, and a worshipper of the true God:

I would not look toward thee, nor see thee;
give him no countenance at all, pay no regard to his request, not so much as to look at him in a civil way; but turn away his face from him with contempt and disdain, as unworthy to be conversed with by a prophet of the Lord.

2 Kings 3:14 In-Context

12 Y'hoshafat said, "The word of ADONAI is with him." So the king of Isra'el, Y'hoshafat and the king of Edom went down to consult him.

13 Elisha said to the king of Isra'el, "What do you and I have in common? Go, consult your father's prophets and your mother's prophets!" But the king of Isra'el answered him, "No, because ADONAI has called these three kings together to hand them over to Mo'av."

14 Elisha said, "As ADONAI-Tzva'ot lives, before whom I stand, if I didn't respect the fact that Y'hoshafat the king of Y'hudah is here, I wouldn't even look in your direction or take notice of you.

15 But now, bring me a musician." As the musician played, the hand of ADONAI fell on Elisha;

16 and he said, "ADONAI says to dig until this valley is full of trenches.