2 Kings 13:16
in 2 Kings 13Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.” So the king put his hand on the bow, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said to the king of Israel, Put thy hand upon the bow; and he put his hand upon it. And Elisha laid his hands upon the king’s hands.
KJV
And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king’s hands.
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This verse in 2 Kings 13
Commentary
8 notes on this verseAnd he said unto the king of Israel, put thine hand upon the bow, and he put his hand upon it,.... His left hand: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands; on both his hands, which were put, the one on the bow, the other on the arrow (m); hereby signifying, that though the king would draw the bow in battle, the Lord, whom the prophet represented, would give the success; and that it would be by his help, and through his blessing on his arms, that he would obtain victory over his enemies. (m) See Virgil. Aeneid.
This site's exposition
Take a bow and some arrows
on 2 Kings 13:15-19
Elisha's hands on the king's hands mark the arrow as the LORD's act through a human hand. The king “struck the ground three times and stopped”. Elisha names the cost, “You should have struck the ground five or six times”, and now he “will strike down Aram only three times”.
This site's exposition
Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands
John Gill pictured the king's left hand on the bow and his right on the arrow, with Elisha's hands laid over both. The king would draw the bow, and in Gill's reading the LORD, whom the prophet stood for, would give the victory. The prophet's hands rest on the king's.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness from which he was to die, King Joash of Israel went down to him and wept before him, crying, "My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" And Jehu, king of Israel, died, …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The arrow of deliverance is his. He shoots out his arrows, and the work is done, Ps. xviii. 14 . " Thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, where they are now encamped, or where they are to have a general rendezvous of their forces, till thou have consumed those of them that are vexatious and oppressive to thee and thy kingdom." (2.) To strike with the arrows,
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
The particular application of them to Elisha, who, by his counsels and prayer, had obtained many glorious victories for Israel, shows that the king possessed some measure of faith and trust, which, though weak, was accepted, and called forth the prophet's dying benediction.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
His laying his hands upon the king's hands was to represent the power imparted to the bow shot as coming from the Lord through the medium of the prophet. His shooting the first arrow eastward--to that part of his kingdom which the Syrians had taken and which was east of Samaria--was a declaration of war against them for the invasion.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Elisha put his hands upon the king’s hands - A symbolic act, indicating that the successes, which the shooting typified, were to come, not from human skill, or strength, or daring, but from the presence and the power of God.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר׀ | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לְמֶ֣לֶךְ | lemelekh | to [the] king of | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| הַרְכֵּ֤ב | harkev | make ride | H7392 → | 78 times |
| יָֽדְךָ֙ | yadekha | hand your | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הַקֶּ֔שֶׁת | hakeshet | the bow | H7198 → | 76 times |
| וַיַּרְכֵּ֖ב | vaiyarkev | and he made ride | H7392 → | 78 times |
| יָד֑וֹ | yado | hand his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| וַיָּ֧שֶׂם | vaiyasem | and he put | H7760 → | 584 times |
| אֱלִישָׁ֛ע | ʾelisha' | Elisha | H477 → | 58 times |
| יָדָ֖יו | yadav | hands his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| יְדֵ֥י | yedei | [the] hands of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר׀and he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לְמֶ֣לֶךְto [the] king of
lemelekhH4428 →2525 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֗לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
הַרְכֵּ֤בmake ride
harkevH7392 →78 times
יָֽדְךָ֙hand your
yadekhaH3027 →1618 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
הַקֶּ֔שֶׁתthe bow
hakeshetH7198 →76 times
וַיַּרְכֵּ֖בand he made ride
vaiyarkevH7392 →78 times
יָד֑וֹhand his
yadoH3027 →1618 times
וַיָּ֧שֶׂםand he put
vaiyasemH7760 →584 times
אֱלִישָׁ֛עElisha
ʾelisha'H477 →58 times
יָדָ֖יוhands his
yadavH3027 →1618 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
יְדֵ֥י[the] hands of
yedeiH3027 →1618 times
הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 144:1Blessed be the LORD, my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
it leads to
- Psalms 18:34
He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
- 2 Samuel 22:35
He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
- Psalms 18:2
The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
- Psalms 44:3–4
For it was not by their sword that they took the land; their arm did not bring them victory. It was by Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, because…
- Ephesians 6:10–11
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.
- Psalms 18:34
Through
Genesis 49:24Yet he steadied his bow, and his strong arms were tempered by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, in the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,
it leads to
- Psalms 132:2
how he swore an oath to the LORD, and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:
- Isaiah 28:16
So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
- Psalms 132:2
Through
2 Kings 4:34Then Elisha got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eye to eye, and hand to hand. As he stretched himself out over him, the boy’s body became warm.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 17:21
Then he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, please let this boy’s life return to him!”
- 1 Kings 17:21
About 2 Kings
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 13:14-19; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.