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2 Kings 4:12

in 2 Kings 4

And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call the Shunammite woman.” And when he had called her, she stood before him,

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

KJV

And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

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This verse in 2 Kings 4

Commentary

3 notes on this verse

This site's exposition

turned into the chamber, and

on 2 Kings 4:11-13

Elisha's gratitude moves through his servant Gehazi rather than directly, the household protocol of a guest testing what recompense might be welcome. The offer to speak for her to the king or the army's captain shows Elisha's standing reaches into the royal court itself, yet the woman answers that she dwells content among her own people, asking nothing that access to power could buy. Her steadiness here is the same steadiness the chapter will ask of her twice more, once at her son's death and once at his return to life.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

And he said to Gehazi his servant,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Gehazi his servant - This is the first time we hear of this very indifferent character.

The words behind it

11 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙and he said

    vaiyomerH559 →5305 times

  • אֶל־to

    ʾel-H413 →5510 times

  • גֵּחֲזִ֣יGehazi

    gechaziH1522 →12 times

  • נַעֲר֔וֹservant his

    naaroH5288 →239 times

  • קְרָ֖אsummon

    kera'H7121 →733 times

  • לַשּׁוּנַמִּ֣ית<to> the Shunammite [woman]

    lashunamitH7767 →8 times

  • הַזֹּ֑את<the> this

    hazotH2063 →603 times

  • וַיִּקְרָא־and he summoned

    vaiyikra'-H7121 →733 times

  • לָ֔הּ<to> her

    lah

  • וַֽתַּעֲמֹ֖דand she stood

    vataamodH5975 →521 times

  • לְפָנָֽיו׃<to> before him

    lefanavH6440 →2123 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

8 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

2 Kings 8:4–5Now the king had been speaking to Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please relate to me all the great things Elisha has done.”7 works2 Kings 5:20Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared this Aramean, Naaman, while not accepting what he brought. As surely as the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him.”5 works2 Kings 4:29–31So Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tie up your garment, take my staff in your hand, and go! If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer him. Then lay my staff on the boy’s face.”4 works1 Kings 19:3And Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there,4 works2 Kings 3:11But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the LORD here? Let us inquire of the LORD through him.” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”4 works1 Kings 18:43“Go and look toward the sea,” he said to his servant. So the servant went and looked, and he said, “There is nothing there.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”3 works
The other 2 cross-references, with their words ▾
Acts 13:5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. And John was with them as their helper.3 worksJoshua 19:18Their territory included Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem,2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    2 Kings 3:11

    But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the LORD here? Let us inquire of the LORD through him.” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat…

    it leads to

    • 1 Kings 22:7

      But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here of whom we can inquire?”

    • 1 Kings 19:21

      So Elisha turned back from him, took his pair of oxen, and slaughtered them. With the oxen’s equipment, he cooked the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set…

    • 2 Kings 3:3

      Nevertheless, he clung to the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.

    • 2 Kings 2:25

      And Elisha went on to Mount Carmel, and from there he returned to Samaria.

    • Psalms 74:9

      There are no signs for us to see. There is no longer any prophet. And none of us knows how long this will last.

  • Through

    1 Kings 19:3

    And Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there,

    it leads to

    • Genesis 21:31

      So that place was called Beersheba, because it was there that the two of them swore an oath.

    • Matthew 26:56

      But this has all happened so that the writings of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled.

    • Matthew 26:70–74

      But he denied it before them all: “I do not know what you are talking about.”

Where this verse is studied

About 2 Kings

Elijah Ascends to Heaven in a Chariot of Fire, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Elijah Ascends to Heaven in a Chariot of Fire, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
2 Kings: the study guide →Read 2 Kings 4 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in 2 Kings 4 →