2 Kings 4:38
in 2 Kings 4When Elisha returned to Gilgal, there was a famine in the land. As the sons of the prophets were sitting at his feet, he said to his attendant, “Put on the large pot and boil some stew for the sons of the prophets.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
KJV
And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.
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This verse in 2 Kings 4
Commentary
9 notes on this verseCame again to Gilgal - He had been there before with his master, a short time prior to his translation. Set on the great pot and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets - It was in a time of dearth, and all might now stand in need of refreshment; and it appears that the prophet was led to put forth the power he had from God to make a plentiful provision for those who were present.
This site's exposition
there was a dearth in
on 2 Kings 4:38-39
Gilgal already carries Israel's memory from Joshua's crossing (Josh 4:19-20) and Samuel's judging circuit (1 Sam 7:16), and now it hosts a company of prophets caught in famine, dependent on a single pot of pottage. The gatherer's mistake is honest ignorance rather than negligence, the text says plainly, for they knew them not, wild gourds mistaken for a safe herb and shredded whole into the common meal.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Here two miracles are proposed, which Elisha performed while he was among his disciples. He accomplished the first when he caused death to leave the pot, where, as they said, it had hidden. He performed the second when he nourished one hundred prophets with a …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And Elisha came again to Gilgal,....
One of the servitors, who was sent to gather herbs (which, it should seem, must serve instead of flesh for the pottage), by mistake brought in that which was noxious, or at least very nauseous, and shred it into the pottage: wild gourds they are called,
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
This refers to their being domiciled under the same roof (compare 2Ki 6:1). Set on the great pot--As it is most likely that the Jewish would resemble the Egyptian "great pot," it is seen by the monumental paintings to have been a large goblet, with two long legs, which stood over the fire on the floor.
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3187: “The Great Pot and the Twenty Loaves” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
WE scarcely need go over the story. There was a shortage of food in the land. Elisha came to the college of the Prophets, which consisted of about a hundred Brothers and found that they were in need as the result of the famine. While he was teaching the young men, he observed that they looked as if they needed food and he found that there was none in the house. Elisha, therefore, ordered his servant to take the great pot, which generally stood upon long legs over the fire, and make a nourishing soup in it.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3187: “The Great Pot and the Twenty Loaves” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
WE scarcely need go over the story. There was a shortage of food in the land. Elisha came to the college of the Prophets, which consisted of about a hundred Brothers and found that they were in need as the result of the famine. While he was teaching the young men, he observed that they looked as if they needed food and he found that there was none in the house. Elisha, therefore, ordered his servant to take the great pot, which generally stood upon long legs over the fire, and make a nourishing soup in it. True, there was nothing to put in this pot, but he believed that God would provide. It was for him to set the pot over the fire, and it was for the Lord to fill it! Some of the young men were not so sure as Elisha was that God could fill it without their help—and one, with great eagerness, went out to gather something from the fields. His help turned out to be of small service, for he brought home poisonous cucumbers, cut them up and threw them into the broth. And, lo, when they began to pour it out, it was acrid to the taste, gave them a terrible colic, and made them cry out, "There is death in the pot!" Then the Prophet said, "Bring meal." This was put into the steaming caldron, the poison was neutralized, the food was made wholesome and the students were satisfied. This miracle was in due time followed up by another. A day or two afterwards, the young Prophets were still needing food and the larder was again empty. Just at that time, a devout man comes from a little distance, bringing a present for the Prophet which consisted of a score of loaves similar to our penny rolls. The Prophet bids his servitor set this slender quantity before the college. He is astonished at the command to feed a hundred hungry men with so little, but he is obedient to it.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
There was a dearth in the land - Rather, “The famine was in the land.” The seven years’ dearth of which Elisha had prophesied (marginal reference) had begun. The sons of the prophets - See 1Ki 20:35 note. They were sitting before him as scholars before their master, hearing his instructions.
The words behind it
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וֶאֱלִישָׁ֞ע | veelisha' | and Elisha | H477 → | 58 times |
| שָׁ֤ב | shav | he returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| הַגִּלְגָּ֙לָה֙ | hagilgalah | <the> Gilgal towards | H1537 → | |
| וְהָרָעָ֣ב | veharaav | and <the> famine | H7458 → | 101 times |
| בָּאָ֔רֶץ | baaretz | [was] in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וּבְנֵי֙ | uvenei | and [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַנְּבִיאִ֔ים | haneviim | the prophets | H5030 → | 314 times |
| יֹשְׁבִ֖ים | yoshevim | [were] sitting | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| לְפָנָ֑יו | lefanav | <to> before him | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לְנַעֲר֗וֹ | lenaaro | to servant his | H5288 → | 239 times |
| שְׁפֹת֙ | shefot | put on | H8239 → | |
| הַסִּ֣יר | hasir | the pot | H5518 → | 34 times |
| הַגְּדוֹלָ֔ה | hagedolah | <the> large | H1419 → | 526 times |
| וּבַשֵּׁ֥ל | uvashel | and cook | H1310 → | |
| נָזִ֖יד | nazid | cooked food | H5138 → | 6 times |
| לִבְנֵ֥י | livnei | for [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַנְּבִיאִֽים׃ | haneviim | the prophets | H5030 → | 314 times |
וֶאֱלִישָׁ֞עand Elisha
veelisha'H477 →58 times
שָׁ֤בhe returned
shavH7725 →1056 times
הַגִּלְגָּ֙לָה֙<the> Gilgal towards
hagilgalahH1537 →
וְהָרָעָ֣בand <the> famine
veharaavH7458 →101 times
בָּאָ֔רֶץ[was] in the land
baaretzH776 →2504 times
וּבְנֵי֙and [the] sons of
uveneiH1121 →4930 times
הַנְּבִיאִ֔יםthe prophets
haneviimH5030 →314 times
יֹשְׁבִ֖ים[were] sitting
yoshevimH3427 →1079 times
לְפָנָ֑יו<to> before him
lefanavH6440 →2123 times
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לְנַעֲר֗וֹto servant his
lenaaroH5288 →239 times
שְׁפֹת֙put on
shefotH8239 →
הַסִּ֣ירthe pot
hasirH5518 →34 times
הַגְּדוֹלָ֔ה<the> large
hagedolahH1419 →526 times
וּבַשֵּׁ֥לand cook
uvashelH1310 →
נָזִ֖ידcooked food
nazidH5138 →6 times
לִבְנֵ֥יfor [the] sons of
livneiH1121 →4930 times
הַנְּבִיאִֽים׃the prophets
haneviimH5030 →314 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
Luke 10:39She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to His message.
it leads to
- Proverbs 8:34
Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.
- Luke 8:35
So the people went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man whom the demons had left, sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind; and…
- John 12:3
Then Mary took about a pint of expensive perfume, made of pure nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the…
- Proverbs 8:34
Through
Acts 22:3“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but raised in this city. I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel in strict conformity to the law of our fathers. I am just…
it leads to
- Philippians 3:5–6
circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin; a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;
- Acts 26:5
They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I lived as a Pharisee, adhering to the strictest sect of our religion.
- Acts 5:34
But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a short time.
- Acts 9:11
“Get up!” the Lord told him. “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.
- Philippians 3:5–6
Through
2 Kings 2:1Shortly before the LORD took Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal,
it leads to
- Genesis 5:24
Enoch walked with God, and then he was no more, because God had taken him away.
- Genesis 5:24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 2 Kings
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonDivided kingdomElishaElijah's successor with the firstborn's double portion; the prophet of the healed spring, the widow's oil, the Shunammite's son, N…
- PlaceJordan valley near JerichoGilgalIsrael's first Canaan camp where the stones were set and the reproach rolled away (Josh 4-5); later a corrupted shrine the prophet…
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Alfred Edersheim, Bible History: Old Testament; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3187: “The Great Pot and the Twenty Loaves” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE SECOND BOOK OF KINGS 4:38; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of the Kings and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.