2 Kings 4

1 And a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets has cried to Elisha, saying, “Your servant, my husband, is dead, and you have known that your servant was fearing YHWH, and the lender has come to take my two children to himself for servants.”

Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets to Elisha, saying, Your servant my husband is dead; and you know that your servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take to him my two sons to be slaves.

2 And Elisha says to her, “What do I do for you? Declare to me, what do you have in the house?” And she says, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house except a pot of oil.”

And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for you? tell me, what have you in the house? And she said, Your handmaid has not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.

3 And he says, “Go, ask [for] vessels for yourself from outside, from all your neighbors—empty vessels—let [them] not be few;

Then he said, Go, borrow you vessels abroad of all your neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.

4 and you have entered, and have shut the door on you, and on your sons, and have poured it into all these vessels, and the full ones you remove.”

And when you are come in, you shall shut the door on you and on your sons, and shall pour out into all those vessels, and you shall set aside that which is full.

5 And she goes from him, and shuts the door on her, and on her sons; they are bringing [them] near to her, and she is pouring [it] out,

So she went from him, and shut the door on her and on her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.

6 and it comes to pass, at the filling of the vessels, that she says to her son, “Bring another vessel near to me,” and he says to her, “There is not another vessel”; and the oil stays.

And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said to her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.

7 And she comes and declares [it] to the man of God, and he says, “Go, sell the oil, and repay your loan; and you [and] your sons live off the rest.”

Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay your debt, and live you and your children of the rest.

8 And the day comes that Elisha passes over to Shunem, and there [is] a great woman, and she lays hold on him to eat bread, and it comes to pass, at the time of his passing over, he turns aside there to eat bread,

And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.

9 and she says to her husband, “Now behold, I have known that he is a holy man of God, passing over by us continually;

And she said to her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passes by us continually.

10 please let us make a little upper chamber of the wall, and we set for him there a bed, and a table, and a high seat, and a lampstand; and it has been, in his coming to us, he turns aside there.”

Let us make a little chamber, I pray you, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he shall turn in thither.

11 And the day comes that he comes in there, and turns aside to the upper chamber, and lies there,

And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.

12 and he says to his young man Gehazi, “Call for this Shunammite”; and he calls for her, and she stands before him.

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

13 And he says to him, “Now say to her, Behold, you have troubled yourself concerning us with all this trouble; what can [I] do for you? Is it to speak for you to the king, or to the head of the host?” And she says, “I am dwelling in the midst of my people.”

And he said to him, Say now to her, Behold, you have been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for you? would you be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among my own people.

14 And he says, “And what can [I] do for her?” And Gehazi says, “Truly she has no son, and her husband [is] aged.”

And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Truly she has no child, and her husband is old.

15 And he says, “Call for her”; and he calls for her, and she stands at the opening,

And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.

16 and he says, “At this season, according to the time of life, you are embracing a son”; and she says, “No, my lord, O man of God, do not lie to your maidservant.”

And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, you shall embrace a son. And she said, No, my lord, you man of God, do not lie to your handmaid.

17 And the woman conceives and bears a son, at this season, according to the time of life that Elisha spoke of to her.

And the woman conceived, and bore a son at that season that Elisha had said to her, according to the time of life.

18 And the boy grows, and the day comes that he goes out to his father, to the reapers,

And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

19 and he says to his father, “My head, my head”; and he says to the young man, “Carry him to his mother”;

And he said to his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

20 and he carries him, and brings him to his mother, and he sits on her knees until the noon, and dies.

And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

21 And she goes up, and lays him on the bed of the man of God, and shuts [the door] on him, and goes out,

And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door on him, and went out.

22 and calls to her husband and says, “Please send one of the young men and one of the donkeys to me, and I run to the man of God, and return.”

And she called to her husband, and said, Send me, I pray you, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.

23 And he says, “Why are you going to him today? [It is] neither new moon nor Sabbath!” And she says, “Peace [to you]!”

And he said, Why will you go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

24 And she saddles the donkey and says to her young man, “Lead, and go, do not restrain riding for me, except I have commanded [so] to you.”

Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not your riding for me, except I bid you.

25 And she goes, and comes to the man of God, to the hill of Carmel, and it comes to pass, at the man of God’s seeing her from within view, that he says to his young man Gehazi, “Behold, this Shunammite;

So she went and came to the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:

26 now please run to meet her, and say to her, Is there peace to you? Is there peace to your husband? Is there peace to the boy?” And she says, “Peace.”

Run now, I pray you, to meet her, and say to her, Is it well with you? is it well with your husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well:

27 And she comes to the man of God, to the hill, and lays hold on his feet, and Gehazi comes near to thrust her away, and the man of God says, “Leave her alone, for her soul [is] bitter to her, and YHWH has hidden [it] from me, and has not declared [it] to me.”

And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD has hid it from me, and has not told me.

28 And she says, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, Do not deceive me?”

Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

29 And he says to Gehazi, “Gird up your loins, and take my staff in your hand, and go; when you meet a man, you do not greet him; and when a man greets you, you do not answer him; and you have laid my staff on the face of the youth.”

Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up your loins, and take my staff in your hand, and go your way: if you meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute you, answer him not again: and lay my staff on the face of the child.

30 And the mother of the youth says, “YHWH lives, and your soul lives—if I leave you”; and he rises and goes after her.

And the mother of the child said, As the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. And he arose, and followed her.

31 And Gehazi has passed on before them, and lays the staff on the face of the youth, and there is no voice, and there is no attention, and he turns back to meet him, and declares to him, saying, “The youth has not awoken.”

And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff on the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Why he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.

32 And Elisha comes into the house, and behold, the youth is dead, laid on his bed,

And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid on his bed.

33 and he goes in and shuts the door on them both, and prays to YHWH.

He went in therefore, and shut the door on them two, and prayed to the LORD.

34 And he goes up, and lies down on the boy, and puts his mouth on his mouth, and his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands, and stretches himself on him, and the flesh of the boy becomes warm;

And he went up, and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, and his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands: and stretched himself on the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

35 and he turns back and walks in the house, once here and once there, and goes up and stretches himself on him, and the youth sneezes until seven times, and the youth opens his eyes.

Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself on him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

36 And he calls to Gehazi and says, “Call to this Shunammite”; and he calls her, and she comes to him, and he says, “Lift up your son.”

And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in to him, he said, Take up your son.

37 And she goes in, and falls at his feet, and bows herself to the earth, and lifts up her son, and goes out.

Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

38 And Elisha has turned back to Gilgal, and the famine [is] in the land, and the sons of the prophets are sitting before him, and he says to his young man, “Set on the great pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.”

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 to his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.

39 And one goes out to the field to gather herbs, and finds a vine of the field, and gathers gourds of the field from it—the fullness of his garment—and comes in and splits [them] into the pot of stew, for they did not know [them];

And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not.

40 and they pour out for the men to eat, and it comes to pass at their eating of the stew, that they have cried out, and say, “Death [is] in the pot, O man of God!” And they have not been able to eat.

So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O you man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.

41 And he says, “Then bring a meal”; and he casts into the pot and says, “Pour out for the people, and they eat”; and there was no bad thing in the pot.

But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.

42 And a man has come from Ba‘al-Shalishah, and brings to the man of God bread of first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of grain in its husk, and he says, “Give to the people, and they eat.”

And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give to the people, that they may eat.

43 And his minister says, “How do I give this before one hundred men?” And he says, “Give to the people, and they eat, for thus said YHWH: Eat and leave”;

And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus says the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.

44 and he gives before them, and they eat and leave, according to the word of YHWH.

So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD.