Then he said, “God do so to me, and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat stays on him today.”
But Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. Then the king sent a man from before him; but before the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, “Do you see how this son of a murderer has sent to take away my head? Behold, when the messenger comes, shut the door, and hold the door shut against him. Isn’t the sound of his master’s feet behind him?”
While he was still talking with them, behold, the messenger came down to him. Then he said, “Behold, this evil is from Yahweh. Why should I wait for Yahweh any longer?”
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv32–33 Meaning, Jehoram Ahab’s son, who killed the Prophets, and…
Meaning, Jehoram Ahab’s son, who killed the Prophets, and caused Naboth to be stoned.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv31–33 2Ki 6:31 Then he said, God do so and…
2Ki 6:31 Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.
Ver. 31. If the head of Elisha.] Who had only threatened these evils, not caused them, and perhaps refused to pray for a removal. The false prophets also might now stir up the king to slay the Lord’s prophet.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv31–33 If I do not this day take his head…
If I do not this day take his head and life. This wretched and partial prince overlooks his own great and various sins, and, amongst others, his obstinate cleaving to the idolatry of the calves, and the whoredoms and witchcrafts of his mother Jezebel, 2Ki 9:22, and the wickedness of his people, which was the true and proper cause of this and all their calamities; and lays the blame of all upon Elisha; either supposing that he who had the spirit of Elijah resting upon him, had brought this famine by his prayers, as Elijah had formerly done, 1Ki 17:1; or because he had encouraged them to withstand tim Syrians, by promising them help from God in due time; or because he would not, by his intercession to God and the working of a miracle, deliver them from these calamities, as he easily could have done. But he did not consider that the prophets could not work what miracles and when they pleased, but only as far as God saw fit, whose time was not yet come; otherwise it was Elisha’s interest as well as theirs to be freed from this distress.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On v31 And while he yet talked with them,.... Elisha with…
And while he yet talked with them,.... Elisha with the elders:
behold, the messenger came down unto him; sent by the king:
Read full note →
and he said; either the messenger in the king's name, or rather the king, who was at his heels, and came to the door before the messenger was let in, who was detained; and therefore it is most probable the king went in first; for that was the intention of Elisha in holding the messenger, not to save his own life, but that the king, who was following, might hear what he had to say; and whom he advised to wait for the Lord, and his appearance, for deliverance: in answer to which he said:
behold, this evil is of the Lord, what should I wait for the Lord any longer? this calamity is from him, and he is determined upon the ruin of my people, and there is no hope; this he said as despairing, and so resolving to hold out the siege no longer.
Next: 2 Kings Chapter 7
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv31–33 God do so, &c. - Because he had encouraged…
God do so, &c. - Because he had encouraged them to withstand the Syrians, by promising them help from God.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv31–33 Verse 31. If the head of Elisha - shall…
Verse 31. If the head of Elisha - shall stand on him] Either he attributed these calamities to the prophet, or else he thought he could remove them, and yet would not. The miserable king was driven to desperation.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv31–33 2Ki 6:31. If the head of Elisha shall stand…
2Ki 6:31. If the head of Elisha shall stand on him this day — If I do not this day take his head and his life. This wretched and partial prince overlooks his own great and various sins, and, among the rest, his obstinate adherence to the worship of the calves, and his conniving at the idolatries and witchcrafts of his mother Jezebel, (2Ki 9:22,) and the wickedness of the people, which were the true and proper causes of this and all their calamities; and he lays the blame of all upon Elisha, either supposing that he who had the spirit of Elijah resting upon him had brought this famine on the land by his prayers, as Elijah had formerly done, or because he had encouraged them to withstand the Syrians by promising them help from God.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv31–33 God do so ... - Jehoram uses almost the…
God do so ... - Jehoram uses almost the very words of his wicked mother, when she sought the life of Elijah (marginal reference).
The head of Elisha - Beheading was not an ordinary Jewish punishment. The Law did not sanction it. But in Assyria, Babylonia, and generally through the East, it was the most conmon form of capital punishment. It is not quite clear why Elisha was to be punished. Perhaps Jehoram argued from his other miracles that he could give deliverance from the present peril, if he liked.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv31–33 Day. This was said in a fit of sudden…
Day. This was said in a fit of sudden passion, which may give us reason to conclude that the repentance was insincere, or of short duration. (Haydock) --- The king supposed that he Eliseus could remedy the evil: but God was not moved by his prayers to grant such a favour, till all were convinced that human aid was fruitless. (Calmet) --- The prophet might have answered Joram in the words of Elias, 3 Kings xviii. 18. (Menochius) --- Probably he had dissuaded the king from making peace. (Tirinus)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v32 But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders…
But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him--The latter clause of Kg2 6:33, which contains the king's impatient exclamation, enables us to account for the impetuous order he issued for the beheading of Elisha. Though Jehoram was a wicked king and most of his courtiers would resemble their master, many had been won over, through the prophet's influence, to the true religion. A meeting, probably a prayer-meeting, of those was held in the house where he lodged, for he had none of his own (Kg1 19:20-21); and them he not only apprised of the king's design against himself, but disclosed to them the proof of a premeditated deliverance.
Next: 2 Kings Chapter 7
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv31–33 31. If the head of Elisha — In his…
31. If the head of Elisha — In his desperation he imagines that the prophet is the cause of the nation’s woe, or, at least, that he has power to remove the woe, and will not. “Jehoram,” says Wordsworth, “had sackcloth on his loins, but not on his heart. He mourned for the famine, but not for its cause, namely, his own sins and the sins of the people; and instead of being penitent towards God, he is furious against God’s prophet.”
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv31–33 31. if the head of Elisha … shall stand…
31. if the head of Elisha … shall stand on him this day] We must suppose that Elisha had not been wanting in admonitions to both king and people during this terrible siege, and the anger of Jehoram was great because the prophet, who had wrought so mightily in the war with Moab, and on many another occasion which the king would know of, had done nothing to save the nation in this great calamity. This is the explanation of Josephus (Ant. IX. 4. 4) and the feeling is what was to be expected in a son of Jezebel.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv31–33 (31) Then he said.—And he (i.e., the king), said.
(31) Then he said.—And he (i.e., the king), said.
God do so . . . to me.—Literally, So may God do to me, and so may he add: a common form of oath. (Comp. Rth_1:17; 1Sa_3:17; 1Ki_2:23.)
Read full note →
If the head of Elisha . . . this day.—The king’s horror at the woman’s dreadful story is succeeded by indignation against Elisha, who had probably counselled an unyielding resistance to the foe, in the steadfast faith that Jehovah would help His own; and who, prophet though he was, and endued with miraculous powers, had yet brought no help in this hour of urgent need. (Comp. with the oath that of Jezebel against Elijah, 1Ki_19:2.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv31–33 Then he said, God do so and more also…
Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on himi.e. "continue on himthis day. The form of oath was a common one. (comp. 1Sa_3:17 1Sa_25:22; 2Sa_19:13; 1Ki_2:23 1Ki_19:2, etc.) It was an imprecation of evil on one"s self, if one did, or if one failed to do, a certain thing. Why Jehoram should have considered Elisha as responsible for all the horrors of the siege is not apparent; but perhaps he supposed that it was in Elisha"s power to work a miracle of any kind at any moment that he liked. If so, he misunderstood the nature of the miraculous gift. In threatening to behead Elisha, he is not making himself an executor of the Law, which nowhere sanctioned that mode of punishment, but assuming the arbitrary power of the other Oriental monarchs of his time, who regarded themselves as absolute masters of the lives and liberties of their subjects. Beheading was common in Egypt, in Babylonia, and in Assyria.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v32 The king sent a man from before him
The king sent a man from before him
"To be before the king" means to be one of his servants. AT: "The king of Israel sent one of his servants as a messenger" (See: Idiom)
Read full note →
when the messenger came to Elisha, he said to the elders
Here Elisha is speaking to the elders right before the king's messenger arrived. AT: "when the messenger had almost arrived, Elisha said to the elders" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
See how this son of a murderer has sent to take away my head?
Elisha uses this rhetorical question to draw attention to the kings messenger and to insult the king. This can be written as a statement. AT: "See, this son of a murderer has sent someone to remove my head!" (See: Rhetorical Question)
son of a murderer
This means that the king of Israel has the characteristics of a murderer. AT: "this man who is like a murderer" or "that murderer" (See: Idiom)
has sent to
It is understood that he sent a person. AT: "has sent someone to" (See: Ellipsis)
to take away my head
This means to behead him. AT: "to cut off my head" or "to behead me" (See: Euphemism)
Look, when
Elisha uses this word here to draw the elder's attention to what he says next. AT: "Listen to what I want you to do: when"
hold the door shut against him
If a door is shut against someone it means that it is closed and that they may not enter through it. AT: "hold the door shut so that he cannot come in" (See: Idiom)
Is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?
Elisha uses this question to assure the elders that the king is coming not far behind him. This rhetorical question may be written as a statement. AT: "The sound of his master's feet is right behind him." or "The king will be coming along soon after he arrives." (See: Rhetorical Question)
behold, the messenger
The word "behold" alerts us to the arrival of the messenger.
the messenger came down to him
The messenger arrived, and so did the king, as Elisha had said he would. The phrase "came down to him" means that they arrived at the place where he was. AT: "the messenger and the king arrived" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information and Idiom)
Behold
"Pay attention, because what I am about to say is both true and important"
this trouble
"Indeed, this trouble." The word "behold" here adds emphasis to what follows. The phrase "this trouble" refers to the famine in Samaria and the suffering it caused.
Why should I wait for Yahweh any longer?
This king use this rhetorical question to emphasize that he does not believe that Yahweh is going to help them. This can be written as a statement. AT: "Why should I continue to wait for Yahweh to help us?" or "I will not wait any longer for help from Yahweh!" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information and Rhetorical Question)
translationWords
elder
son
lord
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv31–33 6:31 separate Elisha’s head from his shoulders: Decapitation of…
6:31 separate Elisha’s head from his shoulders: Decapitation of one’s enemy was frequent (10:6-8; 1 Sam 17:51; 31:9; 2 Sam 4:7-8, 12; 20:22; Matt 14:11) in the ancient Near East. Joram reasoned that the situation stemmed from Elisha’s earlier sparing of Ben-hadad’s troops (2 Kgs 6:22-23). Moreover, Ben-hadad had been after Elisha (6:13), so the prophet’s presence had endangered the whole city.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.