and he said, “This is what the Lord says: This dry valley will be filled with pools of water!
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Yahweh says, ‘Make this valley full of trenches.’
- KJV And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make this valley full of ditches.
- BSB and he said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Dig this valley full of ditches.’
- NKJV And he said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’
- NASB And he said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Make this valley full of trenches.’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Elisha relays Yahweh's command to fill the valley with trenches. God prepares to provide water through obedient action.
Overview
The instruction to dig ditches calls for faith-filled preparation before any water is visible. It invites the army to act on God's word in expectation of His provision. Obedience precedes the blessing, showing that faith trusts the promise before seeing the result.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- 2 Kgs 4:3Then he said, “Go, borrow empty containers from of all your neighbors. Don’t borrow just a few containers.
- Num 2:16–18“All who were counted of the camp of Reuben were one hundred fifty-one thousand four hundred fifty, according to their armies. They shall set out second.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 3:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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