So the king said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send men to capture him.” On receiving the report, “Elisha is in Dothan,”
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him.” He was told, “Behold, he is in Dothan.”
- KJV And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.
- NKJV So he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him.” And it was told him, saying, “Surely he is in Dothan.”
- NASB So he said, “Go and see where he is, so that I may send men and take him.” And it was told to him, saying, “Behold, he is in Dothan.”
- NLT “Go and find out where he is,” the king commanded, “so I can send troops to seize him.” And the report came back: “Elisha is at Dothan.”
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
The Syrian king sends to seize Elisha once he learns the prophet is in Dothan. It shows the folly of trying to overpower God's appointed servant.
Overview
Determined to silence the source of Israel's advantage, the king treats the prophet as a strategic target to be captured. His plan rests on the false assumption that force can neutralize divine revelation. Locating Elisha in Dothan sets the stage for a dramatic display of unseen heavenly protection. The episode exposes the impotence of human power arrayed against the Lord.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Gen 37:17“They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph set out after his brothers and found them at Dothan.
- John 11:47–53Then the chief priests and Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and said, “What are we to do? This man is performing many signs.
- Acts 23:12–27When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
- Ps 10:8–10He lies in wait near the villages; in ambush he slays the innocent; his eyes watch in stealth for the helpless.
- Jer 36:26Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, as well as Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the LORD had hidden them.
- Ps 37:32–33Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,
- Matt 2:4–8And when he had assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ was to be born.
- 1 Sam 23:22–23Please go and prepare further. Investigate and watch carefully where he goes and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning.
- Ps 37:12–14The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,
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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 6:13 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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