And he said, If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress?
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “If Yahweh doesn’t help you, where could I get help for you? From of the threshing floor, or from the wine press?”
- BSB He answered, “If the LORD does not help you, where can I find help for you? From the threshing floor or the winepress?”
- NKJV And he said, “If the Lord does not help you, where can I find help for you? From the threshing floor or from the winepress?”
- NASB But he said, “If the Lord does not help you, from where am I to help you? From the threshing floor, or from the wine press?”
- NLT He answered, “If the Lord doesn’t help you, what can I do? I have neither food from the threshing floor nor wine from the press to give you.”
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 king admits he cannot help unless the Lord does, since the granary and winepress are empty. His words confess human helplessness before divine judgment.
Overview
In a moment of bitter honesty, the king acknowledges that no earthly resource remains to relieve the famine. Whether spoken in despair or sarcasm, the statement is theologically true: deliverance must come from Yahweh. It exposes the bankruptcy of a kingdom that had forsaken its God. The confession ironically points to the only source of help even as the king resents Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Ps 118:8–9It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.
- Ps 124:1–3If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, now may Israel say;
- Jer 17:5Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.
- Ps 62:8Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.
- Ps 127:1Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
- Ps 146:3Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.
- Ps 60:11Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man.
- Isa 2:2And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 6:27 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.