Then he set his countenance in a stare until he was ashamed; and the man of God wept.
Parallel translations
- WEB He settled his gaze steadfastly on him, until he was ashamed. Then the man of God wept.
- KJV And he settled his countenance stedfastly, until he was ashamed: and the man of God wept.
- BSB Elisha fixed his gaze steadily on him until Hazael became uncomfortable. Then the man of God began to weep.
- NASB And he stared steadily at him until Hazael was embarrassed, and then the man of God wept.
- NLT Elisha stared at Hazael with a fixed gaze until Hazael became uneasy. Then the man of God started weeping.
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 stares at Hazael until he is ashamed, then the prophet weeps. His tears anticipate the evil Hazael will bring.
Overview
The prophet's fixed, sorrowful gaze unsettles Hazael, and Elisha breaks into weeping. His grief springs from foreknowledge of the suffering Hazael will inflict on Israel. The scene reveals a prophet who mourns the judgments he must announce. It displays compassion even amid the sober delivery of God's revelation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Luke 19:41When he came near, he saw the city and wept over it,
- Rom 9:2that I have great sorrow and unceasing pain in my heart.
- Jer 4:19My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart; my heart is disquieted in me; I can’t hold my peace; because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
- Jer 9:18Let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and our eyelids gush out with waters.
- Ps 119:136Streams of tears run down my eyes, because they don’t observe your law. TZADI
- John 11:35Jesus wept.
- Jer 9:1Oh that my head were waters, and my eyes a spring of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
- Acts 20:31Therefore watch, remembering that for a period of three years I didn’t cease to admonish everyone night and day with tears.
- Jer 14:17“You shall say this word to them, “‘Let my eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease; for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with a very grievous wound.
- Jer 13:17But if you will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret for your pride; and my eye shall weep bitterly, and run down with tears, because Yahweh’s flock is taken captive.
- Gen 45:2He wept aloud. The Egyptians heard, and the house of Pharaoh heard.
- 2 Kgs 2:17When they urged him until he was ashamed, he said, “Send them.” Therefore they sent fifty men; and they searched for three days, but didn’t find him.
- Phil 3:18For many walk, of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, as the enemies of the cross of Christ,
- Acts 20:19serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears, and with trials which happened to me by the plots of the Jews;
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 8:11 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.