Now the king had been speaking to Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please relate to me all the great things Elisha has done.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.”
- KJV And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.
- NKJV Then the king talked with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Tell me, please, all the great things Elisha has done.”
- NASB Now the king was speaking with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please report to me all the great things that Elisha has done.”
- NLT As she came in, the king was talking with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God. The king had just said, “Tell me some stories about the great things Elisha has done.”
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 happens to be asking Gehazi to recount Elisha's great deeds. The providential timing frames the woman's arrival.
Overview
The king's conversation with Gehazi about Elisha's miracles sets the stage for the woman's petition. The coincidence underscores God's sovereign arrangement of circumstances. Gehazi's account will identify her case at the very moment she appears. The verse highlights providence weaving testimony and need together.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 22
- 2 Kgs 5:20–27Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared this Aramean, Naaman, while not accepting what he brought. As surely as the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him.”
- 2 Kgs 7:10So they went and called out to the gatekeepers of the city, saying, “We went to the Aramean camp and no one was there—not a trace—only tethered horses and donkeys, and the tents were intact.”
- 2 Kgs 6:17–20Then Elisha prayed, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw that the hills were full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
- 2 Kgs 2:24Then he turned around, looked at them, and called down a curse on them in the name of the LORD. Suddenly two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.
- 2 Kgs 5:14So Naaman went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored and became like that of a little child, and he was clean.
- Acts 24:24After several days, Felix returned with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him speak about faith in Christ Jesus.
- Matt 2:8And sending them to Bethlehem, he said: “Go and search carefully for the Child, and when you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.”
- 2 Kgs 7:16–20Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans. It was then that a seah of fine flour sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley sold for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD.
- Luke 9:9“I beheaded John,” Herod said, “but who is this man I hear such things about?” And he kept trying to see Jesus.
- 2 Kgs 6:9–12Then the man of God sent word to the king of Israel: “Be careful passing by this place, for the Arameans are going down there.”
- 2 Kgs 7:3Now there were four men with leprosy at the entrance of the city gate, and they said to one another, “Why just sit here until we die?
- 2 Kgs 4:12And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call the Shunammite woman.” And when he had called her, she stood before him,
- Luke 23:8When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased. He had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had heard about Him and was hoping to see Him perform a miracle.
- 2 Kgs 4:16–17And Elisha declared, “At this time next year, you will hold a son in your arms.” “No, my lord,” she said. “Do not lie to your maidservant, O man of God.”
- 2 Kgs 2:20–22“Bring me a new bowl,” he replied, “and put some salt in it.” So they brought it to him,
- 2 Kgs 2:14Then he took the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the waters. “Where now is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” he asked. And when he had struck the waters, they parted to the right and to the left, and Elisha crossed over.
- 2 Kgs 6:32Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. The king sent a messenger ahead, but before he arrived, Elisha said to the elders, “Do you see how this murderer has sent someone to cut off my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door to keep him out. Is not the sound of his master’s footsteps behind him?”
- John 9:27He replied, “I already told you, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”
- 2 Kgs 3:14–16Then Elisha said, “As surely as the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not for my regard for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you or acknowledge you.
- 2 Kgs 4:3–6“Go,” said Elisha, “borrow jars, even empty ones, from all your neighbors. Do not gather just a few.
- 2 Kgs 6:6“Where did it fall?” asked the man of God. And when he showed him the place, the man of God cut a stick, threw it there, and made the iron float.
- 2 Kgs 7:1Then Elisha said, “Hear the word of the LORD! This is what the LORD says: ‘About this time tomorrow at the gate of Samaria, a seah of fine flour will sell for a shekel, and two seahs of barley will sell for a shekel.’”
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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 8:4 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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