2 Kings 4 NIV ISV Parallel

◄ 2 Kings 4 ►

NIV Parallel ISV [BSB CSB ESV HCS KJV ISV NAS NET NIV NLT HEB]

New International Version

International Standard Version

1The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, "Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the LORD. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves."

1Now there happened to be a certain woman who had been the wife of a member of the Guild of Prophets. She cried out to Elisha, "My husband who served you has died, and you know that your servant feared the LORD. But a creditor has come to take away my children into indentured servitude!"

2Elisha replied to her, "How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?" "Your servant has nothing there at all," she said, "except a small jar of olive oil."

2Elisha responded, "What shall I do for you? Tell me what you have in your house." She replied, "Your servant has nothing in the entire house except for a flask of oil."

3Elisha said, "Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few.

3He told her, "Go out to all of your neighbors in the surrounding streets and borrow lots of pots from them. Don't get just a few empty vessels, either.

4Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side."

4Then go in and shut the door behind you, taking only your children, and pour oil into all of the pots. As each one is filled, set it aside."

5She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring.

5So she left Elisha, shut the door behind her and her children, and while they kept on bringing vessels to her, she kept on pouring oil.

6When all the jars were full, she said to her son, "Bring me another one." But he replied, "There is not a jar left." Then the oil stopped flowing.

6When the last of the vessels had been filled, she told her son, "Bring me another pot!" But he replied, "There isn't even one pot left." Then the oil stopped flowing.

7She went and told the man of God, and he said, "Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left."

7After this, she went and told the man of God what had happened. So he said, "Go sell the oil, pay your debt, and you and your children will be able to live on the proceeds."

8One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat.

8Some time later, Elisha went to Shunem, where he met a prominent and wealthy woman who persuaded him to have a meal with her. As a result, whenever he was in the area, he stopped by to eat with her.

9She said to her husband, "I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God.

9So she had a talk with her husband. "Look here! I've learned that this is a holy and godly man who comes by here on a regular basis.

10Let's make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us."

10Now then, let's build a small upper room and put a bed in it for him there, along with a table, a chair, and a lamp stand. That way, when he comes to visit, he can rest there."

11One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there.

11One day, Elisha came by to visit and stopped in to rest in the upper chamber.

12He said to his servant Gehazi, "Call the Shunammite." So he called her, and she stood before him.

12He told his attendant Gehazi, "Call this Shunammite." So when he had summoned her, she stood in front of him.

13Elisha said to him, "Tell her, 'You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army?'" She replied, "I have a home among my own people."

13Elisha told him, "Ask her, 'Look how you've gone to all this trouble to care for us! What can I do for you? Do you wish to be mentioned to the king or to the head of the army?'" She replied, "I'm at home living among my own people."

14"What can be done for her?" Elisha asked. Gehazi said, "She has no son, and her husband is old."

14He responded, "What, then, is to be done on her behalf?" Gehazi answered, "Well, she has no son and her husband is growing old."

15Then Elisha said, "Call her." So he called her, and she stood in the doorway.

15"Call her," Elisha ordered. After he called her, she came and stood in the doorway,

16"About this time next year," Elisha said, "you will hold a son in your arms." "No, my lord!" she objected. "Please, man of God, don't mislead your servant!"

16and he told her, "About this time next year you will be embracing a son." "No, sir! Please, as a godly man, don't mislead your servant!"

17But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.

17But the woman did conceive and did bear a son at that very same time the next year, just as Elisha had told her.

18The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers.

18After the child had grown up a bit, one day he went out to visit his father, who was with the harvesters.

19He said to his father, "My head! My head!" His father told a servant, "Carry him to his mother."

19He told his father, "My head! My head!" So his father ordered his servant, "Carry him over to his mother!"

20After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died.

20So the servant carried him over to his mother, where he rested on her lap until mid-day, and then he died.

21She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out.

21The woman went upstairs, laid him on the bed belonging to the man of God, and shut the door, leaving him behind as she left.

22She called her husband and said, "Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return."

22Then she called to her husband and asked him, "Please send me one of the servants, along with one of the donkeys, so I can ride quickly to see that godly man. I'll be right back."

23"Why go to him today?" he asked. "It's not the New Moon or the Sabbath." "That's all right," she said.

23He asked her, "What's the point of visiting him today? It's not a New Moon, and it isn't the Sabbath!" But she kept saying, "Things will go well."

24She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, "Lead on; don't slow down for me unless I tell you."

24So she saddled a donkey and told her servant, "Forward, driver! Don't slow down on my account, unless I tell you!"

25So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, "Look! There's the Shunammite!

25So out she went and eventually she arrived at Mount Carmel to visit the man of God. When the man of God noticed her from a distance, he told his attendant Gehazi, "Look! There's the woman from Shunem!

26Run to meet her and ask her, 'Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?'" "Everything is all right," she said.

26Please run out quickly and greet her. Ask her, 'Are things going well with you? Are things going well with your husband? Are things going well with your child?'" She answered Gehazi, "Things are going well."

27When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, "Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me why."

27As she came near the man of God on the mountain, she grabbed his feet. When Gehazi intervened to push her away, the man of God said, "Leave her alone! She is deeply troubled! The LORD has concealed the thing from me, and hasn't informed me."

28"Did I ask you for a son, my lord?" she said. "Didn't I tell you, 'Don't raise my hopes'?"

28Then she asked, "Did I ask my lord for a son? Didn't I beg you, 'Don't mislead me?'"

29Elisha said to Gehazi, "Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand and run. Don't greet anyone you meet, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy's face."

29At this he told Gehazi, "Get ready to run! Take my staff in your hand, and get on the road. Don't greet anyone you meet. If anyone greets you, don't respond. Just go lay my staff on the youngster's face."

30But the child's mother said, "As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you." So he got up and followed her.

30At this, the youngster's mother replied, "As long as you and the LORD live, I'm not leaving you!" So he got up and followed her.

31Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy's face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, "The boy has not awakened."

31Meanwhile, Gehazi went on ahead of them and placed the staff on the youngster's face, but when there was no sound or reaction, he returned, met Elisha, and told him, "The youngster has shown no sign of awakening."

32When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch.

32When Elisha entered the house, there was the youngster, dead and laid out on Elisha's bed!

33He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the LORD.

33So he entered, shut the door behind them both, and prayed to the LORD.

34Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out on him, the boy's body grew warm.

34Then he approached the child and lay down with his mouth near the child's, with his eyes near those of the child, and taking the child's hands in his. As Elisha stretched himself on the child, the child's flesh began to grow warm.

35Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.

35Then he went downstairs, walked around back and forth inside the house once, went back up to his upper chamber, and stretched himself over the child again. The young man sneezed seven times and then opened his eyes.

36Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, "Call the Shunammite." And he did. When she came, he said, "Take your son."

36He called out to Gehazi, "Go get the Shunammite woman!" So he called her. When she came in to see Elisha, he told her, "Take back your son!"

37She came in, fell at his feet and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out.

37Then she approached him, fell at his feet, bowing low to the ground, took back her son, and went out.

38Elisha returned to Gilgal and there was a famine in that region. While the company of the prophets was meeting with him, he said to his servant, "Put on the large pot and cook some stew for these prophets."

38Elisha returned to Gilgal during a time of famine in the land. While the Guild of Prophets were having a meal with him, he instructed his attendant, "Put a large pot on the fire and boil some stew for the Guild of Prophets."

39One of them went out into the fields to gather herbs and found a wild vine and picked as many of its gourds as his garment could hold. When he returned, he cut them up into the pot of stew, though no one knew what they were.

39Somebody went out into the fields to grab some herbs, found a wild vine, and gathered a lap full of wild gourds, which he came and sliced up into the stew pot, but nobody else knew.

40The stew was poured out for the men, but as they began to eat it, they cried out, "Man of God, there is death in the pot!" And they could not eat it.

40When they served the men, they began to eat the stew. But they cried out, "That pot of stew is deadly, you man of God!" So they couldn't eat the stew.

41Elisha said, "Get some flour." He put it into the pot and said, "Serve it to the people to eat." And there was nothing harmful in the pot.

41But he replied, "Bring me some flour." He tossed it into the pot and said, "Serve the people so they can eat." Then there was nothing harmful in the pot.

42A man came from Baal Shalishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe grain, along with some heads of new grain. "Give it to the people to eat," Elisha said.

42Later on, a man arrived from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God some bread as a first fruit offering. He had 20 loaves of barley and ripe ears of corn in his sack. So Elisha said, "Give them to the people so they can eat."

43"How can I set this before a hundred men?" his servant asked. But Elisha answered, "Give it to the people to eat. For this is what the LORD says: 'They will eat and have some left over.'"

43Elisha's attendant asked, "What? Will this serve 100 men?" But he replied, "Distribute it to the people so they can eat, because this is what the LORD says: 'They will eat and have a surplus!'"

44Then he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.

44So he served them, and they ate and had some left over, just as the LORD had indicated.

New International Version (NIV)

Bible Hub