American Standard Version
2 Kings 2:20
20And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.
2 Kings 2:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.
- New International Version (NIV)“Bring me a new bowl,” he said, “and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him.
- English Standard Version (ESV)He said, "Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it." So they brought it to him.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And he said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him.
Context of 2 Kings 2:20
18And they came back to him, while he tarried at Jericho; and he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go not? 19And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, we pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is bad, and the land miscarrieth. And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him. 21And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast salt therein, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or miscarrying. 22So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spake.
Read all of 2 Kings 22 Kings 2:20 word by word
וַיֹּ֗אמֶר קְחוּ־לִי֙ צְלֹחִ֣ית חֲדָשָׁ֔ה וְשִׂ֥ימוּ שָׁ֖ם מֶ֑לַח וַיִּקְח֖וּ אֵלָֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for 2 Kings 2:20
- Judges 9:45And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that were therein: and he beat down the city, and sowed it with salt.
- Ezekiel 47:11But the miry places thereof, and the marshes thereof, shall not be healed; they shall be given up to salt.
- Zephaniah 2:9Therefore as I live, saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall make a prey of them, and the remnant of my nation shall inherit them.
Commentaries on 2 Kings 2:20
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20The “new cruse” and the “salt” are evidently chosen from a regard to symbolizm. The foul stream represents sin, and to cleanse it emblems of purity must he taken. Hence, the clean “new” dish previously unused, and thus untainted; and the salt, a common Scriptural symbol of incorruption (see Leviticus 2:13; Ezekiel 43:24; Matthew 5:13, etc.).Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 19-25Verses 19-25 Observe the miracle of healing the waters. Prophets should make every place to which they come better for them, endeavouring to sweeten bitter spirits, and to make barren souls fruitful, by the word of God, which is like the salt cast into the water by Elisha. It was an apt emblem of the effect produced by the grace of God on the sinful heart of man. Whole families, towns, and cities, sometimes have a new appearance through the preaching of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20-22Elisha used a new bowl (Deuteronomy 21:3) filled with salt (Leviticus 2:13; Ezekiel 43:24) to ask God to purify the people and the environment. Elisha emphasized that the Lord, not he or the salt, purified the water.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein--The noxious qualities of the water could not be corrected by the infusion of salt--for, supposing the salt was possessed of such a property, a whole spring could not be purified by a dishful for a day, much less in all future time. The pouring in of the salt was a symbolic act with which Elisha accompanied the word of the Lord, by which the spring was healed [Keil].Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Kings 2:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Kings 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries