God’s Word Translation
2 Kings 4:40
40They dished out the food for the men to eat. As they were eating the stew, they cried out, “There’s death in the pot, man of God!” So they couldn’t eat it.
2 Kings 4:40 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.
- New International Version (NIV)The 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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And they poured out some for the men to eat. But while they were eating of the stew, they cried out, "O man of God, there is death in the pot!" And they could not eat it.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then they served it to the men to eat. Now it happened, as they were eating the stew, that they cried out and said, “Man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it.
Context of 2 Kings 4:40
38When Elisha went back to Gilgal, there was a famine in the country. ⌞One day,⌟ while the disciples of the prophets were meeting with him, he told his servant, “Put a large pot on the fire, and cook some stew for the disciples of the prophets.” 39One of them went into the field to gather vegetables and found a wild vine. He filled his clothes with wild gourds. Then he cut them into the pot of stew without knowing what they were. They dished out the food for the men to eat. As they were eating the stew, they cried out, “There’s death in the pot, man of God!” So they couldn’t eat it. 41Elisha said, “Bring some flour.” He threw it into the pot and said, “Dish it out for the people to eat.” Then there was nothing harmful in the pot. 42A man from Baal Shalisha brought bread made from the first harvested grain, 20 barley loaves, and fresh grain to the man of God. The man of God said, “Give it to the people to eat.”
Read all of 2 Kings 42 Kings 4:40 word by word
וַיִּֽצְק֥וּ לַאֲנָשִׁ֖ים לֶאֱכ֑וֹל וַ֠יְהִי כְּאָכְלָ֨ם מֵהַנָּזִ֜יד וְהֵ֣מָּה צָעָ֗קוּ וַיֹּֽאמְרוּ֙ מָ֤וֶת בַּסִּיר֙ אִ֣ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים וְלֹ֥א יָכְל֖וּ לֶאֱכֹֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- So they poured outיָצַקyâtsaq · to pour: pourH3332
- for the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- to eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- of the pottageנָזִידnâzîyd · stewH5138
- that they cried outצָעַקtsâ‛aq · to cryH6817
- and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- of Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- deathמָ֫וֶתmâveth · deathH4194
- in the potסִירsîyr sîyrâh sirâh · potH5518
- And they couldיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
Cross-references for 2 Kings 4:40
- 2 Kings 4:9She told her husband, “I know he’s a holy man of God. And he regularly travels past our house.
- 2 Kings 1:9The king sent an army officer with 50 men to Elijah. When the officer found Elijah sitting on top of a hill, he told Elijah, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ”
- Deuteronomy 33:1Moses, the man of God, blessed the Israelites with this blessing before he died.
- 1 Kings 17:18The woman asked Elijah, “What do you and I have in common, man of God? Did you come here to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”
- Exodus 10:17Please forgive my sin one more time. Pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”
- Exodus 15:23When they came to Marah, they couldn’t drink the water because it tasted bitter. That’s why the place was called Marah [Bitter Place].
- Mark 16:18They will pick up snakes, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them. They will place their hands on the sick and cure them.”
Commentaries on 2 Kings 4:40
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 40There is death in the pot - As if they had said, "We have here a deadly mixture; if we eat of it, we shall all die."Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 38-44Verses 38-44 There was a famine of bread, but not of hearing the word of God, for Elisha had the sons of the prophets sitting before him, to hear his wisdom. Elisha made hurtful food to become safe and wholesome. If a mess of pottage be all our dinner, remember that this great prophet had no better for himself and his guests. The table often becomes a snare, and that which should be for our welfare, proves a trap: this is a good reason why we should not…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 39-41The men quickly realized the young man's wild gourds were poisonous. They didn't want to be poisoned or waste the stew during a famine, so they asked Elisha for help. The flour symbolized God's miraculous provision of food.Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Kings 4:40
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Kings 4
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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