2 Kings 2:15

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

The company of the prophets from Jericho saw him from a distance and said, 'The spirit of Elijah is resting on Elisha.' And they went to meet him and bowed to the ground before him.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַיִּרְאֻ֨הוּ בְנֵֽי־הַנְּבִיאִ֤ים אֲשֶׁר־בִּֽירִיחוֹ֙ מִנֶּ֔גֶד וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ נָ֛חָה ר֥וּחַ אֵלִיָּ֖הוּ עַל־אֱלִישָׁ֑ע וַיָּבֹ֙אוּ֙ לִקְרָאת֔וֹ וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ־ל֖וֹ אָֽרְצָה׃

Transliteration

And wayyir'ûhû bənê-the-nəbî'îm who-[are in]-yərîḥô from-neged, and wayyō'mərû, nāḥâ rûaḥ 'ēlîyāhû on-'ĕlîšā'; and wayyābō'û to-meet-him, and wayyištaḥăwû-to-him 'ārṣâ.

Grammar Details

• *wayyir'ûhû*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3rd masculine plural + 3rd masculine singular suffix of *rā'â* - and they saw him
• *bənê*: masculine plural construct of *bēn* - sons of
• *nəbî'îm*: masculine plural noun - prophets
• *neged*: preposition - opposite/in front of
• *wayyō'mərû*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3rd masculine plural of *'āmar* - and they said
• *nāḥâ*: qal perfect 3rd feminine singular of *nûaḥ* - it rested
• *rûaḥ*: feminine singular noun - spirit/wind
• *wayyābō'û*: waw-consecutive + qal imperfect 3rd masculine plural of *bô'* - and they came
• *wayyištaḥăwû*: waw-consecutive + hishtaphel imperfect 3rd masculine plural of *šāḥâ* - and they bowed down
• *'ārṣâ*: feminine singular noun + directional he - to the ground

Word Meanings

• *bənê*-the-*nəbî'îm*: sons of the prophets/prophetic guild members
• *mineged*: opposite/from a distance
• *nāḥâ*: has rested/settled upon
• *rûaḥ*: spirit/power/essence
• *wayyištaḥăwû*-to-him *'ārṣâ*: they prostrated themselves to him to the ground/they bowed down to him to the earth

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  And when the sons of the prophets who were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho over against him saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  And whan the prophetes children which were at Iericho ouer agynst him, sawe him, they sayde: The sprete of Elias resteth vpo Eliseus, and so they wete forth to mete him, and worshipped him to the groude,

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  And when the children of the Prophets, which were at Iericho, saw him on the other side, they sayde, The Spirite of Eliiah doeth rest on Elisha: and they came to meete him, and fell to the grounde before him,

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  And when the childre of the prophetes which were at Iericho sawe him from a farre, they sayde, The spirite of Elias doth rest on Elisa: And they came to meete him, and fel to the grounde before him,

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  And when the sons of the prophets which [were] to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  When the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho over against him saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah does rest on Elisha. They came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  And they see him -- the sons of the prophets who `are' in Jericho -- over-against, and they say, `Rested hath the spirit of Elijah on Elisha;' and they come to meet him, and bow themselves to him to the earth,

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho over against him saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho over against him saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  And when the sons of the prophets who were facing him at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah is resting on Elisha. And they came out to him, and went down on the earth before him.

• World English Bible (2000)

  When the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho over against him saw him, they said, "The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha." They came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  When the members of the prophetic guild in Jericho, who were standing at a distance, saw him do this, they said,“The spirit that energized Elijah rests upon Elisha.” They went to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him.

Referenced Verses

• Num 11:25-29 : 25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and He took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied—but they never did so again. 26 Two men, Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders but had not gone out to the Tent. Yet the Spirit rested on them as well, and they prophesied in the camp. 27 A young man ran and reported to Moses, 'Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp!' 28 Then Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses' assistant since his youth, spoke up and said, 'My lord Moses, stop them!' 29 But Moses replied, 'Are you jealous on my behalf? I wish that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit on them!'
• Num 27:20 : 20 Transfer some of your authority to him so that the whole assembly of the Israelites will follow him.
• Josh 3:7 : 7 The LORD said to Joshua, 'Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that just as I was with Moses, I will be with you.'
• Josh 4:14 : 14 On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they revered him all the days of his life, just as they had revered Moses.
• 2 Kgs 2:7 : 7 Fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood at a distance, while the two of them stood by the Jordan.
• 2 Kgs 2:19 : 19 The people of the city said to Elisha, 'Look, our lord, this town is well situated, as you can see, but the water is bad, and the land is unproductive.'
• 2 Kgs 4:1-4 : 1 A certain woman, the wife of one of the prophets, cried out to Elisha, saying, "Your servant, my husband, is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. Now the creditor has come to take my two sons as slaves." 2 Elisha said to her, "What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?" She replied, "Your servant has nothing in the house except a small jar of oil." 3 Then he said, "Go, borrow empty vessels from all your neighbors. Get as many as you can. Do not gather too few." 4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all these vessels, and as each one is filled, set it aside."
• 2 Kgs 4:37 : 37 She came, fell at his feet, and bowed to the ground. Then she picked up her son and went out.
• 2 Kgs 6:1-7 : 1 The sons of the prophets said to Elisha, "Look, the place where we are living under your supervision is too small for us." 2 Let us go to the Jordan, and let each of us take a log from there, and let us build a place for us to live there. And he said, "Go." 3 Then one of them said, "Please come with your servants." And he answered, "I will go." 4 So he went with them, and they came to the Jordan and began cutting down trees. 5 But as one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water. He cried out, "Oh no, my master! It was borrowed!" 6 The man of God asked, "Where did it fall?" When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick, threw it there, and the iron floated. 7 Then he said, "Lift it out." So the man reached out his hand and took it.
• Isa 11:2 : 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest upon him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and reverence for the LORD.
• Isa 59:21 : 21 As for Me, this is My covenant with them, says the LORD. My Spirit, who is upon you, and My words, that I have put in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouths of your children or your children's children, from now on and forever, says the LORD.
• John 15:26-27 : 26 When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me. 27 And you also must testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.
• Acts 1:8 : 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
• 2 Cor 12:9 : 9 But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
• 1 Pet 4:14 : 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.