International Standard Version

King James Bible

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!"

1Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.

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."

2And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.

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.

3Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.

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."

4And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.

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.

5So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.

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.

6And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.

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."

7Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.

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.

8And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.

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.

9And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.

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."

10Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.

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

11And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.

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

12And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

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."

13And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people.

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

14And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old.

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

15And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.

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!"

16And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.

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

17And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

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

18And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

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

19And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

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

20And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

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.

21And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.

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."

22And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.

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."

23And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

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

24Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.

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!

25So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:

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."

26Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.

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."

27And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.

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

28Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

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."

29Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.

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.

30And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.

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."

31And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.

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

32And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.

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

33He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.

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.

34And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

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.

35Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

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!"

36And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.

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

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

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."

38And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.

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.

39And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not.

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.

40So 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.

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.

41But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.

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."

42And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.

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!'"

43And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.

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

44So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD.

The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY.

King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.