2nd Kings Chapter 4 verse 2 Holy Bible
And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me; what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid hath not anything in the house, save a pot of oil.
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Then Elisha said to her, What am I to do for you? say now, what have you in the house? And she said, Your servant has nothing in the house but a pot of oil.
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And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for thee? Tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid has not anything at all in the house but a pot of oil.
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And 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.
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And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.
read chapter 4 in WBT
Elisha said to her, What shall I do for you? tell me; what have you in the house? She said, Your handmaid has nothing in the house, except a pot of oil.
read chapter 4 in WEB
And Elisha saith unto her, `What do I do for thee? declare to me, what hast thou in the house?' and she saith, `Thy maid-servant hath nothing in the house except a pot of oil.'
read chapter 4 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 2. - And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? Elisha acknowledges at once the call upon him to do something for the woman. This is, no doubt, in part, because she is a widow. Widows were, in the Law, especially commended to the attention and care of the faithful. As Bahr says, "It is a well-known feature of the Mosaic Law, one which is distinctly prominent, that it often and urgently commands to succor the widows and the fatherless, and to care for them (Exodus 22:22-24; Deuteronomy 14:29; Deuteronomy 24:17, 19; Deuteronomy 26:12; Deuteronomy 27:19). They are mentioned as representatives of the forsaken, the oppressed, and the necessitous as a class (Isaiah 10:2; Jeremiah 6:6; Jeremiah 22:3; Zechariah 7:10; Matthew 3:5; Baruch 6:37). It is especially emphasized and praised in Jehovah, that he is the Father and Judge (i.e. Protector of the rights) of the widows and the fatherless (Deuteronomy 10:18; Psalm 68:5; Psalm 146:9; Isaiah 9:17, etc.). Neglect and contempt of them are counted among the heaviest offences (Psalm 94:6; Job 22:9; Ezekiel 22:7); just as, on the other hand, compassion and care for them is a sign of the true fear of God, and of true piety. (Job 29:12; Job 31:16; Tobit 1:7; James 1:27). Elisha could also gather from the tone of the woman's address that she, like her late husband, was God-fearing. Tell me, what hast thou in the house? Hast thou anything, that is, which thou canst soil, and so pay the debt? And she said, Thins handmaid hath not anything in the house, save a pot of oil; literally, save an anointing of oil; i.e. so much oil as will suffice for one anointing of my person.
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(2) What hast thou?--The form of the pronoun here, and in 2Kings 4:3; 2Kings 4:7; 2Kings 4:16; 2Kings 4:23 infra, is peculiar, and points, as the present writer believes, to the northern origin of the narrative, rather than to later composition.A pot of oil.--Usually explained, vas unguentarium, an "oil-flask." Keil says that '?s-k rather denotes "anointing," unctio, and '?s-k shemen, "an anointing in (or with) oil," i.e., oil enough for an anointing. But it seems better to take the word as a verb: "save (whereby) I may anoint myself with oil" (Micah 6:15). Vulgate, "parum olei, quo ungar." The Jews, like the Greeks and Romans, anointed themselves after the bath (2Samuel 12:20). . . .
