2nd Kings Chapter 5 verse 13 Holy Bible
And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
read chapter 5 in ASV
Then his servants came to him and said, If the prophet had given you orders to do some great thing, would you not have done it? how much more then, when he says to you, Be washed and become clean?
read chapter 5 in BBE
And his servants drew near, and spoke to him and said, My father, [if] the prophet had bidden thee [do some] great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he says to thee, Wash and be clean?
read chapter 5 in DARBY
And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
read chapter 5 in KJV
And his servants came near, and spoke to him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldst thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
read chapter 5 in WBT
His servants came near, and spoke to him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid you do some great thing, wouldn't you have done it? how much rather then, when he says to you, Wash, and be clean?
read chapter 5 in WEB
And his servants come nigh, and speak unto him, and say, `My father, a great thing had the prophet spoken unto thee -- dost thou not do `it'? and surely, when he hath said unto thee, Wash, and be clean.'
read chapter 5 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 13. - And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father. Naaman's attendants did not share his indignation, or, if they did, since servants in the East are apt to be jealous of their masters' honor, had their feelings more under control; and they therefore inter-feted with mild words, anxious to pacify him, and persuade him to follow the prophet's advice. "My father" is a deferential and, at the same time, an affectionate address, not unnatural in the mouth of a confidential servant (comp. 2 Kings 2:12). There is thus no need of any alteration of the text, such as Ewald (לו for אָבִי) or Thenius (אִם for אָבִי) proposes. It must be admitted, however, that the LXX. seem to have had לו in their copies. If the prophet had bid thee do some great thing - "had set thee," i.e., "some difficult task" - wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, [shouldest thou perform his behest] when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? The reasoning was unanswerable, and took effect. Naaman was persuaded.
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(13) Came near.--Comp. Genesis 18:23.My father.--A title implying at once respect and affection. (Comp. 1Samuel 24:11; 2Kings 6:21.) Perhaps, however, the word is a corruption of 'im ("if"), which is otherwise not expressed in the Hebrew.Great thing.--Emphatic in the Hebrew.Wouldest thou not have done?--Or,wouldest thou not do?He saith.--He hath said.Be clean?--i.e., thou shalt be clean: a common Hebrew idiom. . . .
