The Bible, King James version, Book 12: 2 Kings — Text and Context

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Authors: Anonymous Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2005 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Bible. Kings, 2nd Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

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Words 26,685

Reading time 117 min

Text sections 4

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Source: Project Gutenberg record #8012

This editorial note examines the structure, recurring images, and movement between scenes in 2 Kings, focusing on the pattern of prophetic intervention, the motif of falling and ascent, and the rapid succession of reigns.

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Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

12:004:018 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

12:004:019 And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

12:004:020 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

12:004:021 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.

12:004:022 And 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.

12:004:023 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

12:004:024 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.

12:004:025 So 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:

12:004:026 Run 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:

12:004:027 And 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.

12:004:028 Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

12:004:029 Then 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.

12:004:030 And 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.

12:004:031 And 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.

12:004:032 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.

12:004:033 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.

12:004:034 And 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 stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

12:004:035 Then 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.

12:004:036 And 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.

12:004:037 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

12:004:038 And 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.

12:004:039 And 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.

12:004:040 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.

12:004:041 But 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.

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The second book of Kings opens with a fall: Ahaziah tumbles through a lattice in his upper chamber and never recovers. This accident sets in motion a sequence of prophetic encounters that define the book’s early rhythm. Elijah, described as a hairy man girt with leather, calls down fire from heaven on two companies of fifty soldiers, then spares a third captain who kneels. The narrative moves swiftly between Samaria, the hill where Elijah sits, and the king’s sickbed, establishing a pattern of vertical movement—falls, ascents, and divine fire descending—that recurs throughout the text.

Prophetic Patterns and Repeated Phrasing

The book relies on formulaic language to structure its episodes. When a king does evil, the text often states he “departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.” This refrain appears for nearly every northern ruler, creating a rhythmic judgment. Similarly, the phrase “the rest of the acts of [king], are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel/Judah?” closes many reigns, signaling a source the narrator does not reproduce. These repeated formulas give the book a liturgical quality, as if each king is measured against a fixed standard.

Vertical Movement: Falls, Ascent, and Fire

From Ahaziah’s fall to Elijah’s fiery descent, the narrative is preoccupied with verticality. Elijah sits on a hilltop when summoned; fire comes down from heaven twice. Later, Elisha inherits this pattern. The motif extends to political geography: kings go up to Samaria or down to Jerusalem. The phrase “went up” and “came down” appears dozens of times, mapping power and divine presence onto elevation. Even the leper king Azariah dwells in a “several house,” isolated, while his son judges below. This spatial language reinforces the idea that God’s authority descends from above.

Rapid Succession and Conspiracy

The middle chapters of 2 Kings accelerate into a blur of coups. Zachariah reigns six months, Shallum one month, then Menahem ten years after slaying Shallum. The text records each conspiracy with minimal detail: “conspired against him, and smote him … and reigned in his stead.” The violence is terse and repetitive. Menahem’s atrocity—ripping up pregnant women—is stated without comment. This rapid turnover contrasts with the longer reigns of Judah’s kings, creating a structural imbalance that mirrors the instability of the northern kingdom.

The Role of the Chronicler’s Formula

Each king’s account ends with a reference to “the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel” or Judah. This formula does two things: it signals that the narrator is selecting from a larger record, and it creates a sense of closure before moving to the next reign. The phrase “slept with his fathers” appears for most kings, but not for those killed in conspiracy—Shallum, for example, is simply slain. The formula thus distinguishes between natural death and violent overthrow, embedding a moral judgment in the structure itself.

Movement Between Kingdoms

The narrative alternates between Israel and Judah, often synchronizing reigns with cross-references: “In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zachariah … reign over Israel.” This dual timeline forces the reader to track two royal lines simultaneously. The text moves between Samaria and Jerusalem, between northern and southern courts, creating a geographical tension that mirrors the political division. When Assyrian kings like Pul appear, the scope widens beyond the two kingdoms, hinting at larger imperial forces pressing in from the north.

Readers approaching 2 Kings will benefit from attending to its structural cues: the repeated formulas, the vertical imagery, and the rapid shifts between kingdoms. The book does not offer continuous narrative but a series of patterned episodes. Noticing these patterns—rather than seeking a linear plot—reveals how the text uses repetition and variation to convey its theological and historical vision.

Reading 2 Kings, I kept noticing how quickly thrones turn over, how every ascent follows a fall. It left me a little breathless, the way time moves in scripture. After finishing, I found myself picking up The Bible, King James version, Book 13: 1 Chronicles — Context and Discussion, hoping for a steadier rhythm, a slower counting of days. Some stories demand that pace.