2map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
3tnHeb “the sons of the prophets.”
4tnHeb “from your head.” The same expression occurs in v. 5.
5map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.
6tnHeb “the two of them.” The referents (Elijah and Elisha) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
7tnHeb “Ask! What can I do for you….?”
8tnHeb “May a double portion of your spirit come to me.”
9tnHeb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10tnHeb “You have made difficult [your] request.”
11tn Though the noun is singular here, it may be collective, in which case it could be translated “chariots.”
12tnHeb “look, a chariot of fire and horses of fire.”
13tnHeb “and they made a division between the two of them.”
14sn Elisha may be referring to the fiery chariot(s) and horses as the Lord’s spiritual army that fights on behalf of Israel (see 2 Kgs 6:15-17; 7:6). However, the juxtaposition with “my father” (clearly a reference to Elijah as Elisha’s mentor), and the parallel in 2 Kgs 13:14 (where the king addresses Elisha with these words), suggest that Elisha is referring to Elijah. In this case Elijah is viewed as a one man army, as it were. When the Lord spoke through him, his prophetic word was as powerful as an army of chariots and horses. See M. A. Beek, “The Meaning of the Expression ‘The Chariots and Horsemen of Israel’ (II Kings ii 12),” The Witness of Tradition (OTS 17), 1-10.
15tnHeb “Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen off him.” The wording is changed slightly in the translation for the sake of variety of expression (see v. 13).
16map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.
17tnHeb “and the sons of the prophets who were in Jericho, [who were standing] opposite, saw him and said.”
18tnHeb “the spirit of Elijah.”
19tn Or “the spirit of the Lord.”
20tnHeb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
21tnHeb “him”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
22tnHeb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
23tnHeb “my.”
24tnHeb “miscarries” or “is barren.”
25tnHeb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
26tn Or “healed.”
27tnHeb “there will no longer be from there death and miscarriage [or, ‘barrenness’].”
28tnHeb “according to the word of Elisha which he spoke.”
29map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
30tn The word נַעַר (na’ar), here translated “boy,” can refer to a broad age range, including infants as well as young men. But the qualifying term “young” (or “small”) suggests these youths were relatively young. The phrase in question (“young boy”) occurs elsewhere in 1 Sam 20:35; 1 Kgs 3:7 (used by Solomon in an hyperbolic manner); 11:17; 2 Kgs 5:14; and Isa 11:6.
31tnHeb “he cursed them in the name of the Lord.” A curse was a formal appeal to a higher authority (here the Lord) to vindicate one’s cause through judgment. As in chapter one, this account makes it clear that disrespect for the Lord’s designated spokesmen can be deadly, for it is ultimately rejection of the Lord’s authority.
32sn The two brief episodes recorded in vv. 19-25 demonstrate Elisha’s authority and prove that he is the legitimate prophetic heir of Elijah. He has the capacity to bring life and blessing to those who recognize his authority, or death and judgment to those who reject him.
map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.