The Meaning of 2 Kings 6:6 Explained

2 Kings 6:6

KJV: And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim.

YLT: And the man of God saith, 'Whither hath it fallen?' and he sheweth him the place, and he cutteth a stick, and casteth thither, and causeth the iron to swim,

Darby: And the man of God said, Where did it fall? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim.

ASV: And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the man  of God  said,  Where  fell  it? And he shewed  him the place.  And he cut down  a stick,  and cast  [it] in thither; and the iron  did swim. 

What does 2 Kings 6:6 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Kings 6:1-13 - The Servant Of The Lord Of Battles
To us, the first of these miracles may appear somewhat trivial, but we must remember the value of an iron axe-head at that time, the inconvenience and delay caused to the builders, and the slur accruing to religion if it were irreparably lost. The story shows how keen was the sympathy of the great prophet for a poor man overtaken by an ordinary trouble, and how ready Elisha was to seek the help of God to redress the mischief. See John 2:1-14. It is right to go to God about matters of this kind, as well as greater issues. What wonders faith can do! Hearts may be as heavy as lead at the bottom of the stream, but when a splinter of the Cross of Calvary is inserted, they rise to the surface and swim.
The king believed that Elisha could wield superhuman power and knowledge, yet he thought to secure him with chariots and horses. He acknowledged that Elisha was a servant of the Most High God, yet he expected to take him captive, by sending a mighty host! To such folly men descend when they begin to fight against the Most High! [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 6

1  Elisha, allowing the young prophets to enlarge dwellings, floats an axhead
8  He discloses the king of Syria's counsel
13  The army which was sent to Dothan to apprehend Elisha, is blinded
19  Being brought into Samaria, they are dismissed in peace
24  The famine in Samaria causes women to eat their own children
30  The king sends to slay Elisha

What do the individual words in 2 Kings 6:6 mean?

So said the man of God where did it fall and he showed him - the place So he cut off a stick and threw [it] in there and he made float the iron
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אִישׁ־ הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים אָ֣נָה נָפָ֑ל וַיַּרְאֵ֙הוּ֙ אֶת־ הַמָּק֔וֹם וַיִּקְצָב־ עֵץ֙ וַיַּשְׁלֶךְ־ שָׁ֔מָּה וַיָּ֖צֶף הַבַּרְזֶֽל

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר  So  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אִישׁ־  the  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים  of  God 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
אָ֣נָה  where 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: אָן  
Sense: where?, whither? (of place).
נָפָ֑ל  did  it  fall 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָפַל  
Sense: to fall, lie, be cast down, fail.
וַיַּרְאֵ֙הוּ֙  and  he  showed  him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
הַמָּק֔וֹם  the  place 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מָקֹום  
Sense: standing place, place.
וַיִּקְצָב־  So  he  cut  off 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָצַב  
Sense: (Qal) to cut off, shear.
עֵץ֙  a  stick 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֵץ  
Sense: tree, wood, timber, stock, plank, stalk, stick, gallows.
וַיַּשְׁלֶךְ־  and  threw  [it] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁלַךְ  
Sense: to throw, cast, hurl, fling.
שָׁ֔מָּה  in  there 
Parse: Adverb, third person feminine singular
Root: שָׁם  
Sense: there, thither.
וַיָּ֖צֶף  and  he  made  float 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צוּף  
Sense: to flow, overflow, flood, float.
הַבַּרְזֶֽל  the  iron 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: בַּרְזֶל  
Sense: iron.