The Meaning of 2 Kings 13:19 Explained

2 Kings 13:19

KJV: And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.

YLT: And the man of God is wroth against him, and saith, 'By smiting five or six times then thou hadst smitten Aram till consuming; and now, three times thou dost smite Aram.'

Darby: And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then wouldest thou have smitten the Syrians till thou hadst consumed them; whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.

ASV: And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times: then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it, whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the man  of God  was wroth  with him, and said,  Thou shouldest have smitten  five  or six  times;  then hadst thou smitten  Syria  till thou hadst consumed  [it]: whereas now thou shalt smite  Syria  [but] thrice. 

What does 2 Kings 13:19 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Kings 13:10-25 - "the Arrow Of The Lord's Deliverance"
A good man is a great defense to his country. Mary, Queen of Scots, dreaded the prayers of Knox more than the armies of the king of France. Perhaps the king expected that Elisha also might pass home to God in a chariot of fire, as Elijah had done.
Notice how much Israel missed through the unbelief of her king. If only he had smitten five or six times, Syria would have been consumed; but he was content with striking only three times. Let us not ask small things of God, or be content with a partial deliverance. Nothing pleases Him more than to be greatly trusted. For those who ask and expect the most, He will always go beyond all that they ask or think. Strike on the ground, child of God, nor stay thy striking. Claim the absolute overthrow of the power of Satan, which antagonizes and resists the coming of the Kingdom. Claim the salvation of your fatherland from the tyranny of drink, gambling, and impurity! Open the windows heavenward and Godward strike within and shoot without. It is not enough to do either without the other. And remember that unseen hands are empowering and guiding thine! Compare Genesis 49:24.
For Review Questions, see the e-Sword Book Comments. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 13

1  Jehoahaz's wicked reign
3  Jehoahaz, oppressed by Hazael, is relieved by prayer
8  Joash succeeds him
10  His wicked reign
12  Jeroboam succeeds him
14  Elisha dying, prophesies to Joash three victories over the Syrians
20  The Moabites invading the land, Elisha's bones raise a dead man
22  Joash gets three victories over Ben-hadad

What do the individual words in 2 Kings 13:19 mean?

And was angry with him the man of God and said You should have struck five or six times then you would have struck - Syria till you had destroyed [it] but now three [only] times You will strike Syria -
וַיִּקְצֹ֨ף עָלָ֜יו אִ֣ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לְהַכּ֨וֹת חָמֵ֤שׁ אוֹ־ שֵׁשׁ֙ פְּעָמִ֔ים אָ֛ז הִכִּ֥יתָ אֶת־ אֲרָ֖ם עַד־ כַּלֵּ֑ה וְעַתָּ֕ה שָׁלֹ֥שׁ פְּעָמִ֖ים תַּכֶּ֥ה אֲרָֽם ס

וַיִּקְצֹ֨ף  And  was  angry 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָצַף  
Sense: to be displeased, be angry, fret oneself, be wroth.
עָלָ֜יו  with  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
אִ֣ישׁ  the  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
הָאֱלֹהִ֗ים  of  God 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לְהַכּ֨וֹת  You  should  have  struck 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Hifil, Infinitive construct
Root: נָכָה  
Sense: to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill.
חָמֵ֤שׁ  five 
Parse: Number, feminine singular
Root: חָמֵשׁ  
Sense: five.
שֵׁשׁ֙  six 
Parse: Number, feminine singular
Root: שֵׁשׁ  
Sense: six.
פְּעָמִ֔ים  times 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: פַּעַם  
Sense: stroke, beat, foot, step, anvil, occurrence.
הִכִּ֥יתָ  you  would  have  struck 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: נָכָה  
Sense: to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill.
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.
אֲרָ֖ם  Syria 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֲרָם 
Sense: Aram or Syria the nation.
עַד־  till 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
כַּלֵּ֑ה  you  had  destroyed  [it] 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Infinitive absolute
Root: כָּלָה  
Sense: to accomplish, cease, consume, determine, end, fail, finish, be complete, be accomplished, be ended, be at an end, be finished, be spent.
וְעַתָּ֕ה  but  now 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
שָׁלֹ֥שׁ  three 
Parse: Number, feminine singular
Root: מִשְׁלֹשׁ 
Sense: three, triad.
פְּעָמִ֖ים  [only]  times 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: פַּעַם  
Sense: stroke, beat, foot, step, anvil, occurrence.
תַּכֶּ֥ה  You  will  strike 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: נָכָה  
Sense: to strike, smite, hit, beat, slay, kill.
אֲרָֽם  Syria 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֲרָם 
Sense: Aram or Syria the nation.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation