The Meaning of 2 Kings 4:7 Explained

2 Kings 4:7

KJV: Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.

YLT: And she cometh and declareth to the man of God, and he saith, 'Go, sell the oil, and repay thy loan; and thou and thy sons do live of the rest.'

Darby: And she came and told the man of God; and he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons on the rest.

ASV: Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons of the rest.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then she came  and told  the man  of God.  And he said,  Go,  sell  the oil,  and pay  thy debt,  and live  thou and thy children  of the rest. 

What does 2 Kings 4:7 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Kings 4:1-7 - Every Vessel Filled
Elisha's ministry was not startling. It was redemptive and constructive. Widows came to him for help against their creditors; mothers appealed on behalf of their children; poison was rendered powerless; and loaves were multiplied. Do not judge power by the noise it makes. The dew excites less notice than a thunder-storm, but it may be more refreshing. A life filled with quiet ministry will bear comparison with one whose outbursts of passion are followed by reaction and depression. Twelve hours of daily sunshine, year in and year out, are preferable to the summer of daylight in the Arctic Circle, followed by months of midnight.
When our need is urgent, and we spread it before God, the question is never about the amount of oil, but of the empty vessels. We fear that there will not be enough oil; God is concerned lest we fail to bring sufficient vessels to hold all He wants to give. The oil was multiplied in the pouring, as the meal of the other widow was increased in the spending. God's oil will never be exhausted so long as we can receive and impart. According to our faith will it be done. It is not a question of how much God can give, but how much we can use. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Kings 4

1  Elisha multiplies the widow's oil
8  He obtains a son for the good Shunammite
18  He restores her son when dead
38  At Gilgal he heals the deadly pottage
42  He satisfies a hundred men with twenty loaves

What do the individual words in 2 Kings 4:7 mean?

And she came and told the man of God And he said go sell - the oil and pay - your debt and you - [and] your sons live on the rest -
וַתָּבֹ֗א וַתַּגֵּד֙ לְאִ֣ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לְכִי֙ מִכְרִ֣י אֶת־ הַשֶּׁ֔מֶן וְשַׁלְּמִ֖י [נשיכי] (נִשְׁיֵ֑ךְ) וְאַ֣תְּ [בניכי] (וּבָנַ֔יִךְ) תִֽחְיִ֖י בַּנּוֹתָֽר פ

וַתָּבֹ֗א  And  she  came 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
וַתַּגֵּד֙  and  told 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: נָגַד  
Sense: to be conspicuous, tell, make known.
לְאִ֣ישׁ  the  man 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים  of  God 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וַיֹּ֗אמֶר  And  he  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לְכִי֙  go 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
מִכְרִ֣י  sell 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: מָכַר  
Sense: to sell.
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.
הַשֶּׁ֔מֶן  the  oil 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: שֶׁמֶן  
Sense: fat, oil.
וְשַׁלְּמִ֖י  and  pay 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: שָׁלֵם  
Sense: .
[נשיכי]  - 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular
(נִשְׁיֵ֑ךְ)  your  debt 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular
Root: נְשִׁי  
Sense: debt.
וְאַ֣תְּ  and  you 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, second person feminine singular
Root: אַתְּ 
Sense: you (second pers.
[בניכי]  - 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person feminine singular
(וּבָנַ֔יִךְ)  [and]  your  sons 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct, second person feminine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
תִֽחְיִ֖י  live 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person feminine singular
Root: חָיָה  
Sense: to live, have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously, live for ever, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health.
בַּנּוֹתָֽר  on  the  rest 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: יָתַר  
Sense: to be left over, remain, remain over, leave.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation