Lectionary Calendar
Friday, August 29th, 2025
the Week of Proper 16 / Ordinary 21
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Read the Bible

New Revised Standard

2 Kings 3:14

Elisha said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, whom I serve, were it not that I have regard for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I would give you neither a look nor a glance.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Armies;   Moabites;   Reproof;   Thompson Chain Reference - Courage;   Courage-Fear;   Courageous Reformers;   Jehoshaphat;   Leaders;   Reformers, Courageous;   Religious;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Mesha;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Elisha;   Moab;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Prophet, Prophetess, Prophecy;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Elisha;   Jehoram;   Jehoshaphat;   Moabite Stone;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Dibon;   Elisha;   Jehoram;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Elisha;   Kings, 1 and 2;   Kir-Hareseth;   Mesha;   Oracles;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Edom, Edomites;   Jehoshaphat;   Medeba;   Mesha;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Joram, Jehoram;   Mesha ;   Moab, Moabites ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Kirharaseth;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Armor;   Arms;   Jehoshaphat;   Mesha;   Moab;   Samaria;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Eli'sha;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Urim and Thummim;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Kingdom of Israel;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Elisha;   Prophecy;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Anger;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Elisha responded, “By the life of the Lord of Armies, before whom I stand: If I did not have respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I wouldn’t look at you; I would not take notice of you.
Hebrew Names Version
Elisha said, As the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Yehoshafat the king of Yehudah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.
King James Version
And Elisha said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
English Standard Version
And Elisha said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I have regard for Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you nor see you.
New Century Version
Elisha said, "As surely as the Lord All-Powerful lives, whom I serve, I tell you the truth. I wouldn't even look at you or notice you if Jehoshaphat king of Judah were not here. I respect him.
New English Translation
Elisha said, "As certainly as the Lord who rules over all lives (whom I serve), if I did not respect King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I would not pay attention to you or acknowledge you.
Amplified Bible
Elisha said, "As the LORD of hosts (armies) lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I have regard for Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you nor see you [king of Israel].
New American Standard Bible
Elisha said, "As surely as the LORD of armies lives, before whom I stand, if I did not respect Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look at you nor see you.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then Elisha said, As the Lord of hostes liueth, in whose sight I stande, if it were not, that I regarde the presence of Iehoshaphat the King of Iudah, I woulde not haue looked towarde thee, nor seene thee.
Legacy Standard Bible
And Elisha said, "As Yahweh of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look at you nor see you.
Contemporary English Version
Elisha said to him, "I serve the Lord All-Powerful, and as surely as he lives, I swear I wouldn't even look at you if I didn't respect King Jehoshaphat."
Complete Jewish Bible
Elisha said, "As Adonai -Tzva'ot lives, before whom I stand, if I didn't respect the fact that Y'hoshafat the king of Y'hudah is here, I wouldn't even look in your direction or take notice of you.
Darby Translation
And Elisha said, As Jehovah of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee nor see thee.
Easy-to-Read Version
Elisha said, "I respect King Jehoshaphat of Judah, and I serve the Lord All-Powerful. As surely as he lives, I came here only because of Jehoshaphat. I tell you the truth, if he were not here, I would not pay any attention to you. I would ignore you completely.
George Lamsa Translation
And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you nor see you.
Good News Translation
Elisha answered, "By the living Lord , whom I serve, I swear that I would have nothing to do with you if I didn't respect your ally, King Jehoshaphat of Judah.
Lexham English Bible
Then Elisha said, "As Yahweh of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely if I was not regarding the face of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would have not looked at you nor even glanced at you.
Literal Translation
And Elisha said, As Jehovah of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, if I did not regard the face of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah I would not look toward you, nor see you.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Eliseus sayde: As truly as the LORDE Zebaoth lyueth, before whom I stode, yf I regarded not Iosaphat the kynge of Iuda, I wolde not regarde the, ner set oughte by ye.
American Standard Version
And Elisha said, As Jehovah of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
Bible in Basic English
Then Elisha said, By the life of the Lord of armies whose servant I am, if it was not for the respect I have for Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, I would not give a look at you, or see you.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Elias saide: As the Lorde of hoastes liueth, in whose sight I stande, and it were not that I regarde the presence of Iehosaphat the king of Iuda, I would not loke towarde thee, nor yet see thee.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Elisha said: 'As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
King James Version (1611)
And Elisha said, As the Lord of hostes liueth, before whom I stand, Surely were it not that I regard the presence of Iehoshaphat the King of Iudah, I would not looke toward thee, nor see thee.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Elisaie said, As the Lord of hosts before whom I stand lives, unless I regarded the presence of Josaphat the king of Juda, I would not have looked on thee, nor seen thee.
English Revised Version
And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
Berean Standard Bible
Then Elisha said, "As surely as the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not for my regard for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you or acknowledge you.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Elisee seide to hym, The Lord of oostis lyueth, in whos siyt Y stonde, if Y were not aschamed of the cheer of Josephat, king of Juda, treuli Y hadde not perseyued, nethir Y hadde biholde thee.
Young's Literal Translation
And Elisha saith, `Jehovah of Hosts liveth, before whom I have stood; for unless the face of Jehoshaphat king of Judah I am lifting up, I do not look unto thee, nor see thee;
Update Bible Version
And Elisha said, As Yahweh of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.
Webster's Bible Translation
And Elisha said, [As] the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look towards thee, nor see thee.
World English Bible
Elisha said, As Yahweh of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.
New King James Version
And Elisha said, "As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you, nor see you.
New Living Translation
Elisha replied, "As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, I wouldn't even bother with you except for my respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah.
New Life Bible
Elisha said, "As the Lord of all lives, before Whom I stand, if I did not care for Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look at you or see you.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then said Elisha - By the life of Yahweh of hosts, before whom I stand, were it not that, the countenance of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would lift up, I would neither look at thee, nor see thee.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And Eliseus said to him: As the Lord of hosts liveth, in whose sight I stand, if I did not reverence the face of Josaphat, king of Juda, I would not have hearkened to thee, nor looked on thee.
Revised Standard Version
And Eli'sha said, "As the LORD of hosts lives, whom I serve, were it not that I have regard for Jehosh'aphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you, nor see you.
THE MESSAGE
Elisha said, "As God -of-the-Angel-Armies lives, and before whom I stand ready to serve, if it weren't for the respect I have for Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I wouldn't give you the time of day. But considering—bring me a minstrel." (When a minstrel played, the power of God came on Elisha.)
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Elisha said, "As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look at you nor see you.

Contextual Overview

6 So King Jehoram marched out of Samaria at that time and mustered all Israel. 7 As he went he sent word to King Jehoshaphat of Judah, "The king of Moab has rebelled against me; will you go with me to battle against Moab?" He answered, "I will; I am with you, my people are your people, my horses are your horses." 8 Then he asked, "By which way shall we march?" Jehoram answered, "By the way of the wilderness of Edom." 9 So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom set out; and when they had made a roundabout march of seven days, there was no water for the army or for the animals that were with them. 10 Then the king of Israel said, "Alas! The Lord has summoned us, three kings, only to be handed over to Moab." 11 But Jehoshaphat said, "Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord ?" Then one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, "Elisha son of Shaphat, who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah, is here." 12 Jehoshaphat said, "The word of the Lord is with him." So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. 13 Elisha said to the king of Israel, "What have I to do with you? Go to your father's prophets or to your mother's." But the king of Israel said to him, "No; it is the Lord who has summoned us, three kings, only to be handed over to Moab." 14 Elisha said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, whom I serve, were it not that I have regard for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I would give you neither a look nor a glance. 15 But get me a musician." And then, while the musician was playing, the power of the Lord came on him.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

As the Lord: 2 Kings 5:16, 1 Kings 17:1, 1 Kings 18:15

I regard: 2 Chronicles 17:3-9, 2 Chronicles 19:3, 2 Chronicles 19:4, Psalms 15:4

I would not look: 1 Samuel 15:26-31, 1 Kings 14:5-18, 1 Kings 21:20, Jeremiah 1:18, Daniel 5:17-23, Matthew 22:16

Reciprocal: 2 Kings 8:4 - all the great Proverbs 28:4 - but Ezekiel 20:31 - and shall

Cross-References

Genesis 3:1
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
Genesis 3:15
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel."
Genesis 3:20
The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Genesis 9:6
Whoever sheds the blood of a human, by a human shall that person's blood be shed; for in his own image God made humankind.
Leviticus 20:25
You shall therefore make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean; you shall not bring abomination on yourselves by animal or by bird or by anything with which the ground teems, which I have set apart for you to hold unclean.
Psalms 72:9
May his foes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust.
Isaiah 29:4
Then deep from the earth you shall speak, from low in the dust your words shall come; your voice shall come from the ground like the voice of a ghost, and your speech shall whisper out of the dust.
Isaiah 65:25
The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox; but the serpent—its food shall be dust! They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, says the Lord .
Micah 7:17
they shall lick dust like a snake, like the crawling things of the earth; they shall come trembling out of their fortresses; they shall turn in dread to the Lord our God, and they shall stand in fear of you.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Elisha said, as the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand,.... Whose minster and prophet he was, to whom he prayed, and whose service he was ready to perform:

surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah; revere him not only as a king, but as a pious prince, and a worshipper of the true God:

I would not look toward thee, nor see thee; give him no countenance at all, pay no regard to his request, not so much as to look at him in a civil way; but turn away his face from him with contempt and disdain, as unworthy to be conversed with by a prophet of the Lord.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Kings 3:14. Were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat — He worshipped the true God; Jehoram was an idolater.


 
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