Bible Strands
2 Kings 3:11
But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the LORD here? Let us inquire of the LORD through him.” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jehoshaphat asks the assembled kings for a prophet of Yahweh while the king of Israel despairs over their military position. A royal servant replies by identifying Elisha son of Shaphat and noting his former service to Elijah.
The words — The Hebrew נָבִיא (nāḇîʾ, prophet) and נִדְרְשָׁה (nidrəšāh, let us inquire) frame Jehoshaphat’s directive to seek Yahweh’s counsel through a designated messenger. The particle אֵין ('ên, is there not) signals an urgent search for available divine communication.
The thread — This request parallels Jehoshaphat’s earlier inquiry in 1 Kings 22:7 and anticipates Elisha’s prophetic ministry, which originated in 1 Kings 19:21. The passage also contrasts with the persistent idolatry of Israel detailed in 2 Kings 3:3.
Why it lands — The text records that military desperation drives the kings to seek a living prophet rather than relying on their own strategy. Readers must acknowledge that accessing God’s word through His appointed servants is the required response to crisis.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may enquire of the Lord by him? And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 22:7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here of whom we can inquire?”
- 1 Kings 19:21 So Elisha turned back from him, took his pair of oxen, and slaughtered them. Using the oxen’s equipment for fuel, he cooked the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow and serve Elijah.
- 2 Kings 3:3 Nevertheless, he clung to the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.
- 2 Kings 2:25 And Elisha went on to Mount Carmel, and from there he returned to Samaria.
- 1 Chronicles 14:10 So David inquired of God, “Should I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?” “Go,” replied the LORD, “for I will deliver them into your hand.”
- 1 Chronicles 14:14 So David again inquired of God, who answered him, “Do not march up after them, but circle around them and attack them in front of the balsam trees.
- 1 Chronicles 15:13 It was because you Levites were not with us the first time that the LORD our God burst forth in anger against us. For we did not consult Him about the proper order.”
- Psalms 74:9 There are no signs for us to see. There is no longer any prophet. And none of us knows how long this will last.
- Amos 3:7 Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.
- John 13:4 So He got up from the supper, laid aside His outer garments, and wrapped a towel around His waist.