Bible Strands
2 Kings 3:20
The next morning, at the time of the morning sacrifice, water suddenly flowed from the direction of Edom and filled the land.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet Elisha delivers God’s message to the allied kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom during a military campaign against Moab. The promise occurs at dawn, coinciding with the daily morning sacrifice.
The words — The phrase וְ/הִנֵּה־ מַיִם בָּאִים (ve./hi.neh- Ma.yim ba.'Im) literally renders “and behold, waters were coming.” This construction signals an abrupt, unanticipated arrival rather than a gradual process.
The thread — The timing echoes the prescribed morning lamb offering in Exodus 29:39, while the sudden provision of water recalls the wilderness sustenance described in Psalms 78:15. These references frame the event within established patterns of divine provision and covenant rhythm.
Why it lands — The text records a physical replenishment of a scorched battlefield without explaining the mechanism, demanding recognition of divine intervention amid military desperation. It requires the reader to acknowledge that promised provision arrives precisely when human resources are exhausted.
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
And it came to pass in the morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
Cross-references
- Exodus 29:39 Offer one lamb in the morning and the other at twilight.
- 1 Kings 18:36 At the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet approached the altar and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant and have done all these things at Your command.
- Psalms 78:15 He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the seas.
- Psalms 78:20 When He struck the rock, water gushed out and torrents raged. But can He also give bread or supply His people with meat?”
- Isaiah 35:6 Then the lame will leap like a deer and the mute tongue will shout for joy. For waters will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.
- Daniel 9:21 while I was still praying, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.