Bible Strands
2 Kings 6:12
But one of his servants replied, “No one, my lord the king. For Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — An unnamed servant of the Aramean king responds to the monarch's demand for a court traitor who leaks military movements to Israel. The exchange occurs during the king's urgent interrogation after learning that Elisha has repeatedly anticipated Aramean plans.
The words — The servant uses אֱלִישָׁ֤ע ('e.li.Sha) to name the prophet and כִּֽי\־ (ki-) to introduce the causal explanation for the leak. The text states the prophet relays the king's private bedroom conversations directly to Israel's ruler.
The thread — This pattern of divine revelation overriding human secrecy runs in Daniel 2:28 and Amos 3:7. The narrative also mirrors 2 Kings 6:9, where Elisha previously warned the Israelite king against a specific Aramean route.
Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to acknowledge that human intelligence networks cannot secure information God chooses to disclose. It demands recognition that prophetic warning, not military strategy, determines the actual flow of events.
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 one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.
Cross-references
- Daniel 2:28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the latter days. Your dream and the visions that came into your mind as you lay on your bed were these:
- Amos 3:7 Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.
- 2 Kings 6:9 Then the man of God sent word to the king of Israel: “Be careful not to pass by this place, for the Arameans are going down there.”
- Ecclesiastes 10:20 Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich even in your bedroom, for a bird of the air may carry your words, and a winged creature may report your speech.
- Daniel 2:22 He reveals the deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him.
- 2 Kings 5:3 She said to her mistress, “If only my master would go to the prophet who is in Samaria, he would cure him of his leprosy.”
- 2 Kings 5:13 Naaman’s servants, however, approached him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’?”
- Psalms 139:1 For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
- Isaiah 29:15 Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the LORD. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?”
- Jeremiah 23:23 “Am I only a God nearby,” declares the LORD, “and not a God far away?”