What Does 2 Kings 2:3 Mean in the King James?
And the sons of the prophets that were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The Hebrew verb behind “take away” means “take” or “receive,” and it returns when Elijah is “taken” from Elisha, so departure is voiced as an action still unfolding.
THE MEANING
A guiding presence can be known as near to leaving before it is gone. You can name that knowing without making the departure unreal; the reply holds recognition beside silence.
THE ROOT
לֹקֵחַ
lōqēaḥ
GROWS FROM
ל־ק־ח
l-q-ḥ
to take, receive, or fetch
“take away” in this verse is lōqēaḥ. The verb itself carries taking and receiving; the sense of removal comes from the surrounding phrase, “from above your head.” The same root names the departure again when Elijah is taken from Elisha.
ALSO GROWS
lāqaḥ: to take, receive, or fetch
לָקַח
This is the base verb behind לֹקֵחַ, keeping the sense of receiving in view alongside the force of removal.
leqaḥ: instruction or learning
לֶקַח
This word for what is received as teaching echoes the sons of the prophets who speak to Elisha about the departure.
הֲיָדַעְתָּ
ha-yādaʿta
GROWS FROM
י־ד־ע
y-d-ʿ
to know, recognize, or perceive; knowing by encounter
“knowest thou / I know it” in this verse is ha-yādaʿta. The question and answer repeat the same root: the warning meets knowledge Elisha already has. The repetition makes the reply recognition, not the arrival of a new report.
ALSO GROWS
yādaʿ: to know, recognize, or perceive
יָדַע
The root appears in both the question to Elisha and his answer, linking their knowledge of the departure.
daʿat: knowledge or understanding
דַּעַת
This noun from the same root shows the wider field of knowing held in the repeated phrase.
הֶחֱשׁוּ
heḥĕšû
GROWS FROM
ח־שׁ־ה
ḥ-š-h
to be silent or keep quiet
“hold your peace” in this verse is heḥĕšû. Elisha’s words call for silence without denying the announced departure. Elsewhere this root also names chosen silence, so the verse lets knowledge stand while further words stop.
ALSO GROWS
ʾeḥĕšeh: I will be silent or hold my peace
אֶחֱשֶׁה
Isaiah 62:1 uses this form for a chosen silence, echoing Elisha’s request that speech cease.
heḥĕšîtî: I kept silent or held my peace
הֶחֱשֵׁיתִי
Psalm 39:2 uses this form for holding peace, showing the same root’s connection to silence in the face of what is felt.
THE PATTERN
A departure may be described as being taken or received, holding loss and movement together in the same words.
And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.THE THREAD
And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.The verb translated “take away” in this verse is repeated in “when I am taken from thee.” The next scene makes seeing that taking part of the sign Elisha is given.
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