What Does 2 Kings 5:4 Mean in the King James?
And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.
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 voice with the least standing supplies knowledge that reaches the person with power to act.
THE MEANING
A voice with little authority can carry the knowledge that matters. The maid’s words pass through a messenger and reach her lord; the truth moves through people rather than arriving from the top down. The verse keeps the source of that knowledge visible as it travels.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the assumption that valuable knowledge only comes from those in command: here, a maid’s words reach power.
THE ROOT
וַיַּגֵּד
wayyaggēd
GROWS FROM
נגד
To make conspicuous or bring something forward; to declare or report.
“told” in this verse is wayyaggēd. The verb וַיַּגֵּד (wayyaggēd, “he reported”) carries the sense of making something stand out before another. The maid’s knowledge is no longer hidden in her words: it is brought into her lord’s hearing, where it can matter.
ALSO GROWS
neged: In front of; opposite
נֶגֶד
The report brings the maid’s words in front of the person who hears them.
maggid: One who declares or reports
מַגִּיד
This related form names the person who carries knowledge into the open, as the messenger does here.
nagid: Leader or ruler
נָגִיד
This related form can name a person set before others; here the declaration reaches the lord positioned to act.
THE PATTERN
A truth becomes visible through its declaration, and the messenger’s rank does not determine its reach.
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.For we can not but speak the things which we have seen and heard.THE THREAD
And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.Both verses use וַיַּגֵּד (wayyaggēd, “he reported or declared”), from the root נגד. In each, knowledge travels from a less powerful speaker to a lord; Samuel’s report is explicitly complete, while this verse shows the maid’s words reaching her lord.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us