1 Kings 19:19–21
Elijah throws his cloak over Elisha, who leaves the oxen and follows him
Study it word by word19He went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat, who was plowing, twelve yoke of oxen were before him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed over to him and threw his cloak on him.
20He left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, “Let me kiss, please, my father and my mother, and I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go, go back, for what have I done to you?”
21He turned back from following him, and took the yoke of oxen and sacrificed it; and with the equipment of the oxen he boiled the meat, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he got up and went after Elijah and ministered to him.
In its context
17And it will be that whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu will put to death; and whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha will put to death.
18Yet I will leave in Israel seven thousand, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
…
Its words in the original
- יֵּלֶךְyelech· go, walk
Go, walk, depart; in the causative form, lead or bring.
- יִּמְצָאyimtsa· find
Find, come upon; also obtain, reach; in the passive, be found, be present.
- אֱלִישָׁעelisha· Elisha
Elisha: a name meaning "El is salvation." He is the son of Shaphat, of Abel-meholah, whom Elijah called to be prophet in his place (1 Kings 19:16-21; 2 Kings 2–13).
- בֶּןben· son
Son. In the plural it can include sons and daughters, and also grandsons and descendants. "Son of..." also says what group someone belongs to ("sons of Israel" = Israelites).
- שָׁפָטshafat· Shaphat
Shaphat, a scout from the tribe of Simeon; other men bear the same name. It means "judge."
- חֹרֵשׁchoresh· be silent; plow, engrave
Be silent, keep quiet, let something pass. The same Hebrew form also means plow, engrave, and devise or plot.
- שְׁנֵיםshenem· two
Two.
- עָשָׂרasar· -teen (ten)
Ten, in the numbers from 11 to 19 (like the "-teen" in "thirteen"); also "-teenth".
- צְמָדִיםtsemadim· pair, yoke
Pair, yoke: two animals that go together; also the land a yoke of oxen plows.
- פָנָיfanay· face, presence
Face. From there "surface" (the face of something) and "presence" (being before someone's face); with a preposition it means "before" or "in front of".
- יַּעֲבֹרyaavor· pass, cross over
Pass by, pass through, cross over; also go beyond, transgress (a command). In the causative form, make pass, bring across, take away.
- אֵלִיָּהוּeliyahu· Elijah
Elijah: a name meaning "my El is YHWH." It is the prophet from Gilead who confronted King Ahab and the worship of Baal (1 Kings 17–2 Kings 2); two other Israelites bear the same name (1 Chronicles 8:27; Ezra 10:21).
- יַּשְׁלֵךְyashlech· throw
Throw, cast, cast away.
- אַדַּרְתּadart· cloak; glory
Wide cloak, mantle; also splendor, majesty.
- יַּעֲזֹבyaazov· leave, forsake
Leave, forsake, abandon; also let go, leave behind for someone.
- בָּקָרbakar· cattle, herd
Cattle: cows, oxen, bulls; a herd.
- יָּרָץyarats· run
Run; as a noun, "runner", a guard or courier.
- יֹּאמֶרyomer· say
Say, speak. The most common verb for bringing in what someone says; sometimes "think" (say to oneself) or "command".
- אֶשְּׁקָהeshka· kiss
Kiss.
- אָבִavi· father
Father; also ancestor ("our fathers"), and the founder or head of a family or group.
- אִמִּimi· mother
Mother; also figuratively, a city as the mother of its people.
- שׁוּבshuv· return, turn back
Turn back, return. Also turn away; in the causative form, bring back, give back, answer. Figuratively, turn back to God (change course). Often adverbial: "again".
- עָשִׂיתִיasiti· do, make
Do, make, in the widest sense: build, produce, carry out, keep (a command), prepare.
- יִּקַּחyikach· take
Take: seize, take along, receive. Also "take a wife" (marry).
- יִּזְבָּחֵyizbache· sacrifice
Sacrifice: slaughter an animal to offer it to God.
- כְלִיcheli· vessel, article
Object, article: anything made to be used (vessels, jewelry, tools, weapons, baggage).
- בִּשְּׁלָbishla· ripen; boil
Cook, boil; also ripen.
- בָּשָׂרbasar· flesh
Flesh: the body, and the person as weak and mortal. "One flesh" is the union of husband and wife; "my flesh" can mean "my family". "All flesh" is every living being. In the Old Testament it does not mean something bad in itself.
- יִּתֵּןyiten· give, put, set
Give, in a very wide sense: hand over, put, place, grant, allow, make something be.
- עָםam· people
People: a human group joined by kinship, history and destiny. "My people", said by God, is Israel. Also the people as a crowd, or troops.
- יֹּאכֵלוּyochelu· eat
Eat; also consume, devour (said of fire or the sword).
- יָּקָםyakam· rise, stand, establish
Rise, stand up; also stand firm, establish or fulfill something. "Rise against" is to attack.
- יְשָׁרְתֵyesharte· serve, minister
Serve someone closely, attend to them personally; also minister in worship.