2 Kings 2:21 (ASV)

Passage

And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast salt therein, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or miscarrying.

Nearby Context

2 Kings 2:19 And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, we pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is bad, and the land miscarrieth.

2 Kings 2:20 And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.

2 Kings 2:21 And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast salt therein, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or miscarrying.

2 Kings 2:22 So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spake.

2 Kings 2:23 And he went up from thence unto Beth-el; and as he was going up by the way, there came forth young lads out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou baldhead; go up, thou baldhead.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "healed", "went", "forth", "spring", "waters", "cast", "salt", and "therein". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "healed" and "went", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "And he said Bring me a new..." into verse 22's "So the waters were healed unto this...", so "healed" and "went" belong inside that flow. In 2 Kings context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "healed" and "went" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.