2 Kings 2:17 (GNV)

Passage

Yet they were instant vpon him, til he was ashamed: wherefore he saide, Sende. So they sent fiftie men, which sought three dayes, but founde him not.

Nearby Context

2 Kings 2:15 And when the children of the Prophets, which were at Iericho, saw him on the other side, they sayde, The Spirite of Eliiah doeth rest on Elisha: and they came to meete him, and fell to the grounde before him,

2 Kings 2:16 And said vnto him, Beholde nowe, there be with thy seruants fiftie strong men: let them go, we pray thee, and seeke thy master, if so be the Spirite of the Lord hath taken him vp, and cast him vpon some mountaine, or into some valley. But he said, Ye shall not sende.

2 Kings 2:17 Yet they were instant vpon him, til he was ashamed: wherefore he saide, Sende. So they sent fiftie men, which sought three dayes, but founde him not.

2 Kings 2:18 Therefore they returned to him, (for he taryed at Iericho) and he said vnto them, Did not I say vnto you, Goe not?

2 Kings 2:19 And the men of the citie saide vnto Elisha, Beholde, we pray thee: the situation of this citie is pleasant, as thou, my lorde, seest, but the water is naught, and the ground baren.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "instant", "vpon", "ashamed", "wherefore", "saide", "sende", "sent", and "fiftie". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "instant" and "vpon", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "And said vnto him Beholde nowe there..." into verse 18's "Therefore they returned to him for he...", so "instant" and "vpon" 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 "instant" and "vpon" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.