2 Kings 2:18 (YLT)

Passage

and they turn back unto him--and he is abiding in Jericho--and he saith unto them, `Did I not say unto you, Do not go?'

Nearby Context

2 Kings 2:16 and say unto him, `Lo, we pray thee, there are with thy servants fifty men, sons of valour: let them go, we pray thee, and they seek thy lord, lest the Spirit of Jehovah hath taken him up, and doth cast him on one of the hills, or into one of the valleys;' and he saith, `Ye do not send.'

2 Kings 2:17 And they press upon him, till he is ashamed, and he saith, `Send ye;' and they send fifty men, and they seek three days, and have not found him;

2 Kings 2:18 and they turn back unto him--and he is abiding in Jericho--and he saith unto them, `Did I not say unto you, Do not go?'

2 Kings 2:19 And the men of the city say unto Elisha, `Lo, we pray thee, the site of the city <FI>is<Fi> good, as my lord seeth, and the waters <FI>are<Fi> bad, and the earth sterile.'

2 Kings 2:20 And he saith, `Bring to me a new dish, and place there salt;' and they bring <FI>it<Fi> unto him,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "turn", "back", "him--and", "abiding", "jericho--and", and "saith". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "turn" and "back", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "And they press upon him till he..." into verse 19's "And the men of the city say...", so "turn" and "back" 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 "turn" and "back" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.