2 Kings 3:11
“But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Jehoshaphat asked whether any servant of the Lord was among them, and was told that Elisha, Elijah's successor, was with the army.
Context
Prophets were consulted in crisis; Jehoshaphat's piety and wisdom show in his instinct to seek God's word rather than trust human strategy alone.
What Does 2 Kings 3:11 Mean?
But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah, in the midst of despair, one king turns to hope. Jehoshaphat remembers that there is another resource, deeper than water or strategy. One of Jehoram's own servants knows: Elisha is here, the one who served Elijah, who poured water on his hands, a mark of discipleship and proximity to the holy.
Grace often moves through ordinary people who remember the extraordinary. A servant speaks; a name is invoked; the tone shifts from hopelessness to possibility.
Application
In crisis, we are wise to seek counsel not from those who speak our fears but from those who know God's nature and ways.