9:1 Now Elisha the prophet summoned a member of the prophetic guild 5 and told him, “Tuck your robes into your belt, take this container 6 of olive oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.
1 tn Heb “said to him.”
2 tn Heb “an owner of hair.” This idiomatic expression indicates that Elijah was very hairy. For other examples where the idiom “owner of” is used to describe a characteristic of someone, see HALOT 143 s.v. בַּעַל. For example, an “owner of dreams” is one who frequently has dreams (Gen 37:19) and an “owner of anger” is a hot-tempered individual (Prov 22:24).
3 tn Heb “belt of skin” (i.e., one made from animal hide).
4 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 tn Heb “one of the sons of the prophets.”
6 tn Or “flask.”