2 Kings 8:8-9

8:8 So the king told Hazael, “Take a gift ¹  and go visit the prophet. Request from him an oracle from the Lord. Ask him, ²  ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’” 8:9 So Hazael went to visit Elisha. ³  He took along a gift, ⁴  as well as ⁵  forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus. When he arrived, he stood before him and said, “Your son, ⁶  King Ben Hadad of Syria, has sent me to you with this question, ⁷  ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’”

¹ tn The Hebrew text also has “in your hand.”

² tn Heb “Inquire of the Lord through him, saying.”

³ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn The Hebrew text also has “in his hand.”

⁵ tn Heb “and.” It is possible that the conjunction is here explanatory, equivalent to English “that is.” In this case the forty camel loads constitute the “gift” and one should translate, “He took along a gift, consisting of forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus.”

⁶ sn The words “your son” emphasize the king’s respect for the prophet.

⁷ tn Heb “saying.”