2 Kings 3:16

3:16 and he said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Make many cisterns in this valley,’ ¹ 

2 Kings 7:1

7:1 Elisha replied, “Hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord says, ‘About this time tomorrow a seah ²  of finely milled flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.’”

2 Kings 9:6

9:6 So Jehu ³  got up and went inside. Then the prophet ⁴  poured the olive oil on his head and said to him, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘I have designated you as king over the Lord’s people Israel.

[3:16]  ¹ tn Heb “making this valley cisterns, cisterns.” The Hebrew noun גֵּב (gev) means “cistern” in Jer 14:3 (cf. Jer 39:10). The repetition of the noun is for emphasis. See GKC 396 §123.e. The verb (“making”) is an infinitive absolute, which has to be interpreted in light of the context. The translation above takes it in an imperatival sense. The command need not be understood as literal, but as hyperbolic. Telling them to build cisterns is a dramatic way of leading into the announcement that he would miraculously provide water in the desert. Some prefer to translate the infinitive as an imperfect with the Lord as the understood subject, “I will turn this valley [into] many pools.”

[7:1]  ² sn A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about 7 quarts.

[9:6]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the prophet) has been specified in the translation for clarity.