· Translation: KJV

2 Kings 8:10Elisha said to him, "Go, tell him, 'You shall surely recover;' however Yahweh has shown me that he shall surely die."

The setting

Elisha's dwelling, ~840 BC. The prophet stands before Hazael, seeing both human hope and divine decree simultaneously...

The emotion here: profound grief carrying unbearable divine knowledge

The original word

mot yamut (מוֹת יָמוּת) — he will surely die, emphatic Hebrew construction showing absolute certainty

Why it matters

This creates the only recorded prophetic paradox — recovery is possible, but death is certain

Read with care

What most readers miss in 2 Kings 8:10

Elisha gives TWO answers — what to SAY versus what will HAPPEN

Common misconceptionPeople think Elisha is being deceptive, but he's showing the difference between human hope (recovery is medically possible) and divine sovereignty (death is decreed).

Bible Genome reading

2 Kings 8:10 — Bible Genome reading

SpeakerElisha
EraDivided Kingdom
Primary emotiongrieving
Literary typeprophecy
MarkProphecy

Emotional genome

Comfort power20%
Quotability50%
Memorability80%
Crisis relevance80%
Standalone40%
Themes:prophetic paradoxdivine knowledgemortality

In context

No verse stands alone.

Read the conversation around it.

Open 2 Kings 8

2 Kings 8:10 comes from the book of 2 Kings, written during the Divided Kingdom period. These words are attributed to Elisha. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 20% and a tone that is prophetic. It belongs to the prophecy genre of biblical literature. Key themes include prophetic paradox, divine knowledge, mortality. Notable phrases: you shall surely recover; he shall surely die. This verse contains prophecy.

Your reflection

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