OET interlinear 2 KI 4:30

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: writing-oathformula

חַי־יְהוָ֥ה וְ⁠חֵֽי־נַפְשְׁ⁠ךָ֖ אִם־אֶעֶזְבֶ֑⁠ךָּ

he/it_lived YHWH and_[by],the_life (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said mother_of of,the_lad he/it_lived YHWH and_[by],the_life your_self_of,your if I,will_leave_you and=he/it_rose_up and=he/it_went after,her )

Following the custom of her culture, the woman is swearing an oath by guaranteeing it by something that she holds sacred and by stating the first part of a condition (“if”) but not the second part (“then”). Use a natural way in your language to express an oath. In a context such as this, it may be natural to express just the first part of the condition as a negative statement. Alternate translation: [I swear by Yahweh and by the life of your soul that I will not leave you]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche

וְ⁠חֵֽי־נַפְשְׁ⁠ךָ֖

and_[by],the_life (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said mother_of of,the_lad he/it_lived YHWH and_[by],the_life your_self_of,your if I,will_leave_you and=he/it_rose_up and=he/it_went after,her )

The woman is using one part of Elisha, his soul, to mean all of him in the act of being alive. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [and your life]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

אִם־אֶעֶזְבֶ֑⁠ךָּ

if (Some words not found in UHB: and=she/it_said mother_of of,the_lad he/it_lived YHWH and_[by],the_life your_self_of,your if I,will_leave_you and=he/it_rose_up and=he/it_went after,her )

The woman is not saying that she will not leave Mount Carmel. She means that when she goes back to her home, she will not leave Elisha behind. In other words, she is insisting that he come with her. You could indicate this explicitly in your translation if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [if I should leave here without you] or [that I will not leave here without you]