(The previous post covered Elijah being taken to heaven alive, Elisha's continuation in Elijah's place, and Moab being defeated by Israel, Judah, and Edom working together.)
2 Kings 4
(This chapter continued the work of Elisha.)
1 Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear Jehovah: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two children to be bondmen.
(A woman, who was in danger of losing her two children to a creditor, went to Elisha for help.)
2 And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me; what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid hath not anything in the house, save a pot of oil.
3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
(The woman gathered oil vessels from her neighbors. Elisha warned her not to limit herself.)
4 And thou shalt go in, and shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and pour out into all those vessels; and thou shalt set aside that which is full.
5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons; they brought the vessels to her, and she poured out.
(Her sons brought jars of oil from the pot of oil she had.)
6 And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.
(The amount of oil from the one pot of oil was enough to fill all the vessels.)
7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons of the rest.
(The woman had enough oil to sell it and pay off her debt. This was similar to Jesus telling Peter to pay their temple tax by fishing as recorded at the end of Matthew 17. This was also similar to 1 Kings 17:14 when Elijah said the widow woman's cruse of oil would continually refill. Remember, Elisha had the same type of power of God as Elijah.)
8 And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.
9 And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, that passeth by us continually.
10 Let us make, I pray thee, a little chamber on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a seat, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.
(The rich woman requested from her husband to make a place for Elisha to stay. "Seat" in this passage referred to a throne. This woman was well to do and spared no expense for Elisha.)
11 And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber and lay there.
12 And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.
13 And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people.
14 And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no son, and her husband is old.
(Elisha wanted to find out how to pay her back for giving him luxurious lodging. She stated she did not want anything. Gehazi came up with the idea for her to have a son.)
15 And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.
16 And he said, At this season, when the time cometh round, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thy handmaid.
(Elisha told her she would have a son. She was in disbelief because she did not think she was able to have a child.)
17 And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season, when the time came round, as Elisha had said unto her.
18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.
19 And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to his servant, Carry him to his mother.
20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.
(The woman had a son and many years later her son suffered an accident and died.)
21 And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.
22 And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the servants, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
23 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to-day? it is neither new moon nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.
24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slacken me not the riding, except I bid thee.
(Rich women did not walk, they rode. She asked her husband if she could go to Elisha.)
25 So she went, and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is the Shunammite:
26 run, I pray thee, now to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.
(She said to Gehazi it was well with her, including her son. Did she have faith that it would be well? She kept riding to Elisha.)
27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came near to thrust her away; but the man of God said, Let her alone: for her soul is vexed within her; and Jehovah hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.
28 Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?
29 Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thy hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.
(God hid the matter from Elisha. Notice, it was possible for an anointed man of God to not know everything because God hid it from him. However, Elisha figured out the problem (or had it revealed to him by God) once the woman spoke.)
30 And the mother of the child said, As Jehovah liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.
31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he returned to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.
32 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.
(Gehazi was unable to bring the son back to life. Elisha needed to do it. Was this because the woman only had faith for Elisha to bring her son back to life?)
33 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto Jehovah.
34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon him; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.
35 Then he returned, and walked in the house once to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
36 And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.
37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground; and she took up her son, and went out.
(Elisha prayed and laid, mouth to mouth, upon the child. The child sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. The child could not express a will or faith, the mother had to express it for him. In the Bible, healings occurred according to the faith of the healer and the one being healed. In this case, the mother's will and faith took the place of the son's will and faith. This also occurred when Jesus brought children back to life.)
38 And Elisha came again to Gilgal. And there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
(There was "dearth" in the land. Dearth meant "famine, hunger." Elisha was now in charge of the school of the prophets.)
39 And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage; for they knew them not.
40 So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.
(Someone prepared a meal for the families at the school of the prophets and it was poisonous.)
41 But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.
(Elisha made the food safe to eat similar to how Moses made the water at Marah safe to drink by putting a tree in the water: Exodus 15:22-25.)
42 And there came a man from Baal-shalishah, and brought the man of God bread of the first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.
43 And his servant said, What, should I set this before a hundred men? But he said, Give the people, that they may eat; for thus saith Jehovah, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.
44 So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of Jehovah.
(Elisha miraculously fed 100 men, similar to Jesus.)
2 Kings 5
(Luke 4:27 stated that Jesus referenced the story in this chapter in support for His explanation that miracles happened to people who were unfamiliar with God's representative.)
1 Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honorable, because by him Jehovah had given victory unto Syria: he was also a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.
(Naaman, the captain of Syria’s army, was a leper. He was a Benjamite and honorable. He had Justice for him.)
2 And the Syrians had gone out in bands, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maiden; and she waited on Naaman's wife.
3 And she said unto her mistress, Would that my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! then would he recover him of his leprosy.
(This young girl spoke up. She knew that the prophet Elisha could heal her master.)
4 And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maiden that is of the land of Israel.
5 And the king of Syria said, Go now, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, And now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.
(Naaman had a letter sent to the king of Israel concerning Elisha. In the previous chapter we saw several miracles Elisha had performed. His fame had spread.)
7 And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? but consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.
(The king of Israel, Jehoram (Joram), thought the letter was Naaman’s attempt to start a fight. Elisha heard about the king’s response and went to check out why. Notice, Elisha did not state "I am a prophet." Instead, he passively stated that Naaman would know there was a prophet in Israel.)
9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariots, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
(Elisha sent Naaman to the Jordan to wash seven times so he would be clean.)
11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of Jehovah his God, and wave his hand over the place, and recover the leper.
12 Are not Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.
(Naaman had an expectation for how a prophet would act. When this expectation was not met, Naaman became angry.)
13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?
14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
(Naaman was humble enough to listen to his servants. Consequently, Naaman was healed like Elisha had said.)
15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him; and he said, Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a present of thy servant.
16 But he said, As Jehovah liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused.
(Naaman was grateful and wanted to give Elisha a gift but Elisha refused. A prophet did not personally benefit from their gift. The prophet's gift was for the benefit of others.)
17 And Naaman said, If not, yet, I pray thee, let there be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth; for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt-offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto Jehovah.
18 In this thing Jehovah pardon thy servant: when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, Jehovah pardon thy servant in this thing.
19 And he said unto him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way.
(Naaman stated he would only sacrifice to God, and then Naaman asked that God pardon Naaman when he went into the house of a god named Rimmon. Elisha told Naaman God would pardon his going into the house of Rimmon. Remember, Naaman was a foreigner.)
20 But Gehazi the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared this Naaman the Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: as Jehovah liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.
21 So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw one running after him, he alighted from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well?
22 And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there are come to me from the hill-country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets; give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of raiment.
(Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, lied to Naaman. Gehazi wanted to personally benefit from what God did for Naaman through Elisha. Naaman was only willing to pay Elisha.)
23 And Naaman said, Be pleased to take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of raiment, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him.
24 And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house; and he let the men go, and they departed.
(Gehazi got the gifts and hid them.)
25 But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither.
(Gehazi lied to Elisha.)
26 And he said unto him, Went not my heart with thee, when the man turned from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and oxen, and men-servants and maid-servants?
27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.
(Elisha stated his heart went with Gehazi. Gehazi received Naaman's leprosy because Gehazi got Naaman's gifts. This was Just.)
2 Kings 6
(More about Elisha...)
1 And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us.
(The word strait meant "narrow; small.")
2 Let us go, we pray thee, unto the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye.
3 And one said, Be pleased, I pray thee, to go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go.
4 So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood.
5 But as one was felling a beam, the axe-head fell into the water; and he cried, and said, Alas, my master! for it was borrowed.
(The school of the prophets was getting overcrowded, so a building program was proposed. Elisha agreed. As the men were cutting down wood, the axe-head fell into the water. The man who dropped it was panicked because it was a borrowed axe. He did not want to owe.)
6 And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim.
7 And he said, Take it up to thee. So he put out his hand, and took it.
(Elisha caused iron to swim. Some people have said that Elisha used the stick to place it in the hole of the axe-head. The chances of this happening were slim to none especially since the Jordan at Jericho was very deep and rapid. This could only have happened by God’s power through Elisha. Was this similar to Matthew 14 when Jesus walked on water?)
8 Now the king of Syria was warring against Israel; and he took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp.
9 And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are coming down.
10 And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of; and he saved himself there, not once nor twice.
11 And the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?
12 And one of his servants said, Nay, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.
(Sometime later, Naaman wanted to war with Israel, but Elisha had three times divulged Naaman's plans to the king of Israel.)
13 And he said, Go and see where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.
(Naaman found out Elisha was in Dothan. Dothan was twelve miles north of Samaria.)
14 Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
15 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, a host with horses and chariots was round about the city. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?
16 And he answered, Fear not; for they that are with us are more than they that are with them.
17 And Elisha prayed, and said, Jehovah, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And Jehovah opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
(Elisha prayed for the young man’s eyes to be opened. His eyes were opened spiritually. He saw the guard of angels that encompass and defend us: Psalm 34:7 - "The angel of Jehovah encampeth round about them that fear him, And delivereth them.")
18 And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto Jehovah, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.
19 And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. And he led them to Samaria.
20 And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, Jehovah, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And Jehovah opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria.
(The men who were blinded received back their sight when they entered into Samaria. Remember in Genesis 19:11, the angels that visited Lot smote the men with blindness.)
21 And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them?
22 And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.
(Elisha led the King of Israel to caring for his prisoners of war.)
23 And he prepared great provision for them; and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.
24 And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria.
25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver.
(The siege lasted so long that a donkey’s head sold for eighty pieces of silver, and a cup of dove’s dung sold for five pieces of silver.)
26 And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.
27 And he said, If Jehovah do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the threshing-floor, or out of the winepress?
(The king of Israel was no help to the people. He recognized that if God did not help them, how could he?)
28 And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow.
29 So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him; and she hath hid her son.
(This was a curse presented in the Law: Leviticus 26:29 and Deuteronomy 28:53-57.)
30 And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes (now he was passing by upon the wall); and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh.
31 Then he said, God do so to me, and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.
(The king was upset with Elisha. He blamed Elisha for the famine.)
32 But Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away my head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold the door fast against him: is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?
33 And while he was yet talking with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of Jehovah; why should I wait for Jehovah any longer?
(Elisha prevented the king's assassin from killing Elisha. Now the king was blaming God for the evil that happened to him.)
(This post covered a series of signs and wonders that caused Elisha's fame and power to grow, as well as the healing of Naaman.)
Day 105
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