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 the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.
1. there cried a certain woman of
the wives of the sons of the prophets—They were allowed to
marry as well as the priests and Levites. Her husband, not enjoying
the lucrative profits of business, had nothing but a professional
income, which, in that irreligious age, would be precarious and very
scanty, so that he was not in a condition to provide for his family.
the creditor is come to take
unto him my two sons to be bondmen—By the enactment of the law,
a creditor was entitled to claim the person and children of the
insolvent debtor, and compel them to serve him as bondmen till the
year of jubilee should set them free.
And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.
2-4. a pot—or cruet of oil.
This comprising her whole stock of domestic utensils, he directs her
to borrow empty vessels not a few; then, secluding herself with her
children, [the widow] was to pour oil from her cruse into the
borrowed vessels, and, selling the oil, discharge the debt, and then
maintain herself and family with the remainder.
Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.
So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.
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.
6. the oil stayed—that is,
ceased to multiply; the benevolent object for which the miracle had
been wrought having been accomplished.
. PROMISES A SON
TO THE SHUNAMMITE.
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 children of the rest.
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.
8. Elisha passed to Shunem—now
Sulam, in the plain of Esdraelon, at the southwestern base of Little
Hermon. The prophet, in his journey, was often entertained here by
one of its pious and opulent inhabitants.
And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.
Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.
10. Let us make a little chamber—not
build, but prepare it. She meant a room in the oleah, the
porch, or gateway (2 Samuel 18:33;
1 Kings 17:19), attached to the front
of the house, leading into the court and inner apartments. The front
of the house, excepting the door, is a dead wall, and hence this room
is called a chamber in the wall. It is usually appropriated to the
use of strangers, or lodgers for a night, and, from its seclusion,
convenient for study or retirement.
And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.
And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.
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.
13-16. what is to be done for
thee?—Wishing to testify his gratitude for the hospitable
attentions of this family, he announced to her the birth of a son
"about this time next year." The interest and importance of
such an intelligence can only be estimated by considering that
Oriental women, and Jewish in particular, connect ideas of disgrace
with barrenness, and cherish a more ardent desire for children than
women in any other part of the world ().
. RAISES HER
DEAD SON.
And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old.
And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.
And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.
And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.
And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.
And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.
19. My head, my head!—The
cries of the boy, the part affected, and the season of the year, make
it probable that he had been overtaken by a stroke of the sun. Pain,
stupor, and inflammatory fever are the symptoms of the disease, which
is often fatal.
And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.
And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.
And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
22. she called unto her husband—Her
heroic concealment of the death from her husband is not the least
interesting feature of the story.
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.
Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.
24. Drive, and go forward—It
is usual for women to ride on asses, accompanied by a servant, who
walks behind and drives the beast with his stick, goading the animal
at the speed required by his mistress. The Shunammite had to ride a
journey of five or six hours to the top of Carmel.
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 that Shunammite:
Run now, I pray thee, 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.
26-28. And she answered, It is
well—Her answer was purposely brief and vague to Gehazi, for
she reserved a full disclosure of her loss for the ear of the prophet
himself. She had met Gehazi at the foot of the hill, and she stopped
not in her ascent till she had disburdened her heavy-laden spirit at
Elisha's feet. The violent paroxysm of grief into which she fell on
approaching him, appeared to Gehazi an act of disrespect to his
master; he was preparing to remove her when the prophet's observant
eye perceived that she was overwhelmed with some unknown cause of
distress. How great is a mother's love! how wondrous are the works of
Providence! The Shunammite had not sought a son from the prophet—her
child was, in every respect, the free gift of God. Was she then
allowed to rejoice in the possession for a little, only to be pierced
with sorrow by seeing the corpse of the cherished boy? Perish, doubt
and unbelief! This event happened that "the works of God should
be made manifest" in His prophet, "and for the glory of
God."
And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.
Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?
Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine 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.
29-31. take my staff . . . and lay .
. . upon the face of the child—The staff was probably an
official rod of a certain form and size. Necromancers used to send
their staff with orders to the messengers to let it come in contact
with nothing by the way that might dissipate or destroy the virtue
imparted to it. Some have thought that Elisha himself entertained
similar ideas, and was under an impression that the actual
application of his staff would serve as well as the touch of his
hand. But this is an imputation dishonorable to the character of the
prophet. He wished to teach the Shunammite, who obviously placed too
great dependence upon him, a memorable lesson to look to God. By
sending his servant forward to lay his staff on the child, he raised
[the Shunammite's] expectations, but, at the same time, taught her
that his own help was unavailing—"there was neither voice, nor
hearing." The command, to salute no man by the way, showed the
urgency of the mission, not simply as requiring the avoidance of the
tedious and unnecessary greetings so common in the East (), but the exercise of faith and prayer. The act of Gehazi
was allowed to fail, in order to free the Shunammite, and the people
of Israel at large, of the superstitious notion of supposing a
miraculous virtue resided in any person, or in any rod,
and to prove that it was only through earnest prayer and faith in the
power of God and for His glory that this and every miracle was to be
performed.
And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.
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 went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.
And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.
He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.
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 the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.
34. lay upon the child, c.—(see
1 Kings 17:21 Acts 20:10).
Although this contact with a dead body would communicate ceremonial
uncleanness, yet, in performing the great moral duties of piety and
benevolence, positive laws were sometimes dispensed with,
particularly by the prophets.
Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
35. the child sneezed seven times,
and the child opened his eyes—These were the first acts of
restored respiration, and they are described as successive steps.
Miracles were for the most part performed instantaneously; but
sometimes, also, they were advanced progressively towards completion
(1 Kings 18:44; 1 Kings 18:45;
Mark 8:24; Mark 8:25).
Mark 8:25. PURIFIES
DEADLY POTTAGE.
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.
Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.
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 seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.
38. there was a dearth in the
land—(see on 2 Kings 8:1).
the sons of the prophets were
sitting before him—When receiving instruction, the scholars sat
under their masters. This refers to their being domiciled under the
same roof (compare 2 Kings 6:1).
Set on the great pot—As
it is most likely that the Jewish would resemble the Egyptian "great
pot," it is seen by the monumental paintings to have been a
large goblet, with two long legs, which stood over the fire on the
floor. The seethed pottage consisted of meat cut into small pieces,
mixed with rice or meal and vegetables.
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.
39. went out into the field to
gather herbs—Wild herbs are very extensively used by the people
in the East, even by those who possess their own vegetable gardens.
The fields are daily searched for mallow, asparagus, and other wild
plants.
wild vine—literally,
"the vine of the field," supposed to be the colocynth,
a cucumber, which, in its leaves, tendrils, and fruit, bears a strong
resemblance to the wild vine. The "gourds," or fruit, are
of the color and size of an orange bitter to the taste, causing
colic, and exciting the nerves, eaten freely they would occasion such
a derangement of the stomach and bowels as to be followed by death.
The meal which Elisha poured into the pot was a symbolic sign that
the noxious quality of the herbs was removed.
lap full—The hyke, or
large cloak, is thrown loosely over the left shoulder and fastened
under the right arm, so as to form a lap or apron.
. SATISFIES A
HUNDRED MEN
WITH TWENTY LOAVES.
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 thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.
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.
And there came a man from Baal-shalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.
And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.
43. They shall eat, and shall leave
thereof—This was not a miracle of Elisha, but only a prediction
of one by the word of the Lord. Thus it differed widely from those of
Christ (Matthew 15:37; Mark 8:8;
Luke 9:17; John 6:12).
So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD.
