4:1 Now a wife of one of the prophets appealed to Elisha for help, saying, “Your servant, my husband is dead. You know that your servant was a loyal follower of the Lord. Now the creditor is coming to take away my two boys to be his servants.” 

 

In this chapter. Elisha is going to perform five different miracles. Israel was an apostate nation who was involved in syncretism. Syncretism was mixing the pagan religions of the surrounding cultures with that of Jehovah.

 

Israel had not been receiving the Word of God from the Levites, because they were banned from Israel and replaced with an apostate priesthood. There were two false temples which were sacrificing to the calf god of Egypt. Widows and believers were rare, but there were some who were scattered through Israel. The prophets took care of these pockets of believers. In this chapter, the Holy Spirit gives some examples of how God took care of His believing remnant in apostate Israel.

 

According to the Mosaic Law, a creditor could take the children of a debtor to pay a debt until either the debt was paid, a kinsman-redeemer redeemed the debtor, or during the celebration of the Year of Jubilee. This widow was in debt and was about to lose her children. Her children would live a life of slavery until they were redeemed by one of these three methods of the Mosaic Law.

 

4:2 Elisha said to her, “What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She answered, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a small jar of olive oil.” 

 

In many ancient cultures, widows were buried with their husbands and the poor were forced into slave labor. The Mosaic Law protected the widows and the poor. All this poor widow had left was one small jar of olive oil.

 

4:3 He said, “Go and ask all your neighbors for empty containers. Get as many as you can.

 

The widow had to do some work. The community had to help out the widow. This miracle would touch the entire community. This miracle would show that it was Jehovah, not the calf god or Baal, who was taking care of His people.

 

4:4 Go and close the door behind you and your sons. Pour the olive oil into all the containers; set aside each one when you have filled it.” 

 

God is not a showoff. He could light up the sky and prove that He is God to everyone, but He works more often in a quite, gentle, and humble way. He closed the door so no one could see the miracle. The prophet put the widow to work. If the widow believed in God, then she would have no problem filling her empty containers, even though she had little oil left.

 

4:5 So she left him and closed the door behind her and her sons. As they were bringing the containers to her, she was pouring the olive oil. 

 

The widow began to pour the olive oil, acting upon the promises that were given to her by Jehovah through the prophet Elisha.

 

4:6 When the containers were full, she said to one of her sons, “Bring me another container.” But he answered her, “There are no more.” Then the olive oil stopped flowing. 

 

All of the containers were full. Notice that the sons were also involved in the miracle. Jehovah was training them for future service. God’s supply of oil was as large as the woman’s faith and obedience.

 

4:7 She went and told the prophet. He said, “Go, sell the olive oil. Repay your creditor, and then you and your sons can live off the rest of the profit.”

 

The remainder of the olive oil was to be sold for profit. The calf god, Baal, nor the people of Israel took care of the widow, but Jehovah did. This community knew that Jehovah was the one true God.

 

Prosperity teachers like to use this verse to fleece their congregation out of more money. They teach their congregation that if they give more, they will be blessed and receive more. They teach that God does not want His children to be poor, so He will flood them with material blessings if they give more and show faith in Him, just as this widow did.

 

This is false theology. First of all, this was a historical example of how Jehovah took care of believers during the apostasy of Israel. Israel was under the Mosaic Law and was promised material prosperity for keeping the Law. This widow kept the Mosaic Law under extreme circumstances and Jehovah blessed her. However, the modern church is living under a new dispensation. The church is called to suffer for Christ in order to bring glory to His name. God has promised every believer food, clothing, and shelter, but He has also called some believers to be martyred. Therefore, be careful of prosperity teachers who use Mosaic Covenant promises which were give to ancient Israel as their bible doctrine. Their theology is wrong and their motive is greed. Satan is alive and well and he does have his servants scattered throughout the local churches. A believer must ground himself in the entire counsel of the Word of God to be able to discern these false teachers.

 

Jesus repeated this miracle when He turned water into wine.

 

4:8 One day Elisha traveled to Shunem, where a prominent woman lived. She insisted that he stop for a meal. So whenever he was passing through, he would stop in there for a meal.

 

In Shunem, there was a wealthy woman who lived in the region of the tribe of  Issachar. Elisha was a circuit pastor. He received help from various believers in apostate Israel whom Jehovah had raised up. Even though Israel was apostate, Jehovah had at least a remnant of 7,000 believers in Israel. Jehovah has always possessed a remnant of Jewish believers ever since the days of Abraham.

 

4:9 She said to her husband, “Look, I’m sure that the man who regularly passes through here is a very special prophet.

 

This wealthy and godly woman had a strong and positive influence over her husband.

 

4:10 Let’s make a small private upper room and furnish it with a bed, table, chair, and lamp. When he visits us, he can stay there.” 

 

Many people today establish similar “prophets chambers” for visiting pastors and evangelists.

 

4:11 One day Elisha came for a visit; he went into the upper room and rested.

 

This woman had strong bible doctrine. She took care of a prominent prophet who was giving out the word of Jehovah to apostate Israel.

 

4:12 He told his servant Gehazi, “Ask the Shunammite woman to come here.” So he did so and she came to him.

 

Elisha worked through his servant Gehazi in order to train him for the Lord’s work. Gehazi seems to have been a sort of prophetic intern, just as Elisha was a prophetic intern to Elijah. 

 

4:13 Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tell her, ‘Look, you have treated us with such great respect. What can I do for you? Can I put in a good word for you with the king or the commander of the army?’ ” She replied, “I’m quite secure.”

 

Even though Elisha was an enemy with the evil Israel kings, they still respected him as a prophet of God. Elisha was the only person who could keep the king’s power in check.

 

4:14 So he asked Gehazi, “What can I do for her?” Gehazi replied, “She has no son, and her husband is old.” 

 

The prominent woman had no son, meaning that she may become a widow with no heir and no one to provide for her.

 

4:15 Elisha told him, “Ask her to come here.” So he did so and she came and stood in the doorway.

 

Elisha summoned the prominent and godly woman.

 

4:16 He said, “About this time next year you will be holding a son.” She said, “No, my master! O prophet, do not lie to your servant!” 

 

The prophet promised the woman that she would give birth to a son within the year. This news thrilled the prominent woman, because barrenness was looked on in Jewish society as a curse from God.

 

4:17 The woman did conceive, and at the specified time the next year she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.

 

The prediction came through and the prominent woman was thrilled to have a son. A child is a gift from God, so parents need to be grateful for the blessing that they have been given. Parents have the responsibility of bringing up their child in the way that the Lord wants him to go.

 

4:18 The boy grew and one day he went out to see his father who was with the harvest workers.

 

The boy grew up and began helping out his father in the fields.

 

4:19 He said to his father, “My head! My head!” His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 

 

The boy may have experienced sunstroke, which was very dangerous in that day.

 

4:20 So he picked him up and took him to his mother. He sat on her lap until noon and then died. 

 

The boy died in the lap of his mother, crushing the will of the mother.

 

4:21 She went up and laid him down on the prophet’s bed. She shut the door behind her and left. 

 

The mother laid her dead son on the prophet's bed.

 

4:22 She called to her husband, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, so I can go see the prophet quickly and then return.” 

 

She left to go and find the prophet.

 

4:23 He said, “Why do you want to go see him today? It is not the new moon or the Sabbath.” She said, “Everything’s fine.”

 

The husband did not have the spiritual insight of his wife. The wife knew that if God was willing, He could raise her son from the dead. She did not attempt to explain this discernment to her husband, because he would not understand.

 

4:24 She saddled the donkey and told her servant, “Lead on. Do not stop unless I say so.” 

 

The donkey and the servant began their journey to visit the prophet.

 

4:25 So she went to visit the prophet at Mount Carmel. When he saw her at a distance, he said to his servant Gehazi, “Look, it’s the Shunammite woman.

 

The woman knew that Elisha was at Mount Carmel. This was about a 20-mile journey from Shunem. 

 

4:26 Now, run to meet her and ask her, ‘Are you well? Are your husband and the boy well?’ ” She told Gehazi, “Everything’s fine.” 

 

Elisha sent the servant to find out the condition of the woman.

 

4:27 But when she reached the prophet on the mountain, she grabbed hold of his feet. Gehazi came near to push her away, but the prophet said, “Leave her alone, for she is very upset. The Lord has kept the matter hidden from me; he didn’t tell me about it.”

 

The woman knelt down on the ground and grabbed the prophet’s feet and started crying. Gehazi did not think that this behavior was appropriate, so he attempted to push her away. Elisha stopped his servant, because he knew the woman was greatly upset. However, God had not revealed to Elisha the reason for her anguish. 

 

4:28 She said, “Did I ask my master for a son? Didn’t I say, ‘Don’t mislead me?’ ” 

 

The woman did not ask Elisha for a son. Elisha offered her a son, but now Jehovah took her son away.

 

4:29 Elisha told Gehazi, “Tuck your robes into your belt, take my staff, and go! Don’t stop to exchange greetings with anyone! Place my staff on the child’s face.” 

 

When a man tucked his robe into his belt, it meant that he was about to do some very strenuous physical work. Gehazi was to run to the Shunammite woman’s house as fast as possible and place the staff on the face of the dead child.

 

4:30 The mother of the child said, “As certainly as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So Elisha got up and followed her back. 

 

Elisha and the woman headed back to Shunem as fast as possible.

 

4:31 Now Gehazi went on ahead of them. He placed the staff on the child’s face, but there was no sound or response. When he came back to Elisha he told him, “The child did not wake up.” 

 

The purpose of this early visit was to teach the superstitious Israelites that Elisha’s staff had no power within itself.

 

4:32 When Elisha arrived at the house, there was the child lying dead on his bed. 

 

The child was dead, laying on the bed.

 

4:33 He went in by himself and closed the door. Then he prayed to the Lord. 

 

Elisha closed the door and prayed to the Lord.

 

4:34 He got up on the bed and spread his body out over the boy; he put his mouth on the boy’s mouth, his eyes over the boy’s eyes, and the palms of his hands against the boy’s palms. He bent down over him, and the boy’s skin grew warm. 

 

The boy’s skin started to grow warm. The Lord could have healed the boy immediately, but apparently he used this process to train Elisha.

 

4:35 Elisha went back and walked around in the house. Then he got up on the bed again and bent down over him. The child sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. 

 

The Lord raised the little boy from the dead. Only Jehovah can raise the dead. Since Jesus raised three people from the dead, then He must also be Jehovah. Jesus did not use this verse with the Sadducees to prove the resurrection from the dead, because the Sadducees only believed in the first five books of the Bible. 

 

4:36 Elisha called to Gehazi and said, “Get the Shunammite woman.” So he did so and she came to him. He said to her, “Take your son.” 

 

Elisha asked the Shunammite woman to take her boy home. Baal was supposed to be the giver of the life, but Jehovah was proving him to be an imposter.

 

4:37 She came in, fell at his feet, and bowed down. Then she picked up her son and left. 

 

The Shunammite showed proper respect to Elisha and then left. Everyone in Israel heard of the miracle. This miracle authenticated that Jehovah, not Baal, was the one true God.

 

4:38 Now Elisha went back to Gilgal, while there was famine in the land. Some of the prophets were visiting him and he told his servant, “Put the big pot on the fire and boil some stew for the prophets.”

 

Gilgal was about forty miles south of Shunem. Elisha had to prepare dinner for many prophets during a famine. Elisha asked his servant to prepare some stew for the prophets.

 

4:39 Someone went out to the field to gather some herbs and found a wild vine. He picked some of its fruit, enough to fill up the fold of his robe. He came back, cut it up, and threw the slices into the stew pot, not knowing they were harmful.

 

One of the prophets threw a poisonous root into the stew.

 

4:40 The stew was poured out for the men to eat. When they ate some of the stew, they cried out, “Death is in the pot, O prophet!” They could not eat it. 

 

The prophets realized that they were all going to die from eating this poisonous stew. This would make Satan happy. He could wipe out an entire school of prophets at one time.

 

4:41 He said, “Get some flour.” Then he threw it into the pot and said, “Now pour some out for the men so they may eat.” There was no longer anything harmful in the pot. 

 

Elisha threw a pinch of flour into the pot and it denaturalized the poison, turning it into a delicious soup. This message was passed around Israel that even prophets of God could not be poisoned. 

 

4:42 Now a man from Baal Shalisha brought some food for the prophet—twenty loaves of bread made from the first-fruits of the barley harvest, as well as fresh ears of grain. Elisha said, “Set it before the people so they may eat.” 

 

Baal Shalisha brought twenty loves of bread from the first fruits of the barley harvest festival. Elisha asked him to share the bread before all of the people so that they could eat it. Bread was the staple food of Israel.

 

4:43 But his attendant said, “How can I feed a hundred men with this?” He replied, “Set it before the people so they may eat, for this is what the Lord says, ‘They will eat and have some left over.’ ”4:

 

Twenty loaves of bread would not feed 100 men.

 

4:44 So he set it before them; they ate and had some left over, just as the Lord predicted. 

 

Jesus would later repeat this miracle, but there would be more than 100 men. Jesus would repeat this miracle twice, once with 5,000 men and again with 4,000 men. If the average family size was four people, then Jesus fed 20,000 and 16,000 people with just a few fish and a few loaves of bread.