2 Kings 4
Pastor Mark Hudson
“. . . Yahweh’s power is triumphant over debt (4:1-7), death (4:8-37), drought 4:38-44; two episodes), disease (5:1-27, and difficulty (6:1-7) [D.R. Davis, comment on 2 Kings, p. 53]. Debt’s devastation, for us, is mitigated by the various laws to protect against catastrophic loss. But in ancient times, if there were laws to protect those in debt, those laws were not always enforced. The innocent or the poor often suffered at the hands of those who had more means.
In our case, a woman is about to endure abject poverty. Her husband is gone and for whatever reason, she has so much debt, that the debtors have resorted to work off her (or her husband’s debt) through the labor of her sons. This would leave her destitute. She asks Elisha for help stating “you know that your servant feared the Lord” which presumes she is referring to her husband. She knows who to ask for help. Contrast her plea with Ahaziah’s request to the god of Ekron in chapter 1. Elisha is eager to help but the widow has nothing left . . . except a jar of oil.
This widow doesn’t order God around, just asks for help. She doesn’t have a plan just a little oil She is desperate and may not understand how that little bit of oil could ever be used to get her out of debt. That is all that God needs. In fact, God doesn’t need anything we have to complete His work. He is able to work with what you have. Or if you don’t have much at all, He can still provide for you. Some of us think a bit too highly of ourselves. But some of us tell ourselves we can’t do much of anything. We can’t speak well, pray out loud, sing, teach, nothing that God values. God values the gifts and abilities he has given you. All she had she offered it up and God did the rest.
Next in vs. 8-37, the wealthy widow experiences the power of God over death. In her case she asks for nothing. It is Elisha and Gehazi who tell her she will bear a son next year which of course she does. Without me telling you the story you have read, we find a miracle that prefigures Jesus’ miracles in resurrecting the dead with the widow of Nain’s son in Luke 7:11-17; then Jairus’ daughter in Luke 8:49-56, Lazarus in John 11. After the resurrection of Christ Himself, the Holy Spirit raised others from the dead. Then Peter raises Tabitha from the dead in Acts 9:36-42. Paul raises Eutychus from the dead in Acts 20:7-12.
Another reason this story intrigues us is the common touch of concentrating on various widows. Jumping from this time period to ours, I have always been bothered by the way we think of family. Family is for many of us a married couple and at least a few children. But look around some Sunday morning and see how many single people we have sitting in our church. Once you start looking for single people and noticing them you will wonder why you didn’t take note of them before. We value big families, widows and widowers, single, etc.
You may also note that there is nothing extraordinary about this young man. We never hear from him again. But this does not diminish the power of God who take reach into death and snatch the dead away from the grave. Regarding the process of resurrection, we are not told why Elisha does what he does. What is striking to me is the length of time this boy was dead. The Shunamite women is 15-18 miles from Mt. Carmel. She travels to Elisha and then back. She exhibits a tremendous amount of faith and refuses to leave Elisha the way Elisha refused to leave Elijah in 2 Kings 2. She refuses any help but from God and His prophet, Elisha. She is a model of faith. She clings to the man of God. The phrase ‘man of God is repeated often.
Notice also that Elisha does not know what the problem is. Elisha is humble enough to admit this. He doesn’t need to know what the problem is, but he soon will. Maybe this ought to remind us that we all have various limitations. We do not always need to have an answer. God is the Giver of grace and comfort, not us. Even when people come to us, they come because we point them to Christ. We have nothing to offer in our own abilities. And when we receive help from others, we ought to be grateful and thankful (even in tangible ways) to those in positions of spiritual authority all the time recognizing that God is working through them. Whether you give comfort, advice, or teaching or receive, God always get the glory and people are encouraged.
Finally, we see God is Lord of our daily needs. For many of us, we are trying to lose weight or not eat so much. We spend little of our time or money on food. Not so with the ancients. They would have a hungry winter if their crops did not come in. They lived closer to the earth and food and enough of it was a constant pressure. That may be hard for us to comprehend. Read through the Bible looking for verses, miracles, and teaching on food. God cares about us, our needs, and wants to provide for us. God is a Giver not a taker. He wants to bless us with enough so that we can share with others (2 Cor. 8:13-15).
Dear Lord, You provide for us, help us, and know our every need. You want us to come to You asking for help. We do because we realize You, and only You, can help us with whatever problems we have. Nothing is too difficult for You. Thank You for caring about money, food, our health, our jobs, and the many things we worry about. Remind us that the very One who spoke the world into existence by the mere power of Your word, can certainly help us. In fact, nothing is impossible for God. In the glorious name of Christ. Amen.