THE WIFE OF a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the LORD. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.”
2Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”
“Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a little oil.”
3Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”
5She left him and afterward shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. 6When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”
But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.
7She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”
8One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat. 9She said to her husband, “I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. 10Let’s make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us.”
11One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. 12He said to his servant Gehazi, “Call the Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. 13Elisha said to him, “Tell her, ‘You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army?’”
She replied, “I have a home among my own people.”
14“What can be done for her?” Elisha asked.
Gehazi said, “Well, she has no son and her husband is old.”
15Then Elisha said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. 16“About this time next year,” Elisha said, “you will hold a son in your arms.”
“No, my lord,” she objected. “Don’t mislead your servant, O man of God!”
17But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.
18The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers. 19“My head! My head!” he said to his father.
His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 20After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. 21She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out.
22She called her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return.”
23“Why go to him today?” he asked. “It’s not the New Moon or the Sabbath.”
“It’s all right,” she said.
24She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Lead on; don’t slow down for me unless I tell you.” 25So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel.
When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, “Look! There’s the Shunammite! 26Run to meet her and ask her, ‘Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?’”
“Everything is all right,” she said.
27When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me why.”
28“Did I ask you for a son, my lord?” she said. “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t raise my hopes’?”
29Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand and run. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy’s face.”
30But the child’s mother said, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her.
31Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, “The boy has not awakened.”
32When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch. 33He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the LORD. 34Then he got on the bed and lay upon the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out upon him, the boy’s body grew warm. 35Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out upon him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.
36Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite.” And he did. When she came, he said, “Take your son.” 37She came in, fell at his feet and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out.
38Elisha returned to Gilgal and there was a famine in that region. While the company of the prophets was meeting with him, he said to his servant, “Put on the large pot and cook some stew for these men.”
39One of them went out into the fields to gather herbs and found a wild vine. He gathered some of its gourds and filled the fold of his cloak. When he returned, he cut them up into the pot of stew, though no one knew what they were. 40The stew was poured out for the men, but as they began to eat it, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it.
41Elisha said, “Get some flour.” He put it into the pot and said, “Serve it to the people to eat.” And there was nothing harmful in the pot.
42A man came from Baal Shalishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe grain, along with some heads of new grain. “Give it to the people to eat,” Elisha said.
43“How can I set this before a hundred men?” his servant asked.
But Elisha answered, “Give it to the people to eat. For this is what the LORD says: ‘They will eat and have some left over.’” 44Then he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.
THESE STORIES OF Elisha appear independent of chronological sequence or of political events. The events with the wealthy woman of Shunem are simply said to happen “one day” (4:8, 11, 18),1 and there is no indication of the time of the famine (v. 38). There is no mention of the names of officials; the woman from Shunem has no connection to the king or his associates (v. 13). Even the power of the prophetic word is subordinated, being mentioned only in the final miracle (v. 43). These accounts do not further the history of Israel but serve to illustrate the power and authority of Elisha. Elisha does the work of God, the true King of Israel. The duty of the king was to provide for justice, protection, and the well-being of the people.2 In the fading days of the Omride dynasty, the responsibilities of the king in Israel are fulfilled in particular times and places through the man of God.
Oil for a Widow (4:1–7)
THIS NAMELESS WIDOW of the prophets is rescued from anonymity early on in Jewish tradition.3 Josephus makes her the wife of Obadiah, the servant of Ahab (1 Kings 18:3–4), who risked his life to save a hundred prophets otherwise to be slain by Jezebel (Ant. 9.47–48). The cause of the debt is that Obadiah borrowed money for the maintenance of the prophets while in hiding. After he died his widow and her children are in danger of being carried off into slavery. The widow’s plea is that Elisha will have mercy on her because of the noble deed of her husband in preserving the prophets. The Targums also identify the widow as the wife of Obadiah.
The company of prophets who supported Elijah and Elisha maintained their own properties and families. Quite apart from the tradition that this woman is the widow of Obadiah, these followers of the covenant would have paid a high price for their commitment in the hostile environment of the official Baal cult. The time and sacrifice required to support this movement against the prevailing economic forces left little reserve when the family provider died. Even in normal times families could become so indebted that some members were given as servants to their creditors (cf. Ex. 21:1–11). God in his law provided that this would be a temporary situation (six years at the most), or that the servants could voluntarily enter into a new family relationship (especially if marriage and children were involved). Servanthood would be a dismal end for a family that had already endured so much.
The story of God’s provision is told without embellishment.4 Elisha asks two questions about the widow’s need and resources, to which she responds. He then tells her what to do, and she dutifully obeys. The provision of oil takes place behind closed doors, with only the woman and her sons present. The oil is a divine gift that is not dependent on the presence of the man of God and cannot be viewed as some kind of trick. The unusual form of the verb “pour” seems to indicate that the oil is made to pour continuously until all the jars are filled (v. 5).5 No details are given following Elisha’s final instruction (v. 7), but it may be assumed that the woman obeys without question. Her debts are paid, and her family remains together.
A Son for the Childless (4:8–37)
IN THE PREVIOUS STORY, a widow of one of the prophets supporting Elisha seeks out his assistance in her dire need. In this second story a woman of means urges the prophet to accept her hospitality whenever he passes by on his journeys through the Jezreel Valley (v. 8). Shunem, also the home of Abishag (1 Kings 1:3), was in Issachar (Josh. 19:18), near Gilboa; the valley between Shunem and Jezreel formed a pass to the Jordan.6 The name may have been a description of the place where one of the prophetic groups met and received oracles from God.7
Elisha has occasion to pass the location regularly on his journeys from Carmel (4:9); like Samuel (1 Sam. 7:15–17), he probably follows a circuit in the administration of his duties. Elisha is regarded as a holy man, distinguished from the other prophets who continue to have regular vocations. This status may have been the reason for providing a separate room for him; separate quarters protect the family from having inappropriate intimacy with this man of God. The woman’s reverence is also expressed in the vocabulary used to describe her hospitality (2 Kings 4:13); Elisha says she “trembled” (ḥāradte) with “fear” (ḥarādâ) for him,8 expressing the care she has taken not to infringe on his sanctity as a man of God. The room is furnished simply but adequately for a regular guest. This woman is not independently wealthy, but secures permission from her husband to build a special hospitality suite for this notable guest.
The second part of the story introduces Gehazi, the assistant to Elisha, as intermediary between Elisha and the woman (4:12–17). The scene depicts a deference and appropriate protocol between Elisha and his patron, who holds him to be a holy man of God. Through Gehazi, she first makes herself available to Elisha (v. 12), then she comes to be present in the doorway (v. 15); a similar procedure occurs at the end of the section, where the woman is first summoned (v. 36) and then enters the room (v. 37).9
Elisha poses the same question for his benefactor as he did for the widow who came to plead her case: “What can be done for you?” (v. 13; cf. v. 2). His suggestions of intervening with the king or military commander show that Elisha has come into a position of political influence, perhaps enhanced by his involvement in the Moabite campaign. As wealthy people, the woman and her husband carry a heavy liability for maintaining the state and its military. The woman declines political intervention, saying she is secure within her clan. Such independence is typical of communities that take responsibility for their neighbors seriously. She has no need of social and material assistance, unlike the first woman who is about to lose her sons.
Discussion with Gehazi reveals her real need: Unlike the widow, she cannot lose her children, because she has none. Elisha asks her to be present in person for his announcement that in a year she will embrace a son.10 Like Sarah at the announcement of Isaac (Gen. 18:12), the woman finds the promise incredible (2 Kings 4:16); she does not dare to hope lest she be disappointed. In spite of her doubts, her desire for a child is fulfilled.
The narrative immediately advances to another day, some years later, when the child has grown (4:18). The third division of the story deals with the disappointment the woman fears (vv. 18–28); in spite of the miraculous birth, she does not now have a son. The woman is depicted as resolute in her plight. When the child dies in her arms, she immediately lays the body on the bed of the man of God and prepares to confront him. Her husband is presented as uncompassionate and skeptical (vv. 22–23). Her request for release of a farm worker from harvest is met with the protest of inopportune time; Sabbath or feast days were the normal times to travel to Carmel, when work ceased and matters of faith were given priority. The woman silences her husband with a single word for well-being (šālôm); an amorphous term, it can be interpreted as a dismissal or a confidence.
The woman goes with all the speed she can manage (4:24), resolved to express her distress to the man of God himself. Elisha sees her coming and sends Gehazi to meet her (v. 26); she dismisses his inquiry with the same uncertain response she had for her husband (šālôm). Like the woman at Zarephath, who held Elijah responsible for the death of her son (1 Kings 17:18), the woman from Shunem feels that there is something sinister about this man of God; he has deceived her (2 Kings 4:28). From the start she has been loath to believe it was possible she should have a son. Surprisingly, Elisha confesses to being mystified by this turn of events (4:27). He admits to Gehazi that he has received no word from Yahweh on this matter.
The final division of the story shows that the woman has not lost her faith in God or his servant (4:29–37). She is hurt, confused, and anxious. Elisha treats the situation with urgency, sending Gehazi to the lad with instructions that he not be delayed by courtesies to those he might meet along the way (v. 29). The mission to place the staff of Elisha on the lad is an assurance that the prophet himself is on his way to Shunem. The woman refuses to go with Gehazi; her vow to stay with Elisha is identical to that of Elisha in his refusal to leave Elijah (v. 30; cf. 2:2, 4, 6).
When Elisha arrives he shuts the door so the miracle will be private (4:33), just like the multiplication of the oil (vv. 4–5). The actions of Elisha are similar to those of Elijah in reviving the child of the woman at Zarephath, but are described in significantly more detail (vv. 33–35; cf. 1 Kings 17:20–21). Elisha places his own living body over the boy in place of the staff;11 his intensity is seen in pacing back and forth, waiting for signs of life. The first response of the child is a sneeze (NIV); it represents some physical or spiritual substance that leads to the cause of death being expelled.12 Seven sneezes assure complete restoration. The actions of the woman are similar to her reporting the death of the child (v. 27); she falls prostrate at the feet of Elisha, this time in gratitude rather than grief.
Food in Time of Famine (4:38–44)
THE FINAL TWO STORIES deal with another fundamental need of life. Both stories involve the prophetic bands that support Elisha in his efforts to teach the ways of the covenant in a state devoted to the Baal cult. In the first story (4:38–41), a famine leaves the band short of food, with the necessity of foraging for what they can find. Ignorance results in a “death pot” that threatens the health of the men. Elisha responds immediately to the crisis with the authority that is his alone as the man of God; the food is made wholesome and the welfare of the band preserved.
In the second story a stranger offers food to the band, but it is insufficient for the entire group. Elisha twice gives exactly the same command: “Give it to the people to eat” (vv. 42, 43). The protest that it will be insufficient is met with a word from Yahweh indicating that it will be more than sufficient. This word is fulfilled (v. 44); Elisha provides for his prophets, just as he had for the widow. Each of these events establishes the authority of Elisha with the prophets as well as his ability to care for them.
These stories give a glimpse into the life of the prophetic bands and how God provides for them in times of need. Elisha is the leader of the band at Gilgal near Jericho (cf. 2:1), where they gather before him for instruction, encouragement, and direction.13 “The famine” (4:38) probably refers to the seven-year famine described in a later encounter with the Shunammite woman (8:1–6). Elisha assumes responsibility for the preparation of the meal, asking that the large pot be set to boil with potage. In searching for edible food,14 someone from the group finds a wild vine with gourds. These are probably to be identified with a small yellow melon popularly called the “Apple of Sodom.” It is a strong purgative and known to be fatal.15 The addition of flour to the potage absorbs the bitterness and makes it edible.
The land of Shalishah is found together with the lands of Shaalim and Zuph, all of them family districts of Benjamin in Mount Ephraim (1 Sam. 9:4–5). The city of Baal Shalishah cannot be identified with certainty, but the name may be preserved in the modern Kefr Thilth to the southwest of Shechem. “The first ripe grain” would be the time when the famine is most severe. This grain, usually barley, belongs to Yahweh (Lev. 23:20), and it may be that the gift is brought as part of the provision for a sacramental meal. “Some heads of new grain” (NIV) is often translated “fresh ears of grain in his sack” (RSV). The word translated “sack” (ṣqln) is otherwise unknown. The man brings fresh heads of grain (cf. Lev. 2:14) along with the twenty barley loaves made from the firstfruits. This amount of bread appears to be inadequate to the servant, but at the instruction of Elisha it feeds the hundred men with some left over.
Bridging Contexts
GOD’S CARE FOR the individual. In this chapter Elisha shows that his name, “my God saves,” is a truth to live by. In the first example (vv. 1–7), a destitute widow of one of the sons of the prophets appeals to Elisha. The creditors have come to take her two children as slaves. Elisha may have some obligation to provide for those who have joined his band of followers as a prophet, but the Hebrew covenant always places a special emphasis on God’s concern for needs of widows and orphans (e.g., Deut. 10:18; 24:17–22; Isa. 1:17).
In the second example a nameless but wealthy woman from Shunem suffers from the poverty of childlessness, a pain no less than that of the poverty that causes loss of children. Her generosity in providing for the prophet is rewarded with the gift of life. The miracle child is reclaimed by Yahweh, but the faith of the woman prevails and her child is restored (vv. 8–37).
In the final two episodes Elisha provides food for the band of the prophets; in the first instance he makes it edible (vv. 38–41), in the second sufficient (vv. 42–44). In all of these instances God shows his care for his prophets and his provision for his people in a way that is beyond the power of human kings.
The miracles of these stories have counterparts in the activities of Elijah. The multiplication of oil (vv. 4–5) and of bread (vv. 43–44) and the revival of a widow’s son (vv. 33–35) are similar to the provisions of Elijah for the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:14–16, 20–22). Elisha is again shown to be the worthy successor of Elijah.
This chapter provides an insight into the function of prophets and the great variety of their individual vocations. Within the larger Deuteronomistic History the unique ministries of Elijah and Elisha call for loyalty to the covenant, with the power to confront and control political and military forces. The stories of this chapter, however, reveal another dimension of the prophetic task not directly related to the battle against the imperial cult. Caught up in the larger conflict are many victims with individual struggles; others live with personal sorrows not rectified by victories against political oppression. These stories show that God’s compassion and care for individuals in their need is no less significant than his triumph over organized resistance to his dominion.
Elisha is the focus of these stories, to the exclusion of all other detail. None of the other characters or events is given so much as a name, let alone some context in other events of their life and times. Elisha is the ordained benefactor who brings mercy in times of need.
The strength of the Shunammite woman. There are other remarkable features to be observed not central to the story, and the modern reader may well note their considerable significance.16 The story of the Shunammite woman assumes a subtle protocol for the status of the prophet, maintaining a respectful distance between Elisha and the woman. The woman strains against such formalities in the pursuit of her aims, first of all urging Elisha to accept her hospitality (v. 8), then prevailing on her husband to provide a permanent furnished room for the prophet as a regular guest (vv. 9–10).
When her child dies this woman takes matters into her own hands; she secures the assistance of one of the farm workers and a donkey to assist her in a hasty journey to the prophet, efficiently silencing the objections of her husband (vv. 22–23). Though Elisha sends Gehazi to meet her, she is undeterred by such proprieties and dismisses him just as she had her husband (v. 26). When she meets the man of God, in a manner scarcely appropriate for a married woman of some status, she seizes and clings to his feet. The impulse of Gehazi is to forcibly provide a respectable distance, but the woman has her way through the concession of Elisha (v. 27). When the life of the child is revived, she again expresses both reverence and intimacy in falling at the feet of the prophet (v. 37). This exchange between the woman and the prophet is just as irregular as the miracle itself, though it is incidental in the presentation of the story, scarcely observed by the reader taken up with the central focus on the prophet.
The story of the Shunammite and her son reveals the compassion and power of Elisha, but the impact is considerably enhanced by the strength of her character. The status of Elisha as a holy man is not reduced (v. 9), but he is also shown to be human, approachable, and vulnerable as are other humans. He accepted her hospitality as assistance to his travels, preferable to other choices. Shunem is only about fifteen miles from the traditional location of Elijah’s sacrifice (Deir al-Mahraq), and the name of the hill at Shunem (Moreh) makes it likely there is a prophetic community located there where Elisha can receive hospitality. Elisha determines to give to the woman in turn, even though she is reluctant to accept any assistance (vv. 13, 16).
The death of the child comes as a complete surprise to Elisha (v. 27), so the woman appropriately challenges the efficacy of the promise concerning the gift of the child (v. 28). She refuses to leave the prophet (v. 30), insisting that he personally be present at the side of the child (v. 32). Once at Shunem, the resuscitation is a process in which the woman participates; she waits outside the room as Elisha first prays for the child (v. 33), then warms the body of the child by stretching (ghr) his own body over it (v. 34),17 and after pacing the house returns to repeat the motion until the child sneezes and opens his eyes (v. 35). The Shunammite is then invited into the room, where she receives the child alive into her arms and reverences the man of God for his care and provision in her time of grief.
The nature of miracles. The miraculous nature of the divine provision in each of these stories is not to be rationally explained.18 By their very nature miracles transcend explanation and stand outside of historical investigation. Miracles are an act of grace that cannot be controlled or predicted, but are a provision of the sovereign God in time of need. It is not the mission of Elisha to demonstrate the power of God by performing miracles at his own will. The ability to perform miracles is not in and of itself a sign of God’s power (cf. Ex. 7:8–13). The vocation of Elisha is to bring the message of God’s faithfulness wherever he goes. In each instance the miraculous is God’s gracious compassion to particular human need.
Not all prophets perform miracles, and not all situations of distress are resolved by miraculous intervention. The nature of the miraculous must remain in the mysteries of heaven. In these stories the miraculous comes to those powerless to address their own need, but are submissive to the divine will in looking to the man of God as their spiritual leader and provider in time of need. The prominence of Elisha in these stories emphasizes his vocation, not only to call for faithfulness to God but also to demonstrate God’s faithfulness to those who trust him.
CONCERN FOR THE HELPLESS. Life in this world is characterized by need and struggle as typified in these stories about Elisha. The pain of various situations and individuals is not really comparable; who is to say that losing a child to a creditor is more painful than never to have had a child at all (vv. 1, 14), or that the pain of food deprivation is more injurious than the loss of children (vv. 38, 43)? Empathy is a somewhat risky business, since one can never know the feelings or pain of another. Perhaps this unknown is part of the divine mystery of grace. God sovereignly dispenses his mercy to particular situations in his care for all his children. Mercy by its very nature is not justice, so the children are not able to demand whatever they consider to be their right, nor can they expect that their experience with God will be like that of someone else.
Every age has a need for a mission like that of Elisha: to care for the needy, intervene for justice, and provide for the well-being of the marginalized. The needs of women, rich and poor, have been rightly emphasized in our time. There is less agreement on values to be pursued, concepts of how equality can be defined and how justice may be advanced. The role of faith groups has been challenged in various ways; generally, faith is marginalized to a personal pursuit of existential spirituality that is not allowed to have a role in public life. In its place is a set of state-controlled values that are not to be violated, the Baalism of our time. Those with a mission like that of Elisha must find a way to work within the system, much as Elisha in his own time.
A society preoccupied by rights and individual indulgence has established its own valuations of what is just, necessary, and possible. The justification of abortion on demand, in defense of the reproductive right of choice for women, assumes that this right must receive primacy over the rights of an unborn child, its father, her parents, and anyone related to her situation. Such values determine the way health care dollars are invested in state-provided medical care. Allocation of funds for abortion should equally require that childless couples receive assistance for conception. Childless couples unable to conceive are deprived of assistance, while those seeking to end the life of an unborn child are assisted without question. The care of Elisha for the childless woman of Shunem shows that the pain of barrenness is not to be subordinated to that of economic loss and hardship.
Even those committed to the right of abortion on demand concede the injustice of rights in the laws of abortion, not only against the unborn but also against the childless. Gordon Sinclair, a Winnipeg freelance writer, tells of an unusual request for an obituary that came his way. A couple was expecting twins after eleven years of trying to conceive, but they lost the children before they were born. The husband was writing to say that his wife needed something tangible to acknowledge the lives that had been lost; she wanted the names of their babies in an obituary notice so that knowledge of their existence might be preserved. Sinclair expresses the outrage that he feels about the situation of childless couples.
“Choice,” for those couples, is getting in line at private infertility clinics and paying $8,000 per attempt.
The government will fund abortion without blinking.
But there is no health-care money for those whose “choice” is to try to have babies with the assistance of medical technology. There is no marching in the street for these women from either the pro-life or the pro-choice movements.
If I sound angry, it’s because I am.19
Both technology and the systems of medical delivery are a painful injustice to such couples. They are in need of divine grace no less than the woman at Shunem. The least that can be done is to pray that they may have a sense of divine mercy and that God in his grace may also grant them the gift of life. Elisha as the man of God can assure the Shunammite of a son in a year’s time, but even Elisha is unable to anticipate the child’s death (4:27). Elisha also lives under submission to the divine will, waiting on Yahweh as he tries three times to bring life back to the lad. Medical services are a divine gift and need to be applied justly, but they can never be a replacement for prayer and trust in the Lifegiver.
How God provides. A society made wealthy by technological success, a result of the pursuit of understanding cause and effect, functions with a scientific explanation for events. Acceptance of miracles requires an act of faith in which the normal processes of empirical investigation are suspended. Adherence to the scientific method as the explanation for all phenomena regards such stories as the projection of faith in a desperate effort to address the problem of pain. The point of these stories, however, is just the reverse. Miracles are the result of faith, not the inspiration of faith.20 Faith is a process of learning to trust God; these stories of Elisha are intended to teach the life of trust in God and to show the power of such a faith in dealing with pain. Such faith does provide oil to pay debts, revive the dead, and provide food for the hungry. Such faith also acknowledges that God provides through a better understanding of how to live in harmony with his earth, a knowledge gained through scientific research.
The miracles of Jesus follow the same pattern of care for the needy—the act of faith, however fledgling, being a prerequisite to the experience of divine grace. The Gospel of Mark illustrates this truth in two touching stories. Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, was persuaded that Jesus could save his daughter from imminent death (Mark 5:22–23). As Jesus went with him, a woman with a chronic hemorrhage joined the crowd. She believed that if she could but touch the garment of Jesus, she would be delivered (vv. 25–28). Though her faith bordered on magic, it was honored by Jesus, and she was healed. Jesus was not content to allow her faith to be unacknowledged, so he led her to make confession and exhorted her to continue in a life of trust (vv. 30–34).
In the meantime the daughter of Jairus died, and the crowd exhorted him not to trouble Jesus any further. Jesus encouraged Jairus not to waver in his trust (Mark 5:36). Jesus dismissed the mourners who scorned his exhortation and entered the girl’s chamber with the parents alone. The impact of his words were remembered and repeated in Aramaic, just as they were heard: talitha koum (v. 41), simply translated as “maiden, arise.” Jesus then exhorted them not to make this known, for the skepticism of the unbelieving could never be objective with such an event. Their denial and rationalizations would compromise the experience of grace received. Trusting people must be careful not to cast their pearls before swine.
The experiences of the widow of the prophet and the woman of Shunem are both very private affairs, concealed from the skeptical world of Baal around them, preserved as a miracle of grace for the need of the occasion. This is often the way it should be. As a pastor, there have been a select number of sacred occasions when I have observed such a miracle. One of the cases was a diagnosis of meningitis in an adolescent girl. Her mother called me while I was out of town to request prayer for surgery that was to take place immediately, because the physicians had determined the case to be critical. Many joined in prayer.
I returned the next day to pay a visit in the hospital and learn how serious the situation was, wondering if this young woman would be able to function normally again. I called her parents and found that she was at home and well. When the actual time for surgery arrived, I was informed, no trace of the dreadful disease could be found. Her family asked about the diagnosis; they were informed that meningitis had been observed as clearly as a cow on their front lawn. Together with the family, those informed were most grateful for the grace received, in whatever form it had come. Such matters of course were not confidential; the family received calls from various well-meaning individuals wanting the story to be shared. All were wisely declined. God’s miracles of grace for his people are not to be paraded about as if this could prove the power of God to the skeptics. As with these miracles of Elisha, the grace of God is for his trusting people in time of need, however tentative they may feel their faith to be.
A society indulged by wealth struggles to solve its problems of pain and injustice. It tends to regard affirmation of the miraculous as the inspiration of faith; the miraculous is not compatible with methods they pursue in dealing with pain. The faithful must recognize that material and technological achievements are a gift of God and a further reason to trust God in faith. Victims of poverty, hunger, and unjust loss of life will not be delivered by more promises of the just society. Such victims need God’s grace no less than the victims of Joram’s kingdom. The contemporary world must have its servants of God, those anointed like Elisha, who can challenge arrogance and self-sufficiency but extend divine grace to the needy and trusting.
While technology and wealth can never be a replacement for trust in God, they have been used by God to provide for widows and children. AIDS and civil war have become twin scourges for women and children in Africa; they are left homeless and without food as providers in the family die. In Uganda alone, two million children have been orphaned by these calamities. Kampala Pentecostal Church in Uganda (a 12,000 member cell-based community church) has established Watoto Child Care Ministries (wahtoto means “children” in Swahili).21 To date over one hundred homes have been built, forming three Watoto villages, and a fourth village is now under way. Presently over eight hundred orphans and eighty widows are being cared for through this program. Each village has a school and clinic.
Echo Farm is an organization in Fort Myers, Florida, involved in the research and production of crops and livestock that will survive and flourish under the various conditions of Third World countries.22 Missionaries both full time and short term can come to intern and learn how to take this knowledge to other areas of the world. Recently, Watoto hired a director of agriculture to help their villages become self-sufficient; this created a great need for the director to learn more about agricultural research. An entrepreneur aware of both organizations brought the two groups together and introduced them in Fort Myers.23 Two individuals from the Watoto head office in Tampa came down to Fort Myers, and they met and toured Echo Farm. Both technology and financial support are helping the widows and orphans of Uganda, in the same way that the endless supply of oil provided for the widow of one of the prophetic bands. One is not more the provision of God than the other. In a great diversity of ways God provides for his children. The name “my God saves” is as pertinent today as in the time of Elisha.