In 2 Kings 4, we meet a Shunammite woman who was quite wealthy. She was kind and offered a room in her house to Elisha the prophet. Elisha wanted to repay her kindness, so he asked what she needed. He learned she had never had a son. Elisha prophesied that she would have a son, and within a year, she did.
When the boy was a teenager, he likely suffered from heat stroke while working with his father in the fields. His mother held him until he died, then hurried to find Elisha. Elisha came back with her and brought the boy back to life, showing God’s great power.
Time went by, and Elisha met the woman. He advised her to travel to the land of the Philistines because a severe famine was coming to the Northern Kingdom. She followed his advice and left.
After seven years, she returned. Sadly, during her absence, her husband had died. This left her without money, property, or any means of support.
When she came back from the land of the Philistines, the Shunammite woman found Elisha’s servant speaking with the king.
Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, “Tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.”
While he was telling the king how Elisha had restored a dead person to life, the woman whose son he had restored to life appealed to the king for her house and her land. Gehazi said, “My lord king, here is the woman, and here is her son whom Elisha restored to life” (2 Kings 8:4-5).
Elisha’s servant was once loyal but changed due to his love of money. He asked Naaman for a gift that wasn’t his to take. As a result, Naaman’s leprosy afflicted Gehazi.
It’s curious how this man with leprosy could appear before the king. Perhaps he was healed, or his condition wasn’t severe enough to keep him away. Regardless, he was sharing stories of the prophet Elisha with the king.
It’s no coincidence that while Elisha’s servant was talking to the king about the Shunammite woman, she showed up. God has a way of aligning circumstances with His will.
When the king questioned the woman, she told him. So the king appointed an official for her, saying, “Restore all that was hers, together with all the revenue of the fields from the day that she left the land until now” (2 Kings 8:6).
Reflections
Three things stand out to me as I read this brief episode in the life of Elisha and the kings of Israel.
(1) King Jehoram was Ahab’s son. You might remember Ahab as the ruthless king of Israel who took Naboth’s vineyard just because he wanted it. His wife, Jezebel, had the vineyard owner killed, so Ahab could take possession.
In stark contrast to his father, he was willing to restore a widow’s land and even pay for what she lost during the famine.
Jesus taught us to pray for our enemies: “But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” (Matthew 5:44).
Even if they are our enemies for good reasons, God still cares deeply about them. When we ask God to lead them to repentance, they can become friends with God and other people.
(2) What we call coincidences might be better described as God’s opportunities. Often, in the Bible and history, events aren’t just coincidences. Instead, they show God aligning people to act according to His will.
This is one reason why we pray; God uses our prayers to turn coincidences into His opportunities.
(3) We’re reading a book called Kings. It tells the stories of Israel’s kings, who are mostly poor examples to follow. We learn more about what not to do from them.
Often we find in Kings a servant in the background helping out. For example, Elisha’s servant had the right answer at the right time. There are many other such servants.
This makes me think of all the unnamed people quietly serving God. They may go unnoticed and unrecognized here on earth, but they are heroes in heaven.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 