God's Provision (2 Kings 4)

Does God still provide for the faithful, life, food, family, and protection? Let’s look at 2 Kings 4.

Did a prophet’s widow about to lose her house cry out to Elisha?

Now there happened to be a certain woman who had been the wife of a member of the Guild of Prophets. She cried out to Elisha, “My husband who served you has died, and you know that your servant feared the Lord. But a creditor has come to take away my children into indentured servitude!” Elisha responded, “What shall I do for you? Tell me what you have in your house.” She replied, “Your servant has nothing in the entire house except for a flask of oil.” He told her, “Go out to all of your neighbors in the surrounding streets and borrow lots of pots from them. Don’t get just a few empty vessels, either. Then go in and shut the door behind you, taking only your children, and pour oil into all of the pots. As each one is filled, set it aside.” So she left Elisha, shut the door behind her and her children, and while they kept on bringing vessels to her, she kept on pouring oil. When the last of the vessels had been filled, she told her son, “Bring me another pot!” But he replied, “There isn’t even one pot left.” Then the oil stopped flowing. After this, she went and told the man of God what had happened. So he said, “Go sell the oil, pay your debt, and you and your children will be able to live on the proceeds.” (2 Kings 4:1-7 ISV)

How did a generous woman help Elisha whenever he was in town?

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. 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. (2 Kings 4:8-10 KJV)

How did God reward the woman for her faithful service to His prophet?

Now it happened that one day he came there and turned in to the upper chamber, and there he lay down. Then he said to Gehazi his young man, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have been careful for us with all this care; what can I do for you? Would you be spoken for to the king or to the commander of the army?’” And she answered, “I live among my own people.” So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi answered, “Truly she has no son, and her husband is old.” And he said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. Then he said, “At this season next year you will embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God, do not lie to your servant-woman.” Then the woman conceived and bore a son at that season the next year, as Elisha had said to her. (2 Kings 4:11-17 LSB)

What happened to the woman’s child when he was a little bit older?

When the child was grown, the day came that he went out to his father, to the reapers. And he said to his father, “My head, my head!” And his father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” When he had carried him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door behind him and left. Then she called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, so that I may run to the man of God and return.” But he said, “Why are you going to him today? It is neither new moon nor Sabbath.” So she just said, “It will be fine.” Then she saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Drive the donkey and go on; do not slow down the pace for me unless I tell you.” So she went on and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. (2 Kings 4:18-24 NASB)

Did God honor Elisha’s servant Gehazi and bring the boy back to life?