Not Much Can Be Done For An Old Woman Like That!

“One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. And she said to her husband, ‘Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.’

“One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, ‘Call this Shunammite.’ When he had called her, she stood before him. And he said to him, ‘Say now to her, “See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?”’ She answered, ‘I dwell among my own people.’ And he said, ‘What then is to be done for her?’ Gehazi answered, ‘Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.’ He said, ‘Call her.’ And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. And he said, ‘At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son.’ And she said, ‘No, my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your servant.’ But the woman conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her.” [1]

Let’s admit a truth that we Christians may acknowledge, but seldom speak aloud. Older listeners will know whereof I speak at this time, though the experience is universal. Drawing nearer to the time when we will pass out of this present life into that life which lies beyond the moment we call “now,” most rational people discover that they have fewer wants; and the wants they do have are simpler, less complex. A warm home, shoes that don’t hurt the feet, a comfortable bed, tasty food that doesn’t cause indigestion, good friends who accept us for who we are—we discover that we have fewer wants and the needs that do arise are mostly brought into focus so that we are able to see more clearly the value of these aspects of life than when we did when were younger. Life changes, dramatically so as we approach the end of this life.

In the text before us, we will meet a woman who was content with her lot in life. She not only had no particular needs, she wasn’t burdened with the common desires of others. She was a woman of means, and she was generous with what she had. Because she was generous, she blessed others that could have been overlooked by others.

THE BACKGROUND OF THE MESSAGE — We are introduced to Elisha, who received a double portion of the power of Elijah. Elijah and Elisha define the Hebrew prophet—austere, stern, fearless, his eyes fixed on the LORD Whom he served. Elijah was utterly committed to his task of faithfully declaring the message of the LORD. Elijah set the standard for a prophet of God, and according to the conditions he announced as he was about to be taken up into Heaven, Elisha received a double portion of the spirit of Elijah. Elisha continued and even strengthened the standard for a prophet of God.

The text before us gives us opportunity to witness an event in the life of Elisha, the stern prophet of God. If I was strictly precise, what takes place in the text set the stage for a dramatic demonstration of the grace and power of God as Elisha would become God’s instrument to raise a dead child to life. However, before that event, Elisha was God’s means to bless a childless woman, blessing her by announcing her pregnancy when nature appeared to have ensured that she would never hold a child of her own.

In order to prepare us to understand what was taking place, I want us to focus on what is revealed concerning this woman. Perusing the text, we will discover that the woman to whom we are introduced was sensitive to the needs of others; she didn’t need to be solicited. There is no indication that she was focused primarily on her own needs, but she was clearly aware of the needs of others. As the text opens, we read, “One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food” [2 KINGS 4:8].

There is no indication that Elisha ever asked this woman to feed him. Rather, the text is clear that “she urged him to eat some food.” She was generously disposed toward God’s Prophet, and I might speculate that she was motivated by the fact she recognised this was God’s Prophet and that he had walked some distance to come to Shunem to care for whatever task he was appointed to perform. That she urged him to eat indicates that he politely dismissed her offer at first. Nevertheless, this woman persisted in pressing her offer, leading me to conclude that she was genuinely concerned that he not be neglected. Perhaps one could suggest that she wanted to honour the LORD, but I cannot help but think that she was genuinely concerned for the welfare of the LORD’s Prophet.