Ep. 138. 2 Kings 3-4 | Elisha Is Miraculous
EPISODE 138
ELISHA IS MIRACULOUS: 2 KINGS 3-4
It's time for some miracles performed by Elisha. Let's do a quick summary:
The water that fills the pits to quench thirst and aid in defeating the enemy
The widow's oil that multiplied and didn't run out until she had no more vessels to pour into
Raising a dead boy to life
Purification of a deadly stew (because some idiot didn't pay attention to the wild gourds he gathered and threw poisonous gourds into the stew, putting everyone at risk. You know he never got asked to cook dinner again)
Though these are neat stories, my favorite is the widow's oil. "Borrow vessels from all your neighbors, not too few." How amazing that she could not only pay off her debt but also have enough money left over for her and the boys to live on from that moment forward! That is a lot of jars of oil. I imagine all sorts of jars, bowls, and pots: every size and shape. Someone was buying the smallest jar of oil, and someone else was buying a barrel of oil from her. Seriously, imagine this lady, let's call her Pearl, going to her neighbors. "So, Jan, I was wondering if you had any empty vessels I could borrow. I'm trying to pay off some debt and make a little money on the side." (Wait a minute, was this the first lady working from home? Okay, probably not.) Jan furrows her brow, thinking, "You know, Pearl, my son just made the ugliest ashtray in daycare this week. It isn't much, but you're welcome to it."
"I'll take it," Pearls responds with a smile. And off she marches to Bob's house. All he has is an old barrel. "It's just collecting dust in the corner of my garage. You're welcome to it." Pearl is tickled pink. And so the day goes; Pearl trots from house to house, collecting every empty vessel she can get her hands on. When she finished, she and her boys locked themselves in the house. The little jar of oil looks even smaller in her hands. She surveys the room full of jars, bowls, and buckets. She doesn't have the faintest idea how her tiny jar could fill them all, but she believes, and she pours. She starts small, perhaps pouring from her little jar into a slightly larger jar, and her hands shake as she realizes there is oil left over. She pours into another and another vessel. She can't believe it. "Bring me another," she shouts to her boys, and they are excitedly hurried to honor her request. "Another," she pleads. Did they laugh with delight? Were they stunned to silence? Were their lips filled with praise? Were their eyes flooded with tears as the tiny jar filled each empty vessel?
"Another!"
"There is no more, Mother." The oil stopped flowing. The work was finished. God had paid their debt and given them enough to live on, and somewhere in that truth is the beauty of Jesus.
ADDITIONAL READING: Mark 2:1-12; John 6: 11-13
