In this chapter we read about various miracles of mercy, we know they are miraculous because no one really knows how they were done. We must also bear in mind that 2 Kings 4-8:6, isn’t in chronological order, but presented in a way to demonstrate the continued work of Elisha in showing the Israelites that God is way more powerful than the Canaanite gods, especially Baal.
Since Elisha took over from Elijah, he was constantly proving to himself to those around him that he was a true prophet of God. He did this by performing various miracles and here we find God showing he was with Elisha when he performed a miracle of creation. We read of an unknown woman, who was married to one of God’s prophets, 2 Kings 4:1.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This woman, according to the Chaldee, Jarchi, and the rabbis, was the wife of Obadiah.’
She cries out to Elisha and tells him that her husband had died and now his creditor has come to make her two sons slaves, 2 Kings 4:1. During this time in Israel’s history, God’s prophets weren’t really valued by the people and were not supported. This poor woman, when her husband died was left with nothing but debt to pay.
We know that her husband revered the Lord, but we can only imagine what this poor woman is feeling right now. It’s bad enough going through the loss of someone close to you, but to be left with a huge debt to pay must have been humiliating and well as stressful.
The creditor wanted to take her two sons as slaves, this was in accordance with God’s law, if any debt couldn’t be paid, then a person could give themselves to the creditor as a slave until the debt was settled. The person who gave themselves as a slave had to stay and work for the creditor until the debt was totally cleared or until the year of Jubilee, Leviticus 25:39-40 / Deuteronomy 15:12-18.
She’s now a widow and the only two people who could bring in any kind of income were about to be taken as slaves. She’s desperate, she’s about to lose everything and so, it’s no wonder she cries out to Elisha for help.
After enquiring what the woman had in her house, she replied nothing except a small jar of olive oil, 2 Kings 4:2. That word ‘jar’ in Hebrew is the word ‘acuwk’, and it’s the only time the word is found within the Bible.
The jar would have been very small and although the N.I.V. tells us it was ‘olive oil’ within the jar, we simply don’t know, in all likelihood, it would have a been very expensive oil, or perfume, Mark 14:3-9, because, after the miracle, she had enough to sell for herself and enough to pay off her debt, 2 Kings 4:7.
Notice Elisha tells her to go to her neighbours and get as many empty jars as she can get. Don’t just get a few Elisha tells her, get as many as you can, 2 Kings 4:3. She and her sons are to go inside her house and shut the door behind them, 2 Kings 4:4. She is to pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side, 2 Kings 4:4. The more jars she brings, the more oil there is, and the oil simply keeps on pouring, until there were no more jars available, 2 Kings 4:5-6.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘While there was a vessel to fill, there was oil sufficient and it only ceased to flow when there was no vessel to receive it. This is a good emblem of the grace of God. While there is an empty, longing heart, there is a continual overflowing fountain of salvation. If we find in any place or at any time that the oil ceases to flow, it is because there are no empty vessels there, no souls hungering and thirsting for righteousness. We find fault with the dispensations of God’s mercy, and ask, Why were the former days better than these? Were we as much in earnest for our salvation as our forefathers were for theirs, we should have equal supplies, and as much reason to sing aloud of Divine mercy.’
Imagine what is going through her and her two son’s minds at his point. Imagine what’s going through their minds as this oil just keeps on pouring out. This is not something you witness every day, from one little jar of oil, comes many jars filled with oil. I can imagine them just praising God for what is happening in front of their eyes. She goes to Elisha who tells them to sell the oil and pay your debts and she and her sons can have what is left over, 2 Kings 4:7.
Those of us who have ever been in debt will know exactly how she’s feeling at this point. Remember what it was like when you made that final payment? I can imagine her crying as the pressure of paying the debt and losing her two sons has just been taken away. We can only imagine the joy and relief this family is feeling at this point.
The first miracle and the last miracle recorded in this chapter are similar to the feeding of the four thousand, Matthew 15:32-39 / Mark 8:1-9, and the feeding of the five thousand, Matthew 14:13-21 / Mark 6:31-44 / Luke 9:12-17 / John 6:1-14, as done by Jesus. They are also similar in nature to what Elijah did when he fed the widow of Zarephath and her son, 1 Kings 17:10-16.
Henry, in his commentary, says the following.
‘God did not provide her with some small gratuity but gave her real help. He set her up in the world to sell oil and put a liberal stock into her possession, to begin with. The greatest kindness one can do for poor people is, if possible, to help them in a way of providing for themselves through their own industry and ingenuity. The great need of our own nation, currently, is to enable all able-bodied persons to support themselves, instead of merely doling out a monthly check’.
There are a number of practical lessons we can learn from this event.
1. God blesses obedience.
Elisha could have brought her husband back to life, but he didn’t, why? Only God knows the answer to that question, but maybe she and her sons needed to understand that God’s grace would be sufficient to help them through, 2 Corinthians 12:9. It’s all very well crying out to God for help in difficult times, but we must do what He says. The very fact that she went to Elisha for help, tells us of her great faith in God to help her.
And more importantly, the very fact that she did exactly what Elisha told her to do, tells us that her faith needed to be an obedient faith. God told the Israelites He would bless them richly in the Promised Land, if they fully obeyed Him, but as we know they failed, Deuteronomy 28:1-2. In other words, don’t expect God to bless your faith, if you are not willing to do what He says.
2. God won’t hold back.
The little oil that she had was probably her nest egg, her savings for emergencies. It wasn’t enough to clear the debt, but it was all that she had. The widow could have easily argued with Elisha and said, ‘I’ve only got one small jar of oil, it’s all I have.’ But she didn’t hold anything back from God, she used the little oil she had and trusted God to take care of her needs for tomorrow.
Just like the widow Jesus saw placing her offering into the treasury, she too put in everything she had and trusted God to take care of her needs for tomorrow, Mark 12:41-44. What about you, do you ever hold things back from God?
Maybe you are like Ananias and Sapphira, you give a certain amount into the offering every week, when God has blessed you with the ability to give more. The amount you give hasn’t changed in years, despite you being richer than you were! One of the reasons we hold things back from God is simply because of a lack of trust.
What does God promise in 2 Corinthians 9:6-8? God promises if your heart is to be a cheerful giver, God will make sure you can always fulfil what your heart desires. If you want to be a person that supports the kingdom of God, he’ll give you what you need to make sure you can do it.
3. We can’t do it alone.
One thing which really stood out for me in this story was the amount of help this widow needed. Not only did she need God’s help which she sought through Elisha, but she also needed help from her neighbours and her sons. Although there’s no record of them asking her why she needed the jars, she obviously had good relationships with her neighbours because they willingly helped her in her time of need. Her sons obviously loved her because they didn’t ask any questions but simply did what she asked them to do.
When we find ourselves in desperate times, where do we turn to? Yes, we turn to God, and yes, we turn to our immediate family, but we must also learn to turn to our spiritual family. All too often, we try to go through things alone, but God blesses us with a church family to help, Romans 12:15.
We can’t really rejoice with anyone unless we’re in their company. We can’t really mourn with anyone unless we are with them, mourning with them. We can’t carry each other’s burdens, Galatians 6:2, if we don’t know what our brothers or sisters’ burdens are.
4. God blesses us so that we can bless others.
God blessed the widow and her sons with enough oil to keep them going for a while, 2 Kings 4:7. This wasn’t God’s way of giving her and her sons a retirement fund where they didn’t have to work ever again. They were given enough to live on, not to retire. They still had to work, that is, they still had to sell the oil to generate an income. She’s gone from being a widow in a hopeless situation to a woman who can now provide for her own needs.
She and her sons can now be a blessing to others, as they sell their expensive oil to others. Yes, she will still be mourning the loss of her husband. Yes, her sons will still be missing their father. But in the midst of all this was God, who was working in and through them despite their loss. And because she and her sons were obedient to God and trusted Him, God blessed them richly. So richly, that they went on to be a blessing to others.
When you’ve gone through desperate times and God blessed you by delivering you from them. When you’ve gone through hopeless times and God blessed you with help from your church family. What are you going to do? Are you just going to praise God or are you going to praise God and go on to be a blessing to others?