Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Joram son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned twelve years. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, but not as his father and mother had done. He got rid of the sacred stone of Baal that his father had made. Nevertheless he clung to the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.
Now Mesha king of Moab raised sheep, and he had to pay the king of Israel a tribute of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams. But after Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. So at that time King Joram set out from Samaria and mobilized all Israel. He also sent this message to Jehoshaphat king of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
“I will go with you,” he replied. “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
“By what route shall we attack?” he asked.
“Through the Desert of Edom,” he answered.
So the king of Israel set out with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. After a roundabout march of seven days, the army had no more water for themselves or for the animals with them.
“What!” exclaimed the king of Israel. “Has the Lord called us three kings together only to deliver us into the hands of Moab?”
But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?”
An officer of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”
Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Why do you want to involve me? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother.”
“No,” the king of Israel answered, “because it was the Lord who called us three kings together to deliver us into the hands of Moab.”
Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, if I did not have respect for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not pay any attention to you. But now bring me a harpist.”
While the harpist was playing, the hand of the Lord came on Elisha and he said, “This is what the Lord says: I will fill this valley with pools of water. For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord; he will also deliver Moab into your hands. You will overthrow every fortified city and every major town. You will cut down every good tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every good field with stones.”
The next morning, about the time for offering the sacrifice, there it was—water flowing from the direction of Edom! And the land was filled with water.
Now all the Moabites had heard that the kings had come to fight against them; so every man, young and old, who could bear arms was called up and stationed on the border. When they got up early in the morning, the sun was shining on the water. To the Moabites across the way, the water looked red—like blood. “That’s blood!” they said. “Those kings must have fought and slaughtered each other. Now to the plunder, Moab!”
But when the Moabites came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and fought them until they fled. And the Israelites invaded the land and slaughtered the Moabites. They destroyed the towns, and each man threw a stone on every good field until it was covered. They stopped up all the springs and cut down every good tree. Only Kir Hareseth was left with its stones in place, but men armed with slings surrounded it and attacked it.
When the king of Moab saw that the battle had gone against him, he took with him seven hundred swordsmen to break through to the king of Edom, but they failed. Then he took his firstborn son, who was to succeed him as king, and offered him as a sacrifice on the city wall. The fury against Israel was great; they withdrew and returned to their own land.

• 2 Kings 3:1-27

To read 2 Kings 4, click the link HERE.

Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy.
Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said. “By all means, go,” the king of Aram replied. “I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold and ten sets of clothing. The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: “With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.”
As soon as the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his robes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!”
When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: “Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.” So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”
But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.
Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.
Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”
The prophet answered, “As surely as the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing.” And even though Naaman urged him, he refused.
“If you will not,” said Naaman, “please let me, your servant, be given as much earth as a pair of mules can carry, for your servant will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord. But may the Lord forgive your servant for this one thing: When my master enters the temple of Rimmon to bow down and he is leaning on my arm and I have to bow there also—when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant for this.”
“Go in peace,” Elisha said.
After Naaman had traveled some distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, “My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him.”
So Gehazi hurried after Naaman. When Naaman saw him running toward him, he got down from the chariot to meet him. “Is everything all right?” he asked.
“Everything is all right,” Gehazi answered. “My master sent me to say, ‘Two young men from the company of the prophets have just come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two sets of clothing.’”
“By all means, take two talents,” said Naaman. He urged Gehazi to accept them, and then tied up the two talents of silver in two bags, with two sets of clothing. He gave them to two of his servants, and they carried them ahead of Gehazi. When Gehazi came to the hill, he took the things from the servants and put them away in the house. He sent the men away and they left.
When he went in and stood before his master, Elisha asked him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?”
“Your servant didn’t go anywhere,” Gehazi answered.
But Elisha said to him, “Was not my spirit with you when the man got down from his chariot to meet you? Is this the time to take money or to accept clothes—or olive groves and vineyards, or flocks and herds, or male and female slaves? Naaman’s leprosy will cling to you and to your descendants forever.” Then Gehazi went from Elisha’s presence and his skin was leprous—it had become as white as snow.

• 2 Kings 5:1-27

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

2 Kings 3:5 ‘Moab rebelled’: ”Mesha used Ahab’s death as an opportunity to cast off the political domination of Israel with its heavy economic burden. Moab’s rebellion took place in 853 B.C. during the reign of Ahaziah (1:1). Jehoram determined to put down Moab’s rebellion upon his accession to Israel’s throne in 852 B.C. He mobilized Israel for war (v. 6) and asked Jehoshaphat of Judah to join him in the battle (v. 7).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 3:8 ‘the Wilderness of Edom’: “This was the long and circuitous route by the lower bend of the Dead Sea, the arid land in the great depression S of the sea known as the Arabah, or an area of marshes on Edom’s western side. According to the Moabite Stone (see … 3:4), Mesha’s army firmly controlled the northern approach into Moab. Therefore, an attack from the S had a much better chance of success. It was the most defenseless position and Mesha could not enlist help from the forces of Edom (v. 9).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 3:10-12 ‘Jehoshaphat calls for Elisha’: “The idol-worshipping king of Israel blamed the Lord for their predicament (3:10), but Jehoshaphat wouldn’t let Joram’s blasphemous charge stand. So, he called for a prophet of God to speak to the dilemma. When he heard that Elisha … who used to pour water on Elijah’s hands-that is, serve Elijah-was available, Joram probably shuddered (3:11). For even if Joram didn’t know of Elisha, he surely remembered Elijah ­ the one who had prophesied judgment and death on both his father Ahab and his brother Ahaziah. But, whatever Joram was thinking, Jehoshaphat was convinced that they needed to hear from this divine spokesman. So, he convinced the king of Israel and the king of Edom to go with him to visit Elisha (3:12).”

• Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 3:15-20 ‘Elisha Predicts the Defeat of Moab’: “Unless this passage describes an anomalous situation, some insight may be gleaned here into the ancient prophetic process. Either to set an inspirational mood or to help provide the correct frame of mind, Elisha requests that a musician play prior to his prophesying. It is while the music plays that ‘the hand of the Lord came upon him’ (3:15). Elisha proclaims that Jehoram and Jehoshaphat, the respective kings of Israel and Judah, will have military success against the Moabites. They are instructed to have ditches dug to contain the water the Lord would suddenly and spectacularly provide, without rain, for the refreshment of their forces and animals (3:16-20).
“This prophecy is fulfilled when the Moabite forces mistake the water-filled trenches glistening in the sunlight for a blood-soaked battlefield. Expecting an easy victory, they come against Israel and instead, experience a grueling defeat (3:21-27).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 3:15 ‘Elisha prepared to receive the Holy Spirit’: “Elisha had noticed that the Spirit of God acted on him most freely when his mind was restful and subdued. He found himself best prepared for the heavenly voice when the noise within his soul was hushed and every disturbing emotion was quieted. Having ascertained this fact by observation, he acted on it. He could not create the wind of the Spirit, but he could set his sail to receive it, and he did so. At the particular time alluded to in the text, Elisha had been greatly irritated by the sight of Jehoram, the king of Israel, the son of Ahab and Jezebel. In the true spirit of his old master, Elijah, the prophet let Jehoram know what he thought of him; and having delivered his soul, he naturally felt agitated, distressed, and unfit to be the mouthpiece for the Spirit of God. He knew that the hand of the Lord would not rest on him while he was in that state; and, therefore, he said, ‘Bring me a musician.’ “

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

2 Kings 3:17 ‘An army needs water as we need the Holy Spirit’: “We are led to observe the weakness of man when at his utmost strength. Three kings with three armies were gathered to subdue Moab, yet the whole of the armies was brought to a standstill by the simple circumstance that there was a lack of water. How easily-can God bewilder and checkmate all the wisdom and the strength of mankind! In circumstances of need, how utterly without strength we become! A dry leaf in a hurricane is not more helpless than an army when it finds itself in a wilderness with no springs of water. They may call their soothsayers, but these cannot deliver them. The allied sovereigns may sit in solemn conclave, but they cannot command the clouds. The shields of the mighty and the banners of the valiant are worthless. The armies must perish, perish painfully, perish without exception, and all for lack of so simple but so necessary a thing as water. Man would gladly play the god, and yet a little water will lay him low. The armies of these kings were in a position of abject dependence: they were dying of thirst; they could not supply their need; they must have from God the help required, or they would perish. Similarly, so dependent is the Christian church on the Holy Spirit that never was an acceptable sigh heaved by a penitent apart from him; never did a holy song mount to heaven except he gave it wings; never was there true prayer or faithful ministry except through the power and might of the Holy Spirit. Sinners are never saved apart from the Spirit of God. No moral persuasion, no force of example; no potency of logic, no might of rhetoric, ever changed the heart. The living Spirit alone can put life into dead souls. And when those souls are made alive, we are still as dependent as ever on the Spirit of God. To educate a soul for heaven is as much a divine task as to emancipate a soul from sin. To comfort a desponding Christian, to strengthen his weak hands and confirm his feeble knees, to brighten the eyes of his hope and to give him nerve to hold the shield of his faith-all these are the work of the Spirit of the living God. With all the power Chris­ tians have received, we do not have strength enough to live for another second except as the Spirit of God makes us alive. All our past experience, all that we have learned and acquired, must go for nothing unless daily and perpetually, moment by moment, the Spirit of God dwells in us and works in us mightily to keep us still a pilgrim to the gate of heaven.”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

2 Kings 3:22 ‘water … red as blood’: ”As the Moabites looked down at the unfamiliar water in the ditches dug in the valley below them, the combination of the sun’s rays and the red sandstone terrain gave the water a reddish color, like pools of blood. Unaccustomed to water being in those places and having heard no storm (see v. 17), the Moabites thought that the coalition of kings had slaughtered each other (v. 23) and so went after the spoils. The coalition army led by Israel defeated the Moabites, who had been delivered into their hands by the Lord (see vv. 18, 24).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 4:2-7 ‘Obey, even when it makes no sense’: “All the widow owned was a single jar of oil (4:2). Elisha told her to borrow all the empty containers from her neighbors that she could, which must have sounded like an odd response to what she’d shared (4:3; see 4:1). With that done, she was to begin pouring oil into them (4:4).
“Miraculously; the widow soon found that oil kept pouring out of the jar until every container gathered was full (4:5-6). By obeying the Lord’s word through Elisha, the widow had enough oil to sell so that she could pay off her debt and then live on the remaining money (4:7).
“This story is a reminder that God’s Word does not always seem to make sense to us. But, he’s God, and we’re not. Blessings­ sometimes physical but always spiritual­ come when we respond to his Word with faith and obedience.”

• Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 4:2-6 ‘Unbelievable Resources’: “Jeff Feldhahn, a friend of Nathan’s, started a business called World2one. Nathan remembers how excited Jeff was when he first told him about it, especially about its prospects for allowing ministries to quickly, easily, and safely connect with the people they serve and who serve them.
“And then the dot-com bubble burst, all sources of funding dried up, and 98 percent of the employees left, leaving Jeff and a part-time programmer to carry the vision. …
“Jeff is now almost ten years into it and finally has a product and website. Through it all, however, his attitude has remained unflagging: God will provide.
“So often we fret from day to day, wondering how we will get to tomorrow. What we easily forget is that God has plenty of oil in an endlessly flowing flask. …
“But I know that Jeff’s story is unfolding in the way that it should, and that Jeff is growing through the process. And in the interim, he and his wife have coauthored bestselling books on marriage, the For Women Only and For Men Only series, which grew out of their shared experience in this uncertain time in their lives. It was an untapped resource that surfaced when it was needed.”

• Tony Dungy with Nathan Whitaker, Uncommon Life – Daily Challenge (excerpt from devotion for 2 August)

2 Kings 4:3 ‘dying in poverty’: “The best of people may die in poverty. We must not hastily censure those who leave their families unprovided for; circumstances may have rendered it impossible for the breadwinner to do more than supply the pressing wants of the hour. We may not judge a person’s character by his position in life. Certainly poverty is no sign of divine grace, for many bring themselves to it by their own wickedness. But wealth is no sign of divine favor, for many will have their portion in this life only, with no inheritance in the life everlasting. As a general rule piety is more often found among the poor than among the rich, and in persecuting times it is almost of absolute necessity that a clean conscience should involve poverty. We should be more concerned to act like a Christian in our present condition than to escape from it. Remember, however poor we are, our Master was poorer; and whatever else we have not, we still have a share in his love. Yet God was pleased to ordain by his servant a way of escape for the poor woman. The little oil she had in the house was to be multiplied till there should be enough, when sold, to pay her debts. If in our distress we take our trouble to God, he will deliver us. This woman is not a solitary instance; she is one of a great multitude for whom the Lord has worked graciously. It is the rule of God’s providence that his children should cry to him in the day of trouble and that he should be gracious to them and deliver them. Rest assured that the Lord, who daily provides for the millions of fish in the sea and the myriads of birds in the air will not suffer his own children to perish for lack of the things of this life.”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

2 Kings 4:3-4 ‘Widow’s Jars to be Filled’: “In 2 Kings 4 Elisha encounters the desperate, debt-encumbered widow of one of his fellow prophets. Learning that all she had to her name was a meager supply of oil, Elisha instructs her to borrow from her neighbors as many jars as are available, prophesying that God would miraculously multiply her oil (4:3-4). The multiplied amount of oil fills every vessel in the home, providing a sufficient amount for her to sell and live off the profit (4:5-7).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 4:12 ‘Gehazi’: “Elisha’s personal servant who was prominent here and in 5:20–27. Probably Gehazi is the unnamed servant in v. 43; the term ‘servant’ used there was used in 1 Kin. 19:21 of Elisha’s relationship to Elijah. Throughout this narrative, Elisha contacted the Shunammite woman through Gehazi (vv. 11-13, 15, 25, 29). Gehazi was involved in this ministry so that he might have opportunity to mature in his service to the Lord.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 4:23 ‘neither the New Moon nor the Sabbath’: “The first day of the month and the seventh day of the week were both marked with special religious observances and rest from work (cf. Num. 28:9–15). The husband implied that only on such dates would a person visit a prophet. She apparently concealed the death of the child from him (‘It is well’) to spare him unnecessary grief, in light of the power of the man of God whom she believed might do a miracle for the boy.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 4:26 ‘dead, but all right’: “Perhaps she answered this way because she had faith that soon her son would be restored. But I think rather it was because she was persuaded that whatever might have become of his spirit, he was safe in the keeping of God, happy beneath the shadow of his wings. Therefore, not fearing that he was lost, having no suspicion whatever that he was cast away from the place of bliss-for that suspicion would have prevented her giving such an answer-she said, ‘Yes, the child is dead, but everything’s all right.’ Let every mother and father know assuredly that it is well with the child if God has taken him away from us in his infant days. We may never have heard his declaration of faith-he was not capable of such a thing. He was not baptized into the Lord Jesus Christ, not buried with him in baptism. He was not capable of giving that ‘pledge of a good conscience toward God’ (1Pt 3:21). Nevertheless, we may rest assured on the basis of the goodness of God that it is well with the child, well in a higher and a better sense than it is well with us-well without limitation, well without exception, well infinitely, ‘well’ eternally. Infants are not saved by their innocence. They enter heaven by the same way we do; they are received in the name of Christ. A child is saved because he is elect. In the compass of election in the Lamb’s book of life will be found written millions of souls who only appear on earth and then stretch their wings for heaven. They are saved, too, because they were redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, who shed his blood for all his people, bought them with the same price with which he redeemed their parents, and therefore are they saved because Christ was sponsor for them and suffered in their place. No doubt in some mysterious manner God’s Spirit regenerates the infant soul, and it enters into glory to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light, just as John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb, and the same occurred to Jeremiah.”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

2 Kings 4:38-41 ‘Prediction of the Pot of Stew’: “During a time of famine, Gilgal’s prophetic guild, in the company of Elisha, begins to eat a dish of stew. Unfortunately, poisonous gourds were among the ingredients in this stew. In the midst of their meal, the prophets realize that there is ‘death in the pot’ and the stew could not be eaten, regardless of the intensity of their hunger (4:40). Elisha, introducing a quantity of flour into the stew, prophetically declares it is now edible, and it is eaten with no adverse effects (4:41).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 4:42-44 ‘Elisha Prophesies the Provision of Food’: “A man brings a firstfruits offering of bread and grain to Elisha and his prophetic guild associates (4:42-44). Although it is an insufficient quantity to adequately feed 100 prophets, Elisha prophesies that not only do they have a sufficient amount to feed everyone, but there would be leftovers as well. This prophesy is fulfilled as expected (verse 44).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 4 ‘Reflections’: “The lonely saint is not the withdrawn man who hardens himself against human suffering and spends his days contemplating the heavens. Just the opposite is true. His loneliness makes him sympathetic to the approach of the brokenhearted and the fallen and the sin-bruised. Because he is detached from the world he is all the more able to help it. Meister Eckhart taught his followers that if they should find themselves in prayer, as it were, caught up, to the third heavens, and happen to remember that a poor widow needed food, they should break off the prayer instantly and go care for the widow. ‘God will not suffer you to lose anything by it,’ he told them.
” ‘You can take up again in prayer where you left off and the Lord will make it up to you.’ This is typical of the great mystics and masters of the interior life from Paul to the present day.”

• A. W. Tozer, Man, the Dwelling Place of God

2 Kings 5:1 ‘God asked him to do something simple’: “An important man in the Old Testament represents all of us in our humanity. He was afflicted with leprosy and he wanted the prophet of God to come and strike a noble pose and in a very dignified and proper way say to the leprosy, ‘Be gone!’ But the prophet said he should take his pride in hand and go to the Jordan river and bathe in the waters of the Jordan in order to be healed. In other words, God asked him to do something very simple.
“You and I are not always satisfied with the manner in which God deals with us. We would very much like to do something new, something difficult, something big and dramatic-but we are called back. For everything we need, we are called back to the simplicity of the faith, to the simplicity of Jesus Christ and His unchanging person.”

• A. W. Tozer, I Talk Back to the Devil

2 Kings 5:10 ‘Naaman Promised Healing of his Leprosy’: “Naaman, the leprous commander of the Aramean army, seeks healing at the hand of Elisha (5:1-9). Elisha instructs Naaman that after he washes himself seven times in the Jordan, he will be healed (5:10). At first Naaman balks, expecting a more dramatic encounter and set of instructions. However, upon following Elisha’s prophetic instruction, the Aramean commander is healed exactly as the prophet had predicted (5:11-14).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 5:11 ‘we map it out, but we do not know God’s footsteps’: “Preconceived ideas of what ought to be the Lord’s mode of action are injurious, even to those who have true faith in God, and yet they are frequently indulged. We map out beforehand the path of providence and the method of his mercy, forgetting that the Lord’s footsteps are not known. When the Lord does not choose to act according to our notions, we cry, half indignantly, ‘I thought he would surely act otherwise.’ This folly is seen in believers sometimes in reference to their way to heaven. They are like the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt; there is a straight road to Canaan­ why are they not allowed to take it? Instead, they are led round about; their course is in turn progressive, retrograde, and standing still-to the right and to the left, forward and retreat. Does not providence often perplex us and run counter not only to our wishes but also to our deliberate judgment? That which seems to be the best does not happen to us, while that which appears to be distressingly injurious overtakes us. Our forecasts do not come true, our daydreams are not realized, and our schemes for life are not carried out. We have ventured to propose such inquiries, but we have not been able to answer them; it is as well that we should not, for our business is not the solution of problems but the performance of precepts. Let us cease from our own wisdom and leave all arrangements in the hand of our heavenly Father. Our thoughts are vanity; his thoughts are precious.”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

2 Kings 5:13 ‘My father’: “The title ‘father’ was not usually employed by servants to their masters. The use of the term here may indicate something of the warmness that the servants felt for Naaman (cf. 2:12). His servants pointed out to Naaman that he had been willing to do anything, no matter how hard, to be cured. He should be even more willing, therefore, to do something as easy as washing in a muddy river.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 5:16 ‘he refused’: “To show that he was not driven by the mercenary motives of pagan priests and prophets, Elisha, though accepting gifts on other occasions (cf. 4:42), declined them here so the Syrians would see the honor of God only.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 5:18-19 ‘asking forgiveness for future sin’: “Naaman sought God’s pardon in one matter he’d face back home. He wanted the Lord to forgive him for those times when his king would bow in worship in the temple of his god Rimmon, leaning on Naaman’s arm for support so that Naaman had to bow as well (5:18). Elisha laid no further burden on this new believer and bid him to go in peace (5:19). Whatever shortcomings there were in Naaman’s circumstances, this non-Israelite from an idolatrous land had confessed the Lord alone to be God-unlike the king of Israel and most of his subjects.”

• Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

2 Kings 5:20-27 ‘Prediction of Gehazi’s Leprosy’: “When Naaman offers Elisha a reward for the healing of his leprosy, Elisha refuses. But Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, was not as altruistic. Behind Elisha’s back, Gehazi, claiming to speak on Elisha’s behalf, requests and receives a reward. When Elisha confronts Gehazi, the latter lies, denying his unauthorized encounter with Naaman. In response, Elisha predicts that Naaman’s leprosy would now terminally afflict Gehazi and his descendants in perpetuity. Thus afflicted, Gehazi takes his leave from Elisha (verse 27).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

2 Kings 5:27 ‘leprosy … shall cling to you’: “Gehazi’s greed had cast a shadow over the integrity of Elisha’s prophetic office. This made him no better in the people’s thinking than Israel’s false prophets, who prophesied for material gain, the very thing he wanted to avoid (vv. 15, 16). Gehazi’s act betrayed a lack of faith in the Lord’s ability to provide. As a result, Elisha condemned Gehazi and his descendants to suffer Naaman’s skin disease forever. The punishment was a twist for Gehazi, who had gone to ‘take something’ from Naaman (v. 20), but what he received was Naaman’s disease.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

My Thoughts

Recently, I wrote about the Morality Shift of the Twentieth Century.  The premise is that the concept of morality shifted to the lame excuse of “I am not as bad as Hitler, so I am okay.”  But the first few verses of 2 Kings 3 put that to rest quickly.  Ahab was the worst of the worst, so, his son, Joram (or Jehoram), got rid of the Baal stone that Ahab had built.  He felt that would put him in good graces with God, but he continued to do what Jeroboam had done, and God saw as detestable.  Hey, he was not as bad as Ahab, but he could not say that he was good, not even okay.  He did what was detestable in the eyes of God.

We can never live up to the standard that God sets, but we can work toward that standard and trust in God.  The biggest trust of all is that when we fall short of God’s standard that He will forgive us.  Not being as bad as the most detestable person of our age does not make us good.  Being washed by the blood of the Lamb is the only way to be good.

But when bad king Joram was king, he had some business to take care of.  Ahab had died.  Ahaziah had died.  And now Joram, Ahaziah’s brother, was trying to figure out which end of the scepter to hold up.  In the meantime, Mesha king of Moab had been giving Ahab a tribute each year.  Without Ahab in Israel, why pay the tribute to Ahab’s second-rate son?  Note that the Moabites were offspring of Abraham’s cousin, Lot.

Joram contacts Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, and explains how Moab needed to be dealt with.  They become allies.  Edom, the offspring of Esau, brother of Israel (Judah), throws their hat in the ring, maybe thinking there would be spoils of war to be had.

So, here stands an army of the entire family of Abraham, going to teach their cousins a lesson, but after seven days, they have no water.  No water for the army.  No water for their horses.  Jehoshaphat, who is only there is support, asks Joram who Joram’s prophet of the Lord is.  Joram only listened to his false prophets, but one of his officers suggested Elisha who had once washed Elijah’s feet, back when Elijah was still around.  So, Jehoshaphat, knowing Elijah’s reputation, called on Elisha.

While we sing about three kings at Christmas time, they may or may not have been noblemen.  They were magi, and they bore kingly gifts.  But in this case, the three kings, Joram, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom, went to enquire of Elisha.  And Elisha dismisses them.  Elisha told them that since Joram is the lead, he should consult the prophets of Ahab and Jezebel.  Why should he inquire upon the true God?

Joram makes an insulting accusation.  He says that the true God has left them without water, and the armies of the three nations are at risk of Moab destroying them.

I have written about the C.S. Lewis conundrum when his friends asked him why he (Lewis) was angry at a God he did not believe in.  Here, Joram blamed God for the lack of water.  Joram knew where such things came from.  He might not say it, but in blaming God for the lack of water meant that he knew God was the source of water.  These days, the political powers of this world think they can fix all the ills of the world while totally rejecting God.  Yet, if there is an earthquake or flood, that is an “act of God.”

Elisha, showing respect for Jehoshaphat, decides to inquire of God, but this upstart king, son of Ahab, and not even the first choice at that, has gotten him upset.  Elisha knows that he needs to get his head straight before calling upon the Spirit to give him the answers from God the Father.  He calls for a harpist.

Elisha prophesied that they should return to their armies.  God would fill the land with water.  There would be no wind nor rain.  Why?  To show that God could do this kind of thing easily, but since it was inexplicable how He did it, it must have been God that did it.  Elisha went on to prophesy that Moab would be defeated.  All their towns taken, springs stopped, trees cut down, fields destroyed with stones.

The next morning, the Moabites awoke and looked toward the armies that were about to attack them.  They saw the water covering the ground, and since there had not been any rain, they did not think this mirage to be water.  Since they knew the Judah, Israel, and Edom often fought against each other, the reflection off the water must be blood.  They thought their enemies have dissolved the alliance and killed each other.  They decided to go into the camp and mop up whatever was left of the armies and take the spoils of war.  They were not attacking.  They were plundering.  Think of it: No sword in hand, but a sack to place the plunder.

The Moabites calmly walked into the camp of the three kings and were totally defeated.  The prophecies of Elisha came to pass.  Mesha, king of Moab, reserved some men to break through to the king of Edom, probably wanting to make a deal and have Edom and Moab go against Judah and Israel.  That failed, and the king of Moab, as a last resort, sacrificed his own son, the heir to the throne, in such a way that everyone saw what he did.  It was not the worship of a false god that saved the remnant of Moab, but the repulsion of the people of Moab against Israel.  An orderly withdrawal was better than fighting people who felt they had nothing to lose.

There are many parallels in history and current events.  The berserkers, used by the Vikings, would get on every kind of upper drug to literally go insane, at least at the moment.  The Vikings would release the berserkers into the village they were about to attack and then easily follow them to finish what the berserkers did not destroy.

These days, the jihadists want to die for their god, with a similar reward that the Vikings believed they would receive.  They will never stop until the Western world, which has no stomach for war, is totally defeated.  There is no need for drugs to fuel their inner berserker.  With this inner belief, no treaty will stop them, only a delay.  They will attack again when they notice the glimmer of what might be blood on the horizon.  The Western world used to have a rule to never negotiate with a terrorist.  They are never true to their word.  We need to remember our mistakes.

Second Kings 4 starts with the wife of a member of Elisha’s prophet’s guild, for lack of a better name.  Her husband died and she is left with no resources to pay off the mounting debt.  The creditors are coming to take her two sons into slavery.

Elisha tells her to gather all the jug from the neighbors that are empty, borrow them.  Then she pours the oil from her meager supply into all the jugs.  She thought the suggestion was idiotic, but she obeyed.  As a result, she had enough from the sale of the oil to pay off her debt and be self-sufficient even with her husband gone.

A woman of Shunem, thus a Shunammite, saw Elisha approaching.  She asked her husband to build a room on their roof for the prophet for he often came by.  Elisha asked her what she wanted, using Gehazi, his servant, as an interpreter.

The woman is barren, and her husband is old.  She wanted a son.  Elisha prophesied that she would produce a son within the next year.  She warned Elisha that she did not want her hopes up, but within the year, she bore a son.  The son grew, but then one day, the boy screamed about his head.  They gave the boy to his mother and the boy died before noon.

The woman called for a donkey, and she went to see Elisha.  When she arrived, she said that she, her husband, and her son were all right.  Then, she told him about her warning.  She did want her hopes up and now her son had died.

This is a wonderful statement of faith.  Her son was dead, yet she told the holy man of God that he was all right.

Elisha knew that time was of the essence.  He sent Gehazi to run quickly.  Gehazi laid Elisha’s staff on the boy’s face, as instructed, but nothing happened.  Gehazi ran back to Elisha, who was making his way to the house.  Elisha closed the door so that it was just he and the boy.  Elisha prayed and then he laid his body atop the boy, face to face.  The boy’s body warmed, so Elisha backed away and paced back and forth.  Elisha again laid on the boy’s body.  This time, the boy awoke and sneezed seven times.  Elisha called for Gehazi to take the boy to his mother.

When Elisha returned to Gilgal, there was a famine.  His guild of prophets fixed a stew with anything they could find, wild vines and gourds.  When they tasted it, they called out to Elisha that there was death in the pot.  Elisha had them add a little flour and the poison was neutralized.

Then, someone brought twenty loaves of barley bread from the first harvest.  Elisha was told this was not enough to feed his one hundred prophets, and probably their families.  Elisha prophesied that they would have food left over.  This is reminiscent of the feeding of the 5000 and the 4000 by Jesus, but on a smaller scale.

Second Kings 5 is about Naaman, the commander of the Syrian army (the people of Aram), an enemy of the Israelites and the people of Judah.  Naaman develops leprosy.

A servant of Naaman’s wife said that the prophet in Samaria could cure Naaman.  This servant was captured when they had previously attacked Israel.  With this information, the king of Aram sent Naaman with a letter of introduction to the king of Israel in Samaria.  Along with the letter, the king sent silver, gold, and clothing.  But the king of Israel tore his clothing.  He was afraid that this was a trick to overthrow his kingdom.  He redirected Naaman to the house of Elisha.

When Elisha heard this, he sent a messenger to tell Naaman to wash seven times in the Jordan river.  Naaman’s pride was offended.  First, Elisha did not come out personally.  But then there were rules regarding remaining ceremonially clean.  But then Naaman argued that the rivers of Syria were so much better than this dirty stream.  But Naaman’s servants prevailed.  They argued with Naaman that if Elisha had sent him on a great quest, would he not go?  So, why not?  Wash in the River Jordan.

Once Naaman had obeyed, he declared that there was no other God other than the God of Israel.  He offered the treasures that he had brought, but Elisha wanted Naaman to know that God had healed him and that Elisha needed nothing.

Naaman then made a strange request.  He was required to bow to Aram’s false god, for he held the king as he bowed.  He wanted God to forgive him ahead of time.  He was doing his duty to his king, but he would only worship the true God.

With this, Naaman left, but Gehazi was greedy.  They had often received gifts from people that they had helped.  He told Naaman that Elisha had changed his mind.  There were two others that had needs.  Naaman took two talents of silver and two sets of clothing for the fictitious men and gave the gift to Gehazi.

When Gehazi returned to Elisha, Elisha prophesied that, due to Gehazi’s greed, Naaman’s leprosy would descend onto Gehazi and Gehazi’s skin turned as white as snow.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

2 Kings 3 1. Which is worst: (a) Extracting taxes from your neighbor under military threat? (b)’ Making every one takes sides in a war? (c) Seeking God’s favor in a battle? (d) Defoliating the land as you fight? (e) Killing your firstborn son’? Who did something right in this chapter?
“2. Does music help you worship or pray? Why?
“3. Does God still come to the aid of his people in dramatic ways? Have you experienced or witnessed it? How so?
“4. In what ways do we ‘sacrifice’ our first­born today: Early years in day care centers? Less-than-excellent public schools? TV for a baby sitter? Material comforts over spiritual growth? Not protecting their ecological inheritance?
2 Kings 4:1-7 The Widow’s Oil Does your money help or hinder your trust in God more? How so?
“2. How can your family share more with the poor? Write a family budget to see what expenses can be cut or debts should be eliminated.
2 Kings 4:8-37 The Shunammite’s Son Restored to Life 1. Are miraculous faith stories like this a thing of the past? Why or why not? Have you ever witnessed a raising from the dead, or even a miraculous healing? Or is this story simply a parable for God’s inner healing?
“2. Many people pray fervently for a terminally ill loved one, yet death comes anyway. What happened to those prayers? As death comes inevitably, isn’t all healing temporary?
“3. Are you wrestling with a tragedy ‘that shouldn’t have happened,’ yet did? What promises have you claimed? What hope?
“4. Have you ever had a friendship with a member of the opposite sex that people didn’t quite understand? That you didn’t even understand? Is it necessary to label or define relationships? When is it wisest to do so?
2 Kings 4:38-44 Death in the Pot and Feeding of a Hundred 1. Why do people react instantly to physical threat, yet seem indifferent to spiritual threat?
“2. What would you be least willing to share with others? Why?
2 Kings 5 1. How has greed and its cover-up afflicted the older generation today? The young professionals? Big business? National government? Even you?
“2. What promise of God from this story seems to be too ‘easy’ to be true? Have you virtually ignored, ‘virtuously’ added to, or freely received this promise?
“3. When did you come to the settled conviction that ’there is no God but the God of Israel’ (v.15)? What did it take to convince you?
“4. Since there is only one God, aren’t all religions just different ways to God? Or is the inside heart of the person really different, and not just the outside form of religion? How do you know? How can you at least give someone the benefit of the doubt, as did Elisha?
“5. What is wrong with stretching the truth for a good cause? Does a good cause sometimes justify” rotten means? Slightly rotten means? Over-ripe means?
“6. When can a rigid, literal dedication to verbal truth be a disservice? Is total honesty always the best policy? Explain.”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

Second Kings 3 and 5 have one set of questions each. There are three sets of questions for 2 Kings 4 as noted.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.