The Sons of the Prophets

-



Scripture

Now a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD; and the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”
(2 Kings 4:1 NASB)
When Elisha returned to Gilgal, there was a famine in the land. As the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his servant, “Put on the large pot and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.”
(2 Kings 4:38 NASB)
For behold, Your enemies make an uproar, And those who hate You have exalted themselves.
(Psalms 83:2 NASB)
They make shrewd plans against Your people, And conspire together against Your treasured ones.
(Psalms 83:3 NASB)
Fill their faces with dishonor, That they may seek Your name, O LORD.
(Psalms 83:16 NASB)
Let them be ashamed and dismayed forever, And let them be humiliated and perish,
(Psalms 83:17 NASB)
That they may know that You alone, whose name is the LORD, Are the Most High over all the earth.
(Psalms 83:18 NASB)

 

Observation


God's prophets, those who had been faithful to him, had really taken a beating. Life was difficult for them. We enter into this chapter with Elisha and discover that the stories alternate between miracles for the sons of the prophets and miracles for others. Mixed into this story we discover God's care for those who have been his servants. Life has been tough for them. The widow of one of the sons of the prophets doesn't know how she will survive. Her husband is dead and the creditors want her to pay bills. There is no money, but God provides for the bills and for she and her son. Next we find the sons of the prophets with nothing to eat. They are starving during the time of famine. God provides another miracle and they are fed with a large pot of stew. Not only are they fed, but there is enough to feed others. And finally the Psalmist records that there are those who make war against God's people, and yet, God provides protection.

 

Application


The sons of the prophets represent a remnant of people who were faithful to God, even in the midst of terrible circumstances. They literally watched as their fathers were persecuted and killed because of their faith. Still, they did not give in, nor did they give up their faith in God. They were faithful and yet when the land no longer produced crops, when the rain didn't come, and there was no food -- God lovingly cared and provided for them. In this chapter there were four miracles -- two for the families of the prophets, and two for complete foreigners. What is the message here? That God remains faithful to the faithful -- no matter who they are or where they are from. The children of Israel were his chosen people -- but they were no longer faithful. They were suffering from the famine but did not cry out to God. But God's people cried out to him and he came and he cared for them.

God is still a God of miracles today and reaches out to help and sustain his servants. We must remain faithful to him in the midst of all the circumstances of life. We must hold on to him in the famines of life and allow him to be the Sustainer of all things. And when God provides for his people, and there is more left-over, may we be willing to share the rest with a hungry and needy world which surrounds us on a daily basis.

 

Prayer


Thank you Lord for your care and providence in the lives of the faithful. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a time when we try to carry
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have
Read more