2 Kings 4
1 Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets came crying to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared Yahweh. Now the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”
One day the widow of one of [Yahweh’s] prophets came to Elisha and cried out to him, “My husband, who worked with you, is dead. You know that he revered Yahweh [very much]. But now a man to whom he owed a lot of money has come to me. [And because I cannot pay back the money, he is threatening] to take away my two sons to be his slaves [as payment for what I owe him]!”
2 So Elisha said to her, “What can I do for you? Tell me what do you have in the house?” She said, “Your servant has nothing in the house, except a pot of oil.”
Elisha replied, “What can I do to help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” She replied, “We have only a container of [olive] oil; we have nothing else.”
3 Then Elisha said, “Go out to borrow jars from your neighbors, empty jars. Borrow as many as possible.
Elisha said, “Go to your neighbors and borrow from them as many empty jars as you can.
4 Then you must go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons, and pour oil into all those jars; set aside the jars that are full.”
Then take the jars into your house with your sons. Shut the door. Then pour olive oil from your container into the other jars. When each jar is full, set it aside [and fill another jar. Keep doing that until all the jars are full].”
5 So she left Elisha and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her, and she filled them with oil.
[So she did what Elisha told her to do]. Her sons kept bringing jars to her, and she kept filling them.
6 When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another jar.” But he said to her, “There are no more jars.” Then the oil stopped flowing.
Soon all the jars were full. So she said to one of her sons, “Bring me another jar!” But he replied, “There are no more jars!” And then the olive oil stopped flowing.
7 Then she came and told the man of God. He said, “Go, sell the oil; pay your debt, and live with your sons on the rest.”
When she told Elijah [what had happened], he said to her, “Now sell the jars of oil. And [with the money you get, ] pay what you owe, and there will be enough extra money to keep buying food for yourself and your sons.” [So she did that].
8 One day Elisha walked to Shunem where an important woman lived; she urged him to eat food with her. So as often as Elisha passed by, he would stop there to eat.
One day Elisha went to Shunem [town]. There was a wealthy woman who lived there [with her husband]. One day she invited Elisha to her house for a meal. [Elisha went there and] from then on, every time Elisha was in Shunem, he went to their house to eat a meal.
9 The woman said to her husband, “See, now I realize that this is a holy man of God who is always passing by.
One day the woman said to her husband, “I am sure that this man who often comes here is a prophet [who brings messages] from God.
10 Let us make a little room on the roof for Elisha, and let us put in it a bed, a table, a seat, and a lamp. Then when he comes to us, he will stay there.”
I think we should make a small room for him on our [flat] roof, and put a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp in it. If we do that, whenever he comes here, he will have a place to stay.” [So they did that].
11 So when the day came again that Elisha stopped there, he stayed in the room and rested there.
One day Elisha returned to Shunem, and he went up to that room to rest.
12 Elisha said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him.
He said to his servant Gehazi, “Tell the woman that I want to speak to her.” [So the servant went and told her]. When she came [to the doorway of Elisha’s room],
13 Elisha said to him, “Say to her, 'You have gone to all this trouble to care for us. What can be done for you? Can we speak for you to the king or to the army commander?'” She answered, “I live among my own people.”
Elisha said to Gehazi, “Tell her that we both appreciate all the kind things that she has done for us. Then ask her what we can do for her. Ask, ‘Do you want [me to go to] the king or the army commander, to request something for you?’” [Gehazi told her, ] and she replied, “No, [he does not need to do that, because] my family/relatives are able to give me what I need.”
14 So Elisha said, “What can we do for her, then?” Gehazi answered, “Indeed, she has no son, and her husband is old.”
[Later, ] Elisha asked Gehazi, “What do you think that we can do for that woman?” He replied, “She does not have a son, and her husband is an old man. [So maybe we should ask Yahweh to enable her to have a son].”
15 So Elisha answered, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the door.
Elisha told Gehazi, “Call her back again.” [So Gehazi went and called her]. And when the woman returned, as she stood in the doorway,
16 Elisha said, “At this time of year, in one year's time, you will be holding a son.” She said, “No, my master and man of God, do not lie to your servant.”
Elisha said to her, “About this time next year you will be holding your [infant] son in your arms.” But she protested, “O, sir, you are a prophet [who brings messages] from God, so please do not deceive/lie to me by saying things like that!”
17 But the woman conceived and gave birth to a son at the same time in the following year, as Elisha had said to her.
But a few months later, the woman became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son at that time the following year, just like Elisha had predicted.
18 When the child had grown, he went out one day to his father, who was with harvesters.
When the child was older, one day he went out to the fields to see his father, who was [working] with the men who were harvesting [grain].
19 He said to his father, “My head, my head.” His father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.”
[Suddenly] the boy exclaimed, “My head [hurts]! My head [hurts a lot]!” His father said to one of the servants, “Carry him home to his mother!”
20 When the servant had picked him up and brought the boy to his mother, the child sat on her knees until noon and then died.
So the servant carried him home, and his mother held him on her lap. But at noontime the boy died.
21 So the woman got up and laid the boy on the bed of the man of God, shut the door, and went out.
She carried him up [the steps] to the prophet’s room and laid him on the bed. She left him there and went out and shut the door.
22 She called to her husband, and said, “Please send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys so that I may hurry to the man of God and then come back.”
She then called out to her husband, saying, “Send to me one of the servants and a donkey, so that I can ride [on it] quickly to the prophet, and then come back!” [But she did not tell her husband that their son had died].
23 Her husband said, “Why do you want to go to him today? It is not a new moon nor a Sabbath.” She replied, “It will be all right.”
Her husband [called out to her and] said, “Why [do you want to go] today? This is not the day when we celebrate the Festival of the New Moon, and it is not a Sabbath day!” But she only replied, “[Just do what I requested and] everything will be all right.”
24 Then she saddled a donkey and said to her servant, “Drive on quickly; do not slow down for me unless I say so.”
So she [told the servant to] put saddles on [two] donkeys, and as they left, she said, “Hurry! Do not slow down unless t tell you to do that!”
25 So she went and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. So when the man of God saw her in the distance, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Look, here comes the Shunammite woman.
As they approached Carmel Mountain, where Elisha was, Elisha saw her in the distance. He said to Gehazi, “Look, the woman from Shunem is coming!
26 Please run to meet her and say to her, 'Is everything alright with you and with your husband and child?'” She answered, “It is alright.”
Run to her, and ask her if everything is all right with her and her husband and with her child!” [So Gehazi ran to her and asked her, but she did not tell Gehazi anything.] She only said, “Yes, everything is fine.”
27 When she came to the man of God at the mountain, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi came near to thrust her away but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for she is very upset, and Yahweh has hidden the problem from me, and has told me nothing.”
But when she came to where Elisha was, she [prostrated herself on the ground in front of Elisha and] took hold of his feet. Gehazi started to push her away, but Elisha said, “(Do not push her away/Leave her alone)! Something is troubling her very much, but Yahweh has not told me what it is.”
28 Then she said, “Did I ask you for a son, my master? Did I not say, 'Do not deceive me'?”
Then she said to Elisha, “O, sir, I did not ask you to enable me to give birth to a son [RHQ]. And I told you not to lie to me about that!” [RHQ]
29 Then Elisha said to Gehazi, “Dress for travel and take my staff in your hand. Go to her home. If you meet any man, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer him. Lay my staff on the child's face.”
Then Elisha [realized that something must have happened to her son. So he] said to Gehazi, “Get ready [to leave immediately]. Take my staff/walking stick and go [to her home]. Do not [stop to] talk to anyone on the way. Go quickly [to where her son is] and lay the staff on the child’s face. [If you do that, perhaps Yahweh will enable him to be well].”
30 But the mother of the child said, “As Yahweh lives, and as you live, I will not leave you.” So Elisha arose and followed her.
But the boy’s mother said, “Just [as certain] as Yahweh lives and you live, I will not go home if you do not go with me.” So Elisha returned with her [to her home].
31 Gehazi hurried on ahead of them and laid the staff on the child's face, but the child did not speak or hear. So then Gehazi returned to meet Elisha and told him saying, “The child has not awakened.”
Gehazi hurried quickly, and [when he got to the woman’s home, ] he laid the staff/walking stick on the child’s face, but the child did not move or say anything. So Gehazi returned to meet Elisha [along the road], and told him, “The child is still dead.”
32 When Elisha arrived at the house, the child was dead and was still on the bed.
When Elisha reached the house, he saw that the boy was lying dead on his bed.
33 So Elisha went in and shut the door on the child and himself and prayed to Yahweh.
Elisha went into the room by himself and shut the door and prayed to Yahweh.
34 He went up and lay on the child; he put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. He stretched himself out on the boy, and the boy's body grew warm.
Then he lay down on the boy’s body, and put his mouth on the boy’s mouth, and put his eyes on the boy’s eyes, and put his hands on the boy’s hands. Then the boy’s body started to become warm!
35 Then Elisha got up and walked around the room and again went up and stretched himself out on the boy. The child sneezed seven times and then opened his eyes!
Elisha got up and walked back and forth in the room [several times]. Then he stretched his body on the boy’s body again. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes!
36 So Elisha called Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite!” So he called her, and when she came into the room, Elisha said, “Pick up your son.”
Then Elisha summoned Gehazi. He said, “Call the boy’s mother!” [So Gehazi went and called her, ] and when she came in, Elisha said, “Here, take your son!”
37 Then she lay facedown on the ground at his feet and bowed to the ground, and then picked up her son and went out.
She [gratefully] prostrated herself at Elisha’s feet. Then she picked up her son and carried him downstairs.
38 Then Elisha came again to Gilgal. There was famine in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. He said to his servant, “Put the large pot on the fire and cook stew for the sons of the prophets.”
Then Elisha returned to Gilgal. But at that time there was (a famine/very little food) in that area. One day as the group of prophets was sitting in front of Elisha [listening to what he was teaching], he said to his servant, “Put a large pot on [the stove] and make some stew for these men.”
39 One of them went out into a field to gather vegetables. He found a wild vine and gathered enough wild gourds to fill the fold of his robe. They cut them up and put them into the stew, but did not know what kind they were.
One of the prophets went out to the fields to gather some vegetables. But he gathered [only] some wild gourds and put them in his cloak and brought them back. He shredded them and put them in the pot, but he did not know that the gourds were poisonous.
40 So they poured out the stew for the men to eat. Later, as they were eating, they cried out and said, “Man of God, there is death in the pot!” So they could not eat it anymore.
He served the stew to the prophets, but after the men had eaten only a couple bites, they cried out, “Elisha, there is something in the pot that will kill us!” So they would not eat it.
41 But Elisha said, “Bring some flour.” He threw it into the pot and said, “Pour it out for the people, so that they may eat.” Then there was no longer anything hurtful in the pot.
Elisha said, “Bring me some flour.” [They brought him some, and] he threw it in the pot and he said, “It is all right now. You can eat it.” And they ate it, and it did not harm them.
42 A man came from Baal Shalishah to the man of God and brought twenty loaves of barley bread in his sack from the new harvest, and fresh ears of grain. He said, “Give this to the people so they can eat.”
One day a man from Baal-Shalishah [town] brought to Elisha a sack of freshly cut grain and 20 loaves of barley bread, made from the first grain that they harvested [that year]. Elisha said [to his servant], “Give it to the group of prophets, so that they can eat it.”
43 His servant said, “What, should I set this before a hundred men?” But Elisha said, “Give this to the people, so they can eat, because Yahweh says, 'They will eat and will have some left.'”
But his servant exclaimed, “Do you think that we can feed 100 of us prophets with only that much?” [RHQ] But Elisha replied, “Give it to the prophets so that they can eat it, because Yahweh says that there will be plenty for all of them, and there will be some left over!”
44 So his servant set it before them; they ate, and left some remaining, just as the word of Yahweh promised.
After his servant gave it to the prophets, they ate [all that they wanted], and there was food left over, just as Yahweh had promised.
