2 Kings 4

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2 Kings 4

1 Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the Lord: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.

2 And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.

3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.

4 And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.

5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.

6 And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.

7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.

8 And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.

9 And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.

10 Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.

11 And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.

12 And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

13 And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people.

14 And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old.

15 And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.

16 And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.

17 And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

19 And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

21 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.

22 And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.

23 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.

25 So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:

26 Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well:

27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the Lord hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.

28 Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

29 Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.

30 And the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.

31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.

32 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.

33 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the Lord.

34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

35 Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

36 And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.

37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

38 And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.

39 And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not.

40 So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.

41 But he said, Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.

42 And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.

43 And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the Lord, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.

44 So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the Lord.

Notes

Cross Reference

Commentary

Rashi

Verse 1

<html>A wife of one of the disciples of the prophets. She was the wife of Ovadyoh. Every expression of ‘בְּנֵי הַנְּבִיאִים’ [lit., “the sons of the prophets”], in Scripture, is translated [by Targum Yonoson] as, “the disciples of the prophets.”¹See Targum above 2:3, 2:7 and 2:15. Now the creditor. He was Yehorom, son of Achov, who would lend him with interest, enabling him to sustain the prophets in his father’s time [according to] Midrash Rabbi Tanchuma. Therefore it is stated, “And struck Yehorom between his arms,”²Below 9:24. which he stretched out to take interest.</html>

Verse 2

<html>A jar of oil. Enough oil for anointment [=אָסוּךְ], and the ‘א’ is part of the root,³Alternatively, the root is סוך, and the ‘א’ is an added prefix.—Radak like the ‘א’ of, “and my speech [=וְאַחְוָתִי] in your ears,”⁴Iyov 13:17. and the ‘א’ of, “the dread [=אִבְחַת] of those struck down by the sword.”⁵Yechezkeil 21:20.</html>

Verse 4

<html>And close the door. [It affords] respect to the miracle [if] it comes about in secret. And the full one[s] you shall remove. From before you, and you shall place another vessel in its place to fill it, but you must not move the jug of oil from its place, for the Holy One, Blessed Is He, is making it as a spring, and it is not customary to move a spring from its place.⁶Alternatively, she must not move the jug of oil because a miracle continues only in the place where it started.—Radak I heard this Midrash Aggadah.</html>

Verse 5

<html>They would bring [the containers] to her. The vessels.⁷They even brought her broken vessels and miraculously they became whole. These too were filled with oil.—Radak</html>

Verse 6

<html>Then the oil stopped. From coming anymore. [According to] Midrash Aggadah, the price of oil went up.⁸Bereishis Rabbah 35:3.</html>

Verse 7

<html>She came and told, etc. She came for advice, whether to sell [the oil] or to wait until it would become even more expensive. He said to her, “Go sell, for there is enough [to pay] all your debt, and for you and your sons to live with the remainder, until the dead are resurrected.”⁹He blessed them with eternal life, i.e., life until the Resurrection of the Dead.—Malbim</html>

Verse 8

<html>There [lived] a prominent woman. [I.e.,] an important [woman]. And I saw in Pirkei of Rabbi Eliezer,¹⁰Chapter 23. that she was the sister of Avishag the Shunamis.¹¹See I Melochim 1:1-4.¹²She is also identified as the mother of Iddo the prophet.—Radak See I Melochim 13:1 and Rashi there. Thereafter, whenever he passed through. In that city, he would stop at her house to eat a meal. He would go. [יור is] the present tense, [i.e.,] he would go there.</html>

Verse 9

<html>“Behold, now I know.” Because she never saw a fly at his table or semen on his sheet.¹³Maseches Berachos 10b. From here we derive that a woman recognizes her guests better than her husband does.</html>

Verse 11

Verse 13

<html>You have busied yourself with us. On our account. With all this attention. To put your heart into this task, as in, “and shudders [=וחרד] concerning My word,”¹⁴Yeshayahu 66:2. [i.e.,] is diligent concerning the task that it be accomplished, and puts his heart into it. What can be done for you? What do you need that we do for you, for you busied yourself on our account. “In the midst of my people.” Among my relatives, [i.e.,] no one harms me. I have no need for the king or for the general of the army.¹⁵Alternatively, “I dwell among my relatives and they can speak to the king on my behalf if necessary.”—Radak</html>

Verse 14

<html>And he said. Elisha [said] to Geichazi. “Then what is there to do for her?” To reciprocate for this favor.</html>

Verse 16

<html>“At this season [next year] when the time comes to give birth.” Just as you are alive and well today, so will you be alive at this season [next year]¹⁶I.e., Elisha was guaranteeing her future health by comparing it to her present state of health. Alternatively, חַיָּה refers to a woman who gives birth and כָּעֵת חַיָּה refers to a nine month span, the normal period of pregnancy. Elisha told her that the baby will be born after fully developing in the womb.—Metzudas Dovid at this time and embracing a son. “Do not my master.” Do not say, “embracing a son.” Why do I need to embrace him if I will end up burying him?¹⁷She suspected that her son would survive for only a short period because the prophet used the expression “you will be hugging a son” instead of “you will have a son,” the expression used by the angels when they told Avrohom that Sarah will bear him a son. See Bereishis 18:10.—Malbim This is what she said to him when he died, “Did I not say, ‘Do not mislead me’?” Do not deceive. Do not show me something that will fail. You have power to beg mercy, so that a son will be given to me. But I beg you, do not give me [any child], rather a child who will live. Do not deceive. Like “whose waters will not fail.”¹⁸Yeshayahu 58:11.</html>

Verse 17

<html>When the time was for her to give birth. Like this time when she was alive and well. Therefore, the word is voweled [to mean], like “this” time.¹⁹I.e., the ‘כ’ is voweled with a קָמַץ instead of a שְׁוָא.</html>

Verse 19

<html>“My head! My head!” I am sick in my head.²⁰It is common for those in pain to repeat their cries; see Yirmiyahu 4:19.—Radak He said. His father said to one of the servants, “Carry him to his mother.”</html>

Verse 24

<html>“Drive and go on.” [I.e.,] hurry. Do not hold back from riding because of me. Do not hold back the riding [pace] because of me.²¹Some say she walked alongside the donkey and others say she rode the donkey.—Radak</html>

Verse 26

<html>And she said, “[All is] well.” This is an abbreviated verse, for it should have been written, “And he asked her, and she said, ‘We are well.’”</html>

Verse 28

<html>Did I not say. To you, “Do not deceive your maidservant”?²²Below v. 16. “Do not mislead”? Do not mislead me concerning a mistake.²³Alternatively, Gא תַשְׁגֶּה means “do not grieve me.”—Targum</html>

Verse 29

<html>Do not greet him. Do not inquire about his welfare. All this [was done] to discourage conversation, where one might ask him, “Where are you going?” and he would say, “To revive the dead.” It is not respectful for the miracle when the maker brags about it. But, he did not obey.²⁴Geichazi took his mission very lightly and considered it a joke. He was therefore unsuccessful in his mission. Radak When anyone asked him [where he was going], he responded, “My master sent me to revive the dead.”²⁵Alternatively, Elisha initially thought that the boy had merely fainted and therefore his personal presence would not be necessary.—Malbim</html>

Verse 34

<html>And he spread himself upon him. [Targum] Yonoson rendered ‘וְאַלְהֵי עֲלוֹהִי’, an expression of weariness.²⁶I.e., “he laid exhausted upon him.” There is a similar word in the Beraisa of Ha’azinu and in Sifrei. But Menachem rendered ‘וַיִּגְהַר’, an interpretation of the word according to its context, “he prostrated himself upon him.”²⁷See I Melochim 18:42.</html>

Verse 35

<html>[The boy] sneezed. He sneezed.²⁸According to the Zohar, the boy that Elisha revived was Chavakuk the prophet. This is alluded to in v. 16 above, where the prophet tells the woman “you will be hugging [=חֹבֶקֶת] a son.”</html>

Verse 38

<html>Put up the large pot. Place it on the stove. A porridge. A cooked dish. For the disciples of the prophets. For the disciples of the prophets.</html>

Verse 39

<html>To gather greens [herbs]. [‘אֹרֹת’ is] field-rocket which is called oruge, and it enlightens [=מֵאִיר] the eyes.²⁹See Maseches Yoma 18b. Others interpret ‘אֹרֹת’ as herbs, as in, “like a clear heat on herbs [=אוֹר].”³⁰Yeshayahu 18:4. And he found a vine in the field. A vine in the field. And gathered wild gourds from it. Wild mushrooms sprouted from it, boleiz, in O.F., which are poisonous.³¹They did not realize that the mushrooms were poisonous. And in the name of Rabbi Menachem I heard, “and he gathered in addition to the fruit that grew from it, wild gourds.” And sliced [them]. Split them.</html>

Verse 42

<html>From Ba’al-Shalishah. The name of a province. But [Targum] Yonoson rendered, “from the land toward the south.” “בַּעַל” is an expression meaning “a plain.” There are many [such expressions] in Scripture. Bread from the first crop. It was during Pesach, when the grain ripens.³²Although the word בִּכּוּרִים usually refers to the new crop offering that was brought in the Beis Hamikdosh [see Shemos 34:26], here it merely means “bread from the first crop,” without reference to the new crop offering. In their shells. In its wrapper.³³I.e., the grains were still in their husks. Alternatively, after grain is toasted and broken up, it is placed in a vessel known as צִקְלוֹן.—Ralbag To the people. To the disciples [of the prophets] whom he sustained.</html>

Verse 43

<html>“How will I present this.” Each bread.</html>

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Table of Contents

2 Kings 4

2 Kings 4

Notes

Cross Reference

Commentary

Rashi

Verse 1

Verse 2

Verse 4

Verse 5

Verse 6

Verse 7

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 11

Verse 13

Verse 14

Verse 16

Verse 17

Verse 19

Verse 24

Verse 26

Verse 28

Verse 29

Verse 34

Verse 35

Verse 38

Verse 39

Verse 42

Verse 43