Contents ▼▲
Front Matter The Garden of Eden The First Great Crime The Flood The Tower of Babel Abraham Moves into Canaan Sodom and Gomorrah The Trial of Abraham's Faith Searching for a Wife for Isaac Isaac and Rebekah Esau Sells his Birthright Jacob Serves for Rachel Jacob Returns to Canaan Joseph is Sold into Egypt Pharaoh's Dream Joseph's Brethren Buy Corn Jacob Moves into Egypt The Early Life of Moses Egyptians Smitten with Plagues Egyptians Drowned in Red Sea The Lord Provides for Israel Plan to Build the Tabernacle The Golden Calf Wanderings of the Israelites Spying Out the Land of Canaan Punishing the Israelites Balaam is Made to Prophesy Border of the Promised Land Last Days of Moses Rahab Saves the Spies The Destruction of Jericho The Capture of Ai Joshua Conquers Canaan Gideon is Given a Sign Gideon Overcomes Midianites The Punishment of Abimelech Jephthah's Daughter The Young Samson Samson and the Philistines The Death of Samson Naomi and Ruth Ruth and Boaz The Young Samuel Philistines Capture the Ark Philistines Return the Ark Saul in Anointed King Jonathan and the Philistines The Disobedience of Saul Samuel Anoints David David and Goliath Saul is Jealous of David David and Jonathan The Madness of Saul David Spares the Life of Saul The Last Days of King Saul David Becomes King The Rebellion of Absalom The Death of Absalom Solomon Becomes King The Wisdom of Solomon Solomon Builds the Temple Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon Revolt of the Ten Tribes The Wickedness of Jeroboam Elijah Begins His Ministry Elijah Destroys the Prophets Elisha is Made a Prophet Death of Ahab Sickness of Ahaziah Last Days of Elijah Miracles of Elisha Naaman is Cured of Leprosy Flight of the Syrians Jehu is Appointed King The Story of Joash Last days of Elisha Destruction of Sennacherib Judah Led into Captivity Destruction of Jerusalem Daniel Interprets the Dream The Fiery Furnace Madness of Nebuchadnezzer Handwriting on the Wall Daniel in the Lion's Den Jonah Swallowed by a Fish Jonah Warns Nineveh Esther Becomes Queen The Vengeance of Haman Esther Saves Her People The Return from Captivity Nehemiah Rebuilds Jerusalem

Heroes of Israel - Lawton Evans




The Miracles of Elisha

Jehoram, the son of Ahab, was now king over Israel. While he was king the Moabites rebelled against Israel and came against Jehoram with a large host.

Jehoram sent to Jehosaphat, who was king of Judah, and said: "The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me against him to battle?" And Jehosaphat sent back the answer that he would go. So the king of Israel and the king of Judah journeyed into the wilderness to meet their enemies and they went a seven-day's journey. There was no water for the men or for the cattle that followed them and they were much distressed.

Jehosaphat said: "Is there not here a prophet of the Lord that we may inquire of him what to do?" One of Jehosaphat's servants answered and said: "Elisha is here, the servant of Elijah, upon whom his mantle has fallen." And the king went to Elisha and asked him what to do to keep the people and the cattle from dying of thirst.

Now Jehosaphat was a godly man and served the Lord. So Elisha said to Jehoram, the king of Israel: "I have no regard for you, for you are a wicked king, but since Jehosaphat, the king of Judah, is a godly man I will save this army from destruction."

The prophet then told the kings to bring him a minstrel, and as the minstrel played upon the harp he began to prophesy and said: "Make the valley full of ditches for there shall be no wind nor rain, yet that valley shall be filled with water that you may drink, you and your cattle, and the Lord will deliver the Moabites into your hand."

The kings went back to their tents and when they arose in the morning and looked in the valley, behold, the country was filled with water, even as though it had rained.

Now the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them and so they gathered and marched against the hosts of Judah and Israel. When they reached the valley early in the morning they saw the sun shining upon the water in the ditches and the Moabites saw the water as red as blood.

"This is blood; the kings are surely slain; they have smitten one another; now, therefore, Moab, hasten and gather in the spoil," cried all the men of Moab. But the Israelites had only withdrawn a short ways off and when the Moabites came near the camp the Israelites arose and fell upon the Moabites so that they fled before them.

They followed them into their own country and beat down their cities and despoiled the land and filled up the wells and cut down the trees. Thus was the kingdom of Israel saved from the Moabites.

There was a woman who was a widow of one of the sons of the prophets who came unto Elisha, and said: "My husband is dead and you know he did fear the Lord. The man to whom he owed money has come to take my two sons. What shall I do to save myself and my household?" Elisha then asked her what she had in her house and the widow told him that she had nothing but a pot of oil.

"Go, borrow vessels of thy neighbors, even empty vessels, and borrow not a few," said the prophet to her. "And when you have them, shut the door of your house and pour oil into the empty vessels out of the little pot which you have."

The widow went from the prophet and borrowed empty vessels of her neighbors and took them to her house and shut the door. She began to pour oil out of her pot into the empty vessels until the vessels were full. The oil did not fail to keep on coming so long as there was a vessel to be filled. Finally she said to one of her sons: "Bring me yet another vessel," and he told her there were no more vessels and all were full.

Then the widow went to Elisha and told him what had happened, and Elisha said to her: "Go, sell the oil and pay your debt and you and your children shall live on the rest."

One time, as Elisha journeyed through the land, he came to Shunem, a great city. There lived here a rich woman who begged him to stop at her house and eat of her food. She was very kind to Elisha so that whenever he passed that way he always stopped and ate of her food.

The woman said to her husband: "I see that this is a holy man of God who passes our way. Let us make a little room and set for him a bed and a table and a stool and a candlestick, so that it shall be his room that he may turn into it whenever he comes this way." And so they made a room for the prophet.

One day as he lay in the room, he said to Gehazi, his servant: "Call this Shunamite woman." When she came to the prophet he said to her: "You have taken good care of my servant and of me. What may I do for you? Would you have me speak to the king or to the captain of the host for you?"

The woman answered: "I dwell among my own people. There is nothing my lord can do for me," and the Shunamite departed.

After she had left, Gehazi said to Elisha: "She has no child, and if the Lord would send her a son, it would be well." And the prophet told Gehazi to call the woman back.

When she came to Elisha he said to her: "The Lord will send you a son," and the woman rejoiced, and after a while a son was born and grew up to be a lad.

One day when the lad was out in the field with the reapers he was overcome and said to his father: "My head, my head!" They took the lad to his mother and put him in her lap and there, after a few hours, he died. After he was dead she took him up into the room of the man of God and laid him on the bed and shut the door and went out.

The Shunamite woman hastened to find Elisha, who was on Mount Carmel. She told him her child was dead. Elisha arose and followed her and when they came into the house he saw that the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. Elisha went in and shut the door and prayed to the Lord. He then laid down by the side of the child and put his mouth and his eyes upon the child's mouth and eyes and his hands upon the child's hands. After a while the flesh of the child became warm and life returned to him. The child sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. Elisha called his servant Gehazi and said to him: "Call the Shunamite woman." Gehazi called her and she came in. When she saw her son alive she fell at the feet of the prophet in thankfulness. She then took her son and went her way.