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2 Kings 9 The Violent End of the Omri Dynasty Begins

John Liston Byram Shaw, Jezebel. Museum: Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum, Bournemouth, UK

2 Kings 9: 1-13 The Anointing of Jehu

¹ Then the prophet Elisha called a member of the company of prophets and said to him, “Gird up your loins; take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead. ² When you arrive, look there for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi; go in and get him to leave his companions, and take him into an inner chamber. ³ Then take the flask of oil, pour it on his head, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord: I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and flee; do not linger.”
⁴ So the young man, the young prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. ⁵ He arrived while the commanders of the army were in council, and he announced, “I have a message for you, commander.” “For which one of us?” asked Jehu. “For you, commander.” ⁶ So Jehu got up and went inside; the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, “Thus says the LORD the God of Israel: I anoint you king over the people of the LORD, over Israel. ⁷ You shall strike down the house of your master Ahab, so that I may avenge on Jezebel the blood of my servants the prophets and the blood of all the servants of the Lord. ⁸ For the whole house of Ahab shall perish; I will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel. ⁹ I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah. ¹⁰ The dogs shall eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and no one shall bury her.” Then he opened the door and fled.
¹¹ When Jehu came back to his master’s officers, they said to him, “Is everything all right? Why did that madman come to you?” He answered them, “You know the sort and how they babble.” ¹² They said, “Liar! Come on, tell us!” So he said, “This is just what he said to me: ‘Thus says the LORD, I anoint you king over Israel.’ ” ¹³ Then hurriedly they all took their cloaks and spread them for him on the bare steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, “Jehu is king.”

In the previous chapter the long-delayed mission given to Elijah in 1 Kings 19: 15-18 to bring about the end of the Omri dynasty begins in earnest with the prophet Elisha acting as a catalyst in the rise of Hazael “son of nobody” to kill his master Ben-hadad and become the king of Aram. Now Elisha sets in motion God’s second instrument in the destruction of the Omri dynasty, Jehu. The prophet sends another member of the sons of the prophets (NRSVue company of prophets) to carry out this task of anointing Jehu, one of the commanders of the army, as the new king of Israel. Elisha may have been too well known to enter into the camp at Ramoth-gilead without creating whispers, but this young prophet goes in his stead to set Jehu in motion.

Choon Leong-Seow makes an educated assumption that these officers may be already plotting a coup based on how quickly they fall in line behind Jehu. (NIB III:217) Ultimately the narrative of 2 Kings does not give us any indication of this as the young prophet approaches, but a wounded and beaten leader recovering away from his military leaders is often viewed as vulnerable. It is also possible that some of these leaders may have viewed Elijah and Elisha favorably, and Jehu in particular is very aware of the words of Elijah and may even have a relationship with the sons of the prophets. This is all speculative, but it makes Jehu’s quick following of the young prophet to a place where he is anointed plausible.

The commissioning of Jehu as king is instrumental in his fulfilling of Elijah’s earlier condemnation of King Ahab’s line and Jezebel in the aftermath of the murder of Naboth in Jezreel to allow the king to take possession of his vineyard. (1 Kings 21) Jehu is named as the son of Jehoshaphat and the grandson of Nimshi, and while the inclusion of the grandfather in the patronym is unusual and may indicate the grandfather’s greater stature in the memory of the people than the father, it is likely that the inclusion of the grandfather’s name is to differentiate his line from Jehoshaphat son of Asa, the former king of Judah. Jehu is not coming from a royal bloodline, yet he is not a nobody. He is a commander of the army who the other commanders quickly acknowledge publicly as their leader.

In the aftermath of the prophet’s dangerous action and rapid departure, Jehu is questioned by his fellow officers about the message of ‘that madman.’ Prophets may have been viewed as mad because they were known to have ecstatic experiences, but they also were frequently (during the Omri dynasty) people who challenged the royal power. The anointing of Jehu is a dangerous action for Jehu if his colleagues view him as a traitor and he initially downplays the prophet’s purpose and message. After being convinced by his fellow officers to speak, these fellow officers join in this public act of declaring Jehu king. This act echoes the coming together of religious leaders and military leaders who anoint and blow the trumpet to declare Solomon king at the instructions of David. (1 Kings 1: 32-40) Jehu anointed by both the prophets and the military leaders moves quickly to become God’s instrument (in the view of 2 Kings) to remove the descendants of Ahab and his former wife Jezebel from their positions of power in Israel.

2 Kings 9: 14-29 Jehu Kills Joram and Ahaziah

¹⁴ Thus Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. Joram with all Israel had been on guard at Ramoth-gilead against King Hazael of Aram, ¹⁵ but King Joram had returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds that the Arameans had inflicted on him when he fought against King Hazael of Aram. So Jehu said, “If this is your wish, then let no one slip out of the city to go and tell the news in Jezreel.” ¹⁶ Then Jehu mounted his chariot and went to Jezreel, where Joram was lying ill. King Ahaziah of Judah had come down to visit Joram.
¹⁷ In Jezreel, the sentinel standing on the tower spied the company of Jehu arriving and said, “I see a company.” Joram said, “Take a horseman; send him to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’ ” ¹⁸ So the horseman went to meet him; he said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’ ” Jehu responded, “What have you to do with peace? Fall in behind me.” The sentinel reported, saying, “The messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.” ¹⁹ Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’ ” Jehu answered, “What have you to do with peace? Fall in behind me.” ²⁰ Again the sentinel reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. It looks like the driving of Jehu son of Nimshi, for he drives like a maniac.”
²¹ Joram said, “Get ready.” And they got his chariot ready. Then King Joram of Israel and King Ahaziah of Judah set out, each in his chariot, and went to meet Jehu; they met him at the property of Naboth the Jezreelite. ²² When Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” He answered, “What peace can there be, so long as the many prostitutions and sorceries of your mother Jezebel continue?” ²³ Then Joram reined about and fled, saying to Ahaziah, “Treason, Ahaziah!” ²⁴ Jehu drew his bow with all his strength and shot Joram between the shoulders, so that the arrow pierced his heart, and he sank in his chariot. ²⁵ Jehu said to his aide Bidkar, “Lift him out and throw him on the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite, for remember when you and I rode side by side behind his father Ahab how the Lord uttered this oracle against him: ²⁶ ‘For the blood of Naboth and for the blood of his children that I saw yesterday, says the LORD, I swear I will repay you on this very plot of ground.’ Now, therefore, lift him out and throw him on the plot of ground in accordance with the word of the LORD.”

²⁷ When King Ahaziah of Judah saw this, he fled in the direction of Beth-haggan. Jehu pursued him, saying, “Shoot him also!” And they shot him in the chariot at the ascent to Gur, which is by Ibleam. Then he fled to Megiddo and died there. ²⁸ His officers carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem and buried him in his tomb with his ancestors in the city of David.
²⁹ In the eleventh year of Joram son of Ahab, Ahaziah began to reign over Judah.

Both King Joram of Samaria and King Ahaziah of Judah are at Jezreel and Joram lies ill after the battle with the Arameans. With the rest of the military remaining at Ramoth-gilead, Jehu acts quickly with his co-conspirators, preventing word from reaching Jezreel in advance of Jehu’s plot. Jehu mounts his chariot and heads west from Ramoth-gilead, across the Jordan river to Jezreel. Jehu is not traveling alone and is, in the later words of the sentinel driving his company like a madman[1] which is something Jehu is apparently known for. The sentinel dispatches a first horsemen who asks on behalf of the king, “Is it shalom (peace)” to which Jehu responds “What have you to do with shalom? Fall in behind me.” The first and later the second horseman, which echoes these words, obediently fall in behind Jehu rather than return to their post in Jezreel. Jehu is apparently a commander who the men respect and follow even in the violation of their king’s orders.

Finally, both Kings Joram and Ahaziah each mount up in their chariots to meet this approaching company under Jehu, and they meet at the property that once belonged to Naboth the Jezreelite. King Joram once again asks Jehu, ”Is it shalom?” Jehu’s response leaves no doubt his intentions are not peaceful, and King Joram is able to cry to Ahaziah “treason” before he is shot with a single arrow, similar to his father Ahab’s death in 1 Kings 22: 34. Unlike his father he is likely shot in the back while fleeing (the shot is literally between the arms so technically could be from the front but it is less likely to pierce the heart if the king is wearing a breastplate) and unlike his father who receives a royal burial in Samaria he is cast in the field taken from the murdered Naboth.

King Ahaziah of Judah also married into the family of King Ahab, and we learned that he was practicing the ways of the Omri dynasty as well. He is also mortally wounded in the conflagration, but he is taken to Jerusalem for a royal burial. In this moment of treachery, in the view of Joram and Ahaziah, or judgment, in the view of Jehu and Elisha, the leaders of both Samaria and Jerusalem are gone. Now Jehu turns his attention Jezebel who the texts views as the force behind the corruption of the leaders in both Israel and Judah.

2 Kings 9: 30-37 The Death of Jezebel

³⁰ When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out of the window. ³¹ As Jehu entered the gate, she said, “Is it peace, Zimri, murderer of your master?” ³² He looked up to the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. ³³ He said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down; some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, which trampled on her. ³⁴ Then he went in and ate and drank; he said, “See to that cursed woman and bury her, for she is a king’s daughter.” ³⁵ But when they went to bury her, they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. ³⁶ When they came back and told him, he said, “This is the word of the LORD, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite: In the territory of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; ³⁷ the corpse of Jezebel shall be like dung on the field in the territory of Jezreel, so that no one can say, ‘This is Jezebel.’ ”

Jezebel is viewed by 1&2 Kings as a corrupting influence on Israel and recently Judah through the marriage of her daughter Athaliah to Jehoram, who is the mother of the current king Ahaziah. Jezebel had brought the practices of royalty in Tyre to Samaria. Yet, in the midst of Jehu’s uprising she puts on makeup and dresses in a way that denotes her position as the queen mother. Most modern readers discount Jehu’s accusation of Jezebel’s prostitutions and sorceries (v. 22) as reflecting her worship of other gods and practices outside the laws and statues of Israel, but it is entirely possible that Jehu believes that she practices magic of some type. She mocks Jehu from her tower with the memory of Zimri (1 Kings 16: 9-16) another army officer who reigned briefly after striking down his king. Ironically Zimri was defeated by an army led by Omri, the father of Ahab-Jezebel’s late husband.

Two or three eunuchs throw Jezebel from her tower which in a moment, “transformed the narcissistic queen to a piece of rubbish in the streets.” (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 388) Jehu is unbothered by this gory site and enters the tower to eat and drink after his chariot ride and bloody work. He sends men to see to her body, although his remark that she is a king’s daughter may be ironic since he has already cast a king’s son out on the land of Naboth. Ultimately, there is not enough of Jezebel to bury which fulfills Elijah’s words in 1 Kings 21:23. The assassination of Jezebel does end a half-century alliance between Samaria and Tyre (Cogan, 1988, p. 120) but the writer of 2 Kings ultimately views this as a positive. The prophet Hosea would later criticize Jehu (Hosea 1:4) but the author of 2 Kings views his actions in this time as a necessary violence to bring about the needed end of the Omri dynasty which had corrupted northern Israel as well as Judah.

[1] This is the same Hebrew word, shuggah, used to refer to the young prophet in the previous section.

2 Kings 8 Transitioning from Prophetic Time to a Major Transition in Royal Time

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Ivory carving found at Arslan Tash, Syria. A cache of ivories found at the Assyrian outpost of Arslan Tash was undoubtedly booty taken from Hazael’s palace in Damascus. The regal figure depicted on this piece is probably Hazael himself. (Louvre Museum, Paris)

2 Kings 8: 1-6

¹ Now Elisha had said to the woman whose son he had restored to life, “Get up and go with your household and settle wherever you can, for the LORD has called for a famine, and it will come on the land for seven years.” ² So the woman got up and did according to the word of the man of God; she went with her household and settled in the land of the Philistines seven years. ³ At the end of the seven years, when the woman returned from the land of the Philistines, she set out to appeal to the king for her house and her land. ⁴ Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, “Tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.” ⁵ While he was telling the king how Elisha had restored a dead person to life, the woman whose son he had restored to life appealed to the king for her house and her land. Gehazi said, “My lord king, here is the woman, and here is her son whom Elisha restored to life.” ⁶ When the king questioned the woman, she told him. So the king appointed an official for her, saying, “Restore all that was hers, together with all the revenue of the fields from the day that she left the land until now.”

Elisha continues to provide for this woman who showed him hospitality and warns her and her child to flee the coming famine. The husband is not mentioned and is likely dead at this point in their story and this woman acts as a head of household. The seven years of famine matches the seven-year cycle of Genesis 41: 25-30 which causes the sons of Israel to seek food in Egypt, but here the famine is far more localized. Seven is a common biblical number of completion or a long time, and so the actual span of the drought may be longer or shorter than this commonly used number to designate a completed time. The woman makes her temporary home in Philistia, roughly 100 miles away, and avoids the impact of the famine. The famine is not explicitly stated as God’s judgment on the Omri dynasty in Samaria and is likely linked to the famine mentioned in the previous chapter during the siege of Samaria, but the famine as a part of God’s judgment against the Omri dynasty can be implied in the story. The stories of the last several chapters which chronicle the works of Elisha probably exist beyond the twelve years of King Jehoram of Judah (even though Jehoram’s reign brackets these stories). The king who is interested in the works of Elisha is the king of Israel, but likely not Jehoram or any other king of the Omri line.

Gehazi reemerges in the story, and this may either precede his affliction with leprosy/skin disease,[1] after some unmentioned healing of his disease, or he may remain afflicted. Whatever his condition he is able to converse with the king of Israel about the acts of Elisha. As he describes Elisha’s raising of the woman’s son, he points to this woman who has come to “cry out” (NRSVue appeal)[2] for the return of her property. The Torah imagines a world where the property of a family would be held by that family in perpetuity, but the narrative of scripture points to a different reality. It is possible that in her absence a relative or even squatters have come in and taken over her land, or that in her absence it became crown land, but this once well-connected woman now comes to appeal for her property. Her connection to Elisha allows her appeal to be heard by this king who is interested in the acts of Elisha, and her “crying out” is heard by the king who appoints an official[3] to restore not only her land but also the revenue from the land in the time of her absence.

2 Kings 8: 7-15

⁷ Elisha went to Damascus while King Ben-hadad of Aram was ill. When it was told him, “The man of God has come here,” ⁸ the king said to Hazael, “Take a present with you and go to meet the man of God. Inquire of the LORD through him, whether I shall recover from this illness.” ⁹ So Hazael went to meet him, taking a present with him, all kinds of goods of Damascus, forty camel loads. When he entered and stood before him, he said, “Your son King Ben-hadad of Aram has sent me to you, saying, ‘Shall I recover from this illness?’ ” ¹⁰ Elisha said to him, “Go, say to him, ‘You shall certainly recover,’ but the LORD has shown me that he shall certainly die.” ¹¹ He fixed his gaze and stared at him to the point of embarrassment. Then the man of God wept. ¹² Hazael asked, “Why does my lord weep?” He answered, “Because I know the evil that you will do to the people of Israel; you will set their fortresses on fire; you will kill their young men with the sword, dash in pieces their little ones, and rip up their pregnant women.” ¹³ Hazael said, “What is your servant, who is a mere dog, that he should do this great thing?” Elisha answered, “The LORD has shown me that you are to be king over Aram.” ¹⁴ Then he left Elisha and went to his master Ben-hadad, who said to him, “What did Elisha say to you?” And he answered, “He told me that you would certainly recover.” ¹⁵ But the next day he took the bedcover and dipped it in water and spread it over the king’s face, until he died. And Hazael succeeded him.

The prophet Elijah when he was instructed to anoint Elisha to be prophet in his place was also commanded to appoint Hazael as king over Aram and Jehu as king over Israel (1 Kings 19: 15-17). Elijah did call Elisha, but now it is Elisha who is engaged in Hazael’s ascension to power in Damascus. The story is an inversion of the story in 2 Kings 1 where King Ahaziah, king in Samaria, sends to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron. While the king of Israel appeals to the god of Ekron, now a foreign king appeals to the prophet of Israel to inquire of the LORD his God. Yet, this inquiry of Ben-hadad sets in motion his demise despite the affirmative answer of the prophet. The prophetic messenger appoints Hazael to do the work that prophets do not do. The involvement of the prophet in both a lie and the politics of a foreign power has caused discomfort for some readers.

In the scriptures God often works through foreign powers, even if these powers are unaware of their participation in God’s action of judgment or deliverance. Hazael, the servant of Ben-hadad approaches the prophet with a large gift for this emissary of the God of Israel, but unlike Naaman’s large gift we never learn the disposition of the forty camel loads of gifts offered to the prophet. Hazael is informed of his role even though the prophet regrets the damage he will do to the people of Israel. Although Elisha gives Hazael the message that the king will recover from the illness, he also sets in motion a chain of events that lead to King Ben-hadad’s death at the hands of his servant. The prophet Amos views Hazael’s ascension as God’s act as well, but as a judgment on Ben-hadad (Amos 1: 3-4) but in Elisha’s view what is important is Hazael’s actions towards Israel. Following the original commissioning of Elijah to set Hazael over Aram and Jehu over Israel, both Aram and Jehu (and Elisha) are the swords that shall kill many. Many modern readers recoil at the violence of the actions attributed to Hazael in the prophet’s words, but war in the ancient world was violent. War of all times is violent, and innocent people often pay a heavy cost but armies in the ancient world did not act with the same restraint that modern militaries do in attempting to limit the destructiveness of the soldiers unleashed to practice violence on the enemy land and people. Hazael acknowledges that the violence the prophet describes would be a “great thing” and his only protest is that he is too insignificant to be able to accomplish this great thing. God has designated Hazael as a part of God’s plan for Israel, but Hazael is a blunt instrument that will incur a lot of damage in the removal of the Omri dynasty.

Elisha may weep for the future that he sees but he remains faithful to God’s vision. The ways of the Omri dynasty have led the people of Israel away to following other gods and unjust practices. Elisha may have wrestled with his role in being a part of the (ultimately) violent solution to the wicked (in the view of 2 Kings) kings of Israel who have now corrupted even the line of kings in Judah (see below). Many of the stories of Elisha have shown him working with individuals and groups in miraculous ways to help them navigate this world of famines and sieges. Yet, the narrative of 2 Kings attempts to understand how God is at work in the collapse of both Israel and Judah working through Aram, Assyria, and Babylon. Hazael, son of a nobody, as a large basalt statue of Shalmaneser refers to him derogatorily, (Cogan, 1988, p. 90) may not be anointed by Elisha in this story, but Elisha gives him the vision that leads to the suffocation of his ailing master and allows the son of a nobody to grasp power in Aram and to become God’s blunt instrument utilized in the judgment of Israel.

2 Kings 8: 16-29

¹⁶ In the fifth year of King Joram son of Ahab of Israel, Jehoram son of King Jehoshaphat of Judah began to reign. ¹⁷ He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. ¹⁸ He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. ¹⁹ Yet the LORD would not destroy Judah, for the sake of his servant David, since he had promised to give a lamp to him and to his descendants forever.
²⁰ In his days Edom revolted against the rule of Judah and set up a king of their own. ²¹ Then Joram crossed over to Zair with all his chariots. He set out by night and attacked the Edomites and their chariot commanders who had surrounded him, but his army fled home. ²² So Edom has been in revolt against the rule of Judah to this day. Libnah also revolted at the same time. ²³ Now the rest of the acts of Joram and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Annals of the Kings of Judah? ²⁴ So Joram slept with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of David; his son Ahaziah succeeded him.

²⁵ In the twelfth year of King Joram son of Ahab of Israel, Ahaziah son of King Jehoram of Judah began to reign. ²⁶ Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he began to reign; he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, a granddaughter of King Omri of Israel. ²⁷ He also walked in the way of the house of Ahab, doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD, as the house of Ahab had done, for he was son-in-law to the house of Ahab.
²⁸ He went with Joram son of Ahab to wage war against King Hazael of Aram at Ramoth-gilead, where the Arameans wounded Joram. ²⁹ King Joram returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds that the Arameans had inflicted on him at Ramah, when he fought against King Hazael of Aram. King Ahaziah son of Jehoram of Judah went down to see Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel because he was wounded.

The bulk of the first eight chapters of 2 Kings have broken from the typical construction of the story around the reigns of kings and has focused instead on the end of the prophet Elijah’s story and then multiple stories centered on the prophet Elisha. We will return to Elisha for a few final stories, but the narrator of 2 Kings returns us to the timeline of kings, particularly the kings in Judah. The narration of the book of kings has focused almost entirely on the northern kingdom of Samaria or Israel since the reign of Jehoshaphat in Judah in 1 Kings 22: 41-51. In contrast to his father and grandfather who followed the ways of the LORD, Jehoram[4] the new king of Judah follows the ways of the kings of Israel and is allied with these kings by marriage to Athaliah, a sister of king Joram of Israel. Like Jezebel, king Ahab’s wife, Athaliah is viewed as a corrupting influence upon both Jehoram and her son Ahaziah.

2 Chronicles reports a letter from Elijah to Jehoram:

¹² A letter came to him from the prophet Elijah, saying, “Thus says the LORD, the God of your father David: Because you have not walked in the ways of your father Jehoshaphat or in the ways of King Asa of Judah ¹³ but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel and have led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, as the house of Ahab led Israel into unfaithfulness, and because you also have killed your brothers, members of your father’s house, who were better than you, ¹⁴ see, the LORD will bring a great plague on your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions,¹⁵ and you yourself will have a severe sickness with a disease of your bowels until your bowels come out, day after day, because of the disease.” 2 Chronicles 21:12-14

Both 2 Chronicles and 2 Kings view the time of Jehoram as a time which corrupted the house of David and jeopardized the enduring line promised to David. God restrains the judgement on these two unfaithful kings of Judah because of God’s loyalty to David, but Judah is in danger of becoming like the north.

Kings in the ancient world[5] are judged by their ability to maintain power and here we see the beginning of a deterioration of Judah’s control of Edom as well as one of its own cities. The narrative sets the infidelity toward the LORD of these two kings of Judah alongside their loss of power over their vassals. Readers can make a judgement about the connection between their inability to project power over their vassals and their unfaithfulness to the LORD (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 375) but the theological perspective of the narrator of 2 Kings would probably view them as connected. Alex Israel suggests that Libnah, as a Levite city, may have been demonstrating against the idolatrous religious orientation of Jehoram (Israel, 2019, p. 159) and while there were likely Levites and other people faithful to the LORD who were distressed about the direction of Judah under Jehoram and Ahaziah it is probably unlikely that one city would simply separate itself from Judah without the intervention of other powers. However, Alex Israel’s description of Judah under Jehoram is pointed and accurate:

we may certainly summarize his dismal eight-year reign as a period of national disintegration: religious deviation, internecine royal infighting, a collapse of regional influence, and failure to defend his country’s borders. Judah is in decline on all fronts. (Israel, 2019, p. 159)

The introduction of Ahaziah’s brief reign over Judah sets the stage for the violent transitions in Samaria and Jerusalem in the next three chapters. King Joram is wounded in battle like his father Ahab (1 Kings 22: 29-40) and Ahaziah goes to visit him at this critical moment where Elisha anoints Jehu which brings about the ending of the Omri dynasty and the violent transition in Jerusalem.

[1] See the discussion on skin disease/leprosy in chapter five.

[2] The Hebrew za’aq as Brueggemann notes is frequently used of those who are abused or oppressed “crying out” to God or someone who can intervene on their behalf. (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 366)

[3] Mordechai Cogan and Hayim Tadmor note that saris means ‘eunuch’ based on linguistic evidence. (Cogan, 1988, p. 112)

[4] Both Jehoram and Joram have the same name, they are differentiated in translations to make it easier to refer to these kings in Samaria and Judah which reign concurrently.

[5] The bible, particularly 1&2 Kings, evaluates kings on a completely different set of values, but in general kings in the ancient world were supposed to maintain or increase their territory and wealth. Wealth was primarily generated through land as a producer of agriculture, livestock, and mineral resources.

2 Kings 6:24-7:20 The Siege and Deliverance of Samaria

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Hills Near the Ruins of Samaria By Daniel Ventura – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32449397

2 Kings 6:24-7:2

²⁴ Some time later King Ben-hadad of Aram mustered his entire army; he marched against Samaria and laid siege to it. ²⁵ As the siege continued, famine in Samaria became so great that a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver and one-fourth of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver. ²⁶ Now as the king of Israel was walking on the city wall, a woman cried out to him, “Help, my lord king!” ²⁷ He said, “If the LORD does not help you, where would my help come from? From the threshing floor or from the winepress?” ²⁸ But then the king asked her, “What is your complaint?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give up your son; we will eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’ ²⁹ So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give up your son, and we will eat him.’ But she has hidden her son.” ³⁰ When the king heard the words of the woman he tore his clothes—now since he was walking on the city wall, the people could see that he had sackcloth on his body underneath ³¹ and he said, “So may God do to me and more, if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat stays on his shoulders today.” ³² So he dispatched a man from his presence.
Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. Before the messenger arrived, Elisha said to the elders, “Are you aware that this murderer has sent someone to take off my head? When the messenger comes, see that you shut the door and hold it closed against him. Is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him?” ³³ While he was still speaking with them, the king came down to him and said, “This trouble is from the LORD! Why should I hope in the LORD any longer?”

7¹ But Elisha said, “Hear the word of the LORD: Thus says the Lord: Tomorrow about this time a measure of choice meal shall be sold for a shekel and two measures of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.” ² Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned said to the man of God, “Even if the LORD were to make windows in the sky, could such a thing happen?” But he said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat from it.”

The final seven verses of chapter six are connected to the story that continues through the seventh chapter of 2 Kings. The verses and chapters were added at a later point, and the chapter division highlights the prophecy of Elisha by bookending the seventh chapter, but the narrative which evokes the word of the LORD begins at verse twenty-four. One of the Aramean kings named Ben-hadad[1] lays siege to Samaria creating the severe crisis of the story.

Siege warfare works by denying the encircled city the resources it needs to survive while the surrounding army has access to food from the land and if necessary, brought in from the besieging country. The first to feel the impact of the food shortages are the poor and the vulnerable as the cost of the food necessary to survive climbs as the supply dwindles. In our story the cost of once unpalatable foods has reached a point unreachable to all but the wealthiest households. The ‘dove’s dung’ has a couple possible interpretations. It may be the droppings from birds who are able to eat from the grain fields that the population no longer has access to, and this may form a disgusting but necessary source of nutrition for the captured population. Some translations like the NEB and NJPS follow a linguistic trail to translate this as the “seeds of the (false) carob” which is a plant of limited nutritional value. However one translates the ‘dove’s dung,’ the situation in the city has become desperate to the point where hunger is creating an inhumane situation.

The woman at the wall who calls upon the king of Israel for help is met with a pious sounding answer, “If the LORD does not help you, where would my help come from.” To me this resonates like the empty ‘thoughts and prayers’ of a politician who has no interest in resolving the crisis of the individual who comes to them for help. Yet, in Israel there is a tradition of people coming to their kings to judge difficult and life changing matters and the kings of Israel are supposed to be guardians of the vulnerable. This story resonates with Solomon’s judging between the two women fighting over a child in 1 Kings 3: 16-28, but in this story of famine now the women are fighting over children to be eaten in their starvation. The situation echoes the darkest warnings against disobedience in Deuteronomy 28: 52-57:

⁵² It shall besiege you in all your towns until your high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down throughout your land; it shall besiege you in all your towns throughout the land that the LORD your God has given you. ⁵³ In the desperate straits to which the enemy siege reduces you, you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of your own sons and daughters whom the LORD your God has given you. ⁵⁴ Even the most refined and gentle of men among you will begrudge food to his own brother, to the wife whom he embraces, and to the last of his remaining children, ⁵⁵ giving to none of them any of the flesh of his children whom he is eating, because nothing else remains to him, in the desperate straits to which the enemy siege will reduce you in all your towns. ⁵⁶ She who is the most refined and gentle among you, so gentle and refined that she does not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, will begrudge food to the husband whom she embraces, to her own son, and to her own daughter, ⁵⁷ begrudging even the afterbirth that comes out from between her thighs, and the children that she bears, because she is eating them in secret for lack of anything else, in the desperate straits to which the enemy siege will reduce you in your towns.

The woman’s situation in this siege echoes the narration of the later siege of Jerusalem by Babylon in Ezekiel 5:10 and Lamentations 2:20 and 4:10. It is a world where the bond between mother and child has been broken by hunger and people lose their humanity in the horror of the siege. The king who has been sheltered from the worst aspects of the deprivation of the siege is horrified by the woman’s situation and yet still claims no power to alleviate her condition. The stores of grain and wine even for the king are likely depleted and we learn that he is wearing sackcloth, a sign of mourning and repentance, under his clothes which he tears on hearing the woman’s story. In response he rashly declares that he will kill Elisha.

Elisha may be the target of the king’s rage as the representative of the LORD who the king of Israel blames for this unbroken siege, or he may simply be a scapegoat in the king’s powerlessness. Elisha did in the previous chapter deliver into Samaria an Aramean army who he instructed the king to feed and allow them to depart in peace. The peace which Elisha brokered did not endure and the king of Israel may blame the prophet for the situation. It is also possible that the king feels that the prophet, who has provided food miraculously, has not performed a miracle to provide food for the suffering city. If this unnamed king of Israel is Jehoram, as the order of the stories implies, there is a long animosity between the Omri dynasty that Jehoram is a member of and Elijah as well as Elisha. It is possible that the king has never approached the prophet until this point in the siege although it is worth noting that the elders are with the prophet during this scene.

The story becomes a bit confused in verses 32-33 where a messenger arrives and later the king. Mordechai Cogan and Hayim Tadmor point to Josephus’ reconstruction of the events as being as sensible as any:

“But you,” (Elisha) said, “when the man arrives who has been given this order be on guard as he is about to enter, and press him back against the door and hold him there, for the king will follow him and come to me, having changed his mind.” So, when the man came who had been sent by the king to make away with Elisha, they did as he had ordered. But Joram, repenting of his wrath against the prophet and fearing that the man who had been ordered to kill him might already be doing so, hastened to prevent the murder and even save the prophet. Antiquities ix, 69-70. (Cogan, 1988, pp. 80-81)

Despite the king’s earlier murderous words, the king, the prophet, and the elders all share in hearing the word of the LORD that Elisha receives declaring that the crisis will end suddenly in roughly twenty-four hours. The immediate availability of cheap food prophesied is unbelievable to the captain of the king, and Elisha adds a final note that this captain will see the prophecy fulfilled but be unable to partake in it.

2 Kings 7:3-20

³ Now there were four men with a defiling skin disease outside the city gate who said to one another, “Why should we sit here until we die? ⁴ If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there, but if we sit here, we shall also die. Therefore, let us desert to the Aramean camp; if they spare our lives, we shall live, and if they kill us, we shall but die.” ⁵ So they arose at twilight to go to the Aramean camp, but when they came to the edge of the Aramean camp there was no one there at all. ⁶ For the Lord had caused the Aramean army to hear the sound of chariots and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, “The king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to fight against us.” ⁷ So they fled away in the twilight and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the camp just as it was, and fled for their lives. ⁸ When these diseased men had come to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent, ate and drank, carried off silver, gold, and clothing, and went and hid them. Then they came back, entered another tent, carried off things from it and went and hid them.
⁹ Then they said to one another, “What we are doing is wrong. This is a day of good news; if we are silent and wait until the morning light, we will be found guilty; therefore let us go and tell the king’s household.” ¹⁰ So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city and told them, “We went to the Aramean camp, but there was no one to be seen or heard there, nothing but the horses tied, the donkeys tied, and the tents as they were.” ¹¹ Then the gatekeepers called out and proclaimed it to the king’s household. ¹² The king got up in the night and said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Arameans have prepared against us. They know that we are starving, so they left the camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city.’ ” ¹³ One of his servants said, “Let some men take five of the remaining horses, since those left here will suffer the fate of the whole multitude of Israel that have perished already; let us send and find out.” ¹⁴ So they took two mounted men, and the king sent them after the Aramean army, saying, “Go and find out.” ¹⁵ So they went after them as far as the Jordan; the whole way was littered with garments and equipment that the Arameans had thrown away in their haste. So the messengers returned and told the king.
¹⁶ Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans. So a measure of choice meal was sold for a shekel and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD. ¹⁷ Now the king had appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate; the people trampled him to death in the gate, just as the man of God had said when the king came down to him. ¹⁸ For when the man of God had said to the king, “Two measures of barley shall be sold for a shekel and a measure of choice meal for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria,” ¹⁹ the captain had answered the man of God, “Even if the LORD were to make windows in the sky, could such a thing happen?” And he had answered, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat from it.” ²⁰ It did indeed happen to him; the people trampled him to death in the gate.

The resolution to the crisis begins in the desperation of four men who are unclean and left outside the city. As mentioned above it is the vulnerable, and these four men with an affliction traditionally translated as leprosy would be vulnerable as they are excluded outside the city’s protective walls. In a situation where staying where they are would lead to death and entering the city would lead to death, they make the choice to surrender to the Arameans because the worst they can do is kill them. This decision to give up to the besieging forces sets in motion the deliverance of Samaria.

I have mixed feelings about the NRSVue decision throughout these texts to translate what is traditionally rendered ‘leprosy’ as a ‘defiling skin disease’ or ‘skin disease.’ On the one hand, what we now categorize as leprosy or Hansen’s disease is probably not what is referred to throughout the bible. But I wonder if the more generic skin disease disconnects the average reader from the severity of this diagnosis in the ancient world of Judaism. It is telling that Leviticus thirteen and fourteen are dedicated to the identification, the exclusion of the infected individuals from the community, and the necessary examination to allow their re-inclusion if the skin disorder clears up. These lepers are ‘unclean’ and unable to participate in the life of the community. Yet these outsiders will provide deliverance for the people trapped inside the city.

Before the four men approach the camp, the Arameans flee in panic because they hear the sound of horses and chariots approaching and fear that the king of Israel has paid Egypt and the Hittites to come and break the siege for them. The horses and chariots echo the appearance of the ‘horses and chariots of Israel’ in the previous story (2 Kings 6:15) and now instead of opening the eyes of the servant the LORD in a different manner opens the ears of the Arameans. The panic of the Arameans in the story is enough that they abandon not only their encampment but also their horses and donkey and leave a trail of discarded items in the path of their retreat. There are resources and wealth to feed and equip an army surrounding the city, much of the food likely taken from Israel’s fields, and there waiting to be discovered by the starving city.

The Jewish sages identified the four men with Gehazi and his sons (Israel, 2019, p. 129) which makes sense with this story being between Gehazi having Naaman’s leprosy cling to him and his family (2 Kings 5:27) and Gehazi’s reemergence talking with the king in the upcoming chapter (2 Kings 8: 4-5). This identification while interesting is not necessary for the story as these four men proceed to the camp, find it empty, ate and drank, pillaged some of the wealth they found, and eventually notify the gatekeepers of the situation. These men excluded as outsiders because of their skin condition still consider themselves a part of the people and have an obligation to those suffering inside the city. They appeal through the gatekeeper to the king’s household.

The king initially views this report from the four men as a trap set by the Aramean army to draw him out, but eventually one of his servants convinces the king to send out scouts with horses to examine the situation, lest the remaining horses perish with the people inside the city. Once the messengers return to the king it sets in motion the availability of food promised by the prophecy of Elisha as well as the death of the captain of the king. As mentioned in the previous section, the current chapter divisions highlight the words of Elisha at the beginning and ending of the chapter to demonstrate their fulfillment. A siege which reduced men and women to inhuman actions is now ended by four men whose humanity is compromised by the unclean disease carried on their skin. The God of Israel’s unseen host is now heard by the Aramean causing them to abandon their siege and to provide the food the city needs. The prophet once blamed by the king for the situation inside the city has now accurately predicted the cities deliverance by the LORD the God of Israel.

[1] Mordechai Cogan and Hayim Tadmor note there are at least two and possibly three kings name Ben-Hadad, whose name means the son of (the God) Hadad, “At least two, if not three persons by this name are known: Ben-hadad, contemporary of Baasha (1 Kgs 15:18); Ben-hadad, foe of Abab (1 Kgs 20: 1; he is identical with ^mAdad-idri of Assyrian inscriptions…and Ben-hadad, son of Hazael (2 Kgs 13:3).” (Cogan, 1988, p. 78)

2 Kings 6: 1-23 Floating Iron and Opened Eyes

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‘Elisha makes the Axe Head Swim’ illustration from The story of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation (1873)

2 Kings 6: 1-7

¹ Now the company of prophets said to Elisha, “As you see, the place where we live under your charge is too small for us. ² Let us go to the Jordan, and let us collect logs there, one for each of us, and build a place there for us to live.” He answered, “Do so.” ³ Then one of them said, “Please come with your servants.” And he answered, “I will.” ⁴ So he went with them. When they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. ⁵ But as one was felling a log, his ax head fell into the water; he cried out, “Alas, master! It was borrowed.” ⁶ Then the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, he cut off a stick and threw it in there and made the iron float. ⁷ He said, “Pick it up.” So he reached out his hand and took it.

To the modern reader this may seem like a strange story to include among the miracles that are handed on about Elisha. In a world where an ax is a relatively inexpensive tool the loss of an ax head seems like a trivial matter to trouble the prophet Elisha with. But the world of Elisha’s time was very different from our world. At this time iron is a precious resource and smiths in ancient Israel would be rare. This was also a time when Israel is at war with Aram so most iron would be going to create weapons for the military of Israel. Much as the story of Elisha and the widow’s oil (2 Kings 4:1-7), the prophet’s action likely saved this member of the company of prophets from a debt they could not hope to repay. (NIB III: 199) Many of the stories in the previous two chapters have the company of prophets relying on the prophet Elisha to provide food in their want and Gehazi’s foolish (in the eyes of 2 Kings) request for recompense from Naaman (2 Kings 5: 19b-27) is also informed by the group’s poverty. Even if the neighbor who loaned the unfortunate man the ax would not attempt to collect the value of the lost tool, there is a strong concern for neighborly rights among the world envisioned in the Torah.

The story takes place at the Jordan geographically linking it to the previous healing of Naaman. At the Jordan Elisha provided healing for Naaman from his skin disease and relief for this fellow member of the company of prophets with the sunken ax head. Some scholars, both Jewish and Christians, have taken this story and attempted to create a non-miraculous version: the stick was cut to be able to fit into the aperture of the ax head or to have a flat surface for the ax head to rest on as the prophet lifts it out are two examples. Yet, to tell these stories the commenters in their desire to make the story more reasonable have missed the point that the man of God is able to do what others cannot. Elisha who can heal disease or provide adequate food can also through his connection with God make metal float and make an army captive.

2 Kings 6: 8-23

⁸ Once when the king of Aram was at war with Israel, he took counsel with his officers. He said, “At such and such a place shall be my camp.” ⁹ But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel, “Take care not to pass this place, for the Arameans are going down there.” ¹⁰ The king of Israel sent word to the place of which the man of God spoke. More than once or twice he warned a place so that it was on the alert.
¹¹ The mind of the king of Aram was greatly perturbed because of this; he called his officers and said to them, “Now tell me: Who among us is betraying us to the king of Israel?” ¹² Then one of his officers said, “No one, my lord king. It is Elisha, the prophet in Israel, who tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedchamber.” ¹³ He said, “Go and find where he is; I will send and seize him.” He was told, “He is in Dothan.” ¹⁴ So he sent horses and chariots there and a great army; they came by night and surrounded the city.
¹⁵ When an attendant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. His servant said, “Alas, master! What shall we do?” ¹⁶ He replied, “Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them.” ¹⁷ Then Elisha prayed, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw; the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. ¹⁸ When the Arameans came down against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, “Strike this people, please, with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. ¹⁹ Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city; follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” And he led them to Samaria.
²⁰ As soon as they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “O LORD, open the eyes of these men so that they may see.” The Lord opened their eyes, and they saw that they were inside Samaria. ²¹ When the king of Israel saw them he said to Elisha, “Father, shall I strike them? Shall I strike them?” ²² He answered, “No! Would you strike those whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink, and let them go to their master.” ²³ So he prepared for them a great feast; after they ate and drank, he sent them on their way, and they went to their master. And the Arameans no longer came raiding into the land of Israel.

The Arameans are a continual danger to the people of Israel throughout the end of 1 Kings and the beginning of 2 Kings. Yet, Elisha through the previous and following chapter will play a pivotal role in the conflict between the king of Aram and the king of Samaria. Through Naaman, these soldiers who are brought captive by the prophet to Samaria, and the eventual defeat of the siege of Samaria the Arameans will come to know that there is a prophet in Samaria who king Ben-hadad of Aram will eventually consult (2 Kings 8: 7-15). Also reappearing in this story are the ‘horsemen and chariots of Israel’ which are the host of Israel’s God which Elisha first saw at Elijah’s ascension.

The conflict between the king of Aram and the prophet is precipitated by the prophet’s repeated warning of the king of Israel of the movements of Aram’s armies. Convinced that one of his leaders is betraying him, he summons them and asks how this is occurring. One of his officers knows that it is Elisha that is handing on this information, and the king of Aram orders a force sent to seize the prophet from his current location at Dothan. What the king’s men and the prophet’s men are blind to is the ‘horsemen and chariots of Israel’ which are surrounding the prophet and are more numerous than the forces sent by the king of Aram. Apparently, one’s eyes must be opened to be able to see the host of the LORD and that is exactly what Elisha prays for his servant to receive.

Throughout the narrative the movement between blindness and sight plays a critical role. Elisha’s servant may be able to see the forces of Aram, but he is blind to the forces of the LORD who Elisha serves until his eyes are opened. The prophet was able to provide vision for the king of Israel to elude the maneuvers of the king of Aram’s army and so the king of Aram attempts to remove the eyes of Israel by eliminating the prophet. The armies of Aram are struck with blindness by the LORD and led by the prophet to Samaria where the prophet asks for their sight to be restored.

The story ends with the king of Israel asking whether he should strike down this army that has been delivered by the prophet into his city and the prophet opening his eyes to another way. The king of Israel did not capture the Arameans, and their lives are in the prophet’s hands, and the prophet shows a way of peace. The book of Proverbs states, “If your enemies are hungry, give them bread to eat; and if they are thirsty, give them water to drink.” Proverbs 25:21 The prophet models this way of wisdom for the king who prepares a great feast for his enemies, and this brings at least a pause to the conflicts between Israel and Aram. The story moved from blindness to sight and from conflict to peace. Just like Naaman would discover that there is a prophet in Samaria, now these soldiers of Aram would also know both the power of the prophet’s God and the rescue provided in their desperate situation.

2 Kings 4 A Series of Miracles Performed by Elisha

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Carmelite chapel – “Elisha resurrecting the son of the Shunammitee” by Jean-Baptiste Despax (1710-1773)

2 Kings 4:1-7

¹ Now the wife of a member of the company of prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD, but a creditor has come to take my two children as slaves.” ² Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She answered, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” ³ He said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels—and not just a few. ⁴ Then go in, shut the door behind you and your children, and start pouring into all these vessels; when each is full, set it aside.” ⁵ So she left him and shut the door behind her and her children; they kept bringing vessels to her, and she kept pouring. ⁶ When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” But he said to her, “There are no more.” Then the oil stopped flowing. ⁷ She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your children can live on the rest.”

The fourth chapter of 2 Kings again departs from the normal royal time that structures the book. Throughout these four stories of miracles that Elisha performs the kings of Israel and Judah are never mentioned. The four stories all have thematic connections with the miracles of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath in 1 Kings 17: 8-24 and the four miracle stories where Elijah has two may thematically model the doubling of Elijah’s spirit that Elisha received as his prophetic heir. The stories can be viewed within the chapter as two stories related women and their children and two stories of providing food, of as two stories of miraculous provision which surround two stories of rescue from death. Ultimately all four stories weave together in a tapestry of stories about the man of God who leads the company of prophets.[1]

The kings of Israel and Judah are not ever mentioned in these stories, but in their absence we get in this first story a window into the world at the time of Elisha and the view is not flattering. The story provides, “a disturbing glance of the cruel socioeconomic reality of ancient Israel.” (Israel, 2019, p. 65) A world that is strikingly different from the world imagined in the law. A world in which widows, one of the vulnerable groups in the ancient world, and their children stand vulnerable to creditors. In Exodus widows, along with resident aliens and orphans, are mentioned as recipients of God’s special protection.

You shall not abuse any widow or orphan. If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry; my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and orphans. Exodus 22: 22-24

This entire story responds to this small portion of Exodus 22 when the oppressor in the story turns out to be a creditor/moneylender (Hebrew nosheh) which is mentioned in the verses immediately following Exodus’ warning not to abuse widows and orphans.

If you lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as a creditor (nosheh); you shall not exact interest from them. If you take your neighbor’s cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes down; for it may be your neighbor’s only clothing to use as cover; in what else shall that person sleep? And if your neighbor cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate. Exodus 22: 25-27

The company of prophets throughout these stories seem to operate from a place of poverty, and there is no economic ability within the community to pay off the creditor without the miracle. This is a story of provision that comes from God acting through the man of God.[2] Interestingly throughout these stories Elisha rarely mentions God and assumes that God will act upon his words.

The action that Elisha narrates for the woman does involve both participation from herself and her children, the community of people around them, and most importantly God. The woman and her children are to collect vessels from the surrounding community. Although the text does not specifically indicate that she does this[3] there are an unknown number of vessels available for her and her children to fill behind closed doors.[4] The oil in the house fills all the available vessels and provides a means to paying off the creditors, providing a source of income for the widow and her children, and providing protection in an world that would enslave the children for their father’s debts.

2 Kings 4: 8-37

⁸ One day Elisha was passing through Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to have a meal. So whenever he passed that way, he would stop there for a meal. ⁹ She said to her husband, “Look, I am sure that this man who regularly passes our way is a holy man of God. ¹⁰ Let us make a small roof chamber with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that he can stay there whenever he comes to us.”
¹¹ One day when he came there, he went up to the chamber and lay down there. ¹² He said to his servant Gehazi, “Call the Shunammite woman.” When he had called her, she stood before him. ¹³ He said to him, “Say to her: Since you have taken all this trouble for us, what may be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?” She answered, “I live among my own people.” ¹⁴ He said, “What then may be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” ¹⁵ He said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood at the door. ¹⁶ He said, “At this season, in due time, you shall embrace a son.” She replied, “No, my lord, O man of God; do not deceive your servant.”
¹⁷ The woman conceived and bore a son at that season, in due time, as Elisha had declared to her.
¹⁸ When the child was older, he went out one day to his father among the reapers. ¹⁹ He complained to his father, “Oh, my head, my head!” The father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ He carried him and brought him to his mother; the child sat on her lap until noon, and he died. ²¹ She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, closed the door on him, and left. ²² Then she called to her husband and said, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, so that I may quickly go to the man of God and come back again.” ²³ He said, “Why go to him today? It is neither new moon nor Sabbath.” She said, “It will be all right.” ²⁴ Then she saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Urge the animal on; do not hold back for me unless I tell you.” ²⁵ So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel.
When the man of God saw her coming, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Look, there is the Shunammite woman; ²⁶ run at once to meet her and say to her: Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is the child all right?” She answered, “It is all right.” ²⁷ When she came to the man of God at the mountain, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi approached to push her away, but the man of God said, “Let her alone, for she is in bitter distress; the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me.” ²⁸ Then she said, “Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, ‘Do not mislead me?’ ” ²⁹ He said to Gehazi, “Gird up your loins, and take my staff in your hand, and go. If you meet anyone, give no greeting, and if anyone greets you, do not answer, and lay my staff on the face of the child.” ³⁰ Then the mother of the child said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave without you.” So he rose up and followed her. ³¹ Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life. He came back to meet him and told him, “The child has not awakened.”
³² When Elisha came into the house, he saw the child lying dead on his bed. ³³ So he went in and closed the door on the two of them and prayed to the LORD. ³⁴ Then he got up on the bed and lay upon the child, putting his mouth upon his mouth, his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands, and while he lay bent over him, the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵ He got down, walked once to and fro in the room, then got up again and bent over him; the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶ Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite woman.” So he called her. When she came to him, he said, “Take your son.” ³⁷ She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground; then she took her son and left.

Elisha, traveling through the country of Israel, becomes a regular guest of a well-off woman and her husband. This woman shows hospitality to the man of God by providing both a meal and eventually building a room for the prophet and his companions. Elisha seeks to reward the hospitality of the woman and her husband by speaking to the political and military powers in the region, but she has no need to have the prophet speak on her behalf. This woman seems to be a formidable individual even though she is childless. Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, suggests that she is childless and her husband is old, so Elisha promises her in due time she will bear a son.

This story bears a strong resonance with the story of Sarah being promised Isaac in Genesis 18. God promises to return in due season and Sarah will have a child. Sarah challenges God by saying, “I did not laugh,” while this wealthy woman pushes back to the prophet, “do not deceive your servant.” In both stories both age and barrenness are a factor. Yet, in both cases in due season a child comes to a previously childless mother and an aged father.

Yet, after this incredible birth comes an unimaginable tragedy. The promised son mysteriously experiences pain in his head at a time when he is old enough to visit his father in the fields. He dies tragically on his mother’s lap; she lays him on the prophet’s bed and moves into action. This woman gives commands to her husband to provide both a donkey and a servant for her journey to the prophet[5] and this woman sets out do demand the man of God’s presence in this time. Like the story in 1 Kings 17, where the widow goes to Elijah on behalf of her son, it is the woman who impels the man of God to act.

Behind the woman’s response and the prophet’s questions of things being all right is the Hebrew term shalom. When she speaks to her husband she tells him, “It will be shalom.” Elisha’s questions to her (spoken through Gehazi), “Is it shalom to you? Is it shalom to your husband? Is it shalom to your son?” She answers, “It is shalom.” This indomitable woman will not settle for Gehazi as a substitute for the man of God, she clings to his feet and echoes back to him her initial challenge, “Did I not say, ’Do not mislead me.’” Even though Gehazi is dispatched with the staff of Elisha, this woman will not be satisfied without the prophet’s presence and so they both return to the Shunammite woman’s house. Gehazi proves unable to revive the child and so Elisha comes into the house and closes the door.

Elisha attempts to resuscitate the child but is only able to warm the child’s skin. The two of them, presumably Elisha and Gehazi, pray and Elisha walks to and fro in the room before bending over the child one additional time when the child sneezes seven times and revives. Elisha has Gehazi summon the Shunammite woman and restores her son to her. This woman, who like the later Syrophoenician woman in Mark or the Canaanite woman in Matthew, refused to be denied the man of God’s action has their child restored.

2 Kings 4: 38-44

³⁸ When Elisha returned to Gilgal, there was a famine in the land. As the company of prophets was sitting before him, he said to his servant, “Put the large pot on, and make some stew for the company of prophets.” ³⁹ One of them went out into the field to gather herbs; he found a wild vine and gathered from it a lapful of wild gourds and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were. ⁴⁰ They served some for the men to eat. But while they were eating the stew, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” They could not eat it. ⁴¹ He said, “Then bring some flour.” He threw it into the pot and said, “Serve the people and let them eat.” And there was nothing harmful in the pot.

⁴² A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing food from the first fruits to the man of God: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. Elisha said, “Give it to the people and let them eat.” ⁴³ But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred people?” So he repeated, “Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the LORD: They shall eat and have some left.” ⁴⁴ He set it before them; they ate and had some left, according to the word of the LORD.

As mentioned above, the company of prophets throughout this chapter live in a vulnerable position when there is famine in the land. Through both stories God provides for these prophets through the actions of Elisha. The first story is a story of making a poisonous stew palatable. Elisha returns to the company of prophets at Gilgal and has them put a large pot on. One member of the company finds some wild gourds, possibly citrullus colcynthus a small yellow melon known as the “Apple of Sodom” which “is a strong purgative and has been known to be fatal.” (Cogan, 1988, p. 58) Elisha makes the poisonous stew palatable by adding flour and serving it to the company.

The second miracle of provision takes twenty loaves and fresh grain providing more than enough for the hundred people present at Gilgal. A man comes bringing an offering to God to the man of God. This man from Baal-shalishah comes to the man of God instead of the royal shrine at Bethel and the prophet takes on the position as the mediator between the people and God. Elisha’s servant, likely Gehazi from the previous and following story, wonders how it can be enough for such a large group. Elisha declares that the LORD says they will all eat and have some left. Like Elijah with the widow of Zarephath’s meal and oil or the loaves and fishes in the hands of Jesus, the loaves of brought to Elisha are more than enough in the provision of God.

[1] Literally the sons of the prophets, the Benei HaNavi’im in Hebrew.

[2] Throughout the chapter Elisha is mainly referred to by his title ‘the man of God’ rather than his name. This may be due to the honor paid as the leader of the company of prophets and as the heir to Elijah.

[3] Some take this absence as a comment on the woman’s faith and limits the benefit she receives. For me this is reading too much into the story.

[4] In both this and the following miracle the action takes place behind closed doors and out of the public view.

[5] It is possible in the narrative that the father is unaware of his son’s death.

2 Kings 2 Elijah’s Departure and Elisha’s Ministry Begins

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Elijah the Prophet By Nicholas Roerich – Estonian Roerich Society, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5066171

2 Kings 2: 1-18 A Prophetic Transition

¹ Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. ² Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. ³ The company of prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he said, “Yes, I know; keep silent.”
⁴ Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here, for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. ⁵ The company of prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know; keep silent.”
⁶ Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. ⁷ Fifty men of the company of prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. ⁸ Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and the two of them crossed on dry ground.
⁹ When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I may do for you before I am taken from you.” Elisha said, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” ¹⁰ He responded, “You have asked a hard thing, yet if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.” ¹¹ As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. ¹² Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
¹³ He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. ¹⁴ He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water. He said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah? Where is he?” He struck the water again, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha crossed over.
¹⁵ When the company of prophets who were at Jericho saw him at a distance, they declared, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” They came to meet him and bowed to the ground before him. ¹⁶ They said to him, “See now, we have fifty strong men among your servants; please let them go and seek your master; it may be that the spirit of the Lord has caught him up and thrown him down on some mountain or into some valley.” He responded, “No, do not send them.” ¹⁷ But when they urged him to the point of embarrassment, he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men who searched for three days but did not find him. ¹⁸ When they came back to him (he had remained at Jericho), he said to them, “Did I not say to you, ‘Do not go’?”

The well-known imagery of the chariot of fire and the ascension of Elijah into heaven in the whirlwind serves as a transition between the prophetic ministry of Elijah and Elisha. The story is told outside of the framing of time in the succession of kings, likely to enhance the special nature of this moment. As Walter Brueggemann states, “the remarkable moment of prophetic transition is so odd and so exceptional that it cannot be held in royal time or understood in royal rationality.” (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 293) In this moment Elisha beholds that God’s power and might are at work in the world in a way that both reflects the imagery of the kingly power of the day (chariots and horses as the primary military technology of the time) but also transcends it. In addition to the transition between the ministries of Elijah and Elisha it also reminds the readers that God’s work in the world, often unseen, continues and occasionally the faithful servants of God have their eyes opened to see God’s power and presence in surprising ways.

Throughout this journey from Gilgal to Bethel to Jericho and then to the Jordan, a journey of at least twenty-four miles, Elijah tells Elisha three times to “Stay here” and Elisha answers, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” The story has some resonance with the refusal of Ruth to abandon her mother-in-law Naomi in Ruth 1: 15-17, and there are familial overtones to the Elijah and Elisha narrative as well. Both Ruth and Elisha are not related to the person they are clinging to by blood, but both claim the bond and responsibility of primary relations. This is heightened when one realizes that the word “leave” has the connotation of “abandon” in Hebrew. (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 294) Elisha’s ask of a ‘double share’ of Elijah’s spirit also connects with the ‘double share’ that a first-born heir is to receive according to Deuteronomy 21: 15-17. Elisha is probably not asking to receive twice the spirit endowed charisma as Elijah but instead to be recognized by Elisha and ultimately God as the proper heir to the prophetic ministry of Elijah.

Elisha is aware throughout the narrative of Elijah’s impending departure, a knowledge reinforced by the message of the sons of prophets at each location of their journey. Finally, as Elijah approaches the Jordan River, he utilizes his mantle and causes the waters of the river to be divided. Elijah’s mantle functions in a similar manner to Moses’ staff and Elijah’s authority is the authority promised in Deuteronomy 18:18 of a prophet like Moses. After Elijah’s ascension the same mantle in the hands of Elisha demonstrates that this heir to the prophetic ministry of Elijah is also a prophet with the authority and power that God entrusted to both Elijah and Elisha.

Most religious art depicting the ascension of Elijah pictures the prophet riding in the chariot, but that is not explicit in the text. The chariot of fire and the horses[1] separate Elijah from Elisha. Elisha sees a multitude of chariots, a sight he will later share with his servant in 2 Kings 6:17. Elijah, and presumably the chariots as well, ascend in the whirlwind. The company of prophets who observed this from a distance presumably saw something like the whirlwind but not the chariots of Israel and its horsemen.[2] In their limited vision they press Elisha to allow fifty strong men from their company to seek Elijah’s body to give it a proper burial. Elisha says not to send them but eventually is pressed enough that in embarrassment he allows the fifty to seek Elijah.

Elijah’s influence will continue long beyond his death even though he will only be mentioned one additional time in the Hebrew Bible. Elijah is the forerunner of the day of LORD in Malachi 4: 5-6:

See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.

Elijah continues to have a role in the practice of both Judaism and Christianity. In Judaism the role of Elijah would be tied to the coming of the messiah and he continues to have a seat at the practice of circumcision, during the Sedar meal, and the prayer at the end of the Sabbath calls for Elijah to come in the coming week. Elijah’s role in Christianity would rest upon John the Baptist and the one who preceded the coming of Jesus and Elijah along with Moses would appear at the transfiguration. Only Elijah and Enoch would not experience death in their stories in the bible, and this allowed both figures to become popular in the stories and hope of later generations.

2 Kings 2: 19-25 A Prophet of Blessing and Curse

¹⁹ Now the people of the city said to Elisha, “The location of this city is good, as my lord sees, but the water is bad, and the land is unfruitful.” ²⁰ He said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. ²¹ Then he went to the spring of water and threw the salt into it and said, “Thus says the Lord: I have made this water wholesome; from now on neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.” ²² So the water has been wholesome to this day, according to the word that Elisha spoke.
²³ He went up from there to Bethel, and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go away, baldhead! Go away, baldhead!” ²⁴ When he turned around and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. ²⁵ From there he went on to Mount Carmel and then returned to Samaria.

The ministry of Elisha as the main prophetic figure of the time begins with two stories that intentionally bring together the potential for blessing and curse in a figure whose life and ministry are closely tied to God. The first story now links Elisha to Moses with a story with multiple parallels to Moses’ making the bitter waters of Marah sweet. Alex Israel identifies the similarities between the two stories:

Marah follows the splitting of the Reed Sea. Our Jericho story follows the miraculous parting of the Jordan River.
Three Days: Marah followed the crossing of the Reed Sea by three days. Similarly, the events at Jericho transpire three days after the splitting of the Jordan (II Kings 2: 17-18).
In both instances, the water is undrinkable. The people voice the problem to the prophet.
The water is made drinkable by casting into it (vayashleh) a substance that would seem unrelated to the treatment of water (tree/salt).
The proclamation made in God’s name identifies God as their “healer”: At Marah, “I am the Lord, your healer.” (Ex. 15:26) At Jericho, “Thus says the Lord: I have healed this water.” (II Kings 2:21) (Israel, 2019, p. 31)

One could argue, a Choon-Leong Seow does, that Elisha even surpasses the work of Moses by ‘healing’ the waters where Moses only ‘sweetens’ the bitter waters. (NIB III:178) This ministry of blessing in Jericho is now set alongside a curse on the prophet’s journey to Bethel towards the disrespectful small boys.

The second half of these stories cause a fair amount of discomfort for modern readers who view the prophet’s curse and the resulting mauling of the boys as an overreaction to their taunting of the prophet as ‘baldy’ or ‘baldhead.’ Forty-two may be a figure to explain a large number[3] but our modern embarrassment at the mauling of these boys in my view misses the point of the narrative. Elisha, as the prophet of God and speaker of the words of God, is closely tied both to this ministry of Moses and Elijah but more critically to the God of Israel. To disrespect Elisha, for the narrative, is to disrespect God. When the people of entreat Elijah with respect he brings them blessing, when these boys treat the emissary of God with disrespect it brings a curse. A true bearer of God’s message of blessing and curse is a fearful and wonderful thing.

Elisha’s ministry begins by retracing the steps of Elijah from the Jordan to Jericho, from Jericho to Bethel, and finally returning to Mount Carmel. Mount Carmel, as Alex Israel reminds us, is the site of “Elijah’s pièce de resistance” (Israel, 2019, p. 22) where the God of Israel demonstrated victory over the 500 prophets of Baal. (1 Kings 18: 20-40) Now Elisha begins his career by ascending both physically and metaphorically to the zenith of Elijah’s ministry.

[1] The Hebrew word rekeb may refer to a group of chariots (NIB III:176).

[2] This phrase will reappear at the end of Elisha’s ministry in 2 Kings 13: 14-19.

[3] This is also the number of victims slain by Jehu in 2 Kings 10:14

2 Kings 1: The Foolish King Ahaziah Confronted By God Through Elijah

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Gustave Dore, *Fire Consumes the Soldiers of Ahaziah* from *the Illustrated Bible.* 19th Century Engraving. Cropped Image

2 Kings 1

¹ After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel. ² Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay injured; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.” ³ But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Get up, go to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’ ⁴ Now therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not leave the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.'” So Elijah went.

⁵ The messengers returned to the king, who said to them, “Why have you returned?” ⁶ They answered him, “There came a man to meet us, who said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him: Thus says the LORD: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not leave the bed to which you have gone, but shall surely die.'” ⁷ He said to them, “What sort of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?” ⁸ They answered him, “A hairy man, with a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

⁹ Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.'” ¹⁰ But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

¹¹ Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. He went up and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order: Come down quickly!” ¹² But Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

¹³ Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. So the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. ¹⁴ Look, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight.” ¹⁵ Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he set out and went down with him to the king, ¹⁶ and said to him, “Thus says the LORD: Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron,– is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?– therefore you shall not leave the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.”

¹⁷ So he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken. His brother, Jehoram succeeded him as king in the second year of King Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat of Judah, because Ahaziah had no son. ¹⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel?

This final prophetic episode in the Elijah cycle prior to the ascension of Elijah in the following chapter occurs during the year long reign of Ahaziah.[1] The division between 1 Kings and 2 Kings splits the comments on the brief reign of Ahaziah between the final three verses of 1 Kings and the initial chapter of 2 Kings. Ahaziah’s insignificant reign cut short by his injury and offense against God are contrasted with the significant prophet Elijah’s final action. The Book of Kings could easily have been the Book of Prophets, since for most of the book the kings are often secondary characters to the prophets.

Ahaziah fell from his upper chamber to the lower floor and is injured by the fall and confined to his bed. Yet, Ahaziah’s response to his injury is what dominates his portion of the story. Instead of appealing to the LORD, whether through a prophet or through the temple in Jerusalem he sends messengers to Ekron to appeal to the priests of prophets of Baal-zebub. There has been an ongoing animosity between the leaders in Samaria and Jerusalem, and the Omri dynasty has also been hostile to Elijah and other prophets of the LORD so on the one hand the action of Ahaziah to appeal to a foreign god, even a god of the once hostile Philistines, is not out of character for the Omri dynasty. Yet it is an audacious slight of the LORD the God of Israel, one that will have fatal consequences for this insignificant king.

Baal-zebub, the title for the god of Ekron would be the lord of the flies, and this is likely an intended insult of Baal-zebul the lord of the house. This is reflected title Beelzebul in the New Testament when Jesus is accused of being in lead with the lord of demons.[2] This minor spelling change turns the master of the house into the master of something considered a pest and nuisance in the ancient world. It is possible that ‘zebub’ is a local ‘baal’[3] and there is some debate over the rendering of ‘zebub’ as ‘fly’, but the Bible does frequently use insults for the other ‘gods’ that the people of Israel and the surrounding country follow.

Hebrew loves wordplay and it helps to know that the word for messenger (malakh) and angel (malakim) are closely related. Ahaziah sends messengers and the messenger of the LORD comes to Elijah to intercept these messengers of the king. Elijah’s message from the messenger (angel) of God speaks directly to the king’s messengers, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you (plural) are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?” But when the king’s messengers return to the king they now point the blame on the king, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you (singular) are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?” The sentence declared on the king is terminal by the LORD. As Brueggemann states:

The particular phrase, “surely die,” is repeated three times by the prophet (1:4, 6, 16). While the phrase looks commonplace in the English translation, it is in fact a quite severe, absolute, and formal pronouncement of a death penalty from which there is no escape or reprieve. (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 284)

From the description of the man who intercepted the prophets, a hairy man with a leather belt around his waist, the king realizes that it is the longtime foe of the Omri dynasty, the prophet Elijah. Elijah’s successor Elisha we will learn in 2:23 is bald and so there is a drastic difference in the appearance of the hairy man and the man ridiculed for being bald. The description of Elijah will also be paralleled, although in an inexact manner, by the appearance of John the Baptist at the beginning of the gospels.[4] Elijah and Elisha will be different in appearance and as we transition to the Elisha cycle it will be worthwhile to compare the ministries of these two prophets.

The king views Elijah as a threat and sends three separate leaders and soldiers to bring Elijah down from the mountain.[5] The king desires to bring Elijah down by force but only manages to cause Elijah to bring down the fire of God upon his forces.[6] The first commander of fifty goes up the mountain to approach Elijah and orders the man of God to come down, yet Elijah demonstrates that the forces of the king are no match for the power of God as the first group of fifty is consumed. The second leader goes up to Elijah, but he may not go up the mountain. There may be some hint in the story that this second commander keeps his distance, but his words indicate that now the king orders Elijah to come down. The second group of fifty meets the same fate as the first. The final commander comes and kneels before the prophet and asks the prophet to show grace[7] for his life and the lives of his men. This final commander also indicates that he is Elijah’s servant instead of the king’s. The messenger (angel) of the LORD lets Elijah know it is safe to go with this commander to deliver the message directly to the king.

For the narrative of 2 Kings, King Ahaziah dies because of the declaration of the LORD not the injuries the king receives falling through the lattice. Throughout the Elijah cycle the people under the Omri dynasty have had divided loyalties. Elijah is an uncompromising in his zeal for the LORD the God of Israel and although the Omri will continue beyond the time of Elijah, it is quickly coming to end. Ahaziah in the narrative of the Book of Kings will be one more king whose brief reign in Samaria will be defined by his disobedience to the LORD the God of Israel.

[1] 1 Kings 22:51 notes that Ahaziah ruled for two years. He came to power in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat of Judah and died in his eighteenth year, but his total reign was less than twelve months long. (Cogan, 1988, p. 21)

[2] Matthew 10:25; 12: 24,27; Mark 3:22; Luke: 11: 15, 18, 19.

[3] Baal is a general title for lord, and there were multiple ‘Baals’ worshipped regionally throughout Canaan.

[4] John is wearing camel’s hair as clothing rather than being described as hairy, although he does have the leather belt around his waist.

[5] Choon-Leong Seow notes that the same word har is used here as a Mount Carmel and the NIV and NRSV translation of this as ‘hill’ obscures the linkage to the previous story (1 Kings 18). (NIB III:173)

[6] Once again there is a Hebrew wordplay between the word for ‘man’ (‘is) and the word for fire (‘es). NIB III: 173.

[7] NRSV entreat. The Hebrew hanan means “to show grace’. (Brueggemann, 2000, p. 286)

Psalm 120 A Pilgrimage To A Place Of Peace

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Pilgrim Steps Leading to the Double Gate (Southern Steps of the Temple Mount, Jerusalem) picture from 2009 by Wilson44691 – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6899573

Psalm 120

A Song of Ascents.

¹ In my distress I cry to the LORD, that he may answer me:

² “Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.”

³ What shall be given to you? And what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?

⁴ A warrior’s sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree!

⁵ Woe is me, that I am an alien in Meshech, that I must live among the tents of Kedar.

⁶ Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace.

⁷ I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.

The Psalms of Ascent (Psalm 120 – 134) are fifteen psalms that may have been used as a part of the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Jerusalem sits upon a hill so any approach to Jerusalem is always an ascent, but the ascent may also refer to the ascending of the steps of the temple. Mishnah states there are fifteen steps that lead from the Court of Women to the Court of the Israelites which correspond to the fifteen psalms. (Nancy deClaisse-Walford, 2014, p. 887) It is conceivable that a practice of reciting these fifteen short (except for Psalm 132) psalms as one approaches Jerusalem or as one ascends the steps of the temple. As this psalm indicates, this practice may help the people transition from their exile in a world of war and deceitful tongues to their homecoming in the city of peace.[1]

Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace. The poet is a stranger in a strange land. They are a foreigner/alien(ger) in the midst of a people of different gods, sharp tongues, and unjust practices. Meshech and Kedar are likely metaphors for places both geographically and spiritually distant from the memory of their homeland. The situation of this psalm forms the antithesis of Psalm 133: How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity. The situation of Psalm 120 could be summarized: how traumatizing it is for one who lives as an alien among those who love division.

In language that resonates with James 3: 1-12, the psalmist describes the tongue as an instrument of violence. The psalmist may be the direct recipient of these deceitful and painful words, or they may exist in a society where the truth has disappeared.[2] Like the son in the parable of the prodigal[3] they may find themselves vulnerable and hungry in a world where no one cares. It may be ironic, as Brueggemann and Bellinger state, that the person who considers themself a person of peace would respond to these deceitful tongues with metaphorical weapons of war (Bellinger, 2014, p. 524) but the psalmist is asking for God to deliver. God is in the position to judge the people who the psalmist lives among. Yet, it is also possible that the description in verse four is merely a continuation of the description of the words of the lying lips and deceitful tongues. Sharp weapons are used metaphorically along with predatory animals to describe people hostile to the psalmist in Psalm 57:4. The broom tree is a hard wood tree known for its long burning fires. (Nancy deClaisse-Walford, 2014, p. 892)

This psalm can resonate with people of all times who attempt to live justly in an unjust world. Who seek peace (shalom) among a people whose words and actions seek conflict. As James L. Mays states about Psalm 120,

It is a poignant expression of the pilgrims’ pain over the world from which they come. It puts that world in the sharpest possible contrast to the peace they desire and seek in coming to Zion. (Mays, 1994, p. 388)

People of peace long for a homecoming where they can live in unity with their brothers and sisters who speak with truthful lips and words that heal instead of these weaponized tongues they encounter in the land of their sojourn. Pilgrimage, either physical or spiritual, is a hopeful ascent to a place of shalom.

[1] Jerusalem’s name comes from a combination of the word for city and shalom.

[2] Similar imagery is used in Psalm 10:4; 12: 1-4; and 31:8.

[3] Luke 15: 11-32.

Psalm 119 An Artistic Articulation of Life Under the Law

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The Hebrew Alphabet. Hebrew reads right to left so it begins with Aleph and ends with Tet

Psalm 119

Introduction to Psalm 119

I’m going to modify my normal pattern of having the text first and then a reflection due to the length of Psalm 119 which is longer than several biblical books. Many readers find Psalm 119, “boring, repetitious, and without plot development.” (Bellinger, 2014, p. 519) Translations of this psalm lose the key organizational feature of Psalm 119 which its acrostic organization and that in combination with the length of the psalm makes it difficult for many readers to fully appreciate. Also hindering the hearing of this psalm dedicated to a “Torah piety” or “law piety” is a lingering stigma of legalism associated with Judaism. Yet, what this psalm advocates for in its language and organization is a joyful way of life organized around God’s guidance to God’s people.

I have spent far more time in Hebrew acrostic poetry in the past year than the average person spends in a lifetime having worked through Lamentations, Psalm 111, 112, and now 119 this year. Psalm 119 is the acrostic of acrostics intensifying the form to have eight lines begin with each letter of the Hebrew alphabet (from Aleph to Tav) for a total of 176 verses. The acrostic form is a way of indicating a complete poetic treatment of a topic, and the intensification of this psalm of an eight-fold acrostic is designed to convey a complete treatment of a life faithfully and joyfully lived in relation to God through the law. In addition to the eight-fold repetition of a common letter to start each group of lines are the eight synonyms for the law utilized throughout the poem: law, decrees (or statutes), ordinances, statutes, word, precepts, and promises. One of these synonyms occurs in every verse except verses 3, 37, 90 and 122. In the 176 verses there are five verses where two synonyms occur compared to the four where none occur. The repetition is intentional to reinforce the central position of the law in the relationship between God and the people.

Psalm 119 begins with the Hebrew asre (‘happy’ NRSV) which is a common word in wisdom literature, just as the acrostic is a common wisdom literature form. Psalm 1 and Psalm 19 are the other two psalms primarily associated with a ‘Torah piety’ and both psalms share both vocabulary as well as a common vision of what a wise life consists of. The similarities between Psalm 1 and Psalm 119, some of which will be noted below, were strong enough that Claus Westermann could suggest that they once formed the beginning and end of the psalter. (Bellinger, 2014, p. 520)

For the reflections below I will take each eight-verse portion of the acrostic as a unit for reflection. On the one hand the psalm is designed to be viewed as an entire unit held together by its acrostic organization and focal vocabulary. On the other hand, the psalm is daunting for its length, and I will follow the habit of many other scholars in attempting to look at the psalm in its components and then have some final reflections. Dietrich Bonhoeffer in 1939-1940 considered his work on Psalm 119 to be “the climax of his theological life.” (Bethge, 2000, p. 667) Yet even Bonhoeffer in his reflections only made it to verse twenty-one. For me this may be a high mountain to climb, but hopefully there are many more pinnacles in my life of reflection.

Aleph[1]

¹ Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD.

² Happy are those who keep his decrees, who seek him with their whole heart,

³ who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways.

⁴ You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently.

⁵ O that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!

⁶ Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.

⁷ I will praise you with an upright heart, when I learn your righteous ordinances.

⁸ I will observe your statutes; do not utterly forsake me.

As mentioned in the introduction there is a strong connection between Psalm 1, 19 and Psalm 119. They share a common vision of what leads to happiness or contentment (Hebrew asre) but they also share a common vocabulary. As J. Clinton McCann, Jr. notes, “every word of v. 1 occurs in either Psalm 1 or Psalm 19.” (NIB IV: 1168) Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his reflection on verse one uses the terms ““complete”, “whole,” undivided, unassailable” for the term the NRSV translates ‘blameless’ and he notes that Luther in his 1521 translation of the psalm says, “the wholly healthy ones.” (DBWE 15: 500) The Hebrew concept of ‘blameless’ or ‘without fault’ is not the legalistic perspective often (wrongly) attributed to Jewish thought. It is clear as you progress through the poem that the psalmist does not consider themselves without fault, and yet they desire to be steadfast in their adherence to God’s vision for the world. They are seeking a way of life in harmony with God’s will for the world, and they seek that harmony through God’s revealed will in the Torah.

Beth

⁹ How can young people keep their way pure? By guarding it according to your word.

¹⁰ With my whole heart I seek you; do not let me stray from your commandments.

¹¹ I treasure your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against you.

¹² Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes.

¹³ With my lips I declare all the ordinances of your mouth.

¹⁴ I delight in the way of your decrees as much as in all riches.

¹⁵ I will meditate on your precepts, and fix my eyes on your ways.

¹⁶ I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

Throughout the law there is a concern for passing on the practices from generation to generation. This is perhaps best illustrated in the verses that immediately follow the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:

Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk abou them when your are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Deuteronomy 6: 6-7.

The book of Proverbs is also an attempt to pass on wisdom to the next generation. How are young people to keep their way pure, by remaining attentive to the word, commandments, statutes, ordinances, decrees, and precepts (all synonyms mentioned in this section). This shares a common vision with Matthew’s parable of the treasure found in the field[2] where the object (here the law) is to become the thing which the individual gives up all other things to possess and guard. It becomes the treasure of the heart, the words upon the lips, the delight of life, and that which is meditated on. The young person learns to center their life on God’s law and God’s word.

Gimel

¹⁷ Deal bountifully with your servant, so that I may live and observe your word.

¹⁸ Open my eyes, so that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.

¹⁹ I live as an alien in the land; do not hide your commandments from me.

²⁰ My soul is consumed with longing for your ordinances at all times.

²¹ You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones, who wander from your commandments;

²² take away from me their scorn and contempt, for I have kept your decrees.

²³ Even though princes sit plotting against me, your servant will meditate on your statutes.

²⁴ Your decrees are my delight, they are my counselors.

For the first time the notes of lament make their way into the psalm. Living in attentive service to the way of God in the law does not guarantee a life free of struggle. Yet even in the midst of the struggle the psalmist remains focused on the ordinances of God and the way of life they outline. It is possible that Psalm 119 comes from the time of the exile where the person may have lived as an alien in the land of Babylon, but it also may come from a time where they feel alienated from the community. Even in the space where the psalmist is a stranger receiving scorn and contempt from those who have power in the land, they trust that the God who gave the law will continue to provide for this seeker after God’s decrees.

Daleth

²⁵ My soul clings to the dust; revive me according to your word.

²⁶ When I told of my ways, you answered me; teach me your statutes.

²⁷ Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous works.

²⁸ My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.

²⁹ Put false ways far from me; and graciously teach me your law.

³⁰ I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your ordinances before me.

³¹ I cling to your decrees, O LORD; let me not be put to shame.

³² I run the way of your commandments, for you enlarge my understanding.

Dust, as J. Clinton McCann, Jr. notes, is elsewhere associated with death.[3] (NIB IV: 1169) The Hebrew word nephesh (NRSV soul) is not the Greek idea of a eternal soul that is separate from the physical body but rather the essence of life or center of life. Yet in a time where life is clinging to death God revives with the word. Life seeking understanding is the way of the psalmist. God can strengthen with the word, teach this student the law, and keep this seeker from shame. They know that life is found in these commandments of God, but they also seek for God to continue to enlarge their understanding of this gracious gift that God has bestowed to the people. The LORD is a God who can bring life from the dust, strength from sorrow, and honor from shame.

³³ Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, and I will observe it to the end.

³⁴ Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.

³⁵ Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.

³⁶ Turn my heart to your decrees, and not to selfish gain.

³⁷ Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.

³⁸ Confirm to your servant your promise, which is for those who fear you.

³⁹ Turn away the disgrace that I dread, for your ordinances are good.

⁴⁰ See, I have longed for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life.

The verbs that drive this section ask for the LORD to take control of the petitioner’s ways: teach, give, lead, turn the heart and eyes, confirm, and turn away from the things that lead to disgrace. The poet seeks right understanding, right willing (the heart as the seat of will), right seeing, a right practice of faith and life that leads to a wise path instead of the foolish path that leads to disgrace. The psalmist desires that which is life giving and yet knows that there are temptations which can turn the heart, eye, and mind to the path of the wicked. Yet, the psalmist desires to hold fast to the good that God has revealed to the people.

Waw

⁴¹ Let your steadfast love come to me, O LORD, your salvation according to your promise.

⁴² Then I shall have an answer for those who taunt me, for I trust in your word.

⁴³ Do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for my hope is in your ordinances.

⁴⁴ I will keep your law continually, forever and ever.

⁴⁵ I shall walk at liberty, for I have sought your precepts.

⁴⁶ I will also speak of your decrees before kings, and shall not be put to shame;

⁴⁷ I find my delight in your commandments, because I love them.

⁴⁸ I revere your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes.

A note of lament returns with those who taunt the psalmist, but the dominant chord of this refrain is continued trust in God. A faithful life will always be lived in the midst of those who seek different sources of security. To those involved in the court of the king the psalmist’s trust in God’s ways may seem naïve in a world of politics and intrigue. Yet, the psalmist asks for their words of their mouth to be their LORD’s words of truth. They seek to fulfill the intention of Deuteronomy 17: 14-20 by becoming a living breathing law which continually is before the king reminding them of God’s way. This way of life, which reveres and meditates on the law is an act of love for the poet.

Zayin

⁴⁹ Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope.

⁵⁰ This is my comfort in my distress, that your promise gives me life.

⁵¹ The arrogant utterly deride me, but I do not turn away from your law.

⁵² When I think of your ordinances from of old, I take comfort, O LORD.

⁵³ Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, those who forsake your law.

⁵⁴ Your statutes have been my songs wherever I make my home.

⁵⁵ I remember your name in the night, O LORD, and keep your law.

⁵⁶ This blessing has fallen to me, for I have kept your precepts.

This verse moves between the poet’s request for God to remember to the poet’s repeated remembering.[4] When God remembers in the Hebrew Scriptures it leads to God acting. For example, the story of Noah, when God sees the bow in the clouds God remembers (Genesis 9:16) or in Egypt when God hears the cries of the people God remembers (Exodus 20:8). The psalmist calls on God to remember as they are remembering God’s ordinances and God’s name. The second half of verse 54 reads literally, “in the house of my sojourning” (NIB IV: 1170) and may reflect a situation of displacement, perhaps in exile, of the psalmist. Yet, wherever the psalmist finds themselves they attempt to live a wise life which leads them into conflict with the wicked and arrogant in their midst. Perhaps in a time of exile and confusion they are attempting to hold on to the covenant while others are turning away from the way of God’s law. Yet, in the dark of the night this psalmist remembers and maintains their way of obedience.

Het

⁵⁷ The LORD is my portion; I promise to keep your words.

⁵⁸ I implore your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise.

⁵⁹ When I think of your ways, I turn my feet to your decrees;

⁶⁰ I hurry and do not delay to keep your commandments.

⁶¹ Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me, I do not forget your law.

⁶² At midnight I rise to praise you, because of your righteous ordinances.

⁶³ I am a companion of all who fear you, of those who keep your precepts.

⁶⁴ The earth, O LORD, is full of your steadfast love; teach me your statutes.

It is likely that this psalm was written by a Levite, and the initial verse of this section which declares the LORD is the portion for this poet would recall the division of the land in Numbers and Joshua where the Levites do not have a share in the land, instead the LORD is their portion.[5] But if this psalm is written in exile, now the entirety of the people is left with the LORD as their portion. The poet again alludes to a situation where they need the LORD to act upon the covenant for their rescue, to remember as requested in the previous section. The poet is keeping the commandments, now they implore the LORD to do the same as they are ensnared by the cords of the wicked. The psalmist trusts the LORD and there are others who apparently share this trust, but the poem alludes to a world where the faithful are not the powerful and they are vulnerable to the actions of the wicked.

Teth

⁶⁵ You have dealt well with your servant, O LORD, according to your word.

⁶⁶ Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments.

⁶⁷ Before I was humbled I went astray, but now I keep your word.

⁶⁸ You are good and do good; teach me your statutes.

⁶⁹ The arrogant smear me with lies, but with my whole heart I keep your precepts.

⁷⁰ Their hearts are fat and gross, but I delight in your law.

⁷¹ It is good for me that I was humbled, so that I might learn your statutes.

⁷² The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

The word ‘good’ (Hebrew tob) occurs six times[6] in these eight verses. The LORD is good and does good and deals well (good) with the servant of the LORD. In echo the servant desires to learn good judgment and the good law of God’s mouth and can even view it as good that they have been humbled. In contrast the arrogant have hearts that are gross and fat. Their words are lies instead of the good words of the law. This is the binary language of wisdom literature: good and wicked, faithful and foolish. Yet even the poet went astray and had to be humbled to find the good. The psalmist has not lived a perfect life and had to have a time of repentance. But now they keep the word and know the value of this treasure their LORD has provided.

Yodh

⁷³ Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments.

⁷⁴ Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word.

⁷⁵ I know, O LORD, that your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness you have humbled me.

⁷⁶ Let your steadfast love become my comfort according to your promise to your servant.

⁷⁷ Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight.

⁷⁸ Let the arrogant be put to shame, because they have subverted me with guile; as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.

⁷⁹ Let those who fear you turn to me, so that they may know your decrees.

⁸⁰ May my heart be blameless in your statutes, so that I may not be put to shame.

The psalmist taps into the poetic imagery of the Hebrew scriptures of God not only as the creator of the heavens and the earth, but the craftsman or potter that fashioned each individual person. They as a creature are completely in God’s hands and even though their suffering may be at the hands of the wicked it is still tied into God’s judgments. Yet, the psalmist trusts in the attributes of God: God’s steadfast love (hesed) and mercy. The psalmist trusts that this moment where the arrogant are able to bring them shame will be reversed in God’s justice. They seek a place of leadership in the community, but they also seek a heart that is fixed on the statutes of God.

Kaph

⁸¹ My soul languishes for your salvation; I hope in your word.

⁸² My eyes fail with watching for your promise; I ask, “When will you comfort me?”

⁸³ For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.

⁸⁴ How long must your servant endure? When will you judge those who persecute me?

⁸⁵ The arrogant have dug pitfalls for me; they flout your law.

⁸⁶ All your commandments are enduring; I am persecuted without cause; help me!

⁸⁷ They have almost made an end of me on earth; but I have not forsaken your precepts.

⁸⁸ In your steadfast love spare my life, so that I may keep the decrees of your mouth.

The perilous condition reaches its pinnacle in these eight verses as the psalmist wastes away.[7] The nephesh (NRSV soul)[8], the very life of the person and the vision of the psalmist are all failing. They wonder how much longer they can endure in this situation without God’s intervention on behalf of the faithful one. The poet needs God to act to counteract the actions of the wicked which threaten their life. The remain steadfast in their adherence to the commandments and throw themselves on the steadfast love (hesed) of their God.

Lamedh

⁸⁹ The LORD exists forever; your word is firmly fixed in heaven.

⁹⁰ Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast.

⁹¹ By your appointment they stand today, for all things are your servants.

⁹² If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my misery.

⁹³ I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.

⁹⁴ I am yours; save me, for I have sought your precepts.

⁹⁵ The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, but I consider your decrees.

⁹⁶ I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad.

The poem transitions from its lowest point to its highest. The psalmist previously had been wasting away but now they turn their eyes to the eternal LORD. Their faith rests not on their own strength but the faithfulness of God and the goodness of God’s eternal law. The psalmist trusts that this law of God will provide them deliverance from the wicked who attempt to destroy them. The meaning of the word translated perfection in verse 96 (Hebrew tikla) is not entirely clear but the overall direction of the final verse is to compare the greatness of God’s commandments and ways to the transitory nature of the wicked.

Mem

⁹⁷ Oh, how I love your law! It is my meditation all day long.

⁹⁸ Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is always with me.

⁹⁹ I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your decrees are my meditation.

¹⁰⁰ I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.

¹⁰¹ I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word.

¹⁰² I do not turn away from your ordinances, for you have taught me.

¹⁰³ How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

¹⁰⁴ Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.

The effusive language of these eight verses now focuses on the psalmist’s love of the law. Love is not a common word in the psalter, and it takes on a sensual tone with language similar to the Song of Songs in talking about the words being sweeter than honey. This zealous adherent to the law of God seeks to surpass their teachers and elders by focusing on God’s law as the center of their life. The psalmist may be a young person (v.9) and this may be the zeal of youth, but their direction focused in the right direction. Whatever their age, they are seeking ardently the wise way of God’s law.

Nun

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

¹⁰⁶ I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to observe your righteous ordinances.

¹⁰⁷ I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to your word.

¹⁰⁸ Accept my offerings of praise, O LORD, and teach me your ordinances.

¹⁰⁹ I hold my life in my hand continually, but I do not forget your law.

¹¹⁰ The wicked have laid a snare for me, but I do not stray from your precepts.

¹¹¹ Your decrees are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.

¹¹² I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.

This group of verses begins with the most well-known verse of the psalm, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” The way or law of God is the guide for the psalmist’s life, but they remain imperiled by the actions of the wicked. Previously the LORD was lifted up as the heritage of the psalmist (NRSV portion) and now the decrees of God are the heritage of the poet. Yet even in this situation where the wicked imperil the poet they lift up an offering of praises and continue to incline their heart to the performance of God’s law. Praise and obedience continue even in threatening times.

Samekh

¹¹³ I hate the double-minded, but I love your law.

¹¹⁴ You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.

¹¹⁵ Go away from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commandments of my God.

¹¹⁶ Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope.

¹¹⁷ Hold me up, that I may be safe and have regard for your statutes continually.

¹¹⁸ You spurn all who go astray from your statutes; for their cunning is in vain.

¹¹⁹ All the wicked of the earth you count as dross; therefore I love your decrees.

¹²⁰ My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.

This section begins with the contrast between the hate of the ‘double-minded’ and the love of the law. The evildoers attempt to pull the faithful one away from the commandment, but God is the hiding place and shield, a frequent image in scripture. The psalmist fears God far more than the wicked who are valued as dross. The psalmist continues to trust that God’s judgment between the foolish/double-minded/wicked ones and themselves will come to pass.

Ayin

¹²¹ I have done what is just and right; do not leave me to my oppressors.

¹²² Guarantee your servant’s well-being; do not let the godless oppress me.

¹²³ My eyes fail from watching for your salvation, and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise.

¹²⁴ Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love, and teach me your statutes.

¹²⁵ I am your servant; give me understanding, so that I may know your decrees.

¹²⁶ It is time for the LORD to act, for your law has been broken.

¹²⁷ Truly I love your commandments more than gold, more than fine gold.

¹²⁸ Truly I direct my steps by all your precepts; I hate every false way.

The poet lifts us their justice (mishpat) and righteousness (tsedeq) and implores the LORD to do good (tob) and show steadfast love (hesed). Yet once again the eyes of the psalmist are in danger of failing as they watch in hope for God’s rescue and fulfillment of the promises of the law. But the psalmist cries to God that the time has indeed come to act on behalf of this one who treasures the law more than gold. Their life rests in the hands of the God of the law.

¹²⁹ Your decrees are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them.

¹³⁰ The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.

¹³¹ With open mouth I pant, because I long for your commandments.

¹³² Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.

¹³³ Keep my steps steady according to your promise, and never let iniquity have dominion over me.

¹³⁴ Redeem me from human oppression, that I may keep your precepts.

¹³⁵ Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.

¹³⁶ My eyes shed streams of tears because your law is not kept.

The poet finds the commandments of God as wonderful, but they live in a time where the law is not kept. They are attempting to live as a faithful servant of God in an unfaithful time. They continue to long for and pant for God’s commandments and they trust that God will be faithful to them and redeem them from their trouble. Yet, they cry for the unfaithfulness of the world around them. They and perhaps a minority among the people continue to seek God’s way.

Tsadhe

¹³⁷ You are righteous, O LORD, and your judgments are right.

¹³⁸ You have appointed your decrees in righteousness and in all faithfulness.

¹³⁹ My zeal consumes me because my foes forget your words.

¹⁴⁰ Your promise is well tried, and your servant loves it.

¹⁴¹ I am small and despised, yet I do not forget your precepts.

¹⁴² Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and your law is the truth.

¹⁴³ Trouble and anguish have come upon me, but your commandments are my delight.

¹⁴⁴ Your decrees are righteous forever; give me understanding that I may live.

God is righteous and God’s decrees are righteous, and this righteousness of God and God’s decrees is the repetitive image throughout this section. The servant of God may be small and despised but they are zealous for God’s ways. They continue to seek God’s righteous and good way and trust in God’s promise even though they may be insignificant. Their trust remains in the righteousness of God and God’s law.

Qoph

¹⁴⁵ With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O LORD. I will keep your statutes.

¹⁴⁶ I cry to you; save me, that I may observe your decrees.

¹⁴⁷ I rise before dawn and cry for help; I put my hope in your words.

¹⁴⁸ My eyes are awake before each watch of the night, that I may meditate on your promise.

¹⁴⁹ In your steadfast love hear my voice; O LORD, in your justice preserve my life.

¹⁵⁰ Those who persecute me with evil purpose draw near; they are far from your law.

¹⁵¹ Yet you are near, O LORD, and all your commandments are true.

¹⁵² Long ago I learned from your decrees that you have established them forever.

The psalm continues its movement from petition to trust as it oscillates through the experience of life where the faithful one is not surrounded by a community that practices the law. The ones who persecute this faithful poet are near to them but far from God’s law. The psalmist’s whole heart is crying out for God’s attention to the difference between the psalmist’s life and the lives of the ones who threaten them. Yet, ultimately, they trust in God and God’s law.

Resh

¹⁵³ Look on my misery and rescue me, for I do not forget your law.

¹⁵⁴ Plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to your promise.

¹⁵⁵ Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek your statutes.

¹⁵⁶ Great is your mercy, O LORD; give me life according to your justice.

¹⁵⁷ Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, yet I do not swerve from your decrees.

¹⁵⁸ I look at the faithless with disgust, because they do not keep your commands.

¹⁵⁹ Consider how I love your precepts; preserve my life according to your steadfast love.

¹⁶⁰ The sum of your word is truth; and every one of your righteous ordinances endures forever.

The psalmist continues to pray that God preserve their life. I like Nancy deClaissé-Walford’s translation of this phrase as cause me to live. (Nancy deClaisse-Walford, 2014, pp. 880-881) If God will look on their misery, rescue them, plead their cause and redeem them, then God will cause them to live according to the promises God has made. God’s mercy, justice, and precepts will cause this poet to live even in the face of their many persecutors and adversaries. The poet trusts that God’s word is truth that will triumph over the falsehoods of their oppressors.

Sin and Shin

¹⁶¹ Princes persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of your words.

¹⁶² I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil.

¹⁶³ I hate and abhor falsehood, but I love your law.

¹⁶⁴ Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous ordinances.

¹⁶⁵ Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.

¹⁶⁶ I hope for your salvation, O LORD, and I fulfill your commandments.

¹⁶⁷ My soul keeps your decrees; I love them exceedingly.

¹⁶⁸ I keep your precepts and decrees, for all my ways are before you.

Although this penultimate group of verses begins with one final reminder of the powerful enemies who oppress the psalmist the bulk of this section is devoted to praise. Princes in a monarchical society were people with power, but the poet trust in God and God’s promises instead of princes. For the first time the word praise (hallel) occurs in the psalm. Seven times a day may reflect a regular pattern of praise or it may indicate a continual life of praise. Those who love the law have peace (shalom) and live their lives before God.

Taw

¹⁶⁹ Let my cry come before you, O LORD; give me understanding according to your word.

¹⁷⁰ Let my supplication come before you; deliver me according to your promise.

¹⁷¹ My lips will pour forth praise, because you teach me your statutes.

¹⁷² My tongue will sing of your promise, for all your commandments are right.

¹⁷³ Let your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen your precepts.

¹⁷⁴ I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.

¹⁷⁵ Let me live that I may praise you, and let your ordinances help me.

¹⁷⁶ I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek out your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

The closing verse of this psalm which repetitively speaks of the psalmist’s obedience to the law is striking because of it using language used elsewhere to describe the wicked. (NIB IV: 1175) The word the NRSV translates as ‘lost’ (Hebrew ‘obed) has its root meaning in ‘perish.’ This final verse uses the familiar metaphor of God as a shepherd who seeks out the sheep. Yet, this one who has gone astray is the same one who seeks and does not forget the commandments. James L. Mays articulates the place of the poet well when he reminds us:

The word of God is given but never possessed…It is there, objectively available in all the forms of God’s communication. But it must be sought and constantly studied in prayer in order to be taught, to learn with the help of God to receive the gift of understanding. (Mays, 1994, p. 385)

This massive psalm which intensifies the acrostic form attempts to bring a sense of completeness to this treatment of life under the law, decrees (or statutes), ordinances, statutes, word, precepts, and promises of God. It is a life of seeking and learning that trusts God’s faithfulness in an unfaithful world. It is an act of faith transmitted through artistry for the purpose of teaching and worship. It is seeking the peace, the steadfast love, the mercy, and the rescue of God as the faithful one attempts to live in harmony with God’s will.

[1] I will follow the NIV’s practice of including the letter of the Hebrew alphabet which begins each of the eight verses in each section of the acrostic. I am using the NIV’s spelling for the letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

[2] Matthew 13:44.

[3] Psalm 22: 15, 29.

[4] The NRSV obscures this by translating v. 52 “When I think on your ordinances from of old” instead of “I have remembered your ordinances.”

[5] Numbers 18:20; Joshua 15:13; 18:7; 19:9.

[6] ‘Dealt well’ in verse 65 and ‘is better to me’ in verse 72 are also the Hebrew tob. The NRSV translation is smoother, but it obscures this repetition.

[7] Languishes (v.81), fail (v. 82), made an end of me (v.87) are all the same word in Hebrew kalah which means waste away, fail, be finished, to be spent.

[8] See my comments on vv. 25-32 for additional reflections on the Hebrew idea of nephesh.

Psalm 116 The God Who Delivers From Death

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The Last Supper by Pascal Adolphe Dagnan-Bouvret

Psalm 116

¹ I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my supplications.

² Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

³ The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish.

⁴ Then I called on the name of the LORD: “O LORD, I pray, save my life!”

⁵ Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; our God is merciful.

⁶ The LORD protects the simple; when I was brought low, he saved me.

⁷ Return, O my soul, to your rest, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.

⁸ For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.

⁹ I walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

¹⁰ I kept my faith, even when I said, “I am greatly afflicted”;

¹¹ I said in my consternation, “Everyone is a liar.”

¹² What shall I return to the LORD for all his bounty to me?

¹³ I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD,

¹⁴ I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.

¹⁵ Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his faithful ones.

¹⁶ O LORD, I am your servant; I am your servant, the child of your serving girl. You have loosed my bonds.

¹⁷ I will offer to you a thanksgiving sacrifice and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁸ I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people,

¹⁹ in the courts of the house of the LORD, in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

Psalm 116 is the song of praise of one who has been delivered from the power of death. Throughout the psalms the LORD is the one who delivers the life (nephesh)[1] of this faithful one from the power of death. This individual praise has been brought into the practice of the Passover meal where the community now praises the LORD’s rescue of them from their death in Egypt. For Christians this psalm is traditionally read on Maundy Thursday (the Thursday before Easter) in connection with the last supper. In both the religious practice of Jews and Christians this psalm echoes a repeated theme in the psalms of a God who ransoms or save the life of the individual or people from the powers of death.[2]

Even though Deuteronomy 6:5 with its command, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.” is one of the central commandments, and a part of the Shema which the people are to regularly recite, the psalms rarely refer to loving the LORD. J. Clinton McCann highlights three other psalms that reference loving God (Psalm 5:1; 32:23; and 40:16) (NIB IV: 1148) but even Psalm 40:16 refers to “those who love your salvation say continually, “Great is the LORD.” The NRSV and many other translations begin this psalm by stating “I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my supplications.” Yet, these translations deviate from the Hebrew which has the LORD as the subject of the verb hear. Nancy-deClaissé-Walford captures this in her translation, “I love because the LORD hears.” (Nancy deClaisse-Walford, 2014, p. 858) The rescued one is able to love because the LORD is one who saves from the time of trouble, who hears and inclines the ear of God to the one who calls upon God throughout their life.

God is the one who sustains life, but death is a constant threat throughout this poem. Death and Sheol are parallel terms for this realm or entity which attempts to lay hold of this faithful one. It is mythologized into a living being or force that can encompass with snares or afflict with pangs. This resonates with Paul usage of a personified death which is the last enemy to be defeated in 1 Corinthians 15:26. The LORD is the one who rescues the life of one who has been pulled close to the realm of death and has restored them to life. Now they walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

Even though this psalmist kept their faith in God in their time of distress other may have viewed this as a judgment from God like Job’s dialogue partners or like the enemies encountered in other psalms of lament. (Bellinger, 2014, p. 501) The psalmist may have had to dispute others who viewed their misfortune as indication of unfaithfulness or sin and who in the psalmist’s words were liars. Instead of receiving compassion from others, this one at death’s door may have received condemnation or even seen others plot to take advantage of his physical distress. Yet the psalmist’s faith was in a God who delivers from the snares of death and returns them to life.

The cup of salvation may have originated as a part of the drink offering or in an offering of thanksgiving for well being[3] but this reference to the cup of salvation likely led to the use of this psalm with the fourth cup at Passover. For Christians the linkage of the Passover with the Last Supper led to this being the traditional psalm on Maundy Thursday. Yet within the psalm this line is a part of the psalmist’s thankful reaction to the deliverance they have received. They pay their vows and the celebrate ritually what God has done for them.

Verse fifteen is a verse that is often used in a way that is opposite to its original intent. The NRSV’s translations Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his faithful ones makes it sound like the death of the faithful is something God welcomes when the entire direction of the psalm is about a God who rescues from death. The Hebrew yaqar translated as “precious” also has the meaning of costly or weighty. The NJPS translates this verse as grievous in the LORD’s sight. The word for faithful ones is hasid which are those who practice hesed or those who imitate God’s practice of steadfast love. Throughout the psalm the self-disclosure of God’s character in Exodus 34:6 as merciful and gracious…abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness is echoed in the Hebrew vocabulary of the psalm. For example, in verse five several of these same terms for God echo in this psalmist’s description of God.

For the psalmist the experience of rescue from the snares of death demonstrates the character of God. The psalmist lives in gratitude for the ability to love and live again. The come in worship and exaltation to the house of God and echo the Hallelujah (Praise the LORD) that the hallel psalms are named for. In knowing the deliverance of God, they have come to a fuller appreciation of the character of the God who delivers from death.

[1] The Hebrew nephesh is often translated ‘soul’ (as in verse seven and eight in the NRSV) but the modern concept of soul does not communicate the concept of nephesh. Nephesh is the essence of life or the center of life. Even in this psalm which discusses the place of the dead (Sheol) the contrast is between life and death, not life and afterlife.

[2] Psalm 30:3; 33:19; 49:15; 56:13; and 86:13.

[3] Although the offering of thanksgiving for well-being outlined in Leviticus 7:11-18 does not have a drink element with it.

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