2 Kings 8:1-6

2 Kings 8:1-6

[1] Then spake  Elisha  unto the woman,  whose son  he had restored to life,  saying,  Arise,  thou and thine household,  and sojourn  wheresoever  thou canst sojourn:  for the LORD  hath called  for a famine;  and it shall also come  upon the land  seven  years.  [2] And the woman  arose,  and did  after the saying  of the man  of God:  with her household,  and sojourned  in the land  of the Philistines  seven  years.  [3] And it came to pass at the seven  years'  end,  that the woman  returned  out of the land  of the Philistines:  and she went forth  to cry  unto the king  for her house  and for her land.  [4] And the king  talked  with Gehazi  the servant  of the man  of God,  saying,  Tell  me, I pray thee, all the great things  that Elisha  hath done.  [5] And it came to pass, as he was telling  the king  a dead body  to life,  that, behold, the woman,  whose son  he had restored to life,  cried  to the king  for her house  and for her land.  And Gehazi  said,  My lord,  O king,  this is the woman,  and this is her son,  whom Elisha  restored to life.  [6] And when the king  asked  the woman,  she told  him. So the king  appointed  unto her a certain  officer,  saying,  Restore  all that was hers, and all the fruits  of the field  since the day  that she left  the land,  even until now.

What does 2 Kings 8:1-6 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Several details in this incident hinge on timing that God supernaturally controlled to bring blessing on the Shunamite woman, as God had promised. God directed her away from the famine before it came on Israel for the nation"s apostasy ( 2 Kings 8:1; cf. Deuteronomy 11:16-17; Deuteronomy 28:38-40; 1 Kings 18:2; et al.). The timing of the length of the famine showed it was an act of God ( 2 Kings 8:1; cf. 2 Kings 4:38; Deuteronomy 15:1-22; 2 Kings 7:4). Evidently the woman had sold her property before she left Israel and now wished to buy back her family inheritance. This was a right that the Mosaic Law protected ( Leviticus 25:23-28; Numbers 36:7; cf. 1 Kings 21:3). Another view is that the woman had left her property and "the crown" had taken it over. In such a situation the state held the land until the legal owner reclaimed it ( Exodus 21:2; Exodus 23:10-11; 1713506580_63). [1] Her position was similar to that of Naomi in the Book of Ruth. She had fled a famine, lost her male supporter, and was at the mercy of the political system. [2] Jehoram was responsible to enforce the Law, and he did so in this case. What God used to move him to grant the woman"s request was the story that Gehazi happened (!) to tell him about this woman ( 2 Kings 8:5). This event evidently happened before Gehazi became a leper. God blessed the woman for her obedience to God"s instructions that came to her through Elisha ( 2 Kings 8:1). He not only restored her house and land but also the produce of her land (its fertility; 2 Kings 8:6). Thus the Israelites saw that Yahweh is the lord of time who brings blessing on the faithful.
"Elisha wields as much political influence as any biblical prophet." [3]