Greater than Elisha (2 Kings 4, Luke 7:11-17)

2 Kings 4:8-37 

Elisha Restores the Shunammite’s Son.

The woman had never asked Elisha for a son and she was deeply distressed. Yet, she was also sure that only Elisha could help her. She laid her dead son on Elisha’s bed (4:21), had their donkey saddled and headed out to find Elisha. Elisha has his servant, Gehazi, greet her but she passes by Gehazi. She come to Elisha and she falls at Elisha’s feet (4:26). After discovering her problem, Elisha sends Gehazi with his staff back to Shumen to lay Elisha’s staff on the boy’s face, but to the Shunammite woman (4:29-30) only Elisha could help her. The Lord hid the reason for her distress from Elisha (4:27). When he finds out he sends Gehazi on ahead with his staff to raise the boy, but to no avail (4:31). Elisha followed behind with the Shunammite and when he arrived Elisha prays, lies on the child, and the boy’s body becomes warm. Elisha repeats the process; then the boy sneezes seven times and opens his eyes. Finally, Elijah tells the Shunammite that she can take her son. But Elisha’s struggle to restore the boy and the Shunammites humble but silent response gives the story a strange feel (4:37).

This is a great miracle – and this is one of three incidents in the Old Testament where someone is restored from death they are all relevant to our story. 

1) The first is involves the prophet Elijah. Elijah is staying at the house of a widow in Zarephath and the widow's son dies. She accuses Elijah of exposing her sin and killing her son. Elijah carries the boy to the upper room where he was staying and lays the boy on his bed. Elijah stretches himself out on the boy three times and cries to God to restore the boy's life. God answers; restores the boy’s life and Elijah carried him downstairs. The woman declares that Elijah is a man of God who speaks the truth (1 King 17:17-24).

2) The second is this one involving prophet Elisha. Elisha would stay in the upper room of a couple in Shunem. The woman was childless and Elisha prophesies that she would have a son within a year. Years later, the boy complained of a pain in his head then died. The woman races to see Elisha at Mt. Carmel. Elisha sent his servant ahead with his staff to heal the boy, but the boy didn’t respond. Elisha arrives, cries out to Lord, lies directly upon the dead body and the boy's body grew warm. Elisha did this again and the boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. Elisha gives the boy back to his mother, and she bowed to the ground (2 Kings 4:18-37).

3) The third is after Elisha the prophet dead and buried. Moabite raiders attacked Israel and interrupted a funeral. Those burying the body feared for their lives so they threw the body into the first convenient place; which happened to be Elisha's tomb. When the body touched Elisha's bones, the dead man came to life and stood up on his feet (2 Kings 13:20–21).

With these events in mind, it’s significant that this miracle of Jesus happened just a few miles from where Elisha preformed a similar miracle.

The City of Nain.

Some 800 years later, in Jesus’ time Shunem was gone. Much of the population likely moved on to the city of Nain which was a few kilometres from that same main trade route. Surely, the story of Elisha’s healing of the Shunammite’s son would have been part of their folklore.

In this story Jesus is followed by a crowd as he approaches the city of Nain. As they come to the city gate they discover another crowd. This crowd is a funeral procession from Nain on its way out of the city. The procession is led by a woman whose only son has died not unlike the Shunammite woman in the story with Elisha. Luke tells us that Jesus’ heart of compassion went out to this mother (Luke 7:11-17). Then after stopping the procession Jesus spoke directly to the dead man and the young was restored to life.

The story of the Shunammite Woman and the story of the Widow at Nain.

These miracles are both similar and different. The Shunammite woman has an older husband but her only son also dies. When her only son died she rushed back to the unaware Elisha. By contrast, Jesus openly approaches the widow from Nain whose only son has died. At first Elisha speaks only to his servant, Gehazi, until the boy is restored. Elisha was aware of the Shunammites distress but the Lord initially hides the reason from Elisha. Jesus knows what has happened and he is filled with compassion. His heart goes out to her and he speaks directly to the woman: ‘Do not weep’. Elisha looks to the power of his staff in Gehazi’s hands to raise the boy, while Jesus goes right up and touches the coffin halting the funeral procession. Elisha prays to God and lies on the boy (twice) and then the boy is restored. Jesus just speaks and says ‘Young man, arise’. Elisha’s miracle was dependent upon prayer, while Jesus merely spoke and the miracle was done according to his own powerful word. Then the result of Elisha’s miracle is strangely muted, in contrast those who witness Jesus’ erupt in praise and awe of God. They reason that ‘a great prophet like Elisha has arisen among them’ and that God had come to help his people.

But, Jesus is far greater than even the great Elisha. Yet, it is only when Jesus himself is raised from the dead that some realise just how much greater than Elisha he really is!