Elisha the prophet, and Gehazi
and a husband, wife and child in Shunem
And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life. And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers. And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother. And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again. And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee. So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite: Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well. And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me. Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me? Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man salute him not: and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child. And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.-2 Kings 4:8-30***Shunem was a border city in the portion of the Promised Land allotted to the tribe of Issachar. Issachar was the 5th son born to Jacob (Israel) and his 1st wife Leah. Jacob was the youngest fraternal twin son born to Isaac and Rebekah. Isaac was born to 100-year-old Abraham (Abram the Hebrew) and 90-year-old Sarah (Sarai). On the 8th day after Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised Isaac, according to the covenant of circumcision that the Lord God gave Abraham. Forty years after Isaac was born, he was married to Rebekah, Abraham and Sarah's grandniece. Jacob and his older fraternal twin brother Esau (Edom) were born to 60-year-old Isaac and Rebekah. Esau was Isaac's favorite, and Jacob was Rebekah's favorite. In Padan Aram, Haran, Jacob was married to Leah and Rachel, the daughters of Rebekah's brother Laban the Syrian (Aramean). Issachar, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Zebulun, and daughter Dinah were born to Jacob and Leah. Dan and Naphtali were born to Jacob and Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant. Gad and Asher were born to Jacob and Zilpah, Leah's maidservant. Joseph was the 1st son born to Jacob and Rachel, and Rachel and Joseph were Jacob's favorites. During Jacob's 20th year in Haran, he began journeying home to Canaan with his family, servants, animals, and possessions. Near Bethlehem, Benjamin was born to Jacob and Rachel, and Rachel died. Joseph was 17 years old when his brothers sold him to merchants traveling to Egypt and led Jacob to believe that Joseph was killed by a wild beast, and Joseph was 30 years old when Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, proclaimed him second-in-command. Jacob was 130 years old when he moved with his family from Canaan to Egypt. In Egypt, Jacob proclaimed Manasseh and Ephraim, the sons born to Joseph and his wife Asenath, to be his own sons, and the tribe of Joseph became the tribe of Manasseh and the tribe of Ephraim. Sometime after 147-year-old Jacob died in Egypt, and Jacob's family buried his body in Canaan, and 110-year-old Joseph and his siblings were dead, their descendants the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt. Miriam and her younger brothers Aaron and Moses were born into the tribe of Levi to Amram and Jochebed. Moses was 80 years old and Aaron was 83 when they led the Israelites away from Egypt, across the divinely parted Red Sea, into the desert wilderness of Shur, and the desert wilderness of Sin, and the desert wilderness of Sinai, Miriam the prophetess died and was buried in Kadesh, in the desert wilderness of Zin. Upon Mount Hor, 123-year-old Aaron the high priest died, and Aaron's son Eleazar became Aaron's successor. When Moses went upon Mount Nebo, the Lord God showed Moses the Promised Land, and 120-year-old Moses the prophet died, and was divinely buried. Joshua, Moses' aide and successor from the tribe of Ephraim, led the Israelites across the divinely parted Jordan River and onto the land that the Lord God promised to give to Abraham, and Isaac, and to Jacob, and their descendants. Over 300 years after 110-year-old Joshua died, and was buried in his tribe's portion of the Promised Land, Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, became the 1st king to reign. David, from the tribe of Judah, was the 2nd king to rule over all of the Israelites. Solomon, a son born to David and Bathsheba, was the 3rd king. Rehoboam, the son born to Solomon and Naamah, was the 4th king to rule over all of the Israelites. After Rehoboam gave a specific answer, the Israelites split into 2 kingdoms, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of Solomon. Judah was the nation in the south and consisted of the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin. Jerusalem was the royal city and Rehoboam was the 1st king to reign. Israel was the northern nation and consisted of the other Israelite tribes. Samaria was the final royal city and Jeroboam, the son born to Nebat and Zeruah, was the 1st king to reign. Ahab was the 7th king to rule over all of the Israelites in the northern nation of Israel. Ahab's wife Jezebel was a Sidonian (Zidonian) princess. During Ahab's 22-year reign, Elijah the prophet began proclaiming the words of the Lord God to the Israelites. Upon Mount Carmel, Elijah put forth a challenge to Jezebel's false prophets and the Israelites. Amid the Kishon Valley, Elijah put Jezebel's false prophets to death. Ahab told Jezebel about the challenge and the slaughter, and Jezebel made a vow, and Elijah bolted to Beersheba, in Judah. Elijah went from Beersheba to the desert wilderness, and after a 40-day journey, Elijah was at Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. While in a cave upon the mountain, Elijah heard the word of the Lord, and obeyed the command given and heard the Lord God ask him a question. Elijah answered the Lord God and, the Lord God commanded Elijah to anoint Elisha as his successor. Ahaziah, a son born to Ahab and Jezebel, was the 8th king to rule over all of the Israelites in the northern nation of Israel, and Ahaziah's brother Jehoram (Joram) was the 8th king. Elijah and Elisha were at the Jordan River when Elijah went up in the whirlwind into the heavens. In Shunem, Elisha prophesied that a son would be born to a Shunammite woman and her elderly husband. Years after the son was born to the Shunnamite couple, Elisha returned to their home with his servant Gehazi, and the couple's dead son was resurrected. Before a famine occurred during Jehoram's 12-year reign, Elisha told the Shunammite woman to find another place to live, and the Shunammite woman and those in her household stayed among the Philistines for 7 years. Upon returning to Shunem, the Shunammite woman made a plea to Jehoram. Over 800 years after Elisha died, and a dead man began living again after contact with Elisha's bones, John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, were born. John the Baptist was born into the tribe of Levi to Zechariah (Zacharias) the priest and his wife Elizabeth (Elisabeth). Jesus the Christ was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Elizabeth's relative Mary, a virgin, and Jesus was born in Bethlehem into the tribe of Judah, the tribe of Judah's kings, to Mary and her husband Joseph when Mary was a virgin. On the 8th day after John the Baptist was born, he was circumcised, and on the 8th day after Jesus the Christ was born, Jesus was circumcised. Approximately 30 years after John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ were born, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. Jesus having prayed, the heavens tearing open, the Holy Spirit descended as a dove and lit upon Jesus. The Lord God in heaven audibly acknowledged his Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert wilderness. Jesus fasted 40 days and nights and was tempted. Afterwards, Jesus was tended to by angels, and Jesus went to the area near John the Baptist, and John the Baptist proclaimed Jesus to be the Lamb of God taking away the sin of the world, and testified that Jesus is the Son of God. In Galilee, Jesus told specific Israelite men to follow him, and Jesus began to preach, teach and perform miracles among the Israelites. At Nain, in Galilee, Jesus spoke to a widow and commanded the widow's dead son to arise. Less than 3 1/2 years after Jesus was baptized, Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot the disciple and apostle, and Jesus was arrested, crucified, buried in a tomb, resurrected, seen by over 500 people, and returned to heaven.-Genesis, Exodus, Numbers 13:1-14:45 20:1-29, 26:1-27:23, Deuteronomy 31:1-34:12, Joshua 1:1-4:24, 19:17-23, 23:1-24:33, Judges 1:1-2:23, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra 1:1-11, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts 1:1-26
Reference Information
great = gedowlah/gadowl/gadal = notable, mighty
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