2 Kings 6:1-33


We can have great confidence in the Lord and His ability to meet each of our needs according to His will.  There is no need so big that it exceeds His ability to meet.  There is no problem so small that He does not care.  God is all-powerful to be able to rescue from the most powerful enemy.  God is all-caring so He is attentive to the smallest of our concerns.  His power and care should bring great peace to all who trust and serve Him.

GOD PROVIDES FOR THE PROPHETS WITH A FLOATING AX: When the prophets decided to build a house for themselves and went to the forest to cut down trees for this house; an ax head flew off its handle and fell in the water.  This is a rather small problem but since the ax was borrowed it certainly could have been a great embarrassment for the prophet who had borrowed the ax.  When the prophet tells Elisha, he simply cuts down a stick, throws it in the water and the ax head floats to the top of the water and is recovered.  This is obviously a miracle that God uses to provide a relatively small need for the prophets.  We need not feel like we are “bothering” God when we take our smallest cares before Him.

GOD PROTECTS ELISHA WITH POWERFUL ANGELS: When the Syrian’s came to attack Israel, God would reveal to Elisha what they were planning and he would warn Israel’s king of the plot so that Israel would be protected.  When the Syrian’s king found out about Elisha, he sent out a small army to surround and attack Elisha.  However, God sent out a larger number of angels of chariots of fire to protect Elisha and the city.  God then strikes the Syrian army with blindness and Elisha leads them into the middle of Samaria where they were captured and could have been killed.  Instead Elisha tells the king to feed them and send the soldiers back home so they could tell their people of the power of God in Israel which brought about a long period of peace between the two nations.  This was a problem too big for Elisha to handle on his own.  He needed supernatural protection and God gave that to him without even being asked.  God knows the dangers we face long before we do and He is able to provide protection is supernatural ways.  We can rest in His powerful care.

GOD PERMITS FAMINE IN ISRAEL THROUGH SYRIAN ATTACK: There are times when God will permit a hardship or a dangerous situation in our lives that we might not understand.  Syria, once again, came after Israel and surrounded the city of Samaria so that all food supply was cut off.  The king and all of the people are in a desperate situation and do not know what to do.  The situation becomes so difficult that two mothers agree to eat their own children.  When the king hears about this situation he becomes angry with Elisha for not providing protection in this case.  The king does not seek the Lord right away and when he does seek out the man of God he does so with the intent to kill Elisha, God’s representative.  God may permit difficult circumstances in our lives.  These are opportunities for us to turn to God for help and to turn to one another for support.  We must guard our hearts from anger with one another and bitterness towards God when He permits difficulty and/or danger in our lives. 

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