Sermon Tone Analysis

Elijah and Elisha 28.

Can we please turn to 2 Kings chapter 13? [P] Last time I spoke we were in 2 Kings 7. We have moved on 6 chapters, and time has moved on also.

[P] But there is no intervening mention of Elisha.

Well, there is just one mention: in [2 Kings 9:1–3 Now Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Gird up your loins, and take this flask of oil in your hand and go to Ramoth-gilead.

“When you arrive there, search out Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in and bid him arise from among his brothers, and bring him to an inner room.

“Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, ‘Thus says יהוה, “I have anointed you king over Israel.”’

Then open the door and flee and do not wait.”]

The fleeing was important, because you didn’t want to mess with Jehu.

Time has moved on; not only is there a different king but a completely different dynasty – the dynasty of Jehu.

But he was the one whom יהוה told Elijah to anoint to carry out His judgment on a wayward Israel.

I have already dealt with that passage, the anointing of Jehu as king of Israel, when I talked about Elijah’s commission to anoint him.

Talking of time [P], this is the time when Elijah ministered [P] – Ahab was king; and this is Elisha’s ministry [P] – you see that it was long.

Here is where we were last time, with Aram besieging Samaria [P].

At that time Jehoram, Ahab’s son, was king.

Now there is not only is there a different king but a different dynasty.

Jehu was an interesting character [P] – the nearest Israel ever had to a godly king.

He assassinated Jehoram, who was king during that siege of Samaria, thus ending the dynastry of Omri/Ahab.

But Jehu was a bit of a rogue – he was a tough, unyielding, determined, one-eyed and violent man.

But he gained יהוה’s approval because of his uncompromising stance against Baal worship.

As a reward, יהוה promised him three generations of rule.

Jehu ruled 28 years, and we hear nothing of Elisha in that time, maybe because Jehu was zealous for יהוה.

Then his son Jehoahaz ruled for 17 years [P].

Presumably Elisha was still at work; but we hear nothing.

Now we come to the reign of Jehoahaz’s son: Jehoash [P] or Joash (I will call him the former so that we don’t get him mixed up with the more well-known Joash who was king of Judah to the south).

So, we are 45-50 years on since the last story, Elisha was an old man.

[P] [2 Kings 13:14–21 When Elisha became sick with the illness of which he was to die, Joash (or Jehoash) the king of Israel came down to him and wept over him and said, “My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!”

(He was not a good king, look back in v.11: “2 Kings 13:11 He did evil in the sight of יהוה; he did not turn away from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel sin, but he walked in them.”

– he was an idolater.

But he seems to have been genuinely upset at Elisha’s disease.

He respected him, came to see him and wept.

Addressing him as “father” showed his respect and submission to his authority.

He looked up to him, recognized that he was under him, that he was the true strength and defence of the nation, not the king and his army.

And it was the defence of Israel that was the issue that was on Elisha’s mind.

A spiritual man, yet he was concerned with the political situation) Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows.”

[P] So, he took a bow and arrows.

Then he said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.”

And he put his hand on it, then Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands.

He said, “Open the window toward the east,” and he opened it.

Then Elisha said, “Shoot!”

And he shot.

And he said, “יהוה’s arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory over Aram; for you will defeat the Arameans at Aphek until you have destroyed them.”

Then he said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them.

And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground,” and he struck it three times and stopped.

So, the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times, then you would have struck Aram until you would have destroyed it.

But now you shall strike Aram only three times.”

Elisha died, and they buried him.

Now the bands of the Moabites would invade the land in the spring of the year.

As they were burying a man, behold, they saw a marauding band; and they cast the man into the grave of Elisha.

And when the man touched the bones of Elisha he revived and stood up on his feet.]

An unusual story.

And as I have been saying, the stories of Elisha are stories of salvation [P].

Where is the salvation in what we have read?

We have this story of Elisha telling the king to shoot an arrow out the window and then to strike the ground with the remaining arrows.

Salvation was certainly what Elisha had in mind.

Aram was their perpetual enemy to the north.

O.K. it was a symbolic action; but the meaning was fairly clear, even to a dull-head like me, for whom symbolism just flies over my head.

I mean, they weren’t shooting at a real target.

Elisha’s hands were on the king’s hands as he shot – that is not the way to make an accurate shot!

No, this was not for the purpose of hitting something.

Here was the man of God with his hands on the king’s hands – it was the Divine hand upon the action of the civil ruler.

This was God enabling the king and his forces.

I mean, it’s not that obscure.

The arrow is a military weapon.

It is picturing the Divine hand upon the military action that the king takes.

And just in case he was thick; Elisha spells it out: (he said in verse 17 [“יהוה’s arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory over Aram; for you will defeat the Arameans at Aphek until you have destroyed them.”]).

The arrow is “the arrow of victory over Aram” – it is the military conquest of Aram: “you will defeat the Arameans until you have destroyed them!”

It is military victory over Syria/Aram – deliverance from their persistent enemy and thorn in their side.

It is salvation.

That is what is on Elisha’s mind.

Elisha spelled it out; Jehoash understood what it was about.

The symbolism was clear, and Elisha had explained the meaning of the action.

Then Elisha tells Jehoash to strike the ground with the arrows.

What did he do?

He struck the ground three times: one, two, three.

What do you do if you have an enemy that has persistently dogged and oppressed you, attacked you, taken your land, killed your people?

You want rid of this oppressor, this enemy!

God is telling you to strike it.

What do you do?

You strike, and you strike, and you strike – you keep on striking until the tormentor is no more.

You want rid of this evil that has so devastated you and your people and your nation.

But Jehoash only struck three times!

Did he not get it?

Did he not understand the picture he was acting out?

I am convinced he did.

Elisha was angry: [2 Kings 13:19 So the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times, then you would have struck Aram until you would have destroyed it.

But now you shall strike Aram only three times.”]

It was a symbolic action, with prophetic meaning.

Elisha knew that, the king knew that; yet he only struck three times.

Did he not understand what he was doing?

Of course, he did!

The question is: did he want salvation?

[P] Do you actually want salvation?

Elisha certainly did.

Here he was on his death-bed.

When you are about to die, you speak of the things that matter, the things that are vital to pass on before you go.

And what was on Elisha’s heart?

The salvation of Israel from her enemy.

But what about the king?

Was he just apathetic?

[P] That may well have been the problem.