2 Kings 4

Thomson^{(i) 1} When a woman, a widow, of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, saying, Thy servant, my husband, is dead, and thou knowest that thy servant was one who feared the Lord, and the creditor is come to take my two sons to be his slaves, ² Elisha said to her, What can I do for thee? Tell me; What hast thou in thy house? To which she replied, Thy servant hath nothing in the house, but only the oil with which I anoint myself. ³ Thereupon he said to her, Go and borrow of all thy neighbours empty vessels. Spare not in borrowing. ⁴ Then go in and shut the door on thee and thy sons, and pour out into these vessels, setting aside that which is full. ⁵ So she went away from him; and having shut the door on herself and her sons, they brought to her and she poured out until the vessels were filled. ⁶ And when she said to her sons, Bring me another vessel, and they replied, There is not a vessel more, the oil stopped. ⁷ Then she went and told the man of God, and Elisha said to her, Go and sell the oil and pay thy debts, and live thou and thy children on the oil which is left. ⁸ It happened also that one day when Elisha went to Soman, a woman of rank there prevailed on him to eat bread. So as oft as he went thither he called in to eat. ⁹ Whereupon the woman said to her husband, Behold I perceive that the man of God; this holy man passeth by us on all occasions, ¹⁰ let us I pray thee, prepare for him a small room up stairs, and let us put there for him a bed and a table and a chair and a lamp, so that when he cometh to us he may turn in thither. ¹¹ So one day when he went there he turned aside into the chamber, and having slept there, ¹² he said to his servant Giezi, Call me this Somanite. So he called her and she stood before him. ¹³ [Now he had said to his servant, Say, I pray thee, to her, Behold as thou hast taken all this trouble for us, what must I do for thee? Hast thou any message to send to the king or to the general of the army? And she had said to him, I indeed dwell in the midst of my people. ¹⁴ Upon which he said to Giezi, What can be done for her? And his servant Giezi replied, She indeed hath not a son and her husband is old.] ¹⁵ So when he had called her and she stood at the door, ¹⁶ Elisha said to her, This time twelve month, about this very hour thou alive and well hast embraced a son. To which she replied, Nay, my lord, do not deceive thy handmaid. ¹⁷ So the woman conceived and bore a son about that time twelve month, about the very hour, being alive and well as Elisha said to her. ¹⁸ But when the child grew up, happening to go out to his father to the reapers, ¹⁹ he said to his father, My head! my head! Whereupon he said to the servant, Carry him to his mother. ²⁰ So he carried him to his mother, and he lay on her lap till noon and died. ²¹ And when she had carried him up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, she shut the door on him and came out ²² and called her husband and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the servants and one of the asses that I may go speedily to the man of God and return. ²³ And he said to her, Why wouldst thou go to him to-day? It is neither new moon nor sabbath. To which she replied, Peace. ²⁴ So when he had saddled the ass, she said to her servant, Come, drive on. Slack not thy gait for me, unless I order thee. ²⁵ Come, press forward and go to the man of God to mount Karmel. So she proceeded on and came to the man of God to the mount. Now Elisha saw her coming and said to his servant Giezi, Behold yonder is the Somanite, ²⁶ run and meet her and say, Is it well with thee? Is it well with thy husband? Is it well with the child? And she said, It is well. ²⁷ But when she came to Elisha on the mount, she took hold of his feet, whereupon Giezi went near to push her back. But Elisha said, Let her alone: for her soul is full of sorrow and the Lord hath hid the cause from me and hath not told me. ²⁸ Then she said, Did I ask a son of my lord? Did I not say, Do not deceive me. ²⁹ Thereupon Elisha said to Giezi, Gird up thy loins and take my staff in thy hand and go. If thou meetest a man salute him not. And if any man salute thee, return him no answer. And lay my staff on the face of the child. ³⁰ But the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth and thy soul liveth I will not leave thee. So Elisha arose and followed her. ³¹ Now Giezi had gone before her and laid the staff on the child's face; but there was no voice, nor attention. So when he came back and met him he said to him, The child is not awaked. ³² And when Elisha came to the house, behold the child was dead and laid upon his bed. ³³ Then Elisha went into the house and shut the door upon them two; and having prayed to the Lord ³⁴ he went up and lay down upon the child and put his mouth on the child's mouth, and his eyes on its eyes, and his hands on its hands, and bent himself down upon it; and the flesh of the child was warmed. ³⁵ Then he withdrew, and when he had walked backward and forward in the house, he went up and bent himself upon the child seven times, and the child opened its eyes. ³⁶ Whereupon Elisha called Giezi and said, Call the Somanite. So he called her. And when she came to him, Elisha said, Take up thy son. ³⁷ Thereupon she came and fell at his feet, and having made obeisance to him by bowing to the ground she took up her son and went out. ³⁸ When Elisha returned to Galgala there was a famine in the land, and the sons of the prophets sat before him. And Elisha said to his servant, Put on the large kettle and boil some pottage for the sons of the prophets. ³⁹ And one went out into the fields to gather herbs, and having found a vine in the fields he gathered from it a lapful of wild berries and threw them into the kettle of soup; for they did not know them. ⁴⁰ Then they poured out for the men to eat: but when they had eaten of the pottage, behold they cried out and said, There is death in the kettle, man of God: for they could not eat. ⁴¹ Whereupon he said, Take some meal and throw it into the kettle. Then Elisha said to his servant Giezi, Pour out for the people and let them eat. And there was no more any thing disagreeable in the kettle. ⁴² After that there came a man from Baithariso and brought to the man of God, of the first fruits twenty loaves of barley bread and some fig cakes. And he said, Give these to the people and let them eat. ⁴³ And when his servant said, Why should I set this before a hundred men? He said, Give it to the people and let them eat; for thus saith the Lord, They shall eat and leave. ⁴⁴ So they ate and left according to the word of the Lord.