The Widow’s Oil

1Now a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to [†]Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared Yahweh; and the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” 2And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your servant-woman has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 3Then he said, “Go, ask for vessels for yourself, from those outside, from all your neighbors, even empty vessels; do not get a few. 4And you shall go in and shut the door behind you and your sons, and pour out into all these vessels, and you shall set aside what is full.” 5So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons; they were bringing the vessels to her and she poured. 6Now it happened that when the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not one vessel more.” And the oil stopped. 7Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”

The Shunammite Woman Will Bear a Son

8Now there came a day when Elisha passed over to Shunem, where there was a [†]prominent woman, and she prevailed upon him to eat [†]food. Now it happened, as often as he passed by, that he turned in there to eat [†]food. 9And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God passing by us continually. 10Please, let us make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it will be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.”

11Now it happened that one day he came there and turned in to the upper chamber, and there he [†]lay down. 12Then he said to Gehazi his young man, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. 13And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have been [†]careful for us with all this [†]care; what can I do for you? Would you be spoken for to the king or to the commander of the army?’” And she [†]answered, “I live among my own people.” 14So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi [†]answered, “Truly she has no son, and her husband is old.” 15And he said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. 16Then he said, “At this season [†]next year you will embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God, do not lie to your servant-woman.”

17Then the woman conceived and bore a son at that season [†]the next year, as Elisha had said to her.

A Dead Boy Opens His Eyes

18Then the child was grown. And the day came that he went out to his father to the reapers. 19And he said to his father, “My head, my head.” And he said to [†]his young man, “Carry him to his mother.” 20Then he carried him and brought him to his mother, and he sat on her knees until noon, and then died. 21Then she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God and shut the door behind him and went out. 22And she called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the young men and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God and return.” 23And he said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither new moon nor sabbath.” And she said, “It is well.” 24Then she saddled a donkey and said to her young man, “Drive and go; do not hold back the pace of the ride for me unless I tell you.” 25So she went and came to the man of God to Mount Carmel.

Now it happened that when the man of God saw her at a distance, he said to Gehazi his young man, “Behold, [†]there is the Shunammite. 26Please run now to meet her and say to her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?’” And she [†]answered, “It is well.” 27Then she came to the man of God to the hill and took hold of his feet. And Gehazi came near to push her away; but the man of God said, “Let her alone, for her soul is bitter within her; and Yahweh has hidden it from me and has not told me.” 28Then she said, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, ‘Do not deceive me’?”

29Then he said to Gehazi, “Gird up your loins and take my staff in your hand, and go; if you meet anyone, do not [†]greet him, and if anyone [†]greets you, do not answer him; and lay my staff on the boy’s face.” 30But the mother of the boy said, “As Yahweh lives and as your soul lives, I will not forsake you.” And he arose and followed her. 31Now Gehazi passed on before them and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or [†]response. So he returned to meet him and told him, saying, “The boy has not awakened.”

32Then Elisha came into the house, and behold, the boy was dead and laid on his bed. 33So he entered and shut the door behind them both and prayed to Yahweh. 34And he went up and lay on the child and put his mouth on his mouth and his eyes on his eyes and his hands on his hands, and he stretched himself on him; and the flesh of the child became warm. 35Then he returned and walked in the house once back and forth, and went up and stretched himself on him; and the boy sneezed seven times and the boy opened his eyes. 36Then he called Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. Then she came in to him, and he said, “Take up your son.” 37Then she came in and fell at his feet and bowed herself to the ground, and she took up her son and went out.

The Death in the Stew

38Now Elisha returned to Gilgal, and there was a famine in the land. [†]As the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his young man, “Put on the large pot and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.” 39Then one went out into the field to gather herbs and found a wild vine and gathered from it wild gourds filling his cloak and came and sliced them into the pot of stew, for they did not know what they were. 40So they poured it out for the men to eat. And it happened that as they were eating of the stew, they cried out and said, “O man of God, there is death in the pot.” And they were unable to eat. 41But he said, “Now bring flour.” He threw it into the pot and said, “Pour it out for the people that they may eat.” Then there was no harm in the pot.

42Now a man came from Baal-shalishah, and brought the man of God bread of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And he said, “Give them to the people that they may eat.” 43And his attendant said, “What, will I give this before one hundred men?” But he said, “Give them to the people that they may eat, for thus says Yahweh, ‘They shall eat and have some left over.’” 44So he gave it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of Yahweh.