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| Volume 26 Number 2 February 2024 |
Page 10 |
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| Volume 26 Number 2 February 2024 |
Page 10 |
Trust and Compassion
Aaron Cozort
In a world teeming with uncertainty and fleeting connections, the timeless virtues of trust and compassion emerge as beacons of hope. These are not mere sentiments but foundational principles that have guided humanity through its most challenging moments. Delving into the ancient narrative of the Shunammite woman and Elisha, we uncover a story of miraculous deeds and the profound impact that genuine kindness and unwavering faith can have. This record from 2 Kings 4 does more than recount historical events; it invites us to deeply reflect on how trust in the divine and compassion towards our fellow beings can transform our lives today.
We are first introduced to the Shunammite woman when we read that she was a notable person and that she persuaded Elisha, who was traveling through Shunem, to eat some food. Note first that she lived in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Her nation was not favorable to the life and work of the prophet Elisha, and yet, she sought to serve him. She did not just feed him once but provided him with a standing invitation that whenever he came through her area he could go to her home and be fed.
In verse 9, we learn that she convinced her husband that they should go beyond the meals to provide Elisha with a room on the wall of their house to give him a place to stay when he came near there. All of this she did and never asked for anything in return. She was a person who saw a prophet and was moved to provide for one who declared God’s message to Israel.
Elisha inquired what he could do in return for her, and though she gave him nothing to do for her in reply, Gehazi, his servant, informed Elisha that she was childless, and her husband was old. Elisha told her that within one year, she would bear a child. We read:
Then he said, “About this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord. Man of God, do not lie to your maidservant!” But the woman conceived, and bore a son when the appointed time had come, of which Elisha had told her. (2 Kings 4:16-17 NKJV)
Years later, as the child was with his father and the reapers, he complained of his head hurting, and his father sent him to the house with a servant. The servant delivered him to his mother, and by noon, he was dead.
The woman laid him on Elisha’s bed and then left with a servant to find Elisha. Elisha spotted her approaching a long way off and sent Gehazi to inquire if everything was well, including with the husband and the child. She responded, “It is well.”
The Shunammite Woman knew and trusted that if God could provide this son to her, then He could restore him to life. When Elisha sent Gehazi to the boy, the woman insisted, “As the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you” (2 Kings 4:30). This woman knew where the solution to her problem lie. She was unwilling to be separated from the person who represented the opportunity of life for her child.
When Gehazi returned and reported that the child was truly dead, Elisha went to where the boy was and prayed to the Lord. Then, he went up and laid on top of the child. He continued this until the child’s life returned to him.
Elisha exhibited compassion toward this woman who had shown compassion to him and helped her in her time of need. She had helped him, asking nothing in return. Both the Shunammite Woman and Elisha teach us to trust in God and to show compassion for others, asking nothing in return. May we exhibit these traits and characteristics in our lives.
