The Widow's Oil

41 Now a certain woman, the wife of one of the sons of the prophets, came crying to Elisha and said, Your servant my husband is dead; and to your knowledge he was a worshipper of the Lord; but now, the creditor has come to take my two children as servants in payment of his debt. 2 Then Elisha said to her, What am I to do for you? say now, what have you in the house? And she said, Your servant has nothing in the house but a pot of oil. 3 Then he said, Go out to all your neighbours and get vessels, a very great number of them. 4 Then go in, and, shutting the door on yourself and your sons, put oil into all these vessels, putting on one side the full ones. 5 So she went away, and when the door was shut on her and her sons, they took the vessels to her and she put oil into them. 6 And when all the vessels were full, she said to her son, Get me another vessel. And he said, There are no more. And the flow of oil was stopped. 7 So she came to the man of God and gave him word of what she had done. And he said, Go and get money for the oil and make payment of your debt, and let the rest be for the needs of yourself and your sons.

Elisha and the Shunammite Woman

8 Now there came a day when Elisha went to Shunem, and there was a woman of high position living there, who made him come in and have a meal with her. And after that, every time he went by, he went into her house for a meal. 9 And she said to her husband, Now I see that this is a holy man of God, who comes by day after day. 10 So let us make a little room on the wall; and put a bed there for him, and a table and a seat and a light; so that when he comes to us, he will be able to go in there. 11 Now one day, when he had gone there, he went into the little room and took his rest there. 12 And he said to Gehazi, his servant, Send for this Shunammite. So in answer to his voice she came before him. 13 And he said to him, Now say to her, See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? will you have any request made for you to the king or the captain of the army? But she said, I am living among my people. 14 So he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi made answer, Still there is this, she has no son and her husband is old. 15 Then he said, Send for her. And in answer to his voice she took her place at the door. 16 And Elisha said, At this time in the coming year you will have a son in your arms. And she said, No, my lord, O man of God, do not say what is false to your servant. 17 Then the woman became with child and gave birth to a son at the time named, in the year after, as Elisha had said to her.

18 Now one day, when the child was older, he went out to his father to where the grain was being cut. 19 And he said to his father, My head, my head! And the father said to a servant, Take him in to his mother. 20 And he took him in to his mother, and she took him on her knees and kept him there till the middle of the day, when his life went from him. 21 Then she went up and put him on the bed of the man of God, shutting the door on him, and went out. 22 And she said to her husband, Send me one of the servants and one of the asses so that I may go quickly to the man of God and come back again. 23 And he said, Why are you going to him today? it is not a new moon or a Sabbath. But she said, It is well. 24 Then she made the ass ready and said to her servant, Keep driving on; do not make a stop without orders from me. 25 So she went, and came to Mount Carmel, to the man of God. And when the man of God saw her coming in his direction, he said to Gehazi, his servant, See, there is the Shunammite; 26 Go quickly to her, and on meeting her say to her, Are you well? and your husband and the child, are they well? And she said in answer, All is well. 27 And when she came to where the man of God was on the hill, she put her hands round his feet; and Gehazi came near with the purpose of pushing her away; but the man of God said, Let her be, for her soul is bitter in her; and the Lord has kept it secret from me, and has not given me word of it. 28 Then she said, Did I make a request to my lord for a son? did I not say, Do not give me false words? 29 Then he said to Gehazi, Make yourself ready, and take my stick in your hand, and go: if you come across anyone on the way, give him no blessing, and if anyone gives you a blessing, give him no answer. And put my stick on the child's face. 30 But the mother of the child said, As the Lord is living and as your soul is living, I will not go back without you. So he got up and went with her. 31 And Gehazi went on before them and put the stick on the child's face; but there was no voice, and no one gave attention. So he went back, and meeting him gave him the news, saying, The child is not awake. 32 And when Elisha came into the house he saw the child dead, stretched on his bed. 33 So he went in, and shutting the door on the two of them, made prayer to the Lord. 34 Then he got up on the bed, stretching himself out on the child, and put his mouth on the child's mouth, his eyes on his eyes and his hands on his hands; and the child's body became warm. 35 Then he came back, and after walking once through the house and back, he went up, stretching himself out on the child seven times; and the child's eyes became open. 36 And he gave orders to Gehazi, and said, Send for the Shunammite. And she came in answer to his voice. And he said, Take up your son. 37 And she came in, and went down on her face to the earth at his feet; then she took her son in her arms and went out.

Elisha's Miracles for the Prophets

38 And Elisha went back to Gilgal, now there was very little food in the land; and the sons of the prophets were seated before him. And he said to his servant, Put the great pot on the fire, and make soup for the sons of the prophets. 39 And one went out into the field to get green plants and saw a vine of the field, and pulling off the fruit of it till the fold of his robe was full, he came back and put the fruit, cut up small, into the pot of soup, having no idea what it was. 40 Then they gave the men soup from the pot. And while they were drinking the soup, they gave a cry, and said, O man of God, there is death in the pot; and they were not able to take any more food. 41 But he said, Get some meal. And he put it into the pot, and said, Now give it to the people so that they may have food. And there was nothing bad in the pot. 42 Now a man came from Baal-shalishah with an offering of first-fruits for the man of God, twenty barley cakes and garden fruit in his bag. And he said, Give these to the people for food. 43 But his servant said, How am I to put this before a hundred men? But he said, Give it to the people for food; for the Lord says, There will be food for them and some over. 44 So he put it before them, and they had a meal and there was more than enough, as the Lord had said.

The Cure of Naaman's Leprosy

51 Now Naaman, chief of the army of the king of Aram, was a man of high position with his master, and greatly respected, because by him the Lord had given salvation to Aram; but he was a leper. 2 Now the Aramaeans had gone out in bands, and taken prisoner from Israel a little girl, who became servant to Naaman's wife. 3 And she said to her master's wife, If only my lord would go to the prophet in Samaria, he would make him well. 4 And someone went and said to his lord, This is what the girl from the land of Israel says. 5 So the king of Aram said, Go then; and I will send a letter to the king of Israel. And he went, taking with him ten talents of silver and six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. 6 And he took the letter to the king of Israel, in which the king of Aram had said, See, I have sent my servant Naaman to you to be made well, for he is a leper. 7 But the king of Israel, after reading the letter, was greatly troubled and said, Am I God, to give death and life? why does this man send a leper to me to be made well? is it not clear that he is looking for a cause of war? 8 Now Elisha, the man of God, hearing that the king of Israel had done this, sent to the king, saying, Why are you troubled? send the man to me, so that he may see that there is a prophet in Israel.

9 So Naaman, with all his horses and his carriages, came to the door of Elisha's house. 10 And Elisha sent a servant to him, saying, Go to Jordan, and after washing seven times in its waters your flesh will be well again and you will be clean. 11 But Naaman was angry and went away and said, I had the idea that he would come out to see such an important person as I am, and make prayer to the Lord his God, and with a wave of his hand over the place make the leper well. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not be washed in them and become clean? So turning, he went away in wrath. 13 Then his servants came to him and said, If the prophet had given you orders to do some great thing, would you not have done it? how much more then, when he says to you, Be washed and become clean? 14 Then he went down seven times into the waters of Jordan, as the man of God had said; and his flesh became like the flesh of a little child again, and he was clean.

15 Then he went back to the man of God, with all his train, and, taking his place before him, said, Now I am certain that there is no God in all the earth, but only in Israel: now then, take an offering from me. 16 But he said, By the life of the Lord whose servant I am, I will take nothing from you. And he did his best to make him take it but he would not. 17 Then Naaman said, If you will not, then let there be given to your servant as much earth as two beasts are able to take on their backs; because from now on, your servant will make no offering or burned offering to other gods, but only to the Lord. 18 But may your servant have the Lord's forgiveness for this one thing: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon for worship there, supported on my arm, and my head is bent in the house of Rimmon; when his head is bent in the house of Rimmon, may your servant have the Lord's forgiveness for this thing. 19 And he said to him, Go in peace. And he went from him some distance.

20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, the man of God, said, Now my master has taken nothing from Naaman, this Aramaean, of what he would have given him: by the living Lord, I will go after him and get something from him. 21 So Gehazi went after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from his carriage and went back to him and said, Is all well? 22 And he said, All is well: but my master has sent me, saying, Even now, two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the hill-country of Ephraim; will you give me a talent of silver and two changes of clothing for them? 23 And Naaman said, Be good enough to take two talents. And forcing him to take them, he put two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of clothing, and gave them to his two servants to take before him. 24 When he came to the hill, he took them from their hands, and put them away in the house; and he sent the men away, and they went. 25 Then he came in and took his place before his master. And Elisha said to him, Where have you come from, Gehazi? And he said, Your servant went nowhere. 26 And he said to him, Did not my heart go with you, when the man got down from his carriage and went back to you? Is this a time for getting money, and clothing, and olive-gardens and vine-gardens, and sheep and oxen, and men-servants and women-servants? 27 Because of what you have done, the disease of Naaman the leper will take you in its grip, and your seed after you, for ever. And he went out from before him a leper as white as snow.

The Axe Head Made to Float

61 Now the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, There is not room enough for us in the place where we are living under your care; 2 So let us go to Jordan, and let everyone get to work cutting boards, and we will make a living-place for ourselves there. And he said to them, Go, then. 3 And one of them said, Be pleased to go with your servants. And he said, I will go. 4 So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they got to work cutting down trees. 5 But one of them, while cutting a board, let the head of his axe go into the water; and he gave a cry, and said, This is a bad business, my master, for it is another's. 6 And the man of God said, Where did it go in? and when he saw the place where it had gone into the water, cutting a stick, he put it into the water, and the iron came up to the top of the water. 7 Then he said, Take it up. So he put out his hand and took it.

Elisha and the Syrians

8 At that time the king of Aram was making war against Israel; and he had a meeting with the chiefs of his army and said, I will be waiting in secret in some named place. 9 And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, Take care to keep away from that place, for the Aramaeans are waiting there in secret. 10 So the king of Israel sent to the place where the man of God had said there was danger, and kept clear of it more than once. 11 And at this, the mind of the king of Aram was greatly troubled, and he sent for his servants and said to them, Will you not make clear to me which of us is helping the king of Israel? 12 And one of them said, Not one of us, my lord king; but Elisha, the prophet in Israel, gives the king of Israel news of the words you say even in your bedroom.

13 Then he said, Go and see where he is, so that I may send and get him. And news came to him that he was in Dothan. 14 So he sent there horses and carriages and a great army; and they came by night, circling the town. 15 Now the servant of the man of God, having got up early and gone out, saw an army with horses and carriages of war all round the town. And the servant said to him, O my master, what are we to do? 16 And he said in answer, Have no fear; those who are with us are more than those who are with them. 17 Then Elisha made a prayer to the Lord, saying, Lord, let his eyes be open so that he may see. And the Lord made the young man's eyes open; and he saw that all the mountain was full of horses and carriages of fire round Elisha. 18 Now when the Aramaeans came down to Elisha, he made a prayer to the Lord saying, Lord, make this people blind. And he made them blind at Elisha's request. 19 And Elisha said to them, This is not the way, and this is not the town: come after me so that I may take you to the man you are searching for. And he took them to Samaria. 20 And when they had come into Samaria, Elisha said, Lord, let the eyes of these men be open so that they may see. And the Lord made their eyes open, and they saw that they were in the middle of Samaria. 21 And the king of Israel, when he saw them, said to Elisha, My father, am I to put them to the sword? 22 But he said in answer, You are not to put them to death; have you any right to put to death those whom you have not taken prisoner with your sword and your bow? put bread and water before them, so that they may have food and drink and go to their master. 23 So he made ready a great feast for them, and when they had had food and drink, he sent them away and they went back to their master. And no more bands of Aramaeans came into the land of Israel.

Elisha and the Siege of Samaria

24 Now after this, Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got together all his army and went up to make an attack on Samaria, shutting the town in on all sides with his forces. 25 And they became very short of food in Samaria; for they kept it shut in till the price of an ass's head was eighty shekels of silver, and a small measure of doves' droppings was five shekels of silver. 26 And when the king of Israel was going by on the wall, a woman came crying out to him, and said, Help! my lord king. 27 And he said, If the Lord does not give you help, where am I to get help for you? from the grain-floor or the grape-crusher? 28 And the king said to her, What is troubling you? And she said in answer, This woman said to me, Give your son to be our food today, and we will have my son tomorrow. 29 So, boiling my son, we had a meal of him; and on the day after I said to her, Now give your son for our food; but she has put her son in a secret place. 30 Then the king, hearing what the woman said, took his robes in his hands, violently parting them; and, while he was walking on the wall, the people, looking, saw that under his robe he had haircloth on his flesh. 31 Then he said, May God's punishment come on me if Elisha, the son of Shaphat, keeps his head on his body after this day. 32 But Elisha was in his house, and the responsible men were seated there with him; and before the king got there, Elisha said to those who were with him, Do you see how this cruel and violent man has sent to take away my life? 33 While he was still talking to them, the king came down and said, This evil is from the Lord; why am I to go on waiting any longer for the Lord?

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

36 And while they were saying these things, he himself was among them, and said to them, Peace be with you! 37 But they were full of fear, being of the opinion that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And he said to them, Why are you troubled, and why are your hearts full of doubt? 39 See; my hands and my feet: it is I myself; put your hands on me and make certain; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have. 40 And when he had said this, he let them see his hands and his feet. 41 And because, for joy and wonder, they were still in doubt, he said to them, Have you any food here? 42 And they gave him a bit of cooked fish. 43 And before their eyes he took a meal. 44 And he said to them, These are the words which I said to you when I was still with you, how it was necessary for all the things which are in the writings of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms about me, to be put into effect. 45 Then he made the holy Writings clear to their minds. 46 And he said to them, So it is in the Writings that the Christ would undergo death, and come back to life again on the third day; 47 And that teaching about a change of heart and forgiveness of sins is to be given to Jerusalem first and to all nations in his name. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And now I will send to you what my father has undertaken to give you, but do not go from the town, till the power from heaven comes to you.

The Ascension

50 And he took them out till they were near Bethany, and lifting up his hands, he gave them a blessing. 51 And while he was doing so, he went from them and was taken up into heaven. 52 And they gave him worship and went back to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they were in the Temple at all times, giving praise to God.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on Luke 24:36-53

Commentary on Luke 24:36-49

(Read Luke 24:36-49)

Jesus appeared in a miraculous manner, assuring the disciples of his peace, though they had so lately forsaken him, and promising spiritual peace with every blessing. Many troublesome thoughts which disquiet our minds, rise from mistakes concerning Christ. All the troublesome thoughts which rise in our hearts at any time, are known to the Lord Jesus, and are displeasing to him. He spake with them on their unreasonable unbelief. Nothing had passed but what was foretold by the prophets, and necessary for the salvation of sinners. And now all men should be taught the nature and necessity of repentance, in order to the forgiveness of their sins. And these blessings were to be sought for, by faith in the name of Jesus. Christ by his Spirit works on the minds of men. Even good men need to have their understandings opened. But that we may have right thoughts of Christ, there needs no more than to be made to understand the Scriptures.

Commentary on Luke 24:50-53

(Read Luke 24:50-53)

Christ ascended from Bethany, near the Mount of Olives. There was the garden in which his sufferings began; there he was in his agony. Those that would go to heaven, must ascend thither from the house of sufferings and sorrows. The disciples did not see him rise out of the grave; his resurrection could be proved by their seeing him alive afterwards: but they saw him ascend into heaven; they could not otherwise have a proof of his ascension. He lifted up his hands, and blessed them. He did not go away in displeasure, but in love, he left a blessing behind him. As he arose, so he ascended, by his own power. They worshipped him. This fresh display of Christ's glory drew from them fresh acknowledgments. They returned to Jerusalem with great joy. The glory of Christ is the joy of all true believers, even while they are here in this world. While waiting for God's promises, we must go forth to meet them with our praises. And nothing better prepares the mind for receiving the Holy Ghost. Fears are silenced, sorrows sweetened and allayed, and hopes kept up. And this is the ground of a Christian's boldness at the throne of grace; yea, the Father's throne is the throne of grace to us, because it is also the throne of our Mediator, Jesus Christ. Let us rely on his promises, and plead them. Let us attend his ordinances, praise and bless God for his mercies, set our affections on things above, and expect the Redeemer's return to complete our happiness. Amen. Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly.