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4:1 Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.
Ps.50:15 "And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me."God loves us; He always has plenty; He always knows a way out! 4:2 And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.
hast thou in the house?" In other words, whatever you have in the house is enough for God! If it’s nothing but a pot of oil, God can multiply the oil! Satan wants us to BELIEVE we have NOTHING, If it’s only a handful of meal in the bottom of the barrel or a little Oil it doesn’t matter to God. Or if there be only 5 small barley loafs & 2 fishes in a little lad’s lunch, when Jesus blesses it, and breaks it, it’ll be enough for 5000 people! God said to Moses, "What is that in thine hand?" and Moses said , "A rod." that stick became the "rod of God" that could bring plagues upon all of Egypt, as Samson took the jawbone of an ass & killed 1000 Philistines, the enemies of Israel. It’s wonderful to come to understand that God is the Master of circumstances! God is teaching us how little we have doesn’t matter! The only thing that really matters is that we wholly surrender what you have to God! God often mixes faith with the tangible. The widow believed she had no resources to meet her need. God said she had more than enough resources. She did not see the one jar of oil as a resource. It did not become a resource until it was mixed with faith. Her need was met when her faith was mixed with the practical step of going into the marketplace to sell what she had in order to receive her needed income. In fact, there was so much income she was able to pay her debts and live on the money derived from the sale. 4:3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
wasn’t told to purchase the vessels; she didn’t have the money to buy anything. She was instructed to “borrow” vessels. This implied she would use the vessels a short time, then return them. After all, you’ll only use them a short time. "To the logical, the unbelieving mind, this would appear to be silly to get a lot of empty vessels to hold oil when one did not know where the oil was coming from! But those who need help from God must provide the empty vessels! For the widow to go out & appeal to her neighbors that she might borrow empty vessels, lots of empty vessels, would be a real test of her faith! But where will the oil come from? Out of that one little pot of oil she has? The prophet of God said she should get plenty of vessels and that God would fill them all! And she could sell enough to pay all of her debts! Some no doubt of the neighbors probably laughed at her! Another would smile and say, "She’s off her rocker, she’s lost it." Some probably insisted that she must not depend on such foolishness, that prophet aint right, she ought not listen to him like that .......! And I can imagine that as the widow and her sons brought all the vessels home to the bare house, fear gripped the widow’s heart and she thought she would surely die of shame, If she had to carry all those vessels back & tell all the curious, gossipy neighbors that after all, God did not furnish oil to fill them all. She had faith in God and in the prophet of God! God wants empty vessels, He can fill ’em! Some people are not filled with the Holy Spirit! Perhaps the reason is that they have not been emptied of other things! The cares of this world & the deceitfulness of riches so choke the Word that it becomes unfruitful! And too much to eat at the tables of this world means that one does not feed upon the manna. Get empty vessels & set them down where God can fill them with oil! 4:4 And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full. 4:5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.
This miracle and work of faith was not to be seen by outsiders! The widow was instructed, “you shall shut the door behind you ” It was there in the privacy of her home that God would do the miracle. Many times God works in our hidden hearts—where outsiders can’t see—because God doesn’t put his miracles on stage to impress an audience. God does His work inwardly— one- on-one—so we will receive and believe. It is in our hearts that we worship or praise Him. Behind closed doors “she poured out the oil”. While the Bible said she tipped the vessel to pour out the oil, actually it was God working through her obedience God did a miracle, but He used human instrumentality. It’s the same relationship between you and God. You obey and you pour out the oil—The oil flowed as long as there were empty vessels to fill. 4:6 And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.
of God’s work in the world today. God pours out the oil of His Spirit as long as there are empty vessels to fill. God is not looking for you to bring Him a vessel filled with talent, knowledge, or personality. God is looking for empty vessels to fill. 4:7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.
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| Elisha Multiplied the Widow's Oil |
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| H.O.R.M. Bible Study |
| II KINGS 4:1-7 |
