Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 4
At about this time, God gave a message to Elisha. God declared that there would not be enough food in Israel for the next 7 years. He warned the woman whose son God had brought back to life. Israel’s farmers had just collected a good harvest (4:18), but future harvests would fail. So, she took her son and they went abroad (8:1-2).
Elisha went from Shunem. Perhaps some time later, he reached Gilgal. It seems that those troubles had already begun in the region of Gilgal. Gilgal was deep in the valley of the river Jordan, about 1 mile or 2 kilometres north of Jericho. Gilgal was an important place in Israel’s history. This was the first place where Israel’s people camped in their own land (Joshua 4:19 to 5:12).
In that region, both in Gilgal and Jericho, there were groups of people who were loyal to Israel’s God. We often call those groups ‘the sons of the prophets’. People understood that phrase to mean that they followed the message of Israel’s prophets (holy men). They prayed and they studied God’s law together. It seems that they also worked and lived together, with their families. They respected Elisha as the principal prophet in Israel (2:15). So, when he came to their town, they gathered together. Then Elisha taught them.
Elisha also arranged for them to eat together. His servant cooked the meal in a large pot. Everyone brought whatever he could for that meal. There was not enough food in the region so some of the men collected wild food for the meal. It was not unusual for people to eat wild food when they could not obtain enough food from the farms.
Next part: Uses and dangers of wild foods (2 Kings 4:39)
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