This chapter is a continuation of the previous chapter. In chapter 6, the Aramean army surrounded Samaria, causing famine in the city. A woman approached the king of Israel and told him she was so hungry she was convinced to kill and eat her own son. The king became so angry that he vowed to kill Elisha, for he thought this was the Lord’s doing. The chapter ended with the king of Israel approaching Elisha and proclaiming, “It is the Lord who has brought this trouble on us! Why should I wait any longer for the Lord?" (2 Kings 6:33)
Here’s Elisha’s reply and chapter 7 in its entirety: “Elisha replied, “Hear this message from the Lord! This is what the Lord says: By this time tomorrow in the markets of Samaria, five quarts of fine flour will cost only half an ounce of silver, and ten quarts of barley grain will cost only half an ounce of silver.”
The officer assisting the king said to the man of God, “That couldn’t happen even if the Lord opened the windows of heaven!” But Elisha replied, “You will see it happen, but you won’t be able to eat any of it!”
Lepers Visit the Enemy Camp
Now there were four men with leprosy sitting at the entrance of the city gates. “Why should we sit here waiting to die?” they asked each other. “We will starve if we stay here, and we will starve if we go back into the city. So we might as well go out and surrender to the Aramean army. If they let us live, so much the better. But if they kill us, we would have died anyway.”
So that evening they went out to the camp of the Arameans, but no one was there! For the Lord had caused the whole army of Aram to hear the clatter of speeding chariots and the galloping of horses and the sounds of a great army approaching. (Wow...look at the Lord working!) “The king of Israel has hired the Hittites and Egyptians to attack us!” they cried out. So they panicked and fled into the night, abandoning their tents, horses, donkeys, and everything else, and they fled for their lives. (Notice that the Israelites have not lifted one finger. Their city has been surrounded by the Aramean army and the Israelites have not been able to leave the city or hunt for food, and, I’m assuming, many people have died. But look how the Lord has caused the Arameans to think that they were under attack, and as a result, they fled and left everything behind. Wow…”The battle is not yours, but the Lords!” (2 Chronicles 20:15))
When the lepers arrived at the edge of the camp, they went into one tent after another, eating, drinking wine, and carrying out silver and gold and clothing and hiding it. Finally, they said to each other, “This is not right. This is wonderful news, and we aren’t sharing it with anyone! If we wait until morning, some terrible calamity will certainly fall upon us. Come on, let’s go back and tell the people at the palace.
So they went back to the city and told the gatekeepers what had happened -- that they had gone out to the Aramean camp and no one was there! The horses and donkeys were tethered and the tents were all in order, but there was not a single person around. Then the gatekeepers shouted the news to the people in the palace.
Israel Plunders the Camp
The king got out of bed in the middle of the night and told his officers, “I know what has happened. The Arameans know we are starving, so they have left their camp and have hidden in the fields. They are expecting us to leave the city, and then they will take us alive and capture the city.”
One of his officers replied, “We had better send out scouts to check into this. Let them take five of the remaining horses. If something happens to them, it won’t be a greater loss than if they stay here and die with the rest of us.”
So two chariots with horses were prepared, and the king sent scouts to see what had happened to the Aramean army. They went all the way to the Jordan River, following a trail of clothing and their equipment that the Arameans had thrown away in their mad rush to escape. The scouts returned and told the king about it. Then the people of Samaria rushed out and plundered the Aramean camp. So it was true that five quarts of fine flour were sold that day for half an ounce of silver, and ten quarts of barley grain were sold for half an ounce of silver, just as the Lord had promised.
The king appointed his officer to control the traffic at the gate, but he was knocked down and trampled to death as the people rushed out.
So everything happened exactly as the man of God had predicted when the king came to his house. The man of God had said to the king, “By this time tomorrow in the markets of Samaria, five quarts of fine flour will cost half an ounce of silver, and ten quarts of barley grain will cost half an ounce of silver.” The king’s officer had replied, “That couldn’t happen even if the Lord opened the windows of heaven!” And the man of God had said, “You will see it happen, but you won’t be able to eat it!” And so it was, for the people trampled him to death at the gate!” (2 Kings 7) (Wow! Don’t challenge God’s Word!)
Lord, thank you for your Word today! Help us recognize that even during the deepest point of our trials, you have a plan; and knowing that, help us remain faithful and committed to you...never challenging your Word. We love you!
May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
….AND MAY WE ALL PRACTICE THIS WITH ONE ANOTHER.
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