2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
2Ki 4:3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
This chapter of Kings has five main sections that have a theme running through them that shows us how God will provide an abundant spiritual life for all mankind in time and “shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Joh 10:10, Php 4:19).
Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
The thief that comes “to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” of (Joh 10:10) is Satan and his influence over mankind as the prince of the power of the air (Joh 8:44, Eph 2:2) and he accomplishes this destruction through false doctrines, lies, that cause everyone in their appointed time to “climbeth up some other way” as Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (Joh 10:1, Pro 16:25, Gen 3:4).
Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Joh 10:1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
Gen 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
The life that we can have “more abundantly” of John 10:10 is the life of Christ within us to which we are dragged (Joh 6:44, 2Co 10:17-18, 1Co 11:19). These stories in the fourth chapter of Kings were written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the ages are come (1Co 10:11) and remind us of the faithfulness of our Creator whose workmanship we are (Eph 2:10). We are being given all the provision we need (Eph 3:20, 1Ti 1:14) through the bride of Christ who will be made ready (Eph 3:10), and so we ought to rejoice always for that truth (Rev 19:7, Php 4:4, Rom 12:15, Php 1:8).
2Co 10:17 But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
2Co 10:18 For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.1Co 11:19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.
Eph 3:10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Php 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
Rom 12:15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
Php 1:8 For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.
2Ki 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.
The husband in this story who dies typifies Christ, the head of the wife, who when he dies causes the wife [the church] whose husband was a servant of Elisha to be indebted to “the creditor” who “is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.” The wife, who represents the church, has two sons that witness to how we are slaves to sin or “bondmen” who must pay all that we owe to the “creditor” (Mat 5:25, Rom 13:7) and that only through Christ working within the church, which is His body (Col 1:24), can we be delivered from this spiritually impoverished state that would otherwise keep us in bondage (Joh 8:36). The rest of the parable goes on to explain how that freedom or liberty is obtained through an obedient spirit that does what we are asked of the prophet who typifies Christ and His body (Mat 17:27, Mar 12:14-17) and because of that obedience which we learn through suffering we are given His holy spirit that strengthens us to overcome and endure through Christ (Heb 5:8, Act 5:32)
Mat 5:25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
Rom 13:7 Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour [“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s“].
Joh 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
Mat 17:27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, [1Co_8:13] go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.
Mar 12:17 And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. And they marvelled at him.
Heb 5:8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
Act 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
2Ki 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.
Our Father in heaven also asks “What shall I do for thee?” and Christ reminds us to cast our cares upon him, to the end that we may receive what we ask of Him for He cares for us (1Pe 5:7, Jas 4:2-3).
1Pe 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
1Pe 5:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.Jas 4:2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
Jas 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
This woman typifies the church who has “a pot of oil“, representing the holy spirit, and at the same time recognizes that there is “not any thing in the house” meaning when God gives us to see it, we realize that we bring nothing to the table and are unprofitable servants who are accomplishing through Christ that which is expected of us (Luk 17:10, Php 2:12-13).
Luk 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
Php 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
2Ki 4:3 Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
2Ki 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.
Borrowing empty vessels and not a few is a parable for us that tells the elect that we must “Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations“. It’s true the vessels are “empty” in this world, the spirit of God or oil is not within the vessel (Rom 8:9), and yet God tells us how important our neighbor is in this parable and how we must have three measures of meal obtained in this life via the loving relationships that we have outside of the church, doing good unto all men (Mat 5:47) but especially unto the household of faith (Gal 6:10, 1Co 5:11).
Rom 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
Mat 5:47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
Gal 6:10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.
1Co 5:11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.
The Meaning of The Widow’s Sons Being Sold Into Bondage
2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
2Ki 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.
Shutting the door “and shut the door upon her and upon her sons” (Exo 12:22, Mat 25:10, Mat 6:6) is what we do on the world within us, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and pride of life through mortifying the deeds of the flesh, and by not giving the devil a foothold (1Jn 2:16, Rom 8:13-14, Eph 4:27) that can only happen through the crushing process the body of Christ is going through in the temple of God which is Christ’s body (Col 1:24, Mat 21:44). The filling up what is “behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church” is what it takes to produce the precious oil of God’s word (Joh 12:3) which anoints our walk in the Lord and gives us dominion over sin and those who would try to spy out our liberties in Christ (Gen 4:7, Rom 6:14, Jdg 16:3, Gal 2:4, 2Pe 2:19, 2Co 11:14).
Exo 12:22 And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. [“and she poured out“]
Mat 25:10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. [“and she poured out“]
Mat 6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. [“and she poured out“]
Joh 12:3 Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.
Gen 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Jdg 16:3 And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and went away with them, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of an hill that is before Hebron.
Gal 2:4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:
2Pe 2:19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Selling the oil (“sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest“) represents our fervent love toward all whom we encounter, including our enemies to whom through Christ we can turn the other cheek and love them even while they are enemies as God loved us while we were yet enemies (Col 1:21, Rom 5:8, 1Jn 4:17). Fervent love toward our family covers a multitude of sins within today (1Pe 4:8, Mat 5:44) and is needful if we are going to be used by the Lord to ultimately cover the sins of the innumerable multitude who will give an accounting in the second resurrection (Rev 7:9). If we don’t forgive our debtors their debts today, the Lord will not forgive us of our debt, so it is critical that we examine ourselves and love our enemies and pray the Lord continues to soften our hearts so they don’t grow bitter or wax cold because of the iniquity that we are promised is going to abound more and more at the end of the age (Mat 6:12, Mat 24:12).
Col 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
1Pe 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. [Jas 5:20, 1Co 7:14-15]
Mat 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
Rev 7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
Mat 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Mat 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
God’s desire for the church is going to be accomplished which is the opposite of what is happening in Babylon where the whole stay of bread and water has been taken away, and it is all happening according to the counsel of His own will (Isa 3:1, Eph 1:11). As for the body of Christ, we are growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ to a full measure, “unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Eph 4:13) typified with this verse, “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.”
Isa 3:1 For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,
Eph 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
God has truly called us to learn from every single soul we meet in this life and is maturing His children so that we do not render “evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing” (1Pe 3:9).
Being given the power to overcome and lose our life (Mat 16:24-25, Mat 10:38-39) as we learn obedience in this life through the judgment process that is upon the body of Christ today is what produces the abundant life of which Christ spoke in this verse, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” This is an abundant life that fills us with hope that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” a purpose that teaches us to forsake ungodliness and worldly lust and to love God with all our heart, mind and soul, and our neighbor as ourself (Rom 8:28, Rom 5:5, Mar 12:30-31).
Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Mat 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mat 10:38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. [If we love God whom we don’t see, we have passed from death to life and love everyone else we do see (1Jn 4:20)]
Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; [Rom 1:16] because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
Mar 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
Mar 12:31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
"His Branch" 