event : evt, Thanks for your blog! 2 Kings 4:8 One day Elisha went to Shunem, and a prominent woman who lived there persuaded him to have a meal. I first encountered her during the global recession of 2008, when my husband had been offered a job in Dubai. She is described as a great woman. } She is describedas a great woman when I looked up the definition ofthis word used in Hebrew, it means bold, prominent, insolent, mighty, noble, loud or older. We had 18-month-old twins were grappling with the decision about whether we should take the opportunity or not. The interaction of these four people, each with his or her modern-day counterparts, constructs an intriguing parable with pointed lessons for Christians today. I was silent, but in my mind were millions of reasons I read, Instructions on how to watch the series ( from the producer) You dont understand everything yet, you wont know its in the bible, dont say I dont recognize this from the bible or ask where did they get that from? The detached Elisha was thoughtful enough to reward the Shunamite woman for her hospitality, but didnt do it personally. And the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life. Surely, her laughter rang out like Sarah's (Genesis 21:5-6). long as ever the truth which we deliver is a matter apart from ourselves and unconnected with our innermost being, so long it will have no more effect upon a dead soul than Elishas staff had upon the dead child. Automated page speed optimizations for fast site performance. The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. Also, she refused to go back to her dead son unless Elisha came with her. Read full chapter. When Elisha sees the dead child lying on his bed, he shuts the door behind him and the boy and he prays to the Lord. As we read on, we see how the woman rides with haste to see Elisha and when he spots her from a distance, he sends his servant on ahead to find out whats wrong, Is all well with you? Jake) revive the boy? In the midst of her despair, the Shunammite woman announces to her closest family and the man who serves the man of God, that all is well, for she knows that on this occasion, she must get to the one who has the power to make things truly well again. At first, it was simply a meal that she urged Elisha to stay and have when she met him in her hometown. The Widow's Oil. Hi Angela! Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out. She put her son on Elishas bed and made plans. Her Spiritual Perception: "And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. It seems that more supervision would have prevented his deaththe lack of it is surprising in a woman we know to be attentive and empathetic. It is not the person who is out of place, it is the plan which is unwise. We must seek God with faith immediately. Carmel she insists that he immediately accompany her to Shunem. And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. The Shunamite womans capacity for empathy, her ability to grow spiritually and facilitate the spiritual growth of others, her willingness to be proactive, and her humility are all qualities that I cherish and seek to emulate. A couple of people asked her as she travelled if everything was okay and her incredible reply was, "It is well". As a prophet, Elisha traveled from city to city . Though the Shunammite woman had no thought of reward when she made room for God, he fulfilled her heart's desire. When Elisha got there, he sent Jake out, shut the door behind him, and prayed earnestly to the Lord. Likewise, the Shunamite woman, standing in her doorway, noticed that the prophet Elisha came to Shunem regularly as he traveled around the land teaching and caring for the people. Someone (I forget who) once said there are no coincidences in the Bible. Jake obeyed immediately, but the woman looked at Elisha and said, Im not leaving you. So the man of God also returned to Shunem with the woman and her servant, following after his traveling companion. (2 Kings 8:1-2 NIV). And they worked Elisha and the woman now rushed to the bedside of the child. In the midst of our despair and out of the deep places of sorrow, may we too fall at the feet of the one who turns our mourning into dancing and lovingly clothes us with gladness. In 2 Kings 4:8 we learn that Elisha became friends with a "prominent" woman in Shunem. With her dead son locked up in Elishas room, she knows no one will see him. And the incident revived the Shunamite woman, too, to bond with her son: And the woman bent down, and picked up her child, and embraced him.. And when she came to him, he said, "Pick up your son." 37 She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground. 21. Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul! The Ministry of the Shunammite (4:8-17) 8 Now there came a day when The statement that she was a great woman could have meant that she was older, wealthy, or nobler. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); (function() { She pushed through her fear and reached out to the one person she knew could give her what she wanted-her son, alive again. She falls at Elisha's feet and takes her living son with her out of the room. What we do know of her has consistently inspires me though and perhaps the fact that we dont know her name suggests we can all find something of our story in hers. Could it be? She appears to beoutspoken, bold and gives orders- once to her husband Get me a donkey and a servant and then to the servant she says hurry up and dont slow down- and maybe even Elisha Stay here! and Im not leaving until you go with me. O man of God, dont deceive me and get my hopes up like that (2 Kings 4:16 NLT). So it was, as often as he passed by, he would turn in there to eat some food. One day she asked her husband if they could build a little room for him to stay in when he comes to town. Run to the thrown, not the phone. Whenever Elisha travels through the town of Shunem, him and his servant, Gehazi eat with the Shunammite and her husband. Or bold and prominent? Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Watchmen! well mostly tv lol. Im thankful that our Father gave us so many great examples of godly women in the Bible. The scriptures tell us she constrained Elisha. Her son was obviously not "well". The way she told everyone it is well when it really wasnt. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazihis servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? Phonetic spelling of shunammite. The Deity of Christ in the Gospel of John, Follow The Abundant Heart on WordPress.com. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The main character, Bina, is The Shunammite woman. Just like the Shunammite woman later expereinced, it may return a bigger blessing to you. How do you know the sneezes are to be interpretted this way? They're lying. Gdwl,(pronounced gaw-dole) means great (in any sense); hence, older, high, long, loud, mighty, more, noble. Dont slow down unless I tell you to., As she approached the man of God at Mount Carmel, Elisha saw her in the distance. And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. If we yield to unbelief we shall be staggered by the evident fact that the work to which the Lord has called us is quite beyond our own personal power. Good teaching, and timely. The woman of Shunem goes to see Elisha and refused to let go of his foot until he had raised her child from the dead. ; "the [Divine] Father (? She didnt laugh like Sarah did, but instead she said, Dont lie to me!. Jake had noticed that the couple had no children and that her husband is old. The Shunamite woman follows him. And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. One was destitute; the other wealthy. She would make sure the prophet Elisha had food, water and a place to sleep wheneverhe went through Shunem. How is so strange a work to beachieved? 36 Then he summoned Gehazi and said, "Call this Shunammite.". She is most likely called the Shulammite because she came from an unidentified place . 22:15) Abishag's role was of a lower status.She served as bed companion to David in the hope that . God bless, Lisa, thx u lisa i needed the ps u posted May God our Father bless u with blessing tht r over flowing, thank you for the notes -the shunamite woman is just good for me .i love these bible stories.GOD bless you. But, this woman from Shunem didnt panic. After doing that for a while, she suggested to her husband that they build a room for Elisha to stay in whenever he came by. She is well-developed and very believable. She said to her husband, " I know that this man who often comes our way is a . 2 Kings Chapter 4. 21. she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God] Her thoughts at once go to Elisha and she puts the dead boy into the prophet's chamber, perhaps with the thought that she will bring Elisha back with her, and then he will find the child at once.Or it may be that she felt there would be less fear of intruders there. Rather than spending a long time being unhappy, the Shunammite woman shows us that we may eventually have to accept our circumstances and so, why not be satisfied sooner rather than later? Is all well with the child? And she answered, All is well.. We are, however, no more powerless than Elisha, for he of himself could not restore the Shunamitesson. This woman talked to her husband and made a request. As he is going to the mans house, the woman with the discharge of blood presses in through the crowd saying to herself, If I only touch his garment, I will be made well. Her faith made her well that day and Jesus went on to raise the dead girl to life. "When Elisha came into the house, there was the child, lying dead on his bed. This page may contain affiliate links. Eventually, the Shunammite woman convinced her husband to prepare a small room for Elisha where he could stay whenever he wanted to. is it well with thy husband? Please dont mock me, sir, she said. She takes it upon herself to run to Elisha, she doesnt send her husband or anyone else to run this errand. While he was still talking about these things, a ruler kneels before Jesus and unburdens his troubled soul. She is really a remarkable woman of Faith.. Helo..Great teaching..i started my day with these words.It is well..so I started to look onto the scriptures..researchGreatly Blessed..Thank you..Shalom, The boy did not sneeze 7 times! But the Hebrew word used in that sentence had many nuances. 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