Daily Bible Reading: 2 Kings 6

The prophets Elisha worked with did not like where they were living, so they told Elisha that they'd like to go and live in Jordan, where there was easier access to the place. Elisha told them to go ahead. They asked Elisha to come with them and he agreed.

When they got there, they had to construct their new homes. One man had borrowed an iron ax and was chopping when it flew off the handle and landed in the Jordan river. He was very dismayed because it wasn't his ax. Elisha cut a stick and threw it into the water, and the iron ax-head floated so the man could retrieve it.

The king of Syria warred with Israel. He told his men where he'd be staying. Elisha, in Israel, told his king where not to go in order to stay safe. The Syrian king accused his men of playing the spy, until one of his servants told him about Elisha. He wanted to know where Elisha was, and the servant told him, "Dothan". So, the king of Syria surrounded Dothan.

Elisha's servant began to panic, "What are we gonna do?"

Elisha told him, "Don't worry about it. There are more of us than there are of him." Then he prayed that the servant would see, and he opened his eyes and saw that the whole mountain around Elisha was packed with men on horses and chariots of fire everywhere.

Elisha prayed that God would strike the Syrians with blindness, and He did. Elisha then led them to Samaria, to the King of Israel, where they were given their sight back. The king of Israel wanted to kill the men, but Elisha talked him out of it by saying, "You don't kill prisoners of war!" So, the king fed them and sent them to their masters, and the Syrians left Israel alone after that until Benhadad besieged Samaria.

During the siege, there was famine. It was so bad that the price of food skyrocketed. One day the king of Israel passed by a wall and a lady cried out in despair, telling the king, "I had a son, and my neighbor had a son. We agreed that I would kill and eat my son one day, and that they would do so the next. It is her turn, but she has hidden her son!" The king was very distraught at the state of Israel because of this, and he wore sackcloth and mourned.

He was also angry. He sent someone to fetch Elisha, who locked himself in his quarters. The king cried out, "Why should I serve a God who allows this!"

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The king did not understand that Israel was paying for their sins. God told Israel that if they refuse to follow His laws, this would happen over time. God does not give punishment without warning first!

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