And it came to pass on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a wealthy woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, [that] as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.
One day Elisha stopped at Shunem, and a wealthy woman pressed him to stay for a meal. The verse raises two questions: what makes a person "great" in God's sight, and what comes of making room for a servant of God?
Commentators see her invitation as evidence that faith had not died out in Israel:
The multiplying of the widow's oil showed the grace of God coming into a time of great failure and need in Israel. Now in this section the woman of Shunem is a beautiful example: Israel still had a remnant marked by genuine faith. When Elisha came to Shunem, this notable woman invited him to a meal in her home (v.8). Her hospitality encouraged him to stop there whenever he passed that way.
The ESV calls her a "wealthy woman"; older translations read "a great woman." Writers weigh both senses of that word:
The word "great," used of the woman of Shunem, no doubt points first to her position in the world as a person of substance. But she was also "great" in the one thing that counts for greatness with God — faith (2 Kings 4:8). In this she stood out in her generation. We find many of God's "great" ones in Hebrews 11 — men and women "of whom the world was not worthy."
Elisha sat down at this woman's table. Commentators contrast that with Elijah:
Elisha went in to eat bread with this "great woman" — that is, a person of consequence — for he was not as Elijah. Elijah was more like John the Baptist. He turned away people who approached him. He rebuked those in high position who lived to dishonour God. Elisha, on the contrary, was a witness of grace. So he does not turn away from the homes of men into the desert. He could, as we see, go in and eat bread with this Shunammite.
She pressed him before she knew anything about him. To her, this farmer from Abel-meholah was just a plain-looking traveller:
Scripture commends one fruit of faith in passages like these: "Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality" (Rom. 12:13). "Show hospitality to one another without grumbling" (1 Peter 4:9)... Here we see a beautiful instance of such hospitality. The lowly farmer of Abel-meholah, a welcome guest with the "great woman" of Shunem, is a lovely illustration of what grace can do. Nor did she know, so far as appears, anything of him when she first "urged him to eat some food," except the plain clothes and unimpressive appearance of the man.
Rank did not stand in the way:
She was a woman of wealth and position. All the same, she was not ashamed to press a humble ploughman to come into her house to eat bread. She was not forgetful to entertain strangers. Her hospitality to the servant of God proved her faith, and she had her reward.
The verse records a habit, not one meal: he turned in whenever he passed that way. One writer draws a line from that to our dealings with the Lord:
The man of God did not force himself on this woman's hospitality. But when she urged him, he went in and ate bread with her. Someone has said, and said rightly, that "we get as much of the company of the Lord as we desire." If we urge Him, He will not deny us His company. This is what His heart longs for. It is a joy to Him when longing for Him wakes up in our hearts.
This meal opens the way to everything that follows in the chapter. One writer sums up Elisha's ministry here:
He provides (2 Kings 4) for the need of the poor of His people, and delivers them from their distress. He gives faith its heart's desire — the faith that recognises and receives the prophet. He restores life to the dead, and so binds up the broken heart.
- Great — her wealth made her great in the world; her faith made her great with God.
- Press — she did not just offer; she urged a stranger to her table, and her wealth never made her ashamed of a humble guest.
- Repeat — one meal became a standing welcome; he turned in whenever he passed that way.
- Receive — Elisha, unlike Elijah, came in and sat down; grace accepts the place a heart makes for it.
- Reward — faith that recognises and receives the prophet gets its heart's desire; this welcome opens into a son given and a son raised.
And she said to her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who passes by us continually.
A wealthy woman in Shunem fed a travelling prophet whenever he passed through. After enough visits she reached a settled verdict about her guest and told her husband. She had seen no miracle; she had only watched him.
A widow in Zarephath only called Elijah a man of God after she had seen a miracle. The Shunammite reached the same verdict earlier, and one writer marks the difference:
The Shunammite stood higher than the widow of Zarephath in spiritual insight. She was sure Elisha was a holy man of God before he worked the miracle. The widow only got the same assurance about Elijah after the miracle (1 Kings 17:24)… Oh, that we were all sharper in our spiritual perception!
Her conclusion was not a first impression. She built it up over repeated visits, and it rested on the one word that carries the verse — "holy."
Perhaps his conversation, and no doubt the prophet's whole behaviour, leads her to acknowledge his character. She does not judge by her first impression. She waits for outward evidence to enlighten her. She has the sober good sense of faith… "This is a holy man of God," she says. To her heart he is not only a man who holds the official place of one who carries the Word. She also acknowledges him as "holy," as truly set apart to God in his practical life. For having a gift from God is not everything. To prove such a gift genuine, the matching moral character must be there too… A gift, however outstanding, stays fruitless without moral authority. It is the moral authority, more than the words that go with it, that reaches the consciences of the hearers.
At that moment corruption had reached Israel's throne and its priesthood. "Man of God" was the one title left, and God Himself had opened her heart to see it:
The Shunammite woman, then, had already been the subject of divine workmanship. God had opened her heart to give heed to the things Elisha spoke. She saw that the man who came by so often, and gladly accepted her hospitality, really was "a holy man of God." That was the only character that fitted anyone doing the work of God in Israel at that time. Kings and priests had corrupted themselves. Blessing could not come to anyone in Israel through such defiled channels.
The verse shows a life clear enough for others to read, and an eye that reads it. One writer asks us to want both:
It is a blessed thing that Elisha displayed a character which marked him out, in the eyes of others, as "a holy man of God." It is blessed, too, that the great woman of Shunem appreciated such a character. We may well want both things — a Christian life lived so that everyone can see we are disciples of Christ, and a deep appreciation of such a life when we see it in others.
Her verdict shaped what she gave him, and she gave it out of public view:
She uses her means to make provision in private, for one whom God was using in public… She knew what suited a man who spoke out against the wickedness of men and testified to the grace of God. So she does not provide for the prophet out of all her wealth, with the rich furnishings that a great woman would think natural. She gives only what suits the simple tastes and needs of "a holy man of God."
The phrase describes a habit, not one visit. One writer takes it as a picture of the Lord's own way with us:
Notice in our picture that the man of God passed by the house of the great woman continually. Our Lord acts in the same way. He seeks a place within our hearts and lives… The man of God did not force himself on this woman's hospitality. But when she urged him, he went in and ate bread with her. It has been well said that "we get as much of the company of the Lord as we desire."
- Notice — She saw a man who kept passing by, and she paid attention. God had already opened her heart to give heed to what he said.
- Test — She did not trust a first impression. She watched across many visits, and it took no miracle to convince her.
- Name — What she names is not his gift but his holiness: a life set apart for God. Gift without matching character carries no weight with consciences.
- Prepare — Her verdict shaped her hospitality. A wealthy woman kept her provision plain, because she fitted the welcome to the guest, not to her own means.
- Keep — Commentators read that steady passing by as a picture of the Lord. He waits to be urged in, and we get as much of His company as we want.