And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us.
The sons of the prophets were young men who lived and trained under Elisha. They tell him their shared home has grown too small: a healthy sign of growth, or discontent with the place God gave them?
Start with who was speaking. One writer draws a line between the prophets and the second generation who followed them.
The sons of the prophets were their fathers' sons, but they did not have their fathers' soul-history or spiritual stamina. This can be said without blaming them. They were born into a certain circle. Without any effort they found themselves outwardly in much the same position as their fathers. But they did not have the knowledge of God that comes from experience, the knowledge their fathers had. In the nature of things they could not have it. So whatever they learned, much or little, they had to learn for themselves.
Commentators differ here. Some read the crowding as the natural result of a teacher worth hearing.
These sons of the prophets were greatly favoured men: they were the companions and disciples of Elisha. His words must have been good to listen to. It is no wonder that they crowded to hear him. The place where they lived with him could not hold them, and they felt they needed more room. It was a healthy sign, and their desire for enlargement had the full approval of the prophet.
Others read the same sentence as a symptom, and turn it into a test of what brought a person into the place to begin with.
The sons of the prophets generally lived on the reputation of their fathers, and that is not personal faith. It is clear that these young men were drawn to Elisha and were living with him. But the time came when they felt too confined. If faith has not brought us into the place where we enjoy the Lord's presence, we too will begin to feel too confined. It is natural to want a larger place for ourselves than the one God has provided. Many today put their energy into building something that will satisfy them.
The complaint is not only about a house. It is about a house they shared with Elisha, under his charge. That is why the same place can feel cramped to one person and wide to another.
Here we come to the secret of all the trouble we may have as Christians in the things of the Lord, whether on our own or together in assemblies… The sons of the prophets found the place where they lived with the prophet too small for them. We may find that living with the Lord is too small for us. It is not too small for the Spirit. There all is blessed width and true liberty. But it is narrow — unbearable, in fact — for the flesh.
If the cramped feeling is real growth, the answer is not less nearness to the Lord but more.
Are we dwelling with our Lord as those sons of the prophets dwelt with Elisha?… We often quote His words: "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." But are they mere words to us, or a living reality? If we are dwelling with the Lord and learning from Him, we are growing. Our souls are growing larger, and we shall want to move on into the more abundant life that is ours.
The writers see meaning in the river these young men chose.
It was to the Jordan that these young men went for the material to build their larger dwelling. There is no place like the Jordan for enlargement of soul, because the Jordan is a figure of death. Death is a great and effective teacher. It teaches us how great man's fall is, for death is the measure of it. And it teaches us how great God's love is.
Another writer reads the scene as a picture of the faithful few left in Israel. For them the move is a step forward, not a step away.
They want to go a step further. They want a dwelling place other than the one of affliction and repentance, however precious that place is. This place is the Jordan… The remnant want to build themselves a house and dwell there. At last the remnant recognises that for them this death is the place of blessing and rest.
The chapter before this had Elisha handling a foreign commander and a king's servant. Now he is asked about timber.
Once again the story of Elisha moves from kings and great men to a simple domestic scene connected with building a home for the sons of the prophets… He is ready to meet the difficulties of kings and their armies, and, in due season, can concern himself with felling a tree and building a house… In the greatness of his way he can stoop to small affairs and walk with humble folk.
- Inherited. The sons stood where their fathers stood, but without their fathers' history with God. Each one had to learn for himself.
- Crowded. Commentators differ. One reads the packed house as a healthy sign of growth under good teaching. Another reads it as the restlessness of those whom faith never brought there.
- Narrow. The place felt small because they shared it with Elisha. Living with the Lord is never too small for the Spirit — only unbearable for the flesh.
- Enlarged. Real room comes from staying close to Him, not from leaving. Those who dwell with Him grow, and growth makes them want more.
- Jordan. They headed for the Jordan, the river of death. That is where the soul is enlarged, and where the faithful find blessing and rest.
Let us go, we pray thee, to the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he said, Go.
Elisha's students have outgrown the house they share with him. So they ask to fetch timber from the Jordan and build somewhere larger. Commentators read their words in two ways: as a healthy sign of growth, or as restlessness with the place God gave them. The verse then turns on Elisha's one-word reply.
One reading takes the overcrowded house as a compliment to the teacher.
These sons of the prophets were highly favoured men. They were the companions and disciples of Elisha. His words must have been good to listen to. No wonder they crowded to hear him until the place where they lived with him could not hold them, and they felt they needed more room. It was a healthy sign, and their desire for enlargement had the full approval of the prophet.
Others read the same request as a warning. What makes a place feel cramped depends on what brought you there.
The sons of the prophets tended to live on the reputation of their fathers. That was not personal faith. Elisha had drawn these young men, and they were living with him. But the time came when they felt too confined. If faith has not brought us into the place where we enjoy the Lord's presence, we too will begin to feel too confined. It is natural to want a larger place for ourselves than the one God has provided. Many today put their energy into building something that will satisfy them.
Notice the two halves of their sentence: they dwell with him, and it is too small for us. One writer presses that contrast.
They were dissatisfied with the room he could give them, and they thought they could do better for themselves… We may find that to dwell with the Lord is too strait for us. It is not too strait for the Spirit. There all is blessed width and true liberty. But it is narrow, even intolerable, for the flesh.
Elisha does not argue or forbid. He lets them go, and one writer sees wisdom in that.
The prophet replied, "Go." He would not stand in their way. He was a wise old man. He saw that they must learn their own lessons, and not draw their strength from tradition or anything second-hand.
Even the errand for timber carries a lesson, because of the river they went to.
These young men went to the Jordan for the material to build their larger home. There is no place like the Jordan for enlarging the soul, because the Jordan is a picture of death. Death is a great and effective teacher. It teaches us how great the fall of man is, for death is the measure of it. It also teaches us how great the love of God is, for He "shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Death shows us the way God has taken to recover His fallen creature for Himself. It is the way that brings him into larger blessing than was possible before he fell.
The scene is a small one: logs, a building site, a house to make. That is what makes it striking after the accounts of kings and armies.
Once again the story of Elisha passes from kings and great men to a simple home scene: the building of a place for the sons of the prophets to live… He is ready to meet the difficulties of kings and their armies. In due season he can also concern himself with felling a tree and building a house. With the greatest ease he can deal with a great man of the world. With the same ease he can fit himself to the simple affairs of the lowly sons of the prophets. In the greatness of his way he can stoop to small matters and walk with humble people.
- Crowded — the house was too small because the teaching was worth hearing. Growth fills a room, and the wish for more space had the teacher's full approval.
- Or cramped — the same feeling can mean something else. If faith did not bring you there, you will soon feel confined and start building something of your own. The young have energy, the old have experience, and we need both.
- Released — Elisha's answer is one word: "Go." He will not block them. Second-hand lessons give no strength, and each man must learn for himself.
- Jordan — they go for timber to the river that pictures death. No place enlarges the soul like it. Death measures how far man fell, and how far God's love reached to recover him.
- Stooping — the prophet who handled kings and armies can turn to felling a tree and building a house. He stoops to small matters and walks with humble people.
And one said, Consent, I pray thee, to go with thy servants. And he said, I will go.
The sons of the prophets are the young men in Elisha's company. Their living space has become too small, so they ask to move down to the Jordan and build there. He lets them go. Then one of them asks him not to stay behind, and the whole story turns on his answer.
Elisha does not argue them out of the move. One writer sees his permission as care, not indifference: they had to learn for themselves.
The prophet replied, "Go." He would not stand in their way. He was a wise old man. He saw that they must learn their own lessons, and not walk in the strength of tradition or anything second-hand.
The permission was not enough for one of them.
But one of their number could not bear the thought of losing Elisha. They were prepared to turn their back on Elisha's house, but not on him. In grace and love he answered simply, "I will go."
Commentators differ on how to read that request. Another writer hears a warning in them. There is a difference between wanting Elisha among them and wanting him to come along with their own plans.
These men did not want to dwell where Elisha was in their midst, but they wanted his presence with them in what they were doing (v.3). Many Christians today are just like them. They feel restricted where two or three are gathered together to the name of the Lord Jesus. Yet when they build their own churches, they want the Lord to go with them.
Whatever their motives, they were right not to want to go alone. Gilgal was the place they were leaving; the Jordan was the place they were heading for.
Elisha approves of their plan and puts them to the test, saying to them: "Go." But how can they go without him? They must live there under the direction of the Spirit of Christ, or else there will be no blessing with them. How can the Spirit of Christ stay at Gilgal while they go to live at the Jordan without Him?
They asked for his consent, and he gave it. One writer sets his answer beside the Lord's answer to Jairus, a man who appealed to Him in the same way.
Just like the Lord when Jairus appealed to Him, so Elisha consents to come with his servants. He says, "I will go" (v. 3).
Nothing in his standing made the errand beneath him. He had been handling kings and armies; now he goes off to help fell a tree.
The incident shows very well the simplicity and lowliness of life that marked this man of God. He is ready to meet the difficulties of kings and their armies. When the time comes, he can also give himself to felling a tree and building a house. In the greatness of his way he can stoop to small affairs and walk with humble people.
Within a few verses that promise is tested. One of the men loses a tool, and the tool was not even his own.
Elisha at once enters into his sorrow and distress. It was not just the loss. The man's good name was at stake, because the tool was borrowed. The prophet's tender care for his distress is very moving. In him there is both tenderness and power to meet anxious human feelings.
One writer turns the request and the reply into words a believer can still use. Christ Himself draws out the asking, and gives the same answer.
But the true Elisha comes into our circumstances. He ministers grace through His Spirit. He helps us to solve our troubles and, at the same time, to grow in faith and wisdom. Then we experience the way Christ adds fine flour, provides food, helps us in our troubles and instructs us. The more we follow His instructions in faith (for example, by asking for empty vessels) the more we will experience the blessing He gives. His goodness and gracious working will draw us to ask Him, "Be pleased to go with your servants," and hear Him answer, "I will go."
- Presence permitted. "Go" gives them room to learn their own lessons instead of leaning on anything second-hand.
- Presence requested. They would leave the house, but one of them could not bear to leave the man. Commentators differ on what that shows: love for him, or love for their own plan.
- Presence required. A new home without him is a home without blessing. The Spirit of Christ does not stay behind while His people move on.
- Presence promised. "I will go" is grace consenting, the same readiness the Lord showed when Jairus appealed to Him — greatness that stoops to small affairs.
- Presence proved. Soon a borrowed tool is lost. The one they asked along proves to have both the tenderness to feel the man's distress and the power to meet it.
And he went with them. And they came to the Jordan and cut down the trees.
The sons of the prophets had asked for more room, and had asked Elisha to come with them. This verse says he went, and that the work started at the Jordan.
Elisha had just been dealing with kings and armies. One writer sees the measure of the man in what he does next.
Once again the story of Elisha turns from kings and great men to a simple home scene. They are building a place for the sons of the prophets to live. The incident nicely shows the simplicity and lowliness of life that marked this man of God. He is ready to meet the difficulties of kings and their armies. When the time comes, he can also give himself to cutting down a tree and building a house.
The request came from one man, and the reply was three words long.
But one of their number could not bear the thought of losing Elisha. They were prepared to turn their back on Elisha's house, but not on him. In grace and love he answered simply, "I will go."
Elisha had first told them to go. One writer treats that word as a test.
Elisha approves of their plan and puts them to the test, saying to them: "Go." But how can they go without him? They must live there under the direction of the Spirit of Christ, or there will be no blessing with them. How can the Spirit of Christ stay at Gilgal while they go to live at the Jordan without Him?
Commentators differ on whether this move was healthy or self-willed. One sees a crowd that outgrew its room because the teaching was so good.
His words must have been good to listen to. No wonder they crowded to hear him. The place where they lived with him could not hold them all, and they felt they needed more room. It was a healthy sign, and their desire for more space had the full approval of the prophet.
Another notices how they put it, and hears a warning in it.
These men did not want to live where Elisha was among them. They wanted his presence with them in what they were doing. Many Christians today are just like them. They feel hemmed in where two or three gather to the name of the Lord Jesus, yet when they build their own churches they want the Lord to come with them.
The place they picked matters. One writer explains what the Jordan stands for, and what Elisha himself had done there.
Everyone agrees on what the Jordan pictures. It stands for death. And the axe head lay lost and dead in its depths. Here is what makes this miracle so interesting and instructive: Elisha was the prophet who pictured resurrection life. He passed through the river of death with Elijah. He began his ministry of grace and resurrection power from the point where Elijah went up.
The work at the river is plain manual labour. One writer points to the danger in it. A city of refuge was a town where a man could flee for safety if he killed someone by accident.
When they came to the Jordan they cut wood. The human element was at work, but "he who splits logs is endangered by them" (Ecclesiastes 10:9). So we see the borrowed tool lost and the man of God quietly winning the day… The man using the axe might have been on his way to a city of refuge soon after he began work (Deuteronomy 19:5).
What happens next shows where the real resource lay.
One of the sons of the prophets loses his tool in the river, and the tool was not even his own, for he had borrowed it. His poverty and his inability now show: he has no resources… Everything comes from Him, from the power of His Holy Spirit, from the power of His death. He directs the work. He gives the means of doing it. He fills the hearts of His own with a sense of their own inability. He establishes the work of their hands.
- Asked. One man asked the prophet to come, and got a three-word answer of grace: "I will go."
- Went. The man who faced kings and armies came to a riverbank to help young men cut timber.
- With. Commentators differ. Some see healthy growth that Elisha approved. Others see people picking their own project and asking the Lord to come along.
- Jordan. They worked beside the river that pictures death. With them stood the prophet who had already passed through it.
- Worked. Cutting wood is real labour with real danger. Even the axe was borrowed. He gives the means, and He establishes the work.
And it came to pass as one was felling a beam, that the iron fell into the water; and he cried and said, Alas, master, and it was borrowed!
Men in Elisha's company are cutting timber by the Jordan to enlarge where they live, and one of them loses the iron head of his axe in the water. His cry is short, but it carries both shame at losing what was not his and the instinct to turn straight to the man of God.
English versions use "borrow" for several different Hebrew words. One dictionary explains where that word fits and where it does not:
There are four Hebrew words translated this way. The main point of interest is the Israelites borrowing from the Egyptians at the Exodus. The word there is shaal, which English versions translate "ask" 88 times. So "ask" is surely the better word in Exodus 3:22; Exodus 11:2; Exodus 12:35. In Exodus 22:14 and 2 Kings 6:5, however, "borrow" is better kept.
The axe was not his to lose, and more than iron was at risk:
Elisha at once enters into his sorrow and distress. The trouble was not only the loss: the man's credit was at stake, because the axe was borrowed. The prophet's tender care for his distress is very touching. He has both tenderness and power to meet anxious human feelings.
Carelessness played a part, yet Elisha does not blame the man:
It is not a reprimand. No doubt there was carelessness, but it is the grace that can meet every need, the little just as much as the great. And I do not hesitate to say that true greatness shows itself in its capacity to take in the little.
The same stooping to small things marks the greatest servants:
In the same spirit the great Apostle of the Christian day can carry the burdens of the Church and still work at making a tent. He can save hundreds of souls from a watery grave, and help pick up sticks to make a fire. And may we not say that both these great servants are only showing the spirit of their far greater Lord and Master? He holds up the whole universe, yet He can take a little child into His arms. He dwells in the bosom of the Father, yet He can enter the humble home of a fisherman.
The man's response is held up as an example. He wasted no effort on getting the iron back himself:
This son of a prophet knew what he had lost, and he felt it more because the axe was borrowed. But he was wise. He did not waste his time in useless efforts to recover what he had lost. He cried to the man of God, "Alas, my master!" And here is a fine example for sinful men. The first step to recovery and blessing is to realise the need and the loss. But some who have taken this step are trying hard and sincerely to put right what is wrong by their own efforts. They are trying by their works to save themselves. But Scripture says plainly, "not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
Writers draw different lessons from the loss. One reads the borrowed axe as second-hand truth in the hands of a worker:
The axe speaks of the truth of the Word of God, a tool that can be most effective when well used. But we may be using "borrowed" truth. It is truth someone else has gained for his own profit, and we have not really gained it in our own souls. It may have been learned intellectually in a Bible school, but not vitally in the school of God. If so, there will always be some sort of failure in our work.
Another reads it as the exposure of a worker who has nothing of his own:
This is how his poverty and helplessness come out: he has no resources. The river of death has swallowed up all his hope. Elisha alone can bring the remedy. Death is conquered. It not only has the gift of cleansing; it also gives back to the believer the power he had lost for labouring in the work of Christ.
The answer came through a stick thrown where the iron sank. One writer sees the cross in it:
We see the power of the river overcome by the piece of wood cast into the waters. The Jordan stands for death. So this striking incident may well mean the power of death overcome by the Cross, and the House of God built by what comes out of death.
- Loss. The iron sinks while a man is doing honest work; carelessness is real, but no reprimand follows it.
- Debt. The pain is sharper because the axe was borrowed — his credit, not just his tool, was at stake.
- Cry. He wastes no time on efforts of his own and calls the master; realising the loss is the first step to recovery.
- Grace. No reprimand comes. Grace meets the small need as fully as the great, and true greatness shows itself in taking in the little.
- Recovery. Wood cast into the Jordan brings the iron back up. Death's power is overcome, and the worker gets back what he could never reach himself.
And the man of God said, Where did it fall? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim.
A borrowed axe head sinks in the Jordan. Elisha gives no advice. He throws a cut stick into the river, and the iron rises. Why does a prophet who has just handled kings and armies stop for a lost tool? And what does a floating axe head mean?
The story turns from kings and armies to a work party on a riverbank.
Once again the story of Elisha passes from kings and great men to a simple home scene. The sons of the prophets are building a place to live. The incident shows the simple, lowly life that marked this man of God. He is ready to meet the difficulties of kings and their armies. At the right time he can also give himself to felling a tree and building a house. In the greatness of his way he can stoop to small affairs and walk with humble folk.
Elisha never scolds the man for being careless. That silence shapes how we read the miracle.
Now here again we see the same thing. It is not reprimand. No doubt there was carelessness, but it is the grace that can meet every need, the little just as much as the great. And I do not hesitate to say that true greatness shows itself in its capacity to take in the little.
The loss stung for one reason — the axe was not his own.
"Alas, master," cried the unfortunate woodman, "for it was borrowed." To lose what belongs to another is more serious than to lose what is really our own. Everything that makes a man what he is comes from Another and belongs to Another. No man has anything that he can properly call his own.
A chip of wood has no power to lift sunken iron. One writer sets the moment beside Peter standing on the water.
Whether it is Peter, or the iron, that stands on the face of the waters, both are equally contrary to nature. There is no natural link between the cause and the effect, between throwing in a stick and the floating of the iron. There was no such link later between putting clay on the eyes and the restoring of sight. What counts is neither the skill of the workman nor the fitness of the tool, but the excellency of the power of God.
Critics mock this story as both too small and too impossible.
In this materialistic day people think it childish to believe miracles. Here is an axe head brought up from the bed of a river by the simple act of casting a stick into the water. Here indeed is food for the contempt of the proud. But the narrative presents no difficulty to faith. No reverent mind believes that the natural laws He Himself set up can limit the Lawgiver of the universe.
Elisha asks where the iron fell. Then he sends the wood down to that very spot. Writers read the order of events as a picture.
The living branch was cut down and thrown in where the lost iron lay. In the same way the living Christ was cut down, and went right down into death where lost men lay. He who would deliver men had to go where men were. Nothing else could work.
Commentators differ on how far to press such pictures. One writer says so plainly, then points to the Jordan as a picture of death.
Some have thought this small incident carries a deep meaning as a picture; others have been afraid to press it that far. Yet at the very least it is a striking illustration of resurrection life and power. On what the Jordan pictures, all agree. It stands for death. And as for "the axe head," it lay as lost and dead in its depths.
One writer turns the word "borrowed" into a warning about serving God with truth we have never made our own.
The axe speaks of the truth of the Word of God, a tool that can be most effective when well used. But we may be using "borrowed" truth. Someone else gained it for his own profit, and we have never taken it into our own souls. We may have learned it in the head in a Bible school, but not in a living way in the school of God. If so, there will always be some failure in our work.
- Loss — the axe head flew off during honest work. Elisha does not scold, because grace meets the small need as much as the great.
- Borrowed — the loss stung because the axe belonged to another, and nothing we have is truly our own.
- Where — Elisha asks for the exact spot, and the wood goes down to where the iron lay. Rescue reaches the lost thing where it is.
- Swim — a stick cannot raise iron, so the credit belongs to the power of God, who is not bound by the laws He made.
- Take — the truth we work with must become our own, not stay borrowed.
And he said, Take [it] up to thee. And he put out his hand and took it.
A borrowed iron axe head slips off its handle and sinks into the Jordan. The man who lost it cries out to Elisha, the iron rises, and this verse is the moment he takes it back into his own hand.
A workman lost a tool through carelessness. What met him was not a telling-off.
Now here again we see the same thing. It is not reprimand. No doubt there was carelessness, but it is the grace that can meet every need, the little just as much as the great. And I do not hesitate to say that true greatness shows itself in its capacity to take in the little.
That has a direct use for anyone who thinks their trouble is too small to bring to God.
There is much comfort for God's trusting children in the miracle of the swimming iron. The mighty power of God condescends to help those who trust even in the smallest things of life. Our Lord fills the throne in glory and is the upholder of all things, yet as the sympathizing priest, He enters into the lives of His people. His power answers faith, if we but learn to bring our little troubles to Him as the man came in distress to Elisha.
The miracle is an easy target for mockery.
In this materialistic age people think it childish to believe in miracles. An axe head lifted from a riverbed by simply throwing a stick into the water — here is food for the contempt of the proud. But the story gives faith no trouble. No reverent mind thinks that the natural laws God Himself set up can limit the Lawgiver of the universe. He lets those laws run their full ordinary course. Yet He can act apart from them, and above them, whenever He pleases.
The way it happened matters. A stick has no more power over iron than a man's feet have over water.
Whether it is Peter or the iron that stands on the face of the water, both are just as contrary to nature. There is no natural link between the cause and the effect, between throwing in a stick and the floating of the iron... What counts is not the skill of the workman or the fitness of the tool, but the excellence of the power of God.
The man's cry was not just over a lost tool. He had lost something entrusted to him.
"Alas, master," cried the unlucky woodcutter, "for it was borrowed." To lose what belongs to someone else is more serious than to lose what is really our own. Everything that makes a man what he is comes from Another and belongs to Another. No man has anything he can rightly call his own.
Commentators read the borrowed axe in more than one way. One takes it as a warning about truth we have never made our own.
The axe stands for the truth of the Word of God, a tool that can do great work when it is used well. But we may be using "borrowed" truth — truth someone else gained for himself, which we have never really made our own. It may be learned with the mind in a Bible school, but not learned for life in the school of God. If so, our work will always fail somewhere.
One writer reads a deeper picture in the story, drawn from the river it happened in.
A piece of wood thrown into the water overcomes the power of the river. The Jordan stands for death. So this striking event may well picture the power of death overcome by the Cross, and the House of God built by what comes out of death.
The iron floated before the man moved. Yet the verse still ends with his own hand.
"Take it up," said the prophet, and he reached out his hand and took it, a grateful and wondering man, as well he might be... Have we heard the words of this glorious Gospel, which our Lord was the first to speak? Have we believed on God the Father Who sent Him to tell them to us? Then this eternal life is ours. We have put out the hand of faith and taken it. Our souls are saved, we are recovered from death, and now we live.
- Lost. The axe head was borrowed. Everything a person has comes from Another, so losing it weighs heavier than losing what is our own.
- Cried. The man did not dredge the river. He turned to the man of God, and grace met him instead of a reprimand.
- Wood. A stick thrown into the Jordan has no natural power to raise iron. The result shows the excellence of God's power, and pictures death overcome by the Cross.
- Swam. The laws of nature do not bind the Lawgiver who set them up. His power stoops to the smallest trouble His people bring Him.
- Taken. Grace finished the recovery before the man moved. Still he had to reach out — faith takes what grace has already brought up.