2Ki 4:2-6 | KingComments | STEP | The woman was poor, but she still had a jar of oil. She thought it was worthless, but if she brought this to the man of God, she could satisfy the creditor’s claim. Through the Spirit, the oil speaking of Him, the believer can meet the requirement of the law ( ). The woman can live by “what remains”. She didn’t know all this yet, but we see it in the course of this history. There is still a nice lesson to be learned from the jar of oil that the woman possessed. It was not much, but she brought it to the man of God, so that the little bit of oil became a large stream of oil. It is the same for us. If we go to the Lord with what we have, He will use it for our blessing. We see such a thing with the staff of Moses ( ), with the widow in Zarephath ( ) and with the boy with the five loaves and two fish ( ). So each of us has a jar of oil. The jar is a picture of our body and the oil represents the Holy Spirit. We have enough through the Spirit Who dwells within us to fulfill all the claims of the law ( ). Through the Spirit, God can do great things. Elisha asked the woman for her cooperation. What the man of God said in his request, appealed to her faith. She was to experience that the LORD gives blessing when faith is present. The woman was urged to think of others. At first she was only occupied with herself. Now Elisha said, as it were: ‘Look at the need around you and you forget yourself. The Lord Jesus said to His disciples: “Lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest” ( ). We have that here. The woman started to get an interest for her surroundings. In the execution of her assignment she involved her sons as well. To do what the man of God says, she had to go inside and close the door behind her. Whoever is discouraged can pray in the inner room. In prayer, the ‘neighbors’, unbelieving family members and colleagues, for example, can be brought inside into the presence of the Lord. That will be a blessing for all for whom we pray. Seeking the Lord in faith is not to be displayed in public, but takes place in the inner room (cf. ). The result is seen in public.

‏ 2 Kings 4:2-6

Counsel of Elisha

The woman was poor, but she still had a jar of oil. She thought it was worthless, but if she brought this to the man of God, she could satisfy the creditor’s claim. Through the Spirit, the oil speaking of Him, the believer can meet the requirement of the law (Rom 8:4). The woman can live by “what remains”. She didn’t know all this yet, but we see it in the course of this history.

There is still a nice lesson to be learned from the jar of oil that the woman possessed. It was not much, but she brought it to the man of God, so that the little bit of oil became a large stream of oil. It is the same for us. If we go to the Lord with what we have, He will use it for our blessing. We see such a thing with the staff of Moses (Exo 4:2), with the widow in Zarephath (1Kgs 17:12-14) and with the boy with the five loaves and two fish (Mk 6:38). So each of us has a jar of oil. The jar is a picture of our body and the oil represents the Holy Spirit. We have enough through the Spirit Who dwells within us to fulfill all the claims of the law (Rom 8:4). Through the Spirit, God can do great things.

Elisha asked the woman for her cooperation. What the man of God said in his request, appealed to her faith. She was to experience that the LORD gives blessing when faith is present. The woman was urged to think of others. At first she was only occupied with herself. Now Elisha said, as it were: ‘Look at the need around you and you forget yourself. The Lord Jesus said to His disciples: “Lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest” (Jn 4:35b). We have that here. The woman started to get an interest for her surroundings. In the execution of her assignment she involved her sons as well.

To do what the man of God says, she had to go inside and close the door behind her. Whoever is discouraged can pray in the inner room. In prayer, the ‘neighbors’, unbelieving family members and colleagues, for example, can be brought inside into the presence of the Lord. That will be a blessing for all for whom we pray. Seeking the Lord in faith is not to be displayed in public, but takes place in the inner room (cf. Mt 6:6). The result is seen in public.

The Miracle of the Oil

The vessels had all been different in size, shape and use. They were all equal in one thing: they were all empty. You can’t get anything out of an empty vessel, you can only put something in it. This is the way in which the sinner can come to God. Every sinner is different, but if he is empty of himself, God can fill him with His Spirit.

As long as vessels are added, the oil continued to flow. Similarly, every request of Abraham concerning Sodom was answered by the LORD (Gen 18:23-32). On the other hand, it is also a serious word. The grace of God continues to flow until the last vessel is filled, until the last sinner has converted to be added to the church. After that, the flowing stops and it is no longer possible to convert.

The flowing stops when there are no more vessels. We must have the courage to ask a lot. It shall be done to you according to your faith (Mt 9:29). Much faith, much blessing. The woman always had enough oil to fill all the vessels. When there are no vessels left, it will be the end of the slavery of the flesh. It is not about a big or small gift, but about using the little oil we have. It is the Spirit Who is given to each of us, through whom we can pray – not for our own sake, but – for others. Forgetting ourselves and thinking about others is a basic principle of being a Christian (Phil 2:4-5 ; 25-26). People are interested in things, God is interested in people. Faith will join God in this.

The woman is also a picture of the faithful remnant in the end time. The Spirit will be poured out on the remnant and also on all who will enter the kingdom of peace. All flesh (all vessels) will be filled with God’s Spirit (Joel 2:28a).

The oil is sold to spread blessing elsewhere. The proceeds were used to pay the debt. The surplus was sufficient for the rest of her life to show the fruit of the Spirit. When the man of God said that she and her sons “can live on the rest”, he meant life in the full sense of the word. He wanted them to rejoice in life as a gift from God.

For us, it means a life lived in the power of the Spirit, with our eyes on the Lord Jesus in glory. This allows us to enjoy the victories that result from His work on the cross and His glorification in heaven.