2Ki 4:42-44 | KingComments | STEP | A man came to Elisha with “bread of the first fruits”. According to what the law says about ‘first fruits’, the man should have brought these loaves to the priests in Jerusalem ( ). By bringing them to Elisha, the man acknowledged Elisha as the true representative of God in the land. He did not want to bring these first fruits to priests, who had defiled themselves by mixing the worship of the LORD with the worship of the Baal. This man was possibly one of the faithful among the general apostasy, one of the 7,000 who did not bend their knees before Baal ( ). Thus we still encounter people from Baal-shalishah today, people who do not go with apostate Christianity, but instead serve the Lord faithfully and bring their gifts to Him. The loaves were barley loaves. That reminds us of the Lord Jesus as the bread of life. The feeding of about 5,000 men by the Lord Jesus, was done with “five barley loaves and two fish” ( ). Isn’t it telling that in John 6 further on, in connection with the food, He speaks extensively about Himself as the “bread of life”? Because these were “first fruits”, we can link them to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. These breads speak of the Lord Jesus in the resurrection. He is the first fruit of the heavenly land. In the picture, this man set his mind on “the things above” ( ). With that, he came to the man of God. Thus we may go to the Lord Jesus with all we have seen and enjoyed of Him. The loaves are given to Elisha. However, he did not use them for himself, but to feed others with them. He shared the loaves with those who were with him to listen to him. They were invigorated and strengthened by them as well. Elisha knew the value of them. The twenty loaves of bread seem to be too little to feed a hundred men, but in a miraculous way it became more than enough. This did not happen because Elisha added salt or flour to the loaves or by stretching himself over them – we saw this in earlier miracles – but by speaking the word of the LORD. As a result, the loaves were sufficient food for all those who were with him. By the man of God it was plenty and even some was left over. All were satiated and had so much that they could distribute the remainder to others. If we start distributing what we first brought to the Lord Jesus, we will never come short. This is what we also see in the multiplication of the loaves by the Lord Jesus ( ).

‏ 2 Kings 4:42-44

Multiplication of the Loaves

A man came to Elisha with “bread of the first fruits”. According to what the law says about ‘first fruits’, the man should have brought these loaves to the priests in Jerusalem (Deu 18:4-5). By bringing them to Elisha, the man acknowledged Elisha as the true representative of God in the land. He did not want to bring these first fruits to priests, who had defiled themselves by mixing the worship of the LORD with the worship of the Baal.

This man was possibly one of the faithful among the general apostasy, one of the 7,000 who did not bend their knees before Baal (1Kgs 19:18). Thus we still encounter people from Baal-shalishah today, people who do not go with apostate Christianity, but instead serve the Lord faithfully and bring their gifts to Him.

The loaves were barley loaves. That reminds us of the Lord Jesus as the bread of life. The feeding of about 5,000 men by the Lord Jesus, was done with “five barley loaves and two fish” (Jn 6:9). Isn’t it telling that in John 6 further on, in connection with the food, He speaks extensively about Himself as the “bread of life”? Because these were “first fruits”, we can link them to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. These breads speak of the Lord Jesus in the resurrection. He is the first fruit of the heavenly land. In the picture, this man set his mind on “the things above” (Col 3:1). With that, he came to the man of God. Thus we may go to the Lord Jesus with all we have seen and enjoyed of Him.

The loaves are given to Elisha. However, he did not use them for himself, but to feed others with them. He shared the loaves with those who were with him to listen to him. They were invigorated and strengthened by them as well. Elisha knew the value of them. The twenty loaves of bread seem to be too little to feed a hundred men, but in a miraculous way it became more than enough. This did not happen because Elisha added salt or flour to the loaves or by stretching himself over them – we saw this in earlier miracles – but by speaking the word of the LORD. As a result, the loaves were sufficient food for all those who were with him. By the man of God it was plenty and even some was left over. All were satiated and had so much that they could distribute the remainder to others.

If we start distributing what we first brought to the Lord Jesus, we will never come short. This is what we also see in the multiplication of the loaves by the Lord Jesus (Mt 14:20-21 ; Mt 15:37-38).