April 11, 2025 - 2 Kings 12-14

“So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.” - 2 Kings 13:20-21

In a time period that is seemingly obsessed with death and killing and the rise and fall of kings, there is Elisha, who even in his own death, demonstrates a power over death. But we know that this power over death is not his own. It is the Lord’s, and that is the same power that Jesus had. This incident even foreshadows the Resurrection of Christ in some aspects. It was not Elisha who rose again, but there is life-giving power at work even though he died.

In the death of Christ, our sins are atoned for and we die to sin with him. But in his Resurrection, we are given new life and power to walk in newness of life.

“His dead body was a means of giving life to another dead body. This miracle was a confirmation of his prophecies. And it may have reference to Christ, by whose death and burial, the grave is made a safe and happy passage to life to all believers.” - Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary