Vers. 1-7.-The b,,,,.,.owed au. This is another of Elisha's miracles of aid. The story belongs to the same class of acts as those related in eh. ii. Hl-22; iv. 1-7, 38--44. L THE AXE-READ l!!EEDED. The first verses present us with a picture of exy,ansion and extension. 'l'he place where "the sous of the prophets" dwelt or "sat" before Elisha, at Jericho, had become too strait for them. Elisha's influence was evidently telling on the nation. The religious movement represented by the prophelic schools was growing in force and v-0lume. It is encouraging to. he~r of _growth and progress in the Church. We note: 1. The prophets faced their situation. "Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us." They did not stand ~till, and endeavour to accommodate their increased numbers to the old conditions. 'l'l.iey showed a spirit of enterprise, of advance, in correspondence with their altered needs. This was true wisdom. The Church must adapt herself to new needs, to alterud circumstances, to the conditions of progrees, if she is to hold her grounrl. "Enlarge the place of thy tent," etc. (Isa. liv. 2). 2. T!tey were willing to put forth need- ful effort. "Let us go we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam," etc. They were 'prepared to do what was necessary to bring about the chanve1 OU. VT, 1-33.] THE SECOND BOOK OF THE KI;;;'GS. 143
required. They had the two conditions of successful work-unity of spirit, and indivi- dual willingness. They were to work together for a common end, and each man was to do his sep11rate part. The individual wood-cutter could accomplish little. Unitedly, they could easily make a. place for their common accommodation. 3. They desired Elisha to go with them. "Be content., I pray thee, a.nd gt, with thy servants.'' Elisha. was the bond of their community. They desired neither to act without his sanction nor to go where he could not accompany them. The Church, in her changes, must abide by fundamental truth, and do nothing which would exclude the Master. II. THE AXE-HEAD LOST. Elisha's sanction given, the band of prophets was soon busy a.t Jordan, cutting down trees, and preparing for the new building. Then occurred the mishap and loss which gives its name to the story. A.s one was felling 11o beam, the axe-head flew off, and fell into the deep pa.rt of the river. It was a boJTowed. axe, and the man's lamentations were instant and sincere. Mishaps will occur in tho best undertakings. 1. He had lost what a neighbour had lent him. The property was not his own. It had been lent him, probably at his own request, and in the spirit of neighbourly good will. Snch neighbourly acts are pleasing to think of. But the more willingly the axe had been lent him, the more did the loser now regret the mishap which had befallenit. It is well that neighbonrs should be ready to lend; but the incident also shows the danger of borrowing. We ~hould seek to be as independent of others as we can; then, if misfortune does befall us, what we lose is at least only our own. 2. He could not replace the loss. Had he been able to do so, he would not have required to borrow. 'l'he "sons of the prophets" were good men, but poor men. An axe-head was a. small thing, but it meant much to the user, a.nd perhaps not less to the original owner. It is a spirit of conscientiousness which speaks in the man's lament. He held the axe as a. trust, and desired earnestly to return it. It is good to see men "faithful in tba.t which is least" (Luke xvi. 10). 3. He could no lon_qer do his part of the work. The axe-head was indispensable for the cutting down of his beam. He had the handle, bot it was of no use without the iron. This also grieved him. Anything that incapacitates a. man for bearing his part in the building work of God's kingdom will be a sorrow to him. III. THE AXE-HEAD RECOVERED. 'l'ho indirect appeal made to Elisha in the words, "Alas, master! for it was borrowed," was not in vain. It was a. case in which Elisha might be expected to help, and he did so. In the miracle we see: l. Human agl!:'Tlcy. There is a remarkable blending of the Divine a.nd the human in the whole transaction. Elisha. asked, "Where fell it?" It might have been thought that if he had the power to bring the iron to the surface, he would also be able to tell where it fell. But the man had to show him the place. Then, when the iron swam, Elisha said, " Take it to thee." And the man put out his hand and took it. 2. Expressive symbol. The miracle, as usual, was accompanied by a symbolical action. A stick was cut down, and thrown into the water. The act was only an expressive wa.y of saying, "Let the iron swim as this stick does." Its sole function wa.s to direct attention to the super- natural result. 3. .Almighty power. "The iron did swim." There was here, not the alteration of the properties of iron (else it would be iron no longer), but the introduction of a new cause, which counteracted the natural effect of gravity, and raised the iron to the surface. Nature is but an instrument in the hand of God, and can be bent by him to his own purposes. The lesson of the incident is to trust God for help even in what we might be tempted to call the small things of life. The loss of an axe-head ma.y seem a. trivial circumstance to call for an interference with the laws of the uni verse. But with God there is no great and little. We can make known all our wants to him, with assure.nee of being helped.-J. 0. Vera. 8-23.-.A bootless invasion. The chronic hostility which subsisted between the Israelitish and the Syrian kingdoms soon broke out again in war. In this, as in other instances, Syria was the aggressor. The invaded kingdom was delivered, not through "tho sword and the bow" (ver. 22) of its king, but once more through the interposition of Elisha. I. FRUSTRATED PLANS. 1. Royal strategy. The war which tho King of Syria commenced was intended to be carried on, not by battle in the 01,en field, but by a series of surprises, caused by the planting of a.mbu·icalles at convenient spots. It wa.s 144 THE SECOND BOOK OF THE KINGS. [OH. VI, 1-83.