Then Elisha came to Damascus while Ben-hadad king of Aram was sick, and the king was told, “The man of God has come here.”
So the king said to Hazael, “Take a gift in your hand, go to meet the man of God, and inquire of the LORD through him, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’ ”
So Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him a gift of forty camel loads of every good thing from Damascus. And he went in and stood before him and said, “Your son Ben-hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’ ”
Elisha answered, “Go and tell him, ‘You will surely recover.’ But the LORD has shown me that in fact he will die.”
Elisha fixed his gaze steadily on him until Hazael became uncomfortable. Then the man of God began to weep.
“Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little ones to pieces, and rip open their pregnant women.”
“But how could your servant, a mere dog, do such a monstrous thing?” said Hazael.
And Elisha answered, “The LORD has shown me that you will be king over Aram.”
So Hazael left Elisha and went to his master, who asked him, “What did Elisha say to you?”
And he replied, “He told me that you would surely recover.” But the next day Hazael took a thick cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it over the king’s face. So Ben-hadad died, and Hazael reigned in his place.”
Remember God’s words to Elijah when Elijah was in the cave on Mount Horeb in 1 Kings 19:15 – 17? “Then the LORD said to him, “Go back by the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you arrive, you are to anoint Hazael as king over Aram. You are also to anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel and Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-meholah to succeed you as prophet. Then Jehu will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Jehu.”
Israel has fallen into idolatry and those who have done so will be punished. There is no record of Elijah visiting Damascus after God gave him this word; however, Elijah anointed Elisha to succeed him as prophet. Now Elisha is carrying out the command of the Lord by coming to Damascus. Elisha’s reputation as a prophet has preceded him, and Ben – hadad, the king of Syria, sends Hazael, his aid, to ask counsel from Elisha. Ben – hadad is so worried that he sends forty camel loads of “every good thing from Damascus.” It is highly unlikely that Elisha accepts this gift; after all, he has no fixed abode and travels very lightly. But God is actually sending Hazael to Elisha because Elisha has a commission to anoint Hazael as the next king over Syria.
When Elisha sees Hazael, Elisha is obedient but not happy. As soon as Hazael enters the room, Elisha has an immediate vision of Hazael leading an army that will set fire to Israelite fortresses, kill their young men, dash the Israelite children to pieces, and rip open the wombs of pregnant Israelite women. This vision is so sickening that Elisha begins to weep bitter tears. Hazael is amazed at this behavior and asks Elisha what it means. Elisha tells Hazael that in the future Hazael will lead an army that will destroy the Israelites and their cities. Elisha is weeping over the horrors he foresees. When Hazael asks how this will happen, Elisha tells Hazael that he will be the next king of Syria. Elisha counsels Hazael to tell Ben – hadad that Ben – hadad will recover; however, Elisha goes on to anoint Hazael as king of Syria. Hazael returns to the palace and gives Ben – hadad the message; however, the very next day, Hazael smothers Ben – hadad and ascends the throne of Syria.
APPLICATION: Is Elisha sending a lying message to Ben – hadad? Here, Elisha orders Hazael to tell Ben – hadad, that he will recover; meanwhile, Elisha knows that Ben – hadad will die very soon. Elisha is carrying out God’s commission. Obviously, if Elisha were to message Ben – hadad that Ben – hadad was going to die, Ben – hadad might start a purge, beginning with those most likely to take over after his death. God has already selected Hazael to become the next king of Syria, so endangering Hazael would not help anything. On the other hand, Ben – hadad wants to know if he will recover from this illness. Elisha knows that Ben – hadad will die very soon; however, Elisha may also know that Ben – hadad’s current illness will not be the cause of his death. Strictly speaking, Elisha is not lying. We must realize that originally there might have been far more to the message than the words recorded here. It’s amazing that even though Hazael sneaks in and smothers Ben – hadad, it’s an open secret that has survived thousands of years. There are no secrets in a palace!
Perhaps God actually has intended some other means of death for Ben – hadad; however, Hazael decides to hasten the process. Notice that Elisha does not order Hazael to kill his master, but merely says that his master will die.
Here Elisha is obediently carrying out a highly distasteful task. Although King Ahab spared Ben – hadad’s life at one point, Damascus isn’t exactly a friendly place. When God gives Elisha a vision of Hazael spreading mass destruction in Israel, Elisha would probably like to leave immediately. But God has sent Elisha to anoint Hazael as king and Elisha does so.
The lesson for us here is Elisha’s obedience. Even as Elisha is about to anoint Hazael as king over Syria, Elisha clearly sees the wanton destruction that Hazael and his troops will bring in the future. Left to himself, Elisha would rather do anything else; however, God has given Elisha orders and Elisha is faithfully carrying them out.
Sometimes God calls us to bless people who have criticized us or even betrayed us. At that point, we must choose whether to obey or to draw back in rebellion. Obedience is critically important. When we obey God, we open ourselves up for His blessings. But if we try to act as our own amateur providences, following our own intuitions, we put ourselves in harm’s way spiritually and we also mess up God’s plans for those people. Only God knows the end from the beginning.
Many times, God has called us to help those whom we know to be undermining us. At such times, obedience becomes very difficult. Obedience in such circumstances can be compared to running along a knife edge path in the mountains. There is only one narrow way that leads to safety; any misstep will be disastrous. Let us be careful to listen to God, so that God can guide us safely through.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to obey even when it is difficult or distasteful and even when our obedience will bless those who have been attacking us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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