11 And the mind of the king of Syria was greatly troubled because of this thing, and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me who of us is for the king of Israel?” 12 And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” 13 And he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him.” It was told him, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” 14 So he sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 18 And when the Syrians came down against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, “Please strike this people with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness in accordance with the prayer of Elisha. 19 And Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” And he led them to Samaria.
20 As soon as they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “O Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.” So the Lord opened their eyes and they saw, and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21 As soon as the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, “My father, shall I strike them down? Shall I strike them down?” 22 He answered, “You shall not strike them down. Would you strike down those whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master.” 23 So he prepared for them a great feast, and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the Syrians did not come again on raids into the land of Israel. (II Kings 6)
I know - long passage, so short commentary: The King of Syria thought he had a traitor, but in reality it was God instructing Elisha, so he was able to guide the king of Israel to avoid danger. Through this event a lot of eye-opening took place: for the armies of Syria and Israel, for the kings of both nations, and even for the faithful servants of Elisha and God. The key is this: we never see it all; only God does. When we cannot see, we still need to trust and respond in faith. We also need to pray that those around us - friend and foe - will come to see also.
I know - long passage, so short commentary: The King of Syria thought he had a traitor, but in reality it was God instructing Elisha, so he was able to guide the king of Israel to avoid danger. Through this event a lot of eye-opening took place: for the armies of Syria and Israel, for the kings of both nations, and even for the faithful servants of Elisha and God. The key is this: we never see it all; only God does. When we cannot see, we still need to trust and respond in faith. We also need to pray that those around us - friend and foe - will come to see also.
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