READINGS ON 2 KINGS (2) (SUMMARY)
[p. 359] READINGS ON 2 KINGS (2) (SUMMARY)
JT The Spirit of God seems to bring the prophet into prominence in all these instances. In the history of His people which He gives, God would stress what is specially of Himself. Hence we see the prophet in a variety of circumstances, in each of which some special feature of God would shine out, a feature which is always needed, and always successful under God in meeting the need. Therefore, in view of the stress laid on prophetic ministry, we would aspire to trustworthiness in His service.
Rem You get an emergency here in connection with the axe-head.
JT It is a question of knowing what to do. Nothing is so manifest among saints and in gatherings as inability to know what to do in crises arising.
Ques Has Jordan any bearing on the matter?
JT What ensues shows that it became the occasion of the power of God being demonstrated.
Rem You referred to prophetic ministry.
JT The prophet here is not only a man that prophesies, but he knows what to do, that is something to emulate. Here there is a proposal, “Let us go, we pray thee, to the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he said, Go”; apparently it is acceptable to him. It might answer to the suggestion to have another meeting, or the like. Enlargement tests us, especially if anything happens to show there is a certain defect.
Rem There is sometimes ability to find fault, but the point is how to meet [p. 360] the situation.
JT The question in relation to all these new meetings is, Have they been vindicated? The prophet does not take the initiative here, one does this and one that; one is felling a beam and the action brings out where he has been.
Rem The prophet consents to go with them.
JT Yes, it would show the importance of mutuality with your brethren. All is on that line, no one is directing particularly, every one is at liberty to act. In relation to the incident of the wild gourds, it says, “One went out into the field to gather herbs”. Still there is something out of the way here, that is the lesson, I think. There is apt to be an undercurrent, and when the axe-head falls into the water, the prophet is appealed to.
Rem The axe was borrowed.
JT We borrow a lot in our ministry, taking up what others have said, though in a certain way this is right, if the truth is assimilated. But the man did not say it was borrowed till the head fell off. To apply it, he did not say, So-and-so said this.
Rem “Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith Jehovah, that steal my words every one from his neighbour”, Jeremiah 23: 30.
JT Stealing in divine things merges into the Romish system. Chapters 21 to 23 of Exodus contemplate taking on things in that way and making them our own, arrogating everything, the Bible and all else. The system to which we have referred did not devise these things; what could Rome ever do in advancing a spiritual thought?
Rem Truth has to be bought.
JT Yes, and experienced, so that there is ability to use it. One has to be made efficient.
Ques How can we use it to advantage?
JT By assimilating it. We are not all originators or inaugurators; things come down to us. There has to be eating and drinking, appropriation in a constitutional [p. 361] sense, so that it becomes part of you. As you look into it and assimilate it, it belongs to you. The assembly is a community in this way, and what is in it belongs to us all. There was something wrong here, something not rightly set. If I borrow a thought and do not assimilate it, it is not rightly set in my soul in relation to the truth. What is right in itself, such as hiving off, may have some other root in one’s motives. You hear something in a meeting and enjoy it, then you want to see how it stands in relation to Christ. The Bereans searched the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so — even what Paul spoke! You see the bearing of things in relation to Christ, and in the process you assimilate them, and they become part of you. Then the iron and the axe become one thing, so to speak; the iron does not fall off.
Rem It says, “And made the iron to swim” (verse 6).
JT The power of God causes the iron to swim. And then Elisha says, Take it up to thee. It goes back to the man, but as come under the power of God. The prophet rectifies the defect. Saints can see when the iron and handle are not properly attached, when the truth is not in its right setting. A stick is cut down and cast in; a stick is small; it is the smallness of Christ in His own attitude, yet there is power there. There is no attempt at bigness here.
Rem The apostle exhorts the saints in Romans 12 not to have high thoughts of themselves.
JT That fits here, one is to work according to one’s measure. Our thoughts may perhaps be too big.
Rem That is sometimes a snare with young brothers.
JT Very, much so. They are apt to think they can deal with truth as older men can, but they cannot. The prophet himself may have got help, but [p. 362] he is there to rectify things, and the whole position is set up and strengthened. In Acts 2 the whole community is described, to bring out the original thought. Everything in the community is common, then the levitical thing comes in; Peter speaks — you would not think you could speak like him!
Rem Certain ones are mentioned in Galatians, “who were conspicuous as being pillars”.
JT It was a measuring time. One would not want to add Jewish thoughts to Titus. It is well to measure up.
To return to our chapter. Elisha was not leading in this matter. The sons of the prophets had great respect for him, and he responds to their desire that he should go with them, then this thing comes out and he adjusts it. You can see the grace of God working in this company; there is no attempt to hide the truth. The one who lost the axe-head was evidently an honest man, he was ashamed. And there was a good state of things between the old and young brothers, as we should say. In Corinth there were party leaders who were taking on “another man’s line of things”, having nothing themselves; it was simply borrowing. In contrast to that, the apostle says, “We will not boast out of measure, but according to the measure of the rule which the God of measure has apportioned to us, to reach to you also”. Brethren can usually tell that what you have is of value and gradually realise you are reaching some measure.
Ques What is the thought of the stick (verse 6)?
JT It was cut down as in Exodus 15, where God showed Moses “wood”. The idea is Christ as subject to the will of Another. In Matthew 21: 8 it says, “Others kept cutting down branches from the trees and strewing them on the way” — they did not pick up anything they found on the side-walk; the point is there is life. The stick was growing on a [p. 363] tree. What came out at the cross was that Christ was subject to the will of Another.
So the whole position is clarified and set up afresh. No doubt the primary thought was carried out. At the very outset, the whole system of testimony was developed in God over-ruling the failures of His people to bring out features of the truth. God developing His own thoughts and over-ruling man’s sins to do it. Failures are thus turned into blessing, as in Adam and Eve and others.
Rem This man said, “Alas!”; he felt it.
JT These young men have no thought of starting something themselves, but defect is there. Now it is met, and the whole matter set up again, enlargement is the idea. The sons of the prophets said, “The place where we dwell before thee, is too strait for us”. It is like a meeting-room. They had been accustomed to listen to Elisha; they had no thought of getting rid of him. They would attain to the special quality which Elisha represents. Evidently the going down of the iron was arrested by the stick — it is Christ as He went down, the power of God was there. One has to identify the stick with the iron coming up; the thought is to save the person by the power of God; it is that or nothing. Christ allowed Himself to be acted upon by Another — “Not my will, but thine, be done”. It was the will of God, and that is our sanctification. The brother is set up again in the power of God, the stick is lost to view; it is the effect of atonement applied at any given time. Jesus Himself was baptised in view of bringing everything up in life. So the recovery of a person is of immense importance to heaven.
Ques What is the force of the iron swimming?
JT It would show it was not a dead thing floating. Swimming is an action in yourself, the type means that the person is now energetic himself. It speaks in Acts 27 of “those who were able to swim”.
[p. 364] The next paragraph in this chapter in Kings is met, if we understand the first. This matter of Syrian warfare comes up several times. It brings out the characteristic hereditary attitude of Syria against the people of God, Satan’s continued opposition, ever ready to attack, “And the king of Syria warred against Israel”; warring was his attitude. Secret conditions, however, are against him. It is like Colossians. Now that the power of God is known, there is this secret understanding as suggested in verse 9 onwards. The apostle says, “We are not ignorant of his devices”. Resurrection is a secret matter, a matter of testimony. Christ’s appearing was to His own, it was a secret matter. Colossians is to bring us to that, so that we get the mind of God as to what is going on. In what is taking place publicly today, we see that those acting have things under their hand, but what is Satan really at? That is the lesson for us; whatever he is aiming at, we want to frustrate it.
Rem Elisha is called “the man of God”.
JT It is a phrase which fits into the rights of God. It is a question of quality — a man for a crisis. All the apostles were men of this stamp, but the term is attached to Timothy, as it is a question of remnant times.
Elisha prays that the eyes of his servant may be opened that he may see. What a word that is! Quality is there with Elisha and the enemy is after that man. Elisha is the general, leading his army. He is used to bring out what God is in grace, as over against this hereditary opposition to the people of God. Like Christ sitting on the Father’s throne, following on the word to Laodicea, grace there in spite of the callousness.
These hosts the young man sees do not act. They are smitten with blindness, in order to bring out what Elisha is, what God has in him.