God’s Faithful Servants Sometimes Suffer Greatly

Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha…

2 Kings 4:1

Many Christians are familiar with the story of Elijah the prophet, but fewer know the story of Elisha the prophet. Elijah is the better known of the two, but God’s people enjoyed more blessing in the days of Elisha than they ever did in the days of Elijah.

Taken as a whole, the stories about Elisha say to us, “Look at who God is! Look at what He has done! Look at what He will do! Believe in Him, trust Him, have confidence in Him.” The God who was with Elijah was also with Elisha. God’s work continues even when His servants change.

We begin today in our journey through the life of Elisha with the story of a woman who had been married to a godly man. Her husband was “one of the sons of the prophets” (4:1). Prophets were called to speak the Word of God, so she was married to someone who had a ministry of the Word.

It’s clear from what she said to Elisha that her husband was a faithful servant of God: “You know that your servant feared the LORD” (4:1).

And it seems that this woman’s husband had been especially close to Elisha. She describes her husband as Elisha’s servant twice: “Your servant my husband… You know that your servant feared the LORD” (4:1). This woman’s husband may have been Elisha’s right-hand man.

So, this woman had been greatly blessed by God, who had given her a faithful, godly husband and two wonderful sons. But then tragedy struck. The woman’s husband died. And, because she refers to her sons as “children,” it seems that her husband may have died early in life. God’s faithful servants suffer, and sometimes they suffer greatly.

Can you relate to this woman?