It may seem strange to more than one reader that Elijah had not followed the positive injunction of the Lord at Horeb (1 Kings 19:15-1715And the Lord said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria: 16And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room. 17And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. (1 Kings 19:15‑17)), to anoint Hazael, Jehu, and Elisha. The fact was that Elijah met Elisha first, whom the Lord brought onto his path. He cast his prophet’s mantle upon him for the first time, renouncing, so to say, his commission, in order to transfer it to Elisha, although his own prophetic career was not yet finished. From the moment Elisha was thus designated as his successor, these two other deeds became incumbent upon him. The anointing with which Elisha was sealed as prophet was the anointing of the Holy Spirit, in 2 Kings 2. This anointing with the double portion of Elijah’s spirit could not be conferred upon him except through Elijah’s being gone up to heaven. Had he been anointed when Elijah met him for the first time, he would have been consecrated a prophet of judgment like his master, but, as we have seen throughout his history except in the exceptional case of the children at Bethel, Elisha is a prophet of grace and of deliverance for the remnant and even for the nations.
It was incumbent upon Elisha according to his commission to anoint Hazael and Jehu, who were to exercise judgment, but in the passage which recounts Elisha’s meeting with Hazael, the anointing of this latter is passed over in silence. As a matter of fact, through the prophetic word the rod of God was placed into Hazael’s hands, but the anointing could not be mentioned when the man of God, come in grace, was weeping bitterly over the evil that Hazael would do to the children of his people.
The anointing of Jehu (2 Kings 9) corresponds more to that which we might expect of the command given by the Lord to Elijah, but Elisha renounces acting personally and has his mission accomplished by one of the sons of the prophets. Is not this a striking proof of the fact that the character of Elisha is one of grace and not of judgment. The word of God must be fulfilled, but not to the detriment of the character of grace which the prophet bore.
It would be the same for the Prophet above all prophets, our Lord Jesus Christ. He who came to be baptized of John the Baptist must baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire. After having received the baptism of the Holy Spirit by virtue of the perfection of His humanity, He baptizes with the Holy Spirit by virtue of His ascension into heaven. This anointing characterizes the day in which we live, and that of fire, that is to say of judgment, has not yet taken place. The Lord has not yet sent the rod of His anger against Israel and against the world. He will do this later, but presently He neither wishes nor can He lose His character of Savior come in grace.
If this is so, what does this word spoken to Elijah signify: “Him that escapeth the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay”?
We must anticipate the account in 2 Kings 13 to see this realized. The story reported to us is all the more striking in that we see Elisha come to the very end of his career: “And Elisha fell sick of his sickness in which he died.” It is just at this moment that Joash, king of Israel, comes to see him. At its own time and place we shall again consider this account in detail, but it is there that the prophet confers to Joash on behalf of the Lord, judgment upon that which has escaped Jehu’s sword, that is to say, upon Hazael and his successors. Jehu had been incapable of defending the integral territory of Israel against Syria, but Elisha intervenes, and it is Israel that defeats its conquerors. Nevertheless, even on this occasion, the prophet, all the while he is pronouncing judgment, does not lose his character of grace. Prophetically he exercises judgment himself, for he lays his hand on the king’s hands to draw the bow and beat the Syrians, but in view of delivering Israel.
Let us again take up the course of our account. Ben-Hadad, King of Syria, was sick. “And it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither. And the king said to Hazael, Take a present in thy hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of Jehovah by him, saying, Shall I recover from this disease?” (2 Kings 8:7-87And Elisha came to Damascus; and Ben-hadad the king of Syria was sick; and it was told him, saying, The man of God is come hither. 8And the king said unto Hazael, Take a present in thine hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of the Lord by him, saying, Shall I recover of this disease? (2 Kings 8:7‑8)). These were exactly the same words that Ahaziah, king of Israel, had pronounced when he sent his messenger to consult Baalzebub (2 Kings 1:22And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. (2 Kings 1:2)). This denotes two things. The first is that all men, whether idolaters, or whether knowing the true God, alike have a constant preoccupation with death. Having no other hope than that of visible things, they are profoundly tried by the thought that they may be obliged to leave these, to say nothing of the uncertainty as to the future that fills their spirit. The second is that the religious resources so-called that they have at hand are unable to satisfy. A king of Israel with some knowledge of the true God, however mixed up it may have been with superstition and idolatry, found nothing solid in this superficial knowledge, preferring to address himself to a demon in order to receive a reply that would satisfy him. A sun-worshipper, receiving no answer from his god, preferred to address himself to the man of God who was there in the way before him. He wants to consult the Lord through him, not to find an answer for the needs of his conscience, but only to know if his life will be prolonged. The case of the king of Israel is even more serious than that of Ben-Hadad, for it is that of an apostate, but the king of Syria is not motivated by a sense of real need in turning to the man of God. Could not he who had been the instrument for Naaman’s healing heal an ordinary illness, and had he not already displayed divine power in deliverance? So very little does Ben-Hadad know the prophet who had refused Naaman’s gifts, that he sends him a royal present by Hazael with the intention of ingratiating himself with him.
Hazael comes before the man of God and repeats the king’s words. But in the depths of his being something is already stirring, hidden desire, coveting, a plan, perhaps vague, but which waits only to be confirmed. Elisha has read his heart. His secret thoughts do not escape the God’s eye. Elisha’s answer would be ambiguous to anyone else. To Hazael it has a meaning that hastens his decision. His lust brings forth sin. Elisha “settled his countenance steadfastly, until he was ashamed.” Under this intense gaze that examined the recesses of his conscience, Hazael, laid bare, felt ill at ease. He will certainly recover! This was precisely what Hazael feared. If the king were healed, what would become of his own plans and secret desires? “But Jehovah has shown me that he shall certainly die.” Yes indeed, he tells himself, my only chance is to get rid of my master; and since God knows it and does not hinder me, that justifies me. One feels it. This man must have reasoned thus, already a murderer in his thoughts. Searched to the depths of his heart, ashamed under God’s gaze, for all that he does not abandon his perverted will, but justifies it by the fact that God knows about it.
After these words Elisha weeps, thinking about the evil that Hazael will do to his people. Shall we say that in revealing these facts to Hazael, he is inciting him to accomplish this? Hazael betrays himself a little in the presence of the prophet who tells him all the truth: “Is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing?” One senses more than one is able to prove, in the presence of this hypocritical and closed nature, that the destruction of Israel is an important thing to Hazael. It is easy for him to give himself the role of a dog when it is a matter of doing this, but nonetheless he has the ambition to accomplish it. Lastly, Elisha reveals to him the reason why he has been sent to Damascus. “Jehovah has shown me that thou wilt be king over Syria.” The elements that comprise this darkened soul are now complete. All the obscure desires and ambitions of his spirit are settled. The king may recover, but he will die. I will be king in his stead and will torment Israel. From the thought to its execution there is but a step. Thus God prepares the rod which will chasten His people, until the moment when He will break the rod itself.
Chapters 8:16-17:41 – Kings of Israel and of Judah.