The Shunammite Woman

⁸ Now a day came when Elisha went over to ^(A)Shunem, where there was a ^[a]prominent woman, and she urged him to eat ^[b]food. And so it was, as often as he passed by, that he turned in there to eat ^[c]food. ⁹ And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I am aware that this is a holy ^(B)man of God passing by us repeatedly. ¹⁰ Please, let’s ^(C)make a little walled upper room, and let’s set up a bed for him there, and a table, a chair, and a lampstand; then it shall be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.”

¹¹ Now ^[d]one day he came there, and turned in to the upper room and ^[e]rested. ¹² Then he said to his servant ^(D)Gehazi, “Call this Shunammite.” And when he had called her, she stood before him. ¹³ And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have taken trouble for us with all this ^[f]care; what can I do for you? ^[g]Would you like me to speak for you to the king or to the commander of the army?’” But she ^[h]answered, “I live among my own people.” ¹⁴ So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi ^[i]answered, “It is a fact that she has no son, and her husband is old.” ¹⁵ He then said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the doorway. ¹⁶ Then he said, “^(E)At this season ^[j]next year, you are going to embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, you man of God, ^(F)do not lie to your servant.”

¹⁷ Now the woman conceived and gave birth to a son at that season ^[k]the next year, as Elisha had told her.

The Shunammite’s Son

¹⁸ When the child was grown, the day came that he went out to his father, to the reapers. ¹⁹ And he said to his father, “My head, my head!” And his father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ When he had carried him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her ^[l]lap until noon, and then he died.

²⁷ But she came to the man of God ^(A)at the hill and took hold of his feet. And Gehazi came up to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for her soul is ^[a]troubled within her; and the Lord has concealed it from me and has not informed me.” ²⁸ Then she said, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, ‘^(B)Do not give me false hope’?”

²⁹ Then he said to Gehazi, “^[b](C)Get ready and ^(D)take my staff in your hand, and go; if you meet anyone, do not ^[c](E)greet him, and if anyone ^[d]greets you, do not reply to him. And ^(F)lay my staff on the boy’s face.” ³⁰ The mother of the boy said, “^(G)As surely as the Lord lives and you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her. ³¹ Then Gehazi went on ahead of them and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or ^[e]response. So he returned to meet him and informed him, saying, “The boy ^(H)has not awakened.”

³² When Elisha entered the house, behold the boy was dead, laid on his bed. ³³ So he entered and ^(I)shut the door behind them both, and he prayed to the Lord. ³⁴ Then ^(J)he got up on the bed and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, his hands on his hands, and he bent down on him; and the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵ Then he returned and walked in the house back and forth once, and went up and ^(K)bent down on him; and the boy sneezed seven times, then the boy opened his eyes. ³⁶ And he called Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. And when she came to him, he said, “Pick up your son.” ³⁷ Then she came in and fell at his feet and bowed down to the ground, and ^(L)she picked up her son and left.