2 Kings 4:38-44
Death in the Pot
38When Elisha returned to Gilgal, there was a famine in the land. As the sons of the prophets were sitting at his feet, he said to his attendant, “Put on the large pot and boil some stew for the sons of the prophets.”
39One of them went out to the field to gather herbs, and he found a wild vine from which he gathered as many wild gourds as his garment could hold. Then he came back and cut them up into the pot of stew, though no one knew what they were.
40And they poured it out for the men to eat, but when they tasted the stew they cried out, “There is death in the pot, O man of God!” And they could not eat it.
41Then Elisha said, “Get some flour.” He threw it into the pot and said, “Pour it out for the people to eat.” And there was nothing harmful in the pot.
42Now a man from Baal-shalishah came to the man of God with a sack of twenty loaves of barley bread from the first ripe grain. “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha.
43But his servant asked, “How am I to set twenty loaves before a hundred men?” “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha, “for this is what the LORD says: ‘They will eat and have some left over.’”
44So he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
Elisha returns to Gilgal while there is a famine in the land. The sons of the prophets sit before him, and he tells his servant to set a large pot on the fire and prepare stew. One man gathers wild vines and gourds without knowing what they are and slices them into the pot.
When the men taste the stew, they cry out that something deadly is in it. They cannot eat it. Elisha tells them to bring flour and throws it into the pot. The harmful effect is removed, and the group can eat. The account presents God's care in the middle of an ordinary communal meal during scarcity.
A man comes from Baal-shalishah with bread from the firstfruits: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain. Elisha tells his servant to give it to the people. The servant asks how it can feed a hundred men, but Elisha repeats the LORD's promise that they will eat and have some left over.
The servant distributes the food, and the people eat with leftovers according to the word of the LORD. Both scenes begin with limited or dangerous food and end with a community receiving what it needs. The provision is not earned by abundance; it is received through attentive obedience.
How We Know
This passage belongs to the historical and prophetic record of Israel's divided kingdom. Its named rulers, places, and prophetic actions are presented as part of that covenant history; Chronicles does not repeat every episode from Kings.
Questions
1 What problem does the wild food create?
AnswerAn unknown wild plant makes the stew dangerous, and the men cry out that it cannot safely be eaten.
2 How is the stew made safe?
AnswerElisha tells them to bring flour, throws it into the pot, and then allows the men to eat.
3 What food does the visitor bring?
AnswerHe brings twenty barley loaves and fresh ears of grain from the firstfruits for the people to eat.
4 What happens when the bread is distributed?
AnswerOne hundred people eat, and there is food left over according to the LORD's word.
What This Means for Us
The people notice danger before they know how to solve it, and the servant voices a reasonable concern about the small supply. Neither observation is treated as disloyalty. They name what is true and then act on God's word.
In a household, pay attention to what is unsafe, insufficient, or being overlooked. Speak up without contempt, share what is available, and trust God without using faith as an excuse to ignore practical care.
Prayer
Lord, protect us from dangers we do not recognize and teach us to speak up when something is wrong. Make us generous with limited resources, attentive to one another, and grateful when you provide more than we expected. Amen.