Introduction to 2 Kings 7
The Israelites were in a horrible condition of things. The Syrian siege had caused such severe famine that many were resorting to cannibalism to avoid death. So frequently, we state that we are hungry when, in fact, we are not. The people of Samaria were driven to famine by their own hunger. All of the difficulties were put on God’s prophet Elisha, according to King Jehoram. Elisha, on the other hand, prophesied that the economy would soon improve, and that instead of famine, there would be plenty.
“Why sit here until we die?”
This was said one to another between four lepers upon entering a Syrian camp. These men had three choices. First choice was to enter the city. However, that choice led to starvation, famine, and certain death for them because of an amount of reasons. One of them, they, being lepers, wouldn’t have been accepted due to their condition even if there wasn’t a famine. Another being that, the people of the city were suffering as well and could certainly not have the compassion for a hungry leper. In many things, the city could be seen or interpreted as similar to the world today. Everything that this world has to offer is temporary and it is fleeting.
Then they thought of a second choice, to sit still by the entrance of the gates. Again, to sit still will bring them to certain death. A hopeless situation to sit by and do nothing. Specifically for this, the question was asked, “Why sit here until we die?”. In other words, this can be seen as how people today still choose to wait and stay in the same spot they always had, never moving, never expanding or developing into a better version of themselves. Many people do not realize that sitting still while time passes by and not acting on anything that matters can cause certain death or inevitable failure for them. One of the things that the majority of individuals must know that they do not realize is that they are condemned not for what they do but for what they are (Romans 5:12). So in simpler words, it’s better to keep moving than to be stuck in place, never wavering and following the light of the Lord.
The last and third choice was to give themselves up to their enemies, the Syrians. At this moment and time, Syria was at war with Israel and the Syrians wanted to rid the world of Israelites. Many would’ve thought that this was a choice that they should not make, but in the end, the lepers chose to give themselves up and plead for mercy from their enemies.
There would not have been any other option for them if they wanted to continue living, however, with this situation they were rewarded because they took the biggest risk. Knowing the bleak and almost impossible situation, they still made a decision to not run or hide away from the problem. It was a decision to face the fear head on with the attitude of: whatever may happen, happens. Their fate is in the hands of the Lord.
The Word of God and how it spoke to me
Having heard this story, I was inspired. How I interpreted it was, one should never stand still and wait for the moment of regret because of not taking any risk and not acting on one’s heart desires. I have had my fair share of never taking the risk because of the terrifying results but of course, it led to many what ifs and what could’ve been. One of them being that I never took the chance to be part of the dance ministry in our church because I was afraid. I never took the risk therefore costing me an experience of a lifetime. That is why venturing into the unknown even if it leads to disappointment is worth doing, because as long as you have faith in the Lord, things will go according to what He has planned.
