2 Kings 4:42

42 A man from Baal Shalisha brought bread made from the first harvested grain, 20 barley loaves, and fresh grain to the man of God. The man of God said, "Give it to the people to eat."

2 Kings 4:42 Meaning and Commentary

2 Kings 4:42

And there came a man from Baalshalisha
Of which place (See Gill on 1 Samuel 9:4), the Targum is, from the south country:

and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of
barley;
so that it was now barley harvest, and this the first fruits of it, which, according to the law, ( Leviticus 23:10 ) , was to be brought to the priest; but being forbid in the land of Israel going up to Jerusalem, religious men brought their firstfruits to the prophets, and here to Elisha, the father of them; believing it would be dispensed with, and acceptable, since they were not allowed to carry them to the proper person; and in this time of famine was very agreeable to the man of God, supposing it only a present:

and full ears of corn in the husk thereof;
these were green ears of corn, which they used to parch; but might not be eaten until the firstfruits were offered, and then they might, ( Leviticus 23:14 ) , the Targum renders it, "in his garment", in the skirt of his clothes; and to the same purpose are the Syriac and Arabic versions; and so Jarchi interprets it; and Ben Gersom says, it signifies some vessel in which he brought them:

and he said, give unto the people, that they may eat;
Elisha did not reserve this offering or present for himself, but, as he had freely received, he freely gave.

2 Kings 4:42 In-Context

40 They dished out the food for the men to eat. As they were eating the stew, they cried out, "There's death in the pot, man of God!" So they couldn't eat it.

41 Elisha said, "Bring some flour." He threw it into the pot and said, "Dish it out for the people to eat." Then there was nothing harmful in the pot.

42 A man from Baal Shalisha brought bread made from the first harvested grain, 20 barley loaves, and fresh grain to the man of God. The man of God said, "Give it to the people to eat."

43 But his servant asked, "How can I set this in front of a hundred people?" "Give it to the people to eat," the man of God said. "This is what the LORD says: They will eat and even have some left over."

44 The servant set it in front of them. They ate and had some left over, as the LORD had predicted.