Elisha and the Son of the Shunamite/1/en

Elisha and the Son of the Shunamite

Introduction

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A Failed Miracle

Like much of the Elisha narrative, the story of the birth and revival of the son of the Shunamite revolves around miracle making.  At first glance, the story is not unique, except perhaps in the scope of the miracle.  It, like others, appears to look favorably on Elisha, highlighting the power of the prophet.  However, on closer inspection, the incident is puzzling, for, in contrast to the rest of Elisha's miracles, this one is nullified. Though Elisha successfully brings a boy into the world, the wonder is short-lived as the boy dies while still a child.  How are we to understand the death of the boy?  What, if anything, does the failure of the miracle say about Elisha?  Is this a story about the greatness of the prophet, or about his limits?

A Long Journey to Success

Though the story ends with the successful revival of the boy, success does not come easily.  Time and again the story hints that something is amiss in Elisha's power:

• "י"י הֶעְלִים מִמֶּנִּי וְלֹא הִגִּיד לִי" – When approached by the distraught Shunamite after the death of her son, Elisha is oblivious to the reason for her distress, knowing nothing of the plight of the boy.  Why did Hashem keep the knowledge of the boy's death from him?  What message lies in this lack of prophetic insight?
• "לֹא הֵקִיץ הַנָּעַר" – Elisha sends Geichazi ahead of him with his staff, presumably to revive the child. Yet, Geichazi fails to do so.  Is this due to a flaw in the servant or his master?  Why is this initial attempt at resuscitation not successful?
• "וַיָּשֶׂם פִּיו עַל פִּיו" – Two full verses describe Elisha's efforts at resuscitation.  He lies on the boy, matching his body parts to those of the child, and warms him.  He then paces around the house, only to return once again and stretch himself on the boy.  What is the significance of these various actions? If the boy is being brought back to life miraculously, why does Elisha not suffice with a declaration, as he had for the birth? Moreover, why does Elisha stop his efforts mid-way to walk around the house? Does this suggest that the senior prophet's first attempt, too, had failed? 

Do the initial obstacles to the boy's revival come merely to highlight the enormity of the final miracle, and thus the greatness of the prophet who brought it?  Or, on the other hand, do they allude to a problem in the prophet and some flaw that kept him from success?

Additional Questions

Several other questions are raised by the story which might shed light on the above:

• "אֲבָל בֵּן אֵין לָהּ" – Why is it Geichazi rather than Elisha who mentions the Shunamite's barren state and thinks of granting her a son? Did Elisha not know on his own that she was childless?
• Indirect speech – When conversing with the Shunamite in the first half of the story, Elisha has Giechazi act as an intermediary between them.  Why does he not address her directly?
• "אַל תְּכַזֵּב בְּשִׁפְחָתֶךָ" –  Does the word "תְּכַזֵּב" mean to "lie" or "disappoint"? Regardless of which definition is chosen, is this not a disrespectful way to reply to the prophet?  Is the Shunamite  implying that Elisha might not carry through on his word?
• On barren mothers – Our story recalls that of the birth of Yitzchak, as both the content and language of the narratives are strikingly similar.¹  What is the significance of the allusion?
• On reviving the dead – How does our story compare to that of Eliyahu's revival of the son of the Tzrafatite woman?

¹ Besides the obvious similarity that both stories deal with a barren woman and the miraculous birth of a child, the two stories have other parallels as well. Both open with a description of the hospitality of the parents, the women's husbands are described as old, the women are promised a son in nearly identical language: "כָּעֵת חַיָּה [אַתְּ] חֹבֶקֶת בֵּן/ וּלְשָׂרָה בֵן", and granted one "לַמּוֹעֵד אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר".