Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Kings 4:43
And his servitor said, What, should I set this before a hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave [thereof].
43. And his servitor [R.V. servant ] said ] The word is not the usual one for ‘servant’ which has occurred above in this chapter; but it is rendered elsewhere by ‘minister’ or ‘servant’ (see Exo 24:13; Exo 33:11), and nowhere but here ‘servitor’. As the word is used, in the passages referred to, of Joshua, the minister of Moses, it seems likely that Gehazi, the special attendant on Elisha, is here meant.
before an hundred men ] Probably the number of the prophetic college at Gilgal. We have seen above (2Ki 2:7) that these communities had many members, not all perhaps resident regularly, but likely to gather in full force when Elisha was visiting their society.
He said again ] R.V. But he said. There is nothing in the text to warrant the ‘again’.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
This miracle was a faint foreshadowing of our Lords far more marvelous feeding of thousands with even scantier materials. The resemblance is not only in the broad fact, but in various minute particulars, such as the distribution through the hands of others; the material, bread; the surprised question of the servant; and the evidence of superfluity in the fragments that were left (see the marginal references). As Elijah was a type of the Baptist, so Elisha was in many respects a type of our Blessed Lord. In his peaceful, non-ascetic life, in his mild and gentle character, in his constant circuits, in his many miracles of mercy, in the healing virtue which abode in his bodily frame 2Ki 13:21, he resembled, more than any other prophet, the Messiah, of whom all prophets were more or less shadows and figures.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 43. Thus saith the Lord, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.] It was God, not the prophet, who fed one hundred men with these twenty loaves, &c. This is something like our Lord’s feeding the multitude miraculously. Indeed, there are many things in this chapter similar to facts in our Lord’s history: and this prophet might be more aptly considered a type of our Lord, than most of the other persons in the Scriptures who have been thus honoured.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
43. They shall eat, and shall leavethereofThis was not a miracle of Elisha, but only a predictionof one by the word of the Lord. Thus it differed widely from those ofChrist (Mat 15:37; Mar 8:8;Luk 9:17; Joh 6:12).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And his servitor said,…. His servant Gehazi very probably:
what, should I set this before one hundred men? for so many, it seems, the sons of the prophets were in this place; and these loaves being very small, no more, it is thought by some, than one man could eat, and the ears of corn but few, the servant suggests they would be nothing comparatively to such a company of men:
he said again, give the people, that they may eat; he insisted upon it that his orders should be obeyed:
for thus saith the Lord, they shall eat, and shall leave thereof; it was suggested to him by a spirit of prophecy, there would be enough for them, and to spare.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(43) Servitor.Minister, or attendant.
What, should I set this before an hundred men?Or, How am I to set? &c. (Comp. Mat. 14:33.)
He said again.And he said.
They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.Heb., eating and leaving! an exclamatory mode of speech, natural in hurried and vehement utterance.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
43. His servitor His minister; attendant. Probably Gehazi.
This before a hundred men Do you expect me to feed a hundred with these few loaves, which are barely sufficient for us? Compare Luk 9:13; Joh 6:9. Here was not only an expression of surprise, but it was prompted by a Judas-like feeling of covetousness on the part of Gehazi, who would keep all for himself.
They shall eat, and shall leave This word of the Lord shows that the miracle was not wrought by the prophet, but by a Divine power far beyond him and above him. But by this miracle God honoured him, and strengthened the faith of the people. Here, says Wordsworth, “is a specimen of the work of Christ in apostolic Churches, receiving the alms of the faithful at God’s altar, and seeking for true riches by bestowing those offerings, blessed by God with increase, to the benefit of his people.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2Ki 4:43 And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave [thereof].
Ver. 43. And his servitor. ] Gehazi, who was no stranger to his master’s miracles, but continued a Pettifidian , or small faith.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
servitor = attendant. Old English = one who serves.
an hundred men. Elisha’s ninth miracle. See note on 2Ki 2:15. One of three (App-10) miracles of feeding multitudes. Compare Mat 14:20; Mat 15:34.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
his servitor: 2Ki 4:12
What: Mat 14:16, Mat 14:17, Mat 15:33, Mat 15:34, Mar 6:37-39, Mar 8:4, Luk 9:13, Joh 6:9
They shall eat: Mat 14:20, Mat 15:37, Mat 16:8-10, Mar 6:42, Mar 6:43, Mar 8:20, Luk 9:17, Joh 6:11-13
Reciprocal: Rth 2:14 – she did 2Ki 4:6 – when the vessels 2Ch 31:10 – we have had Hos 9:8 – with Joh 6:7 – Two
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2Ki 4:43. What! should I set this before a hundred men? Just as the apostles said to the Lord Jesus, when he intended to feed a far greater number with less food. He said again, Give unto the people, &c. Do as I order you, and make no objections. For thus saith the Lord, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof As the multitude left of the loaves and fishes which Christ caused to be set before them. The similitude between several of the miracles of Elijah and Elisha, and those of the Lord Jesus, is very striking, and may be considered as a proof that they all acted by the power of one and the same Spirit. The miracles of the Son of God, however, were both far more in number, and far greater, than those which were performed by these his servants.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
4:43 And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and {x} shall leave [thereof].
(x) It is not the quantity of bread that satisfies, but the blessing that God gives.