SUMMARY
Elisha ministers to a situation of inadequacy.
ANALYSIS
The first fruits of the harvest were traditionally brought to the priestA priest is a person who has the authority to perform religious rites. In New Testament times priests were responsible for daily offerings and sacrifices in the temple. More, not to a prophet (Deuteronomy 18:3-4). Perhaps this means that the people viewed Elisha “the man of God” as more worthy than their apostate king and his priests (1 Kings 12:28-31). The inadequate supply of food, specifically barley, for the feeding of many people, the command to feed them, and the multiplication of the food with some left over suggest that this story of Elisha’s miraculous provision lies behind the Gospel narratives of the Feeding of the Five Thousand, the only miracle of Jesus recorded by all four evangelists (Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:32-44; Luke 9:10b-17; John 6:1-15). Inadequacy need not hinder the mission.
