The Shunammite’s Son Restored to Life

⁸ One day Elisha went to Shunem.^(A) And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat.

¹⁶ “About this time^(A) next year,” Elisha said, “you will hold a son in your arms.”

“No, my lord!” she objected. “Please, man of God, don’t mislead your servant!”

¹⁷ But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.

¹⁸ The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers.^{(B) 19} He said to his father, “My head! My head!”

His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. ²¹ She went up and laid him on the bed^(C) of the man of God, then shut the door and went out.

²² She called her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return.”

³² When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch.^{(A) 33} He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed^(B) to the Lord. ³⁴ Then he got on the bed and lay on the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched^(C) himself out on him, the boy’s body grew warm. ³⁵ Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy sneezed seven times^(D) and opened his eyes.^(E)

³⁶ Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite.” And he did. When she came, he said, “Take your son.”^{(F) 37} She came in, fell at his feet and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out.