Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of II Kings Chapter 6
Metaphysically Interpreting II Kings 6:1-7
6:1And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us. 6:2Let us go, we pray thee, unto the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. 6:3And one said, Be pleased, I pray thee, to go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. 6:4So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood. 6:5But as one was felling a beam, the axe-head fell into the water; and he cried, and said, Alas, my master! for it was borrowed. 6:6And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim. 6:7And he said, Take it up to thee. So he put out his hand, and took it.
Metaphysically Interpreting II Kings 6:8-23
6:8Now the king of Syria was warring against Israel; and he took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp. 6:9And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are coming down. 6:10And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of; and he saved himself there, not once nor twice.
6:11And the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?6:12And one of his servants said, Nay, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber. 6:13And he said, Go and see where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan. 6:14Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
6:15And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, a host with horses and chariots was round about the city. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do? 6:16And he answered, Fear not; for they that are with us are more than they that are with them. 6:17And Elisha prayed, and said, Jehovah, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And Jehovah opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. 6:18And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto Jehovah, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. 6:19And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. And he led them to Samaria.
6:20And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, Jehovah, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And Jehovah opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 6:21And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them? 6:22And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. 6:23And he prepared great provision for them; and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.
January 19, 1919: II Kings 6:8-23
What in consciousness does the warring of the Syrians against Israel signify? The warring of the Syrians (intellectual thoughts) against Israel (the Real) signifies the tendency of the intellect, that has not been quickened, to kill out spiritual truths that are developing at the heart center in body-consciousness.
How does man become conscious of this destructive tendency, and what is his protection? Man develops a faculty of discernment through constant prayer and meditation upon Spiritual Being. The opinions and fear of personal will (servant of Elisha) must be set at naught through denial of the seeming power of mortal thoughts and forms. When the will is working in conjunction with spiritual I Am (Elisha), man experiences an exultation (mountain) before which all erroneous thoughts are subordinate. There is a consciousness of great physical force (“full of horses”) and life energies (“chariots of fire”). These are at the command of the spiritual man and consecrated to Truth expression.
What is the meaning in individual consciousness of Elisha's taking the Syrians into Samaria? “Samaria” is the intellectual realm that has its foundation in Truth. It is not wholly reliable, but used as an instrument of Spirit is an aid to casting out alien thoughts and conditions. The intellect receives words of Truth and establishes them in consciousness through positive affirmation.
Are the Syrians (intellectual activities) to be destroyed or redeemed? What is the process? The Syrians (intellectual activities) are to be redeemed, but they must first be denied any power or authority in themselves (blinded). “Then Elisha commanded that great provision be made for the Syrian hosts, that they might eat and drink and go to their master” (be absolved into the mind that gave them birth.) This transformation is the result of making and acting upon I Am affirmations of Divine Love, and Wisdom, and Substance, and Life, and Power. Each demonstration of this kind results in increased consciousness of spiritual power and freedom in mind and body.
January 19, 1919: II Kings 6:8-23
This is a lesson on non-resistance. We are instructed how to overcome certain adverse intellectual thoughts that have been in the habit of warring against the spiritual. We are not always conscious of this war that is going on between the without and the within, but when we have in a measure studied the thoughts that move us, a communication is established and we know very much more about ourselves than we can put in words. The thoughts from the intellectual realm (Syria) that have no understanding of Israel (the Real) do come down and kill out the spiritual thoughts in the heart.
But when we are trusting in the Divine Law (Dothan) where Elisha (the spiritual I Am) is living, a system of protection is set up, and the old order of things is entirely changed. Instead of the resisting thoughts being suppressed and killed they are enlightened; their eyes are opened. But first they must be made blind and captured. This is a denial of the claim that mortal thought has any understanding whatever. If you are thinking thoughts and doing things without God as the foundation, that part of consciousness is unreal, and its seeming understanding should be denied and mentally erased.
But this is not accomplished without some mental commotion. When you attempt to reconcile the without and the within, you are met by invisible opposing forces. All the thoughts of the subjective realms are wrought up, and a “host” seems to encompass you. Fear sets in and you cry, “Alas, my master! how shall we do?” Then, “Fear not; for they that are with us are more than they that are with them.” The I Am always assures us that the preponderance of power is with the spiritual. Fear nearly always throws dust in our eyes, and hides the mighty spiritual forces that are always with us.
Blessed are those who deny ignorance and fear and affirm the presence and power of the I Am. They behold the “mountain” (exaltation) “full of horses” (physical forces) and “chariots of fire” (life energies) “round about Elisha” (spiritual I Am). The “servant” of spiritual I Am is personal will. The will that moves the various members of the body has its center of force in the medulla and between the eyes. When we affirm ourselves to be spiritual, and [are] moved by spiritual forces, we call into action a higher range of faculties than we are ordinarily conscious of. We then think and speak in the name of the Lord or Divine Law, and all the thoughts are moved and obedient to our commands. Personal will is timid and fearful: it sees and feels the mortal world of forms are great and powerful, and those people who do not have the courage to affirm their spiritual supremacy, nor pray, seldom have soul exaltations or high realizations. They do not redeem the error thoughts of the intellect (Syrians), but remain in a state of constant warfare with its attendant bodily discords. They do not set into action the vigorous horses of the body nor stir up the vibratory chariots.
But everyone has this supreme I Am, the center about which all the faculties of the man, both visible and invisible, revolve; and everyone must eventually find this center and carry out the laws inherent in it. So long as we refuse to do this, we are tossed like cockleshells on the waves of ephemeral thought. Then have the courage to say to your suppositional intellectual understanding, “It is ignorance—blindness; let the law of the Lord do its work in it.”
But there is an intellectual realm in us that has its foundation in Truth. The Samaritans were an offshoot of the Israelites; they were despised because they had mixed with the Syrians and other pagan races. So true intellect is fundamental in Being. When we have cleansed ourselves of false thoughts, we then affirm that the true spiritual understanding is restored. This opens the eyes of the Syrians in Samaria.
Demonstrate non-resistance by denying all intellectual opposition or antagonism. Let the substance of Divine Love be poured out upon all these alien thoughts, and you will not be bothered with them any more. “And the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.”
– UNITY magazine.
February 26, 1922: II Kings 6:8-17
In individual consciousness what do the “Syrians” represent? The “Syrians” represent thoughts of the intellect that resist or war against spiritual consciousness, Israel.
What is the meaning of Elisha's dwelling in Dothan? Elisha's dwelling in Dothan means the spiritual I AM established in the understanding of Divine Law.
Should we engage in open warfare with the resisting thoughts of the intellect? No. As a rule it is better to apply the law of nonresistance, and, by spiritual discernment, avoid open conflict.
What does the servant of Elisha represent? The servant represents the outer activity sent forth by the spiritual I AM.
Why does this thought action, which had its origin in Spirit, become fearful? Our thoughts and words are propelled from the central I AM station, like the arrow from the bow. They are endued with intelligence and power, according to the sending capacity of the I AM. Jesus sent his word and healed the centurion's servant. When we, in thought or word, judge by opposing appearances, the result is fearfulness or timidity in execution.
How is confidence restored, and all enmity overcome? Through prayer and meditation. These make contact with the great I AM, Jehovah, and all thought realms are lighted up; the adverse intellect is captured and enlightened, “and the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.”
Metaphysically Interpreting II Kings 6:24-33
6:24And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 6:25And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver. 6:26And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king. 6:27And he said, If Jehovah do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the threshing-floor, or out of the winepress? 6:28And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. 6:29So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him; and she hath hid her son. 6:30And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes (now he was passing by upon the wall); and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. 6:31Then he said, God do so to me, and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.
6:32But Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away my head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold the door fast against him: is not the sound of his master's feet behind him? 6:33And while he was yet talking with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of Jehovah; why should I wait for Jehovah any longer?
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 02-07-2014
