How Did Elisha’s Bones Resurrect a Dead Man?

“Elisha died and was buried. Now Moabite raiders used to enter the country every spring.  Once while some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders; so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s tomb. When the body touched Elisha’s bones, the man came to life and stood up on his feet” (2 Kings 13:20-22).

This complicated moment speaks to the lasting impact of the presence and power of God, a foretelling of the resurrecting power of the Lord, and it was a unique reminder to the nation of Israel to remember God’s promises.

What Is the Context for This Event?

In this passage, Israelites throw a dead person’s body into Elisha’s tomb, and that person is restored to life. Alone, that seems like a confusing passage. Knowing what is going on around these verses is important to recognize what is actually going on here.

After the reign of Kings David and Solomon, Israel and Judah would split under the reign of Rehoboam. Both kingdoms would alternate between good kings and bad kings, between times of worshipping God appropriately and then turning to idols. The prophet Elijah had been carried away, and Elisha was the prophet of Israel from 892 to 832 BC. His time overlapped with Obadiah and Joel. Toward the end of his life, Jehoash was the king of Israel, and the Bible records, “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord and did not turn away from any of the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit; he continued in them” (2 Kings 13:11).

This evil was idol worship, and Asherah poles were common at that time. Despite turning from God, when some of Israel’s enemies were closing in, Jehoash came to Elisha on his deathbed asking for help and assurance. Elisha asked him to shoot arrows, and five or six should have hit their mark, but only three did. The prophet clarified, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times” (2 Kings 13:19b). After this event, the prophet died and was buried, but Israel had not defeated the armies of Aram.

It is at this point where the Bible gives the account of Israelites trying to bury a man, but being interrupted by Moabite raiders. They were not trying to bury this man with Elisha, but threw him in there in a desperate act. Upon touching Elisha’s bones, the man came back to life. No details are given about this man, how he died, or what happened to him after he experienced this miracle.

What Did This Mean at the Time?

Elisha’s bones were not special. They had no special powers, and no relic from a prophet, apostle, or saint has any supernatural ability to perform miracles. Only God has the power to truly bring people back from the dead, so God must have been the one to do this act. The reason was to remind the nation of Israel of the prophecy of Elisha, which had not come to pass, and to remind them of His power and His promise.

After this incident:

“Hazael king of Aram oppressed Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz. But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion and showed concern for them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. To this day he has been unwilling to destroy them or banish them from his presence. Hazael king of Aram died, and Ben-Hadad his son succeeded him as king. Then Jehoash son of Jehoahaz recaptured from Ben-Hadad son of Hazael the towns he had taken in battle from his father Jehoahaz. Three times Jehoash defeated him, and so he recovered the Israelite towns.” (2 Kings 13:22-25).

Just like Elisha prophesied, Jehoash defeated the armies of Aram three times, but it was after the death of their original oppressor and the ascension of his heir. It was also not during Elisha’s lifetime; many times that prophets predicted battle outcomes, they were alive when it came to pass, so this event was out of the norm for how God usually affirmed the word given by a true prophet.

God used the bones of Elisha to bring the dead man back to life in order to remind the nation of Israel that He promised them three victories through the arrows at the guidance of Elisha.

Do Bones or Relics Ever Have Supernatural Power?

This resurrection should be understood along the lines of similar temporary, resurrections. This man died again. Lazarus died again. The widow of Zarapeth’s son died again. All of these resurrections, including the one recorded in this passage from 2 Kings, were signs that testified to God’s power, foretold the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the eventual resurrection of the saints into glorified bodies at the end of days.

When Jesus commanded Lazarus to rise up out of the tomb, He spoke with the authority and power of God, because He is God, even though He was man simultaneously. All other resurrections in the Bible were displays of God’s power through someone, and not the personal power of the individual.

Just like the staff of Moses was a physical representation of the power of God when He performed a miracle before the Egyptians or in the desert for the Israelites, Elisha’s bones were a way for God to display resurrection power. The bones themselves did not hold any power. Relics from objects mentioned in the Bible, from apostles, prophets, or saints do not hold any miraculous power, and should not be venerated or seen as special.

God has always worked in ways that can be difficult to understand when approached from a strictly human, mortal, sin-influenced perspective. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one” (1 Corinthians 2:13-15).

A man being brought back to life because of contact with the bones of a dead prophet should be understood as a spiritual thing to be discerned, and from God’s perspective. All miracles come from God and testify about Him. He used old bones to remind Israel of His promises, that He has never failed them, and to keep their eyes on Him.

Sources

Edersheims, Alfred. Elisha the Prophet: The Lessons of His History and Times. London: The Religious Tract Society, 1882.

Pink, A.W. Gleanings From Elisha, His Life and Miracles. Reformed Church Publications, 2015.

Walvoord, John F. and Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge Commentary An Exposition of the Scriptures by Dallas Seminary Old Testament and New Testament. United States of America: Victor Books, 1987.

Wilmington, H.L. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, 1981.

Photo credit: Unsplash/Annie Spratt

Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.