“And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto 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. And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was felling a beam, the ax head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed. And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim. Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it” (2 Kings 6:1-71And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. 2Let us go, we pray thee, unto 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. 3And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. 4So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. 5But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed. 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 the iron did swim. 7Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it. (2 Kings 6:1‑7)).
In the earlier chapters of this book, some of these younger ones were not in a good state of soul, and had missed the mind of the Lord. But it would seem they were now growing in their souls. They said, “Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us.” There appears to be a desire to develop, and they consult with an older one.
Desiring Fellowship of the Older Man
Then these younger ones said, “Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan.” Jordan speaks of our death with Christ; this was surely progress in their souls. But notice, they consulted with him. They said to Elisha, “Let us go...unto 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.” What happy approval! It has long been noticed that younger ones who act in independency without seeking the fellowship of their brethren often end in disaster. “And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants.” They lovingly said, “We are not going to go without you, Elisha.” This is the road to wisdom and blessing. He replied, “I will go.”
“So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.” Wood in scripture often speaks of humanity, but it applies primarily to Christ. He, the eternal Son of God, became a Man. May we all desire to be building the testimony of His grace, to the blessed name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
A Test
“But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water.” Let us consider the axe head as a picture of the truth. He loses the axe head in the water. He thinks immediately of the “man of God,” and confesses it was borrowed. The truth is not ours; it is committed to us as a trust; we can lose it. May we value it and the One of whom it speaks! The “man of God” asks, “Where fell it?” Where did you lose it? This is very important. If we lose the truth it is not only the immediate loss of it that we need to fear, but it is where the drift started. We do not lose the truth without going through many “red lights.” He had to go back to the place of departure. When we neglect this, we are on the way to the loss of discernment, and of the truth itself. “And he showed him the place.”
The Shadow of the Cross of Christ
“And he cut down a stick.” How touching! We need to get back to the cross — the beginning of our blessing, and also where we find our restoration. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:99If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)). “And the iron did swim.” Miracle! Oh, prove the Lord, and find out that He is faithful to His Word. But the axe head did not attach itself to the handle. “Therefore said he (Elisha), Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand and took it.” He had to get down on his hands and knees, reach out and take that axe head, and put it back onto the handle. The truth was restored to him, but he had to take a humble place.
New Testament Axe Heads
Paul, the older, says to Timothy, the younger:
Study to show (or, strive diligently to present) thyself approved to God, a workman that needeth (has) not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (cutting in a straight line) the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:1515Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15)).
Timothy was to be a workman, cutting with his ax in a straight line. “The Word of Truth” was to be carefully handled; he was not to lose his “axe head.”
Another Axe Head
“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity (love), in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1 Tim. 4:12-1612Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. 13Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. 14Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. 15Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. 16Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee. (1 Timothy 4:12‑16)).
“Let no man despise thy youth.” It was not that the Paul was saying to Timothy, “Don’t let them push you around because you are a younger brother;” rather Paul was saying to him, “Consistency, Timothy, consistency. If you are living out in your life the truth that you are teaching, they will not despise you.” Consistency in our life is so important! We all have a tendency to drift from “cutting in a straight line.” Fathers and mothers also need this. There is no moral power, fathers and mothers, if there is inconsistency in your life. It is the applying of that “axe head” consistently that is going to bring honor to the Lord Jesus Christ in our lives.
Careful Use of the “Axe Head” Brings Reward
Then he says (verse 14): “Neglect not the gift that is in thee (be not negligent). Every one of us has received a gift. Take on those responsibilities; if the Lord leaves us here much longer, we older ones will be gone.
“Meditate upon (or, occupy thyself with) these things.” “These things” are heavenly truth; not the problems of this life. We are surely surrounded by problems, but the answer is Christ. He is the answer for every problem! “Give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting (or, progress) may appear to all.” How encouraging it is to see younger ones growing in their souls and assuming responsibility!
Mothers: Keep Your Eye on the Axe Head
You mothers—do not give up! Be an example and an encouragement to your daughters, young and old. Keep on! Remember Timothy’s mother, and his grandmother.
Paul says, “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine (or, teaching); continue in them.” He warned in Acts 20 of the dangers from without, but he also warned of the dangers from within.
Another Axe Head
“But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured (or, fully persuaded) of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them” (2 Tim. 3:1414But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; (2 Timothy 3:14)). We do learn truth from those who do not walk in it. If we are drawing from those who have bought the truth, paid for it in faithfulness to the Word of God and have left us their scripturally-proven writings, then we are going to be established in the truth. Stand for the truth and you will experience the Lord’s preserving care; you shall know the joy of living in a dark day for the Lord’s glory.
Hold the Axe Handle Lightly
Norman Berry (adapted)