This week, we shall continue to study
the book of 2 Kings in the Old Testament.
(1) What did Gehazi call Naaman? Why? (v. 20)
(2) What was meant by being “too easy” on Naaman?
(3) What then was his motive in trying to “get something” from Naaman?
(4) How much did Gehazi ask for? (one talent was the equivalent of 75 pounds)
(5) What use would he have of the two sets of clothing?
(6) Why did Elisha ask Gehazi since he knew what really happened?
(7) What was Gehazi’s answer?
(8) Why did Elisha ask, “Is this the time to take money or accept clothes or olive grove and vineyards, or flocks or herds, or male and female slaves?"?
(9) What time was it?
(10) Who were they and their calling?
(11) What did having all these (money, clothes, vineyards etc.) represent?
(12) How was having all these unfitting for Elisha, Gehazi and the company of prophets?
(13) How severe was Gehazi’s punishment? Why was it so severe?
(14) What is “our time”? Is it any different from Elisha’s time?
(15) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
6:1-7—The Miracle of the Lost and Found
(1) What do you think might be the purpose of building a place to meet with Elisha?
(2) What does the panicked cry of the one who lost the axe tell us about their condition?
(3) In what ways was the finding of the axe miraculous?
(4) What was the significance of this miracle to the prophet?
6:8-17—The Miracle of Eavesdropping
(5) What should such miraculous eavesdropping mean to the King of Israel and his commanders?
(6) Would you have acted upon it if you were the king of Israel? Why or why not?
(7) It was obvious that the king of Aram conducted an investigation and eventually heard the report about Elisha’s eavesdropping:
a. How far-fetched was this finding?
b. Why would he believe in it?
c. Since he did, what made him think that Elisha would not have heard of his decision to catch him?
(8) Why did Elisha appear not to be afraid of being surrounded by the Aramean army?
(9) Why would the heavenly army be described as “horses and chariots of fire”?
(10) Why didn’t the servant see what Elisha was able to see?
(11) What did it take for the servant to see the heavenly army?
(12) Elisha told his servant, “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them”:
a. How may his words help us today in times of trials?
b. How does this echo what the Apostle John said in 1 John 4:4?
(13) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
6:18-23—The Miracle of Blinding the Eyes of the Enemies
(1) How was Elisha rescued from the hands of the Aramean army?
(2) What part did the heavenly “horses and chariots of fire” play in this miracle?
(3) What can we understand about this heavenly army through this incident?
(4) Why didn’t Elisha seek to kill the Aramean army?
(5) To the Arameans, which was a bigger miracle?
a. The blinding of their eyes? Or
b. The treatment of kindness?
(6) How does this incident demonstrate the character of the Lord?
6:24-33—Famine in Besieged Samaria
(7) How severe was the famine in Samaria? (vv. 25, 28-29)
(8) Do you think the king of Israel sought help from the Lord? (v. 33)
(9) Why did he blame Elisha for their dire situation? (v. 31)
(10) Whom should he blame?
(11) What should his attitude be?
(12) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note: 80 shekels = 2 lbs; 5 shekels = 2 oz.
7:1-2—The Incredible Prophecy
(1) How incredible was Elisha’s prophecy in v. 1, especially when one considers the following?
a. How drastic a change he prophesied
b. How dire a situation they were in
c. How soon it would happen
(2) Why was the officer of the king so cynical? (v. 2)
(3) Was he not justified? Why or why not?
(4) What punishment would he receive because of his unbelief? (v. 2)
7:3-12—The Four Lepers—Bearers of Good News
(5) What might you understand as the plight of lepers in those days?
a. Was there any cure for the disease at the time?
b. Where were they living? (v. 3)
c. Apart from physical suffering, what else did they suffer from?
(6) What miracle did the Lord perform to cause the Aramean army to run for their lives? (vv. 6-7)
(7) If you were one of the lepers, how would you describe your good fortune? (v. 8)
(8) Why would they think that what they were doing was not right? (v. 9)
a. Did they have any reason not to tell the people inside the city?
b. Who were they? Why would the people believe in them?
c. Why then did they choose to go?
d. Why couldn’t they wait?
e. Was their good news being believed upon at once? (v. 12)
(9) How comparable was the situation faced by these lepers to ours in the following terms?
a. Who we are
b. How dire the situation of the people of the world is as they live in sin
c. What good news we have
d. How we have benefited from the good news
e. What happens if we do not share the good news with the world
f. How urgent our task is
g. Would the world necessarily believe in our good news?
h. What can we learn from these lepers?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note: a seah = 12 lbs; a shekel = 2/5 oz.
(1) Why didn’t the king believe in the good news of the lepers?
(2) What should he have done at least, given the prophecy spoken by Elisha?
(3) How wise was the counsel of one of the king’s officers? (v. 13)
(4) How did the good news of the lepers become credible?
(5) What was the result of the confirmation of their credibility?
(6) Did the lepers receive any reward for their role in saving the city?
(7) Was it important to them? Why?
(8) What was the fate of the officer who did not believe in the words of the prophet? (v. 17)
(9) Which part of this prophecy impresses you the most in terms of its fulfillment? Why?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
8:1-6—The Shunammite Woman
(1) How long was the famine decreed by the Lord?
(2) According to the words of Moses, what would be the reason for famine within the land? (Lev. 26:26; Deut. 28:22)
(3) Why did Elisha treat her so specially?
(4) What happened to her land when they were away these seven years?
(5) What did the king want to talk to Gehazi about?
(6) What must have been the impact of their conversation on the king?
(7) Was it an accident that her petition coincided with the conversation the king had with Gehazi? Why or why not?
(8) What was the result of her petition?
8:7-15—Prophecy Fulfilled Concerning Hazael
(9) Back in the mountain in Horeb, what did the Lord tell Elijah to do concerning Hazael? (1 Ki. 19:15)
(10) Based on the conversation Elisha had with Hazael in this passage, do you think Elijah went to Damascus to anoint Hazael at all?
(11) Can we get a sense of the fame of Elisha based on vv. 7-8?
(12) What did Elisha tell Hazael to say to Ben-Hadad? (v. 10) Was it a lie?
(13) Why did Elisha weep?
(14) Why then would the Lord anoint Hazael as the king of Aram?
(15) Do you think the prophecy pronounced by Elisha cause Hazael to kill Ben-Hadad? Why or why not?
(16) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
The Tale of Two Kings of Judah:
(1) Jehoram succeeded Jehoshaphat, a godly king (1 Ki. 22:43) as the king of Judah:
a. What was the biblical comment about him? (2 Ki. 8:18)
b. What might be the reason that he did not follow the footsteps of his father? (v. 18)
c. Why was the Lord not willing to destroy Judah because of its wickedness? (v. 19)
(2) While God did not see fit to destroy Judah as a whole,
would you call it a punishment concerning Jehoram:
a. Based on what was described in vv. 20-22?
b. And how he died? (2 Chr. 21:18-20)
(3) Who succeeded Jehoram as king of Judah?
(4) Was he any better? Why?
(5) What did the Bible attribute the wicked ways of Ahaziah to? (v. 27)
(6) Who started this marriage relationship between the two families? (2 Chr. 18:1)
(7) How many generations had this marriage affected?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?