When we closed our study yesterday we found Elisha lodging at the school of prophets in Jericho after Elijah had been taken to heaven. Earlier in the Bible, after the Israelites destroyed the heathen city of Jericho, a cursed was pronounced upon anyone who might choose to rebuild it. "At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: 'Cursed before the Lord is the one who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: 'At the cost of his firstborn son he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest he will set up its gates.'" (Joshua 6:26) But during the reign of the idolatrous King Ahab, a man named Hiel of Bethel rebuilt the city and the curse came true; his eldest son and his youngest son both died. (This passage can be found in 1 Kings 16.) When we studied 1 Kings 16 we discussed the possibility that Hiel made "foundation sacrifices" of his sons, which was an ancient pagan practice. The bones of such sacrifices have been found in the foundations of buildings and walls during archaeological excavations of ancient pagan cities. Whatever the cause of death of Hiel's sons, we see that he did not take the curse seriously and undertook the rebuilding of Jericho in spite of what it cost his family.
Now, possibly because the city was rebuild in opposition to the Lord's instructions, its water springs have gone bad. At one time the water must have been useful for drinking and for irrigation since the ancient city of Jericho was a prosperous location. But after its rebuilding the water wasn't fit for drinking or for watering crops and I assume that drinking water had to be obtained from sources outside the city and transported back in large jars in wagons. This would have been an inconvenient and time-consuming task. The men of Jericho lay their problem before Elisha in hopes he can do something about it. "The people of the city said to Elisha, 'Look, our lord, this town is well situated, as you can see, but the water is bad and the land is unproductive.'" (2 Kings 2:19)
Had these men never brought their problem before the prophet Elijah? We don't know but it may be that Elijah either could not heal the waters or did not choose to heal the waters. He might have chosen not to because the Lord had commanded the city never to be rebuilt. Or it may be that, since Elisha now has a double portion of the power of Elijah, this miracle could only have been performed by Elisha. We find Elisha immediately taking steps to do something about the problem. "'Bring me a new bowl,' he said, 'and put salt in it.' So they brought it to him. Then he went out to the spring and threw the salt into it, saying, 'This is what the Lord says: 'I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.' And the water has remained pure to this day, according to the word Elisha had spoken." (2 Kings 2:20-22)
A handful of salt thrown into a running spring is not capable of healing the water temporarily, much less permanently. Elisha makes it clear that this is the Lord's doing and that the throwing of the salt into the water is a symbolic gesture. Salt was an extremely valuable commodity in ancient times before the invention of refrigeration because it could be used as a preservative. Because of its great importance in preserving items from rot and infestation, salt was often used as a symbol of purity, such as when the Lord Jesus said of believers: "You are the salt of the earth." (Matthew 5:13) Another example of salt symbolizing purity is that salt was to be blended with all the offerings made to the Lord. (Leviticus 2:13) So Elisha uses the handful of salt when the waters are purified not because the salt itself purifies the waters but because the salt stands for something else: the holiness and righteousness of the Lord. He uses the handful of salt as a visual expression of what's going on in the supernatural realm---as he is throwing the salt into the water the Lord is healing the water. Elisha is careful not to give the impression that he has the power to heal the water or that the salt heals the water. He plainly states that the Lord healed the water.
Jericho was not meant to be rebuilt. It was supposed to lie in ruins forever as a reminder of the penalty for idolatry. The people of Jericho forsook the Lord in favor of false gods; therefore, after many centuries of being repeatedly rejected by them, the Lord allowed their city to be destroyed by a nation that recognized Him as Lord. But a wicked man living during an especially idolatrous era of the nation of Israel rebuilt the city anyway and as a result its waters turned bitter. I am not sure that prophets of the Lord should have been inhabiting the city even though its rebuilding was not their doing, but perhaps they were there to be the "salt of the earth" and the "light of the world" to people who were living in rebellion to the Lord. The Lord is merciful to these prophets and to the other inhabitants of the city by turning unhealthy water into beneficial water. This good water will make their lives easier and more productive. It will bring health to them, their livestock, and their crops.
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