Revision #10693
The Floating Axe Head
Localized for English-speaking readers
Status: approved
Changes from the previous English revision
= ## Text and Narrative
- The account appears in 2 Kings 6:1-7. The sons of the prophets tell Elisha that the place where they live with him is too small, and they ask to go to the Jordan River, where each will cut a beam to build a dwelling. Elisha gives his permission and, at the request of one of them, goes with them. As one man is cutting down a tree, his iron axe head falls into the water, and he cries out that it was "borrowed." Elisha asks where it fell, cuts off a stick, and throws it there, and the iron floats. When Elisha tells him to pick it up, the man reaches out his hand and takes it.
+ The account appears in 2 Kings 6:1-7. The sons of the prophets tell Elisha that the place where they dwell with him is too small and ask to go to the Jordan River, where each of them will cut a beam to build a dwelling. Elisha consents and, at the request of one of them, goes along. As one man is felling a tree, his iron axe head falls into the water, and he cries out, "Alas, master! for it was borrowed" (2 Kings 6:5). Elisha asks where it fell, cuts down a stick, and casts it in at that spot, and the iron floats. When Elisha tells him to take it up, the man puts out his hand and takes it.
=
= ## Background
- - **The sons of the prophets**: These were people who followed the prophets and lived together in groups during the time of Elijah and Elisha. Korean churches commonly refer to them as a "school of the prophets," but this is a later explanation rather than a term used in the text.
- - **The value of iron**: The Hebrew text calls the object that fell into the water "iron" (*barzel*). Iron tools were scarce in Israel at the time. First Samuel 13:19-21 describes a period when the Philistines controlled metalworking.
- - **Borrowed property**: Exodus 22:14 stipulates that if a borrowed animal is injured or dies, the borrower must make restitution. In light of this law, scholars explain that losing the axe head would have been a heavy burden for the man.
+ - **The sons of the prophets**: These were people who followed the prophets and lived together in communities during the time of Elijah and Elisha. They are sometimes described as a "school of the prophets," a designation especially common in Korean churches, but this is a later explanation rather than a term found in the text.
+ - **The value of iron**: The Hebrew text calls the object that fell into the water "iron" (*barzel*). Iron tools were scarce in Israel at the time; 1 Samuel 13:19-21 describes a period when the Philistines controlled metalworking.
+ - **Borrowed property**: Exodus 22:14 stipulates that if a borrowed animal is hurt or dies, the borrower must make restitution. In light of this law, scholars explain that the loss of the axe head would have been a heavy burden for the man.
=
= ## Significance in the Broader Biblical Context
- This event belongs to the group of Elisha's miracles that met the everyday needs of the community. Others of the same kind include the healing of the poisoned stew (2 Kings 4:38-41) and the feeding of a hundred men with a small amount of bread (2 Kings 4:42-44). Like the immediately preceding account of Naaman, it takes place at the Jordan, and together with Elisha's parting of the Jordan with Elijah's mantle (2 Kings 2:14), it demonstrates his authority. The New Testament does not directly refer to this event.
+ The event belongs to a group of Elisha's miracles that met the everyday needs of the prophetic community. Others of the same kind include the healing of the poisoned pottage (2 Kings 4:38-41) and the feeding of a hundred men with a small amount of bread (2 Kings 4:42-44). Like the immediately preceding account of Naaman, it is set at the Jordan, and together with Elisha's parting of the Jordan with Elijah's mantle (2 Kings 2:14), it demonstrates his authority. The New Testament does not directly refer to this event.
=
= ## Interpretations and Debates
- - **Reading as a literal miracle**: Most Korean churches and evangelical interpreters read it as a supernatural event in which God responded even to a small need.
- - **Rationalistic explanation**: Some critical scholars suggest that Elisha retrieved the axe head with a stick. However, because the text records that "the iron did swim" (2 Kings 6:6), many commentators object that this explanation does not fit the text.
- - **Typological interpretation**: Some early church fathers (such as Justin Martyr and Irenaeus) are known to have read the wood that was thrown as a type of the cross. Commentators in the Reformed tradition tend to exercise restraint toward such allegorical interpretation and to emphasize the historical meaning of the text.
+ - **Literal miracle**: Evangelical interpreters, including most Korean churches, read the account as a supernatural event in which God responded even to a small need.
+ - **Rationalistic explanation**: Some critical scholars suggest that Elisha simply retrieved the axe head with a stick. Because the text states that "the iron did swim" (2 Kings 6:6), however, many commentators object that this explanation does not fit the text.
+ - **Typological interpretation**: Some early church fathers, such as Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, are known to have read the wood that was cast into the water as a type of the cross. Commentators in the Reformed tradition tend to exercise restraint toward such allegorical readings and emphasize the historical meaning of the text.
= - **Later embellishments**: Details such as the identity of the axe head's owner or lender, or the reason the stick was thrown, do not appear in the text.
=
= ## In the Korean Church
- Sermons often take the cry "it was borrowed" as their starting point. Common themes include God as the one who restores what has been lost, the responsibility of stewardship for what has been entrusted, and God's presence even in small matters.
+ In Korean churches, sermons on this passage often take the cry "it was borrowed" as their starting point. Common themes include God as the one who restores what has been lost, the steward's responsibility for what has been entrusted, and God's presence even in small matters.
The floating axe head is a miracle recorded in 2 Kings 6:1-7, in which Elisha made a borrowed iron axe head that had fallen into the Jordan River float to the surface by throwing a stick into the water.
The floating axe head is a miracle recorded in 2 Kings 6:1-7, in which Elisha caused a borrowed iron axe head that had fallen into the Jordan River to float to the surface after he threw a stick into the water.
Full revision
The floating axe head is a miracle recorded in 2 Kings 6:1-7, in which Elisha caused a borrowed iron axe head that had fallen into the Jordan River to float to the surface after he threw a stick into the water.
Text and Narrative
The account appears in 2 Kings 6:1-7. The sons of the prophets tell Elisha that the place where they dwell with him is too small and ask to go to the Jordan River, where each of them will cut a beam to build a dwelling. Elisha consents and, at the request of one of them, goes along. As one man is felling a tree, his iron axe head falls into the water, and he cries out, "Alas, master! for it was borrowed" (2 Kings 6:5). Elisha asks where it fell, cuts down a stick, and casts it in at that spot, and the iron floats. When Elisha tells him to take it up, the man puts out his hand and takes it.
Background
- The sons of the prophets: These were people who followed the prophets and lived together in communities during the time of Elijah and Elisha. They are sometimes described as a "school of the prophets," a designation especially common in Korean churches, but this is a later explanation rather than a term found in the text.
- The value of iron: The Hebrew text calls the object that fell into the water "iron" (barzel). Iron tools were scarce in Israel at the time; 1 Samuel 13:19-21 describes a period when the Philistines controlled metalworking.
- Borrowed property: Exodus 22:14 stipulates that if a borrowed animal is hurt or dies, the borrower must make restitution. In light of this law, scholars explain that the loss of the axe head would have been a heavy burden for the man.
Significance in the Broader Biblical Context
The event belongs to a group of Elisha's miracles that met the everyday needs of the prophetic community. Others of the same kind include the healing of the poisoned pottage (2 Kings 4:38-41) and the feeding of a hundred men with a small amount of bread (2 Kings 4:42-44). Like the immediately preceding account of Naaman, it is set at the Jordan, and together with Elisha's parting of the Jordan with Elijah's mantle (2 Kings 2:14), it demonstrates his authority. The New Testament does not directly refer to this event.
Interpretations and Debates
- Literal miracle: Evangelical interpreters, including most Korean churches, read the account as a supernatural event in which God responded even to a small need.
- Rationalistic explanation: Some critical scholars suggest that Elisha simply retrieved the axe head with a stick. Because the text states that "the iron did swim" (2 Kings 6:6), however, many commentators object that this explanation does not fit the text.
- Typological interpretation: Some early church fathers, such as Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, are known to have read the wood that was cast into the water as a type of the cross. Commentators in the Reformed tradition tend to exercise restraint toward such allegorical readings and emphasize the historical meaning of the text.
- Later embellishments: Details such as the identity of the axe head's owner or lender, or the reason the stick was thrown, do not appear in the text.
In the Korean Church
In Korean churches, sermons on this passage often take the cry "it was borrowed" as their starting point. Common themes include God as the one who restores what has been lost, the steward's responsibility for what has been entrusted, and God's presence even in small matters.