Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 6
God can cause a person who can only see things in this natural world, to see into the spirit world (6:17). In the same way, God can cause people who can usually see, not to see the objects round them. So, Elisha first prayed for his servant to see into the spirit world. Then he prayed for God to make the army that opposed him unable to see.
God answered both prayers. The army of Aram came to attack Dothan and to take Elisha away. However, suddenly the soldiers all became unable to see. They could not fight, because they could not see what to attack. They could not escape, because they could not see where to go. They were not permanently blind – but they would not see again until Elisha prayed for them to see.
They heard the voice of a man who offered to be their guide. This was Elisha – but of course, they could not see or recognise him. As blind men, they needed a guide. However, it was not just blind people who used guides. Someone on a journey would pay a guide to direct him on his way.
Elisha offered to be that kind of guide for them. They had gone to the wrong city, because they should be at Samaria, the capital city. The man whom they needed to find was not Elisha, but Joram, Israel’s king. Joram, an evil king, was the reason why Aram and Israel were at war.
So, Elisha proposed to take them to him. The soldiers from Aram followed Elisha, as he guided them, probably by his voice. It was the way that a farmer would guide a group of sheep. He took them 10 miles (16 kilometres) south of Dothan, to Samaria.
Next part: Elisha leads the enemy soldiers into Samaria (2 Kings 6:20)
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