Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. 2 Kings 7:4b KJV
Seemingly, any choice they made would most likely end in death. Since they thought they were going to die anyway, why not do something unexpected, something daring and dangerous? Would I recommend this? Probably not...unless, of course, God was the one who initiated it. And of course, He had though the men had no idea. How else could four starving, leprous men by simply walking toward the enemy's camp be made to sound like a "multitude of chariots, horses and a great army" coming against them? An army so great, the sound alone caused the Syrians to run for their lives in such haste that all their provisions, including any spoils of war they had gained, was left behind for the taking.
Why did I choose this story, I'm learning as I go, but I've already seen that it's a prime example of how God can cause a person, or a nation to go from not having enough of anything to having an abundance of everything, and in this instance, over night! I'd call that an example of flourishing. One of the keys to flourishing or anything else, for that matter, is making a decision to start moving in that direction, and the best decision to make at the beginning of any journey is to choose to do things God's way.
Think about it...this true story is such a good example of how God can work on our behalf behind the scenes in ways we can't even imagine. And in these days, no matter in which country we may live, most of us have great concerns about what the future may hold, but God is still God and if He did it once, which sets a precedence, we know He can do it again--even if it is against all odds. Afterall, if He said He's going to do something, can we not expect Him to carry it through even as God Himself established with His rhetorical question as stated in Numbers 23:19,
Now, the question we have is this: How did God go about making four lepers sound like "a great army"? Some answers coming up.
In 2 Kings 6:6, Elisha was introduced as a man of God, and later in verses 11 through 12, as a prophet in Israel with a special gift which caused an opposing king great distress:
11 Now the heart of the king of Aram was enraged over this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?” 12 One of his servants said, “No, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom. NASB1995
Even the enemy acknowledged Elisha as a prophet. He was indeed a prophet of God, set apart as God's gift to Israel, so they could hear the word of the LORD in order to give them direction, correction, understanding, and victory in battle. When they listened and followed God's way, they prospered; when they didn't listen, they didn't prosper. When a true prophet of God spoke what God revealed to him, it was as if God Himself was speaking.
The first step which initiated "the mighty army sound" was Elisha speaking forth the word he had received from God for the king of Israel:
Then Elisha said, “Listen to the word of the Lord; thus says the Lord, ‘Tomorrow about this time a measure of fine flour will be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.’” 2 Kings 7:1, NASB 1995
This spoken word of God was activated by the Holy Spirit which empowered it to come into being. This is how God creates. First, He speaks, then Holy Spirit acts on the word(s) empowering them to come to pass as in Genesis 1:2-3. And similarly, as it did when Elisha spoke God's word to the King of Israel. Those words immediately began empowering everything necessary to bring them to pass. Thus, the 4 lepers were influenced to choose going to the enemies camp where their destiny would be decided. Once they started walking, heavens' sound was released on their behalf:
For the Lord had caused the army to hear the sound of chariots, and the sound of horses, the sound of a great army. They had said to one another, “The king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come [and fight] against us.” NASB 1995
On arriving at the camp, the lepers finding it empty, entered one vacated tent after another, where they ate, drank and carried away fine clothing, silver and gold-- which they buried before returning to tell the king--who was not easily convinced with their story.
However, the lepers report was confirmed, and the King opened the city gates allowing the people to run out and plunder the enemy camp. So true to the Elisha's words, "This time tomorrow....." there was more than enough of everything for everyone on the next day just as Elisha had spoken!
Though it seems impossible, when God says something will happen , it indeed, will come to pass-- even in a day's time. True flourishing starts with choosing to trust God and learn His way of doing things. If you haven't already invited Him into your life, now would be a good time to do it because He's been knocking. And since Jesus paid the way for us to come-- all we have to do is accept the invitation.