Tel Jezreel Ruins Foreground Moreh and Shunem Distant

Like Elijah, Elisha spent most of his ministry in the Jezreel and Jordan River valleys. This would include Mt. Carmel to the west and the Jordan River to the east. That’s a span of about 28 miles (45 km). In between those two points was a small farming community near the Hill of Moreh in the Jezreel Valley. Elisha and a couple in Shunem formed a friendship, and the childless couple built a place for the prophet to stay while he was traveling in or through the area. In the biblical account, Elisha promises the couple a son in exchange for their kindness to him, but the boy dies of an unexplained illness. As Elijah had done at Zarephath for another boy (1 Kings 17), Elisha rushed to this grief-stricken home and prayed for the boy’s resurrection. Note the parallels. Elijah and Elisha both spent a lot of time in the Jezreel Valley. Both of them prayed over boys who had died prematurely, bringing comfort to their mothers. When Jesus began his ministry, he came upon a funeral in Nain for a woman’s only son (Luke 7:11-17). Nain is on the opposite side of the Hill of Moreh, just 2 miles (3 km) away. It is not seen here. When Jesus stopped the funeral and brought the young man back to life, it’s little wonder why people exclaimed, “A great prophet has appeared among us!”