24" x 18" on Sketch Paper
Book 12 Poster 12
Two Nations Become None
Downfall of Israel
Downfall of Judah
Yes this picture is busy and strange. You just try to depict prophecies and miracles.:-) The book begins with the passing of King Ahaziah, the response of Elijah to being called to the Kings death bed, and Jehoram becoming King. Elijah and Elisha were traveling together in Elijah's old age and they came to Jordan where Elijah struck with his mantle, the water parted, and they crossed to the other side. Here Elijah asked what Elisha wanted before Elijah passed away. Elisha wanted to be doubly like Elijah. If it was to be granted there would be a sign. Elisha was to see Elijah taken up. When Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind not only did Elisha see it but Elijah's mantle fell from him to Elisha. Shown at the top left hand corner you can see Elijah in yellow, wearing the plaid mantle, and being taken up. You also see the mantle being used to part the Jordan. Both men used it to do that.
Elisha did many wonders. He purified drinking water next. Also shown in that corner kneeling beside a man in blue and holding a pitcher. The next event shown is the bears after a young man that had been teasing Elijah about being a baldhead person. And here is where I made one of my artistic blunders. My Elijah seems to have hair. Oops. Possibly I was trying to figure out the significance of this event and forgot not to pencil in his hair. I really can't say for sure. Also I noted that it says two female bears came out and I seem to have three. Duh. One, two, three. Don't take my pictures too closely to heart.
Elisha prophesied the events regarding the Moab rebellion, and then saved a women from dept by multiplying her jars of oil to sell. You can see her and her son filling jars just above left center on the picture. He then went to Shunem where he met a woman and her husband that added on an extra bedroom for him to stay in during his travels. That is drawn on the left edge just above the stone wall. She has her hand on Elisha's back and showing him into the house. (I might add here that one of the reasons I chose to use folk art form to work with is because one person can be doing many different things in the same drawing. So even though Elisha is only one man he is shown several times.) Elisha granted because the woman was so kind to him that although she had not been able to have children that she would have a son. She did and he grew up but became ill to the point of death but Elisha prayed and lay himself on the boy and brought back his life to him and returned her son to her. I show this scene outside rather than inside because I just couldn't figure out how to work it in. So in the center of the picture you see Elisha beside the child's bed beseeching God.
Next he cures some men from a poisonous stew. If you look right center you will see 3 men around a table and one is holding his throat. He went from there to cure a leper by having him wash in the Jordan. It wasn't the river that cured him it was the obedience. Shown just above the men and their stew. I also show the servant Gehazi taking what didn't belong to him from the cured leper as payment. You can see him with the lepers donkey. But Gehazi was keeping it for himself so Elisha then transferred the leprosy to Gehazi.
Elisha then goes on to float an ax head for a fellow that has dropped it in the river after borrowing it from someone. You can see the man and the falling ax head toward the top right of the picture. Why is Elisha doing all these individual miracles?
At this point I am beginning to think to myself "kits, cats, sacks, and wives", how many miracles is Elisha going to do on his way to St. Ives.(I hope you know that child's story)
Now he proceeds to save the king of Israel by warning him that the Syrians are coming along his path and the Syrians try to capture Elisha. God shows him he is surrounded and protected by an army of angels and also showed the king of Israel who protected them. He, the king of Israel, asked Elisha what should be done with the Syrian army and he told them to feed them bread and water and send them away. The table of bread is shown lower center beside the drawings of Elisha praying over the boy and below the men eating stew. The Syrians did not come again into the land of Israel.
Next we have the one story that sticks in my mind the most from this book. Two women agree to cannibalize their children because of a famine in the land. "We will eat my son today and yours tomorrow." They are drawn just below middle center of the picture as two scraggly women placing a skinny child into a boiling pot. The next day the second woman refused to cook hers and the first took her complaint to the king. Now cannibalizing your own child is bad enough but think of what the entire social, moral, spiritual, culture must have fallen into for a woman to feel free enough to go to her king and state such a complaint! The king then turned on Elisha?
Sorry this is so long but so much happened.
Next we have four lepers scaring off an entire army and looting their camp because the Lord had caused the Syrian army to hear sounds of chariots and a great army. The lepers are shown at the top right corner and the soldiers running away from their tents.
Now Elisha tells the healed son of the nice lady he met earlier to go live somewhere else because of a famine. They do it and return seven years later and their property is restored to them by the king. Elisha goes from there to Damascus and tells Hazael to lie to his king about getting well from an illness and then to become king in his place. Go figure that one out. Another King, King Hezekiah was granted 15 years more life after an illness and he wanted a sign to prove it was going to happen. The Lord brought the shadow on a stairway back ten steps. You can see the stairway close the middle right edge beside the warrior.
This leads to a long string of kings. Jehoram reigns in Judah, Ahaziah succeeds Jehoram in Judah. Jehu reigns over Israel. Jehoram is Assassinated. Jehu Assassinates Ahaziah. Jezebel is Slain. Judgment on Ahab's House. Jehoahaz Succeeds Jehu. Athaliah Queen of Judah. Joash reigns over Judah. Joash succeeded by Amaziah in Judah. Kings of Israel: Jehoahaz and Jehoash. Some good kings but mostly bad. The list goes on for several more chapters. The results of which are Israel collapses before Assyria and Judah before Babylon because they rejected God's covenant to take care of them if they obey him. At one point Hilkiah found the book of the law in the house of the Lord and when it was read to the king reforms were made for a time. I have shown many kings falling, some even killing their own sons, some killed by others, some killed by outsiders.
Now just before the time of death of Elisha Joash the king of Israel came to him for advice about a war and Elisha had him shoot and arrow of an East facing window and the strike the arrows on the ground to decide how badly he would defeat the Syrians. ??? Again I am confused. Then Elisha was buried, bands of Moabites invaded, a man was cast into Elisha's grave because some men doing the funeral wanted to flee, and when they cast him into Elisha's grave the man came back to life and climbed out. Well I show some arrows and I show the man climbing out of the grave but I don't begin to tell you why.
At the bottom of the picture is the thrown of the king and the house of God destroyed. Jerusalem was burned and plundered and the people were carried away along with all the wealth of the land. Only the poorest of poor were left to be governed by Gedaliah who was later killed by the Chaldeans.
The hand at the bottom of the picture represents who you want it to be, the hand of God, the hand of Elisha, the hand of someone shaking their fist at God, the kings, the conquerors, the poor that became slaves, the lost, or whomever you feel fits.
Two nations have just become none.
No comments:
Post a Comment