2Ki 4:1-6, 3… go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors-empty vessels; do not gather just a few…
In Luke 18 Jesus gave a parable of a persistent widow to encourage men to pray and not lose heart. The widow had no one to meet her needs or even get her justice, but she knew what she must do.
This picture of Jesus speaking of a widow perfectly fits that of the widow Elisha met. She was about to lose 2 of her sons to slavery due to debt. She cried to Elisha for help. Elisha inquired of what she had in her house. She had nothing but a small jar of oil. Elisha advised her and her sons to go everywhere and borrow a lot of empty vessels then close the door behind them and pour little oil in every vessel. Prayers is like a little jar oil we each have and the empty vessels are our friends, neighbors, family etc we borrow, we close the door behind us and pray for them. Every jar the widow poured little oil into, God filled them up (gave increase). The means by which their needs were met were through borrowed vessels. God turned Job’s captivity when he prayed for his friends (Job 42:10). Sometimes what you have is all you need, a little jar of oil and borrowed vessels.