Let’s read the account you are referring to.  2 Kings 6:1-7 says, “And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed. And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim. Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.”

Before we look closer at this portion, let’s read 1 Corinthians 10:11 which says, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”  The things that happened to those who lived during the days of the Old Testament were for examples for us to learn from.  The word ‘ensamples’ here is also translated ‘pattern’ and ‘figure’ in the New Testament.  So, we see that the events in the Old Testament did historically happen, but they happened as a pattern, or type, for us to learn valuable lessons.

The miraculous event we read about in 2 Kings 6:1-7 is pretty clear.  While cutting down trees, one of the sons of the prophets had the axe head fly off his axe and go into the Jordan River.  When Elisha, the man of God, learned about this, he cut down a stick and threw it into the river where the axe head sank.  The axe head then miraculously floated to the top of the river where the man was able to retrieve it.

What is the example or type in this event?  What can we learn from this miracle?  Of course the stick came from a tree.  We learn of the Lord Jesus in 1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”  A tree is a type of the cross of Calvary where Christ died for the sins of us all.  However, even though Christ died for everyone, everyone is not saved.  It’s only when we realize that the death of the Lord was for us individually, that we can then accept Him as our savior and Lord.  We have to appropriate His death for ourselves.  That is what the stick represents.  It represents the personal application of the death of Christ for us as individuals.  It’s wonderful to say as we read in 1 Timothy 1:15 that, “…Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…”  But when we realize the Lord’s death was for us as individuals that we will be able to say as Paul did in Galatians 2:20 that Christ Jesus, “…loved ME, and gave himself for ME.”

Notice in 2 Kings 6:5 that this axe head flew off and landed in the water.  This man’s tool was now gone and he could not work.  Verse 5 also tells us that this axe head did not belong to the one using it, it was borrowed.  So, this man who could not work had a debt he could not pay!  Doesn’t that remind you of our sorrowful condition before we accepted Christ as our savior?  Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”  Our salvation does not come through our work; it comes through faith in the finished work of Christ.  We cannot work for our salvation.  We owe a debt to the Lord that we cannot pay.  I’m reminded of that familiar saying, “We had a debt we could not pay.  He paid a debt He did not owe.”  So, this story of the axe head that floated is, in reality, a type of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross to save us from our sins.  Have you appropriated His death as payment of your sin debt?  Have you trusted on the Lord Jesus Christ and received the gift of salvation?  If not, we urge you to do it today!  (182.7)