“If the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be?”
The full verse · 2 Kings 7:2 · KJV
Then a on whose the the of , and , Behold, if the would in , might this be? And he , Behold, thou shalt it with thine , but shalt not thereof.
Asked by
Asked to
Elisha the prophet, speaking in the hearing of the king and his court during the siege of Samaria.
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionThe captain asks not to inquire but to dismiss. His question functions as a sophisticated rejection, using hyperbole to mock Elisha’s prophetic word as physically impossible. By framing divine intervention as absurd, he simultaneously protects his own worldview and signals his allegiance to the king’s despair.
The Response
What Scripture recordsElisha immediately pronounced judgment: ‘You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it’ (2 Kings 7:2). This prophecy affirmed that the promised abundance would materialize exactly as predicted, but the skeptical captain would witness it without participating. He would see but not savor.
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyThe captain’s question drips with scornful impossibility, suggesting that even if Yahweh opened the very windows of heaven, the promised deliverance could not materialize within twenty-four hours. The Hebrew construction uses a conditional particle with an imperfect verb, emphasizing the hypothetical and implausible nature of the scenario in the captain’s mind. He asks not because he seeks understanding but because a question allows him to mock without direct blasphemy. Why a question rather than a flat denial? Because rhetorical questions permit plausible deniability while conveying contempt more powerfully than declarative statements. His imagery of heaven’s windows ironically echoes the very mechanism through which God could and would provide; yet the captain wields this biblical allusion as a weapon of disbelief. The theological weight is severe: unbelief in God’s prophetic word, especially when voiced by those in authority, invites judgment that matches the precision of the promise. The captain would see evidence of God’s power yet perish in the presence of abundance, a terrifying picture of those who witness divine truth without embracing it.
Cynicism dressed as realism can disqualify you from the very blessing you’re doubting. The captain’s question reveals how intellectual sophistication sometimes masks spiritual bankruptcy. When God’s promise sounds too good to be true, our first instinct may be to dismiss it as impossible rather than to remember His past faithfulness. But unbelief doesn’t stop God’s work; it only excludes us from experiencing it. Like the captain, we can stand in the very presence of God’s provision yet starve because we refused to believe. The invitation remains: ‘Taste and see that the LORD is good’ (Psalm 34:8). Faith isn’t pretending impossibilities are easy; it’s trusting that nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:37). Let humility replace mockery, and you’ll feast rather than merely watch.
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