61 And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us. 2 Let us go, we pray thee, to the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he said, Go. 3 And one said, Consent, I pray thee, to go with thy servants. And he said, I will go. 4 And he went with them. And they came to the Jordan and cut down the trees. 5 And it came to pass as one was felling a beam, that the iron fell into the water; and he cried and said, Alas, master, and it was borrowed! 6 And the man of God said, Where did it fall? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim. 7 And he said, Take [it] up to thee. And he put out his hand and took it.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 2 Kings 6:1-7
Commentary on 2 Kings 6:1-7
(Read 2 Kings 6:1-7)
There is that pleasantness in the converse of servants of God, which can make those who listen to them forget the pain and the weariness of labour. Even the sons of the prophets must not be unwilling to labour. Let no man think an honest employment a burden or a disgrace. And labour of the head, is as hard, and very often harder, than labour with the hands. We ought to be careful of that which is borrowed, as of our own, because we must do as we would be done by. This man was so respecting the axe-head. And to those who have an honest mind, the sorest grievance of poverty is, not so much their own want and disgrace, as being rendered unable to pay just debts. But the Lord cares for his people in their smallest concerns. And God's grace can thus raise the stony iron heart, which is sunk into the mud of this world, and raise up affections, naturally earthly.