The Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating ancient text filled with stories and interpretations, brings us a wild tale about the prophet Elisha. Specifically, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 33 recounts a teaching from Rabbi Joshua ben Ḳorchah that will leave you saying, "Wow!"

Rabbi Joshua asks, are you astonished by something seemingly impossible? Don't be! Come and learn from the story of Elisha, the son of Shaphat. And here's the kicker: according to this tradition, no woman could gaze upon his face without dying!

Imagine that. A man so filled with divine power that his very appearance was lethal to women. He traveled "from mount to mount, and from cave to cave," seeking solitude and connection with the divine.

One day, as recounted in 2 Kings 4:8, Elisha journeyed to Shunem. There, a "great woman" – a woman of stature and means – welcomed him with open arms. This woman, we're told, was a sister of Abishag, the Shunammite, and the mother of Oded, the prophet. Quite a lineage!

Recognizing Elisha’s holiness, she tells her husband something extraordinary. According to her, no woman is able to gaze at his face without dying. “Let us make, I pray thee, a little chamber on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a lampstand," she says, as we read in 2 Kings 4:10. A place for him to find rest and peace.

So, every time Elisha passed through Shunem, he would turn into this chamber. As 2 Kings 4:11 tells us, "And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber." It became his sanctuary.

Then comes another intriguing detail. Elisha calls for the Shunammite woman. "And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood at the door" (2 Kings 4:15). Why did she stand at the door, hesitant to enter fully? The text tells us it was "Because she was unable to gaze at his face, so that she should not die." The woman, knowing the potential danger, keeps her distance, yet still wants to provide hospitality to this holy man. It speaks volumes about her character, her faith, and the perceived power of Elisha.

Now, Elisha had something to say to her... but we'll save that part for another time.

What does this incredible story tell us? Is it a literal account? A metaphor for the overwhelming presence of the divine? A reflection on the perceived power dynamics between men and women in ancient times? Perhaps it’s all of these things and more. It certainly gives us something to ponder, doesn't it?