Elisha's Body and the Queer Touch of Prophecy

Abstract

When we talk about prophecy, we often focus on words or deeds—on what the prophets say, or on their performance of miraculous acts. The Elisha narratives, however, repeatedly direct attention to the prophet's body. This body is frequently deficient, powerless, or insufficiently masculine. And yet it is in these moments that Elisha's body is most effective and even powerful. This article surveys key moments in Elisha's embodiment, including the incident with the boys at Bethel (2 Kgs 2:23–25), the restoration of the Shunammite's son (2 Kgs 4:8–37), and the life-giving powers of the prophet's bones after his death (2 Kgs 13:20–21). An analysis of these texts suggests that Elisha's body is non-normative and even queer, and that his success as a prophet depends on his movement outside of normative masculine embodiment. Understanding the prophet Elisha requires understanding the prophet's body; understanding the prophet's body, in turn, opens a world of meanings and possibilities of its own, with particular significance for feminist and queer hermeneutics.