St. Augustine considers a great mystery in this miracle wrought by the prophet Eliseus, thus: By the staff sent by his servant is figured the rod of Moses, or the Old Law, which was not sufficient to bring mankind to life then dead in sin. It was necessary that Christ himself should come, and by taking on human nature, become flesh of our flesh, and restore us to life. In this Eliseus was a figure of Christ, as it was necessary that he should come himself to bring the dead child to life and restore him to his mother, who is here, in a mystical sense, a figure of the Church.
4:32. Eliseus, therefore, went into the house, and behold the child lay dead on his bed:
4:33. And going in, he shut the door upon him, and upon the child, and prayed to the Lord.
4:34. And he went up, and lay upon the child: and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he bowed himself upon him, and the child's flesh grew warm.
4:35. Then he returned and walked in the house, once to and fro: and he went up, and lay upon him: and the child gaped seven times, and opened his eyes.
4:36. And he called Giezi, and said to him: Call this Sunamitess. And she being called, went in to him: and he said: Take up thy son.
4:37. She came and fell at his feet, and worshipped upon the ground: and took up her son, and went out.
4:38. And Eliseus returned to Galgal, and there was a famine in the land, and the sons of the prophets dwelt before him: And he said to one of his servants: Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the sons of the prophets.
4:39. And one went out into the field to gather wild herbs: and he found something like a wild vine, and gathered of it wild gourds of the field, and filled his mantle, and coming back, he shred them into the pot of pottage; for he knew not what it was.
Wild gourds of the field... Colocynthidas. They are extremely bitter, and therefore are called the gall of the earth; and are poisonous if taken in a great quantity.