2 Kings 2:1-14

The transfer of prophetic power 2:1-14

The Gilgal in view may have been the one between Jericho and the Jordan, or it may have been one about seven miles north of Bethel since Elijah and Elisha went down to Bethel (2 Kings 2:2). [Note: Wiseman, p. 195.] This account presupposes previous revelation, not in Scripture, that this day was to be Elijah’s last on earth (2 Kings 2:3). By granting Elisha permission to remain behind (2 Kings 2:2, et al.), Elijah was testing Elisha’s commitment to himself and to his calling as Elijah’s successor (cf. Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 22:31-62; John 21:15-25). Elisha’s refusal to speak of Elijah’s departure (2 Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 2:5) probably reflects Elisha’s sorrow at the prospect of losing his friend and mentor. It was not uncommon for prophets to give a valuable parting blessing (cf. Genesis 49; Deuteronomy 33), and Elisha did not want to miss that. A prophet’s mantle (cloak) was the symbol of Elijah’s authority as God’s spokesman (cf. 1 Kings 19:19). As Moses had parted the Red Sea with his rod, so Elijah parted the Jordan River with his mantle (2 Kings 2:8; cf. Exodus 14:21-22). Israel’s God was as able as ever to lead His people out of bondage and into promised blessing.

The double portion that Elisha requested was the privilege of God’s richest blessing on his life that customarily went to the first-born son in the ancient Near East (cf. 1 Kings 3:3-9). It would be a hard thing for Elijah to guarantee this double portion since blessing with His Spirit was God’s prerogative (2 Kings 2:10). Evidently Elijah intended to reward Elisha’s continued faithful commitment to him with this blessing, but if Elisha turned back from following him he would not get it (2 Kings 2:10). The eldest son, whose role Elisha filled, was responsible to carry on his father’s name and work.

"The visible vehicle of his removal would be a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:1) that manifest [sic] itself to onlookers as a fiery chariot (2 Kings 2:11)." [Note: Merrill, "2 Kings," p. 272.]

The chariot and horses of fire symbolized God’s powerful heavenly army (cf. 2 Kings 6:17). This display of the instruments of spiritual warfare separated the two prophets and apparently could have frightened Elisha into running away and losing his desired blessing (2 Kings 2:11). The chariot and horses of fire had polemic value since the Canaanites called Baal "the rider of clouds." [Note: Battenfield, p. 27; et al.] A polemic is a presentation of evidence designed to discredit someone or something. The whirlwind (shekinah?) took Elijah miraculously into heaven, not the fiery horses and chariot (2 Kings 2:11). Elijah had thought he was indispensable to God at one time (1 Kings 19:10; 1 Kings 19:14), but God had told him that He would remove him and work through others (1 Kings 19:11-18). Elijah’s translation to heaven was a blessing for him since he entered heaven without dying.

"The contrast between the deaths of Elijah and his enemies could hardly be any more stark. Elijah, the faithful servant of God, ascends to heaven. Ahab and Jezebel, the sworn enemies of Yahwism and the prophets, die at the hands of their foes." [Note: Paul R. House, 1, 2 Kings, p. 210.]

Elijah had been Elisha’s spiritual father and mentor (2 Kings 2:12). Elisha mourned the departure of one of Israel’s great spiritual warriors (2 Kings 2:12). By referring to Elijah as "the chariots of Israel and its horsemen" (2 Kings 2:12; cf. 2 Kings 13:14), Elisha probably meant that Elijah’s prophetic powers and spiritual depth were the nation’s true strength. [Note: M. A. Beek, "The Meaning of the Expression ’The Chariots and the Horsemen of Israel’ (II Kings ii 12)," Oudtestamentische Studiën 17 (1972):1-10. See also Jack R. Lundbom, "Elijah’s Chariot Ride," Journal of Jewish Studies 24:1 (Spring 1973):47-48.] He was a one-man army. The chariot was the mightiest weapon then known, and it was symbolic of God’s supreme power. [Note: Harold Stigers, "First and Second Kings," in The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 342. Stigers wrote the commentary on 2 Kings in this volume.] By asking, "Where is Elijah’s God?" (2 Kings 2:14), Elisha was calling out to Yahweh to demonstrate His power through him as He had done through Elijah.

"In their persons they symbolized two aspects of the divine power toward the people: Elijah was the divine judicial power opposing a rebellious people and containing wholesale violence; Elisha was the dispensing of divine blessing when people repented." [Note: Walter C. Kaiser Jr., Toward an Old Testament Theology, pp. 185-86.]