The company of prophets recognized that Elisha was Elijah’s successor as the Lord’s leading prophet in the land. He immediately used the mantle to part the waters of the Jordan River and cross back over. Elisha picked up the mantle and gained his master’s power of miracle and prophecy. (Contrary to the usual artistic renditions of this scene, the Bible does not say that Elijah rode in the chariot.)Īnd yet, as Elijah ascended to heaven, his mantle (outer garment) fell to the ground behind him. And so, after crossing through the parted waters of Jordan River through the miraculous power of Elijah’s mantle, he saw a chariot and horses of fire separating him from his master, and a whirlwind carrying Elijah up into heaven. Taking up Elijah’s mantleĮlisha passed the test. But if we wish to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, our master, we must develop the strength of character to push forward despite every distraction, discouragement, and resistance. We will be repeatedly tempted to stay where we are instead of moving forward on the difficult journey ahead. Similarly, the life of a true Christian is not an easy one. Right to the end, he tested him to see if he could be too easily turned away from the hard road he must travel. Before Elijah could pass on his mantle, he had to be sure that Elisha had enough iron ribbing in his character to withstand the harsh challenges of being a prophet of the Lord in a hostile world. He had to endure the same hardships Elijah did.

Instead of being cared for, he had to take care of his master’s needs, pouring his water, washing his feet. Many of them sink under the weight of an uncaring world that they were never prepared for.Įlijah’s approach was very different. They have to work hard just to meet their basic needs. Once they leave the protective cocoon of their parents’ home, they find that nobody is interested in giving them anything. They discover that the world doesn’t consider them special at all. They grow up thinking that the world exists to serve their needs.īut once they hit adulthood, there is a rude awakening. All obstacles are cleared out of their path. Everything is made as easy as possible for them. These days, especially in the wealthier countries, young people get used to having things handed to them on a silver platter. Don’t follow me.”ĭid Elisha have the dedication and strength of character to follow his own calling despite pressure from the man he revered? Could he overcome both outward resistance and the heaviness of his own heart? We get the sense that Elijah was testing his disciple to see if he would be a worthy successor. Facing the difficult and painful passageĪnd here lies the first lesson in this story for Christians-and for anyone else on a spiritual path. But he was determined to see it through to the end. It might have been easier for him to avoid this painful event and stay behind, as Elijah urged him to do. And yet, he knew that for this to happen, he had to lose the great man that he looked up to. He knew he was to become Elijah’s successor. This, Elisha told them, he already knew.įor Elisha, it was a bittersweet journey. As he traveled onward with Elijah, the local “company of the prophets”-something like a prophets’ guild-came out and told him that his master was about to be taken from him. Each time, Elisha refused, and stuck by his master’s side. In the story of 2 Kings 2:1–18, three times Elijah told Elisha to stay behind while Elijah traveled to another place. But clearly, Elisha had formed a strong bond with his master. We don’t know just how long Elisha had been Elijah’s servant before he became his successor. But now God told Elijah to leave his hiding place, return to the north, and anoint Elisha to be his successor as prophet (see 1 Kings 19:15–21).įrom that time onward, Elisha followed Elijah, serving him and learning from him as his disciple. He feared that Ahab, king of Israel, would kill him because among other things, after a dramatic demonstration of the power of the God of Israel, he had slaughtered 850 prophets of the pagan god Baal and goddess Asherah, favored by Ahab’s Sidonian wife Jezebel (see 1 Kings 18).

In a second article we’ll dig deeper, and look at its spiritual significance.Įlijah nears the end of his work as a prophetĪ few chapters earlier, in 1 Kings 19, the prophet Elijah was hiding out at God’s holy mountain, called Horeb or Sinai.

In this article we’ll look at some of the lessons this story contains plainly for anyone to see. However, as with everything in the Bible, Christians can find great significance for their own lives not only in the story itself, but from the deeper message it contains. The events in this story took place more than 800 years before Jesus Christ lived on this earth, so is not a specifically Christian story.

Bible study elijah and elisha