The Second Book of Kings
Chapter Two
Elijah Goes to heaven in a fiery chariot. Elisha takes over and exerts his authority.
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2 Kings 2 (New King James
Version)
Elijah and the Heavenly Chariot.
1 AND IT CAME TO PASS, WHEN THE LORD WAS ABOUT TO TAKE UP ELIJAH INTO HEAVEN BY
A WHIRLWIND, THAT ELIJAH WENT WITH ELISHA FROM GILGAL.
Daat
Mikra
suggests that Gilgal
is not the place known to us by the name besides the Jordan (Joshua 4:19) and
another spot with a similar name near
Schechem
(Deuteronomy 11:30). The name
Gilgal in Hebrew can connote
"turning wheels" associated with chariots (DM).
2 THEN ELIJAH SAID TO ELISHA, 'STAY HERE, PLEASE, FOR THE LORD HAS SENT ME ON TO
BETHEL.'
BUT ELISHA SAID, 'AS THE LORD LIVES, AND AS YOUR SOUL LIVES, I WILL NOT LEAVE
YOU!' SO THEY WENT DOWN TO BETHEL.
BETHEL in Modern Hebrew is
Beit-El
i.e. the House of God. A present-day relatively large Jewish settlement exists
near the Biblical site. The area is very beautiful and has an atmosphere
conducive to inspiration. In the early days of Brit-Am we were here for a while.
The Malbim suggests that
Elijah was afraid that Elisha would be found unworthy and bring disaster upon
himself for daring to approach too close to the Almighty and not being fit to do
so.
3 NOW THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS WHO WERE AT BETHEL CAME OUT TO ELISHA, AND SAID
TO HIM, 'DO YOU KNOW THAT THE LORD WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR MASTER FROM OVER YOU
TODAY?'
AND HE SAID, 'YES, I KNOW; KEEP SILENT!'
"Sons of the Prophets". The same word "Banim"
(literally "sons") or "Bnei"
("sons of" ) in Hebrew is variously translated as "Sons" or as "Children". Here
it does not mean the literal offspring but rather students and those who were
training to become prophets. In the Book of Samuel we find "a group of
prophets" (1-Samuel 10:5). We also had the incident where:
#' Saul sent messengers to take David.
And when they saw the group of prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as
leader over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they
also prophesied # (1-Samuel 19:20).
4 THEN ELIJAH SAID TO HIM, 'ELISHA, STAY HERE, PLEASE, FOR THE LORD HAS SENT ME
ON TO JERICHO.'
BUT HE SAID, 'AS THE LORD LIVES, AND AS YOUR SOUL LIVES, I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU!'
SO THEY CAME TO JERICHO.
5 NOW THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS WHO WERE AT JERICHO CAME TO ELISHA AND SAID TO
HIM, 'DO YOU KNOW THAT THE LORD WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR MASTER FROM OVER YOU TODAY?'
SO HE ANSWERED, 'YES, I KNOW; KEEP SILENT!'
Apparently the message had gone out from
Heaven and a great many of they who were close to heavenly matters had received
it. At a lower level this sometimes happens in everyday life where the community
at large intuits matters. Unfortunately it may also be reversed whereby things
that should be obvious appear to be universally willfully ignored.
6 THEN ELIJAH SAID TO HIM, 'STAY HERE, PLEASE, FOR THE LORD HAS SENT ME ON TO
THE JORDAN.'
BUT HE SAID, 'AS THE LORD LIVES, AND AS YOUR SOUL LIVES, I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU!'
SO THE TWO OF THEM WENT ON.
7 AND FIFTY MEN OF THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS WENT AND STOOD FACING THEM AT A
DISTANCE, WHILE THE TWO OF THEM STOOD BY THE JORDAN.
We previously saw that military units
numbering fifty (2-Samuel ch.1) were conventionally employed. Here we have a
unit of fifty men training to be prophets.
Daat
Mikra
(Yehudah
Kiel) suggests that they may have been organized along semi-military lines.
8 NOW ELIJAH TOOK HIS MANTLE, ROLLED IT UP, AND STRUCK THE WATER; AND IT WAS
DIVIDED THIS WAY AND THAT, SO THAT THE TWO OF THEM CROSSED OVER ON DRY GROUND.
This reminds us of the Splitting of the
Red Sea (Exodus ch.14) and of the Jordan River when the Israelites entered the
Land of Canaan (Joshua ch.3). Elijah performed this miracle using his mantle
(i.e. cloak) and was to bestow two portions of his spirit upon
Elisha
again using his cloak.
9 AND SO IT WAS, WHEN THEY HAD CROSSED OVER, THAT ELIJAH SAID TO ELISHA, 'ASK!
WHAT MAY I DO FOR YOU, BEFORE I AM TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU?'
ELISHA SAID, 'PLEASE LET A DOUBLE PORTION OF YOUR SPIRIT BE UPON ME.'
10 SO HE SAID, 'YOU HAVE ASKED A HARD THING. NEVERTHELESS, IF YOU SEE ME WHEN I
AM TAKEN FROM YOU, IT SHALL BE SO FOR YOU; BUT IF NOT, IT SHALL NOT BE SO.'
11 THEN IT HAPPENED, AS THEY CONTINUED ON AND TALKED, THAT SUDDENLY A CHARIOT OF
FIRE APPEARED WITH HORSES OF FIRE, AND SEPARATED THE TWO OF THEM; AND ELIJAH
WENT UP BY A WHIRLWIND INTO HEAVEN.
The Sages said that Elijah entered
Heaven alive. Others say that the body of Elijah was consumed by the fire but he
himself was transformed into a spiritual being. Only
Elisha
witnessed this event. The other Prophets knew that Elijah would be taken away in
a miraculous manner but that was all. They did not know how it would happen or
(as we see later) what would become of Elijah afterwards.
This whole scenario has philosophical and mystical significance that we are not
aware of and would probably prefer not to discuss if we were.
12 AND ELISHA SAW IT, AND HE CRIED OUT, 'MY FATHER, MY FATHER, THE CHARIOT OF
ISRAEL AND ITS HORSEMEN!' SO HE SAW HIM NO MORE. AND HE TOOK HOLD OF HIS OWN
CLOTHES AND TORE THEM INTO TWO PIECES.
"The Chariot" in Hebrew "recev"
also given as "mercavah"
from the same RCV
root. This root connotes "ride, place astride". In Hebrew a related word from
the same root "HaRCiV"
means to graft. The Heavenly "Chariot" represents the point where Heaven and
Earth combine, the intermediate agency through which the Almighty governs the
world. The Prophet Elijah had served as a fatherly protector of Israel and
Intercessor on their behalf and also as a regulator of spiritual matters.
13 HE ALSO TOOK UP THE MANTLE OF ELIJAH THAT HAD FALLEN FROM HIM, AND WENT BACK
AND STOOD BY THE BANK OF THE JORDAN.
14 THEN HE TOOK THE MANTLE OF ELIJAH THAT HAD FALLEN FROM HIM, AND STRUCK THE
WATER, AND SAID, 'WHERE IS THE LORD GOD OF ELIJAH?' AND WHEN HE ALSO HAD STRUCK
THE WATER, IT WAS DIVIDED THIS WAY AND THAT; AND ELISHA CROSSED OVER.
Elisha
with the mantle of Elijah repeated the miracle of Elijah and showed himself to
be the chosen successor approved by Heaven.
15 NOW WHEN THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS WHO WERE FROM JERICHO SAW HIM, THEY SAID,
'THE SPIRIT OF ELIJAH RESTS ON ELISHA.' AND THEY CAME TO MEET HIM, AND BOWED TO
THE GROUND BEFORE HIM.
16 THEN THEY SAID TO HIM, 'LOOK NOW, THERE ARE FIFTY STRONG MEN WITH YOUR
SERVANTS. PLEASE LET THEM GO AND SEARCH FOR YOUR MASTER, LEST PERHAPS THE SPIRIT
OF THE LORD HAS TAKEN HIM UP AND CAST HIM UPON SOME MOUNTAIN OR INTO SOME
VALLEY.'
AND HE SAID, 'YOU SHALL NOT SEND ANYONE.'
17 BUT WHEN THEY URGED HIM TILL HE WAS ASHAMED, HE SAID, 'SEND THEM!' THEREFORE
THEY SENT FIFTY MEN, AND THEY SEARCHED FOR THREE DAYS BUT DID NOT FIND HIM.
ASHAMED. In Hebrew "Bash" meaning
"abashed" the same as in English. The word "ashame"
also comes from the Hebrew "asham"
meaning "guilty". Me-am Lo'az
says they made Elisha
feel as if they suspected him of ulterior motives for not wanting to search for
Elijah so he agreed.
18 AND WHEN THEY CAME BACK TO HIM, FOR HE HAD STAYED IN JERICHO, HE SAID TO
THEM, "DID I NOT SAY TO YOU, 'DO NOT GO'?"
19 THEN THE MEN OF THE CITY SAID TO ELISHA, 'PLEASE NOTICE, THE SITUATION OF
THIS CITY IS PLEASANT, AS MY LORD SEES; BUT THE WATER IS BAD, AND THE GROUND
BARREN.'
The ground was barren because of the bad
quality of the water.
Note the significance of water in this chapter. Elijah and
Elisha
both split the Jordan waters as demonstrations of the Divine Influence they have
been favored with and the passage of this gift from one to the other. Here
Elisha
is asked to heal the waters that cause the earth to not give forth its fruit.
The Malbim
points out that in Talmudic terminology "waters" represent "doctrine". Untrue
and unworthy beliefs and attitudes are liable to cause stagnation and death to
whole communities. Salt represents the covenant.
20 AND HE SAID, 'BRING ME A NEW BOWL, AND PUT SALT IN IT.' SO THEY BROUGHT IT TO
HIM.
21 THEN HE WENT OUT TO THE SOURCE OF THE WATER, AND CAST IN THE SALT THERE, AND
SAID, 'THUS SAYS THE LORD: 'I HAVE HEALED THIS WATER; FROM IT THERE SHALL BE NO
MORE DEATH OR BARRENNESS.''
22 SO THE WATER REMAINS HEALED TO THIS DAY, ACCORDING TO THE WORD OF ELISHA
WHICH HE SPOKE.
23 THEN HE WENT UP FROM THERE TO BETHEL; AND AS HE WAS GOING UP THE ROAD, SOME
YOUTHS CAME FROM THE CITY AND MOCKED HIM, AND SAID TO HIM, 'GO UP, YOU BALDHEAD!
GO UP, YOU BALDHEAD!'
YOUTHS. Hebrew "na-arim
katanim"
literally small boys. Different commentaries have
een
given on this. In the Language of the Talmud and
Midrash
the expressions "youth" and "children" are applied to grown men who reject
responsibility and sobriety and act like animals. Some of the Commentators
propose that similar usage is being applied here. There is a principle that
"Scripture always keeps within its literal boundaries" i.e. the literal meaning
always applies. Nevertheless in some cases the Hebrew Language lends itself to
alternate interpretations.
The expression in Hebrew is "naarim
katanim".
"naarim"
from the root "naar"
can connote "throw off, reject". The Arab word "Intifada"
translated as Uprising actually means "arousal" "throw off", "rebel".
"katanim"
is the plural of "katan"
meaning "small" but it also can connote something that is despicable,
e.g.
BEHOLD, I HAVE MADE THEE SMALL AMONG THE HEATHEN: THOU ART GREATLY DESPISED
[Obadiah 1:2].
GO UP, in Hebrew "aley"
i.e. Get Going! They were mocking him and driving him away. They were calling
him "Baldy" in contrast to Elijah who had been distinguished by his long hair.
It was as if they were rejecting
Elisha as successor of Elijah and
turning their backs on the authority of Prophecy altogether.
24 SO HE TURNED AROUND AND LOOKED AT THEM, AND PRONOUNCED A CURSE ON THEM IN THE
NAME OF THE LORD. AND TWO FEMALE BEARS CAME OUT OF THE WOODS AND MAULED
FORTY-TWO OF THE YOUTHS.
Daat
Mikra
points out that bereaved female bears have a reputation for being the most
vicious.
MAULED, Hebrew "ve-tivkana"
from the root "BAKA"
meaning "split open".
This seems quite cruel to us and unwarranted but doubtless there was a justified
reason for it. Elisha
was a prophet and knew what he was doing.
These days a good many of us had disturbed childhoods and so did our parents.
The upbringing we eventually gave to our offspring in many cases was even worse
than what we ourselves received. We tend to be lenient towards the offences of
youth but perhaps we should not be' Maybe this incident was meant to serve us an
example and warning for the sake of others'
In my opinion all our modern psychologists and social experts and various other
experts do not know very much. We need to heed the Bible and teach others to do
so. That is the only thing we have. Other people may be able to get by with
their traditions and social conformity etc. We cannot. Peoples of Israelite
descent need Scripture to live by.
YOUTHS. Here the Hebrew word used is "Yaladim"
literally "children" or "boys". In later usage this expression was used
similarly to our present slang term "gang bangers".
25 THEN HE WENT FROM THERE TO MOUNT CARMEL, AND FROM THERE HE RETURNED TO
SAMARIA.
Daat
Mikra
points out that he was retracing the itinerary of Elijah before he departed.
