2 Kings 2:9-15

Brothers and sisters in Christ,

This evening’s Bible passage is 2 Kings 2:9-15 (ESV modified):

⁹ When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please let there be a duplicate portion of your spirit on me.” ¹⁰ And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” ¹¹ And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. ¹² And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. ¹³ And he took up the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. ¹⁴ Then he took the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over. ¹⁵ Now when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw him opposite them, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.”

I’ll begin with a question: Can you figure out why I’ve chosen this passage for today? As a pair of clues, I’ll tell you first that it’s as a preview for a series of meditations next week and, second, that those of you who know your liturgical calendar should be able to answer the question without too much difficulty. If you haven’t figured it out yet, just wait, and I’ll let you know the answer in a few paragraphs’ time. 

For now, though, let’s just look at what happened to Elijah and Elisha. Elijah knew that he was soon to be “taken away,” which at first reading sounds like a roundabout way of saying he was going to die. But it didn’t quite turn out like that. Elisha insisted on going with Elijah to wherever this final event in Elijah’s life would take place. When the two men reached the River Jordan, “Elijah took his cloak and rolled it up and struck the water, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground” (2 Kings 2:8).

This is where our passage begins. Elisha asks for “a duplicate portion” of Elijah’s spirit. Some versions translate this as “a double portion,” but Elisha’s not asking to be twice as powerful as Elijah; he’s asking for a “duplicate” portion, so that he can continue Elijah’s prophetic ministry. Elijah says it’ll be a “hard thing,” but “if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you.” By God’s grace, Elisha gets to see Elijah’s departure and then some: “And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more.” 

Elijah’s extraordinary reception into heaven has been understood in various ways. The African-American spiritual, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” not only expresses confidence in the singer’s own welcome into heaven when it comes his or her turn to die, but also and more immediately the song served as a coded message looking forward to escaping slavery by crossing the Ohio River and “riding” to freedom in the “chariots” of the Underground Railroad and with the help of the “angels” who ran the railroad.

Both these are valid appropriations of the biblical story, but their emotional power has hidden another older significance of Elijah’s ascension to heaven. We’re familiar with the idea that much of the Old Testament points forward to the saving work of Christ. While we can easily spot “types” (a scholarly word meaning pictures in advance) of the atoning sacrifice of Christ, we tend to overlook “types” of Christ’s ascension. I am not the first scholar to believe that Elijah’s ascension is such a type.

Consider the similarities. Elisha saw Elijah ascend in “chariots of fire and horses of fire.” The disciples saw Jesus ascend in a “cloud” (Acts 1:9), by which they almost certainly meant not a white, puffy cloud, but a bright, shining, glory cloud. The light of heaven can only be described by human witnesses in similes and metaphors. It’s fair to assume, therefore, that both Elisha and the disciples saw a dazzling light that they struggled to describe in words. (For another example of the same struggle, see John’s vision of the glorified Christ in Rev. 1:12-16.)

There’s more, though. Elisha was given a “duplicate portion” of the spirit of Elijah. He was able to return across the Jordan by miraculously parting the waters of the Jordan, just as Elijah had done. “The sons of the prophets” recognized the change, saying, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” In Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, just three days after Christ’s ascension, the apostles and every one of the “approximately three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41) who believed the apostles’ multilingual proclamation of the gospel received a duplicate portion of the Spirit of Christ. Pentecost followed Christ’s ascension just as Elisha’s transformation followed Elijah’s ascension. As Elisha was equipped to continue Elijah’s ministry, so the New Testament church was commissioned and empowered to preach the good news of Christ to all nations. The New Testament fulfillment, of course, was much greater than the Old Testament type.

By now, of course, you should have figured out the answer to my opening question. This coming Thursday is Ascension Day and the Sunday following that is Pentecost Sunday. This evening’s meditation has served as a preview of our celebration in the coming week of the too often neglected but nonetheless wondrous Day of the Ascension.

In the meantime, you might enjoy listening to the Plantation Singers’ performance of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljup8cIRzIk.

Your brother in Christ,

Max