The Passing Over of Elijah
Verse-by-Verse Study of 2 Kings 2

And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither so that they two went over on dry ground. –– 2 Kings 2:8

There are four occasions in the Old Testament when waters were dried up to permit people to pass on dry ground: (1) The nation of Israel going from west to east across the Red Sea; (2) The nation of Israel going from east to west across the Jordan River; (3) Elijah going from west to east across the Jordan River; (4) Elisha going from east to west across the Jordan River. Two of these are described in 2 Kings 2, a chapter we will look at in detail.

An Eventful Day — 2 Kings 2:1

And it came to pass when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.

Though this chapter is not referenced in the New Testament, on several occasions Jesus did apply the prophecy of Elijah in Malachi 4:5,6 to a spokesman of the Lord announcing the — approach of “the great and dreadful day of the LORD”— an apt reference to the true Christian Church.

Elijah was apparently aware of the Lord’s intentions to take his life that day, for his visit to Bethel and Jericho was to inform the school of the prophets of his imminent demise and the appointment of Elisha to take his place. Too frequently Christian leaders are not so aware of their mortality and fail to arrange for successors to the roles they play in the church.

The aging prophet was also probably informed of the method of his death: a great storm would carry him up into the heavens. We infer from this that the career of the church on earth ends in a storm cloud of trouble completing the heavenly salvation. The narrative begins with Elijah at Gilgal. The name Gilgal, meaning “circle,” implies a setting in a box canyon in the Judean hills just west of the Jordan valley. Gilgal was the first location of the Tabernacle when Israel passed over the Jordan under Joshua. That crossing followed the occupation of the east bank of the Jordan by the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

These two-and-a-half tribes claimed the east bank of the Jordan and could have this inheritance only if they helped their brother tribes conquer the rest of the land. This suggests they represent the heavenly salvation who help their brothers of the human race achieve the earthly salvation, represented on the Western side. (See further comments on this picture in “The Passover Renewed;” The Herald of Christ’s Kingdom 2004/2).

Thus, the incidents of Joshua with the Israelites and also Elijah are connected:

1) by a crossing of Jordan dry-shod;
2) both represent the time when the full number of the heavenly salvation is complete and the work of the earthly kingdom is about to begin;
3) both narratives are associated with Gilgal. It was also at Gilgal that the people assembled to welcome back David as king after his exile during the rebellion of Absalom (2 Samuel 19:15).

Bethel and Jericho — 2:2-7

And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So, they went down to Bethel. And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head today? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So, they came to Jericho. And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head today? And he answered, yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.

The term “sons of the prophets” probably refers to a training school in the office of prophecy. After being originally organized in Naioth of Ramah by Samuel (1 Samuel 19:19,20), it likely fell into disuse until it was reorganized by Elijah and expanded to groups in Gilgal, Bethel, and Jericho. The journey to these cities to inform them of Elijah’s replacement by Elisha was met similarly. Upon hearing the news, the sons of the prophets inquired as to Elisha’s response. In all cases, Elijah invited him to stay behind, but the younger prophet declined, choosing to accompany his mentor until his departure.

Let us consider the pictorial implications of this story and begin by identifying modern counterparts for the various characters involved.

ELIJAH: As God’s prophetic spokesman for his time, he finds a counterpart in the church, the followers of Jesus. (See Malachi 4:5,6; Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 6:15; Luke 9:8; Luke 4:26.)

ELISHA: As the anointed prophetic spokesman to succeed Elijah, he symbolizes, at the beginning, the Great Company, and then later the Ancient Worthies.

SONS OF THE PROPHETS: “Elijah represented the Little Flock and Elisha the Great Company who are also the Lord’s people and to some extent associated with them but are not so zealous for the Truth as the Little Flock, and these sons of the prophets have more or less interest in both the others. This picture seems to indicate that, after the separation has taken place between the Little Flock and Great Company, there will be still another class of righteous people more or less connected with the Lord’s people who are included neither in the one class nor the other — neither the Elijah nor the Elisha class — but who are posted somewhat, and who will be saying thus and so.” (What Pastor Russell Said, p. 666).

Although some have historically interpreted the three cities visited as representing dates, there appears to be no precedent for applying cities to dates: rather cities frequently picture governments or organizations. The progression of Elijah and Elisha through these towns, where schools of prophets were located, represents the passage of the Church and Great Company through a series of organizations before the final exaltation of the Church to her heavenly home. Interestingly, the first organization through which the harvest church passed used the name “Bethel” to designate its headquarters. It may also be significant that though fifty of the sons of the prophets in Jericho followed to view the crossing of the river at a respectful distance, those in Bethel remained where they were. If Gilgal represents Christendom (compare Hosea 9:15), and Bethel the truth movement in the day of Pastor Russell, perhaps the ones remaining in Bethel show that many of the Lord’s unconsecrated but sincere people remained in the Society.

Smiting the Jordan — 2:8

And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither so that they two went over on dry ground.

Since there was no town at the Jordan, it would seem that this does not represent an organization, but an event. On the two prior crossings of bodies of water by Israel — at the Red Sea and Jordan entering the promised land — the waters represented the death sentence and the successful entrance into a new life. There seems no reason to depart from this concept in this incident.

On the other hand, both Elijah and Elisha passed together and walked for some distance conversing with one another after going across the river. If the Church class is limited to precisely 144,000 as suggested in Revelation 7:4 and 14:3, and if each of these must be tested before being found worthy, then there must come a time when the last member who will be accounted faithful begins his consecrated course. At that time no further members of the Great Company will begin their Christian walk either. Then both the Church and the Great Company will have, for all practical purposes, passed over the sentence of Adamic death. Yet their lives will be prolonged long enough for a final testing and approval, or disapproval and their conversation together will continue.

This verse not only describes the river crossing but also the means. The waters were divided when struck by Elijah’s mantle. The mantle of Elijah indicated his prophetic function and authorization to speak in God’s name. When Elijah anointed Elisha to be his successor, he demonstrated that fact by putting his mantle on Elisha’s shoulders (1 Kings 19:19). This suggests that the passing over of this death sentence would be by the exercise of his prophetic function — the giving of a final message. The coincidence of this with the dividing of the waters “hither and thither” — not cleanly separated — further implies that the timing of the mantle’s strike was simultaneous with the onset of the storm that eventuated in the whirlwind in which Elijah ascended. Perhaps this indicates that the real cause of dividing the waters was the storm, the smiting by the mantle, being simultaneous, only an apparent cause.

Consider the instrument the Lord used in drying up the waters in the various crossings of Israel and these two prophets:

1) At the Red Sea it was Moses stretching out his hand [presumably with the rod of command] (Exodus 14:21,27) and speaking to the children of Israel that they “go forward” (Exodus 14:15).
2) In Israel’s crossing into the promised land, it was the moving of the ark of the covenant into the overflowing stream (Joshua 3:3,11).
3) In the two 2 Kings 2 crossings it was through the use of a prophet’s mantle, first by Elijah and later by Why did Elijah smite the Jordan? Answer: to reach the other side. So the desire of the Church, and for that matter the Great Company as well, is to reach the other side — the heavenly salvation.

Elisha’s Question — 2:9,10

And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

The recorded conversation between the two prophets on the eastern shore is brief, with one question and its answer. Elisha requested a double portion of the spirit. Though some scholars note sixteen recorded miracles by Elisha as compared with eight by Elijah, this is probably not the real import of the double portion.

A “double portion” is the firstborn’s inheritance (Deuteronomy 21:17). Adam Clarke notes that “the original words, pi shenayim, mean rather two parts, than double the quantity. Thus, the Great Company will share with the closest followers of Christ, “the church of the firstborn” (Hebrews 12:23).

Elijah responds that though the request is a difficult one, Elisha can secure his request by remaining with Elijah until he is caught up. This indicates that members of the Great Company, though desiring to be part of the firstborn class, can only feel assured of this reward if they loyally stand by the true Church until it departs from the earthly scene.

Elijah’s Exaltation — 2:11,12

And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

Two elements come into play as the drama unfolds: a chariot of fire and a whirlwind. The stated function of the chariot is to part Elijah and Elisha asunder, and the whirlwind is the means of Elijah’s exaltation. For this reason, many feel Elijah was not transported in the chariot, but only by the whirlwind. However, since a chariot is a means of conveyance, the separation probably occurred by Elijah getting into the chariot while Elisha remained behind. Pastor Russell makes an interesting comment about this: “Elijah was separated from earthly scenes by a chariot of fire, representative of the spiritual glory and exaltation awaiting those of the Church alive and remaining to the last days.” (The Time Is at Hand, p. 260).

Later in the same paragraph, he identifies it further by saying “A storm is a symbol of trouble, as much as the fiery chariot is a figure of victory and glorious escape from the trouble.” In a similar usage we meet chariots of fire in 2 Kings 6:17 where, when the city of Dothan was surrounded by Syrian enemies, “Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” (See also 2 Kings 13:14.)

The implication is that this protection is through the ministry of angels. This is more clearly stated in Psalms 68:17, “The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place. This is the fulfillment of the promise in Psalms 34:7, “The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.”

Elisha Smites the Jordan — 2:13,14

He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

As Elijah was taken heavenward, his mantle fell at Elijah’s feet. Now was the time for Elisha to use his prophetic office. His leaving from the eastern bank of Jordan represents the Great Company entering into death, probably preceded by giving a message of truth to the Church represented by Elijah. As Elisha emerged on the western bank, he continued to represent the office of the Lord’s spokesman on earth, an office fulfilled when the Ancient Worthies emerge from death.

Though we are not given details of this message, there is an intimation of it in Canticles. A woman possessing the same lack of conviction and courage as the Great Company finally awakens to search for her Lord. In her search she meets the “daughters of Jerusalem,” a title suggesting the descendants of natural Israel. To these, she utters the beautiful description of her Lord found in Canticles 5:10-16. This causes these daughters of Jerusalem to join the search for this Messianic lover (Canticles 6:1). Pastor Russell comments on this: “It is not our expectation that the Jews will become Christians now. It will be after they shall have returned to Palestine and the spirit of prayer and supplication shall have been poured on them, that they will ‘look upon him whom they pierced.” Our message is to comfort them and to turn their eyes toward Palestine and to their glorious promises centering there. The scriptures seem to imply that the Great Company will have the honor and privilege of leading them to recognize Jesus as Messiah, during the time of trouble.” (Reprints, p. 4728).

The Search for Elijah — 2:15-18

And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha, And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send. And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.

Elisha’s smiting the Jordan not only permitted his safe passage but was a sign to the observant sons of the prophets that he had the same authority Elijah had possessed. Undoubtedly, they reached this conclusion by seeing his mentor’s mantle on Elisha’s shoulders, and even more so by his duplicating Elijah’s feat of dividing the waters of the river.

The desire of the sons of the prophets to send a search party to find Elijah’s body shows they did not believe he went to heaven, but that he had been lifted by the tempestuous winds and dropped nearby. Over the protests of Elisha they conducted their search, but it was unsuccessful.

Verses 19-24 speak of two episodes: healing the brackish water with a new cruse of salt (the application of truths from those who have been “the salt of the earth” to cleanse the waters for the world), and rebuking forty-two youths for mocking Elisha (the spiritually immature of Christendom which formerly ruled for forty-two months, disposed to mock the authority of the Ancient Worthies).

Elisha Moves Onward — 2:25

And he went from thence to Mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria.

After revisiting the two schools of the prophets, Elisha’s onward journey carried him to Mount Carmel, then back northwest to Samaria, the capital of Israel. Mount Carmel was the location of Elijah’s earlier contest with the priests of Baal where he dramatically demonstrated the power of Jehovah and the impotence of foreign gods. The journey of the newly anointed prophet thus endorsed by this historic visit, he went to the capital city where his career is set in marked contrast to that of Elijah. Whereas Elijah was sharply critical of the corrupt and godless regime of Ahab and the house of Omri, Elisha became a trusted advisor to the next three kings of Israel.

The taking up of Elijah and the installation of Elisha in his stead furnishes many details of the transition of the kingdoms of this world into the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.

–– The Herald of Christ’s Kingdom 2004/2