After Ahab’s demise, his son, Ahaziah, ascended to the throne of the northern kingdom. However, after suffering a fall from the lattice of his upper room, he sustained severe injuries. With no signs of improvement, he dispatched messengers to seek counsel from baal-zebub regarding the potential recovery from his affliction. While en route to consult the god of Ekron, the Angel of the Lord dispatched Elijah to intercept them. Through the messengers, Elijah conveyed a message to the king, which they promptly delivered to Ahaziah.
“A man came to meet us,” they replied. “And he said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, “This is what the LORD says: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending messengers to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you will not leave the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!”’”
2 Kings 1:6 (NIV)
God pronounced his judgement on Ahaziah through Elijah when he met the messengers of the king before they could consult their gods. The king was furious with Elijah and sent his captain along with fifty men to apprehend him. When they found Elijah on top of the hill, they ordered him to come with them to meet the king. However, fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men. Undeterred, Ahaziah sent another group of men to capture Elijah, but they succumbed to the same fate. The king clearly did not have any regard for the lives of his men and would have simply continued sending men till he got Elijah to reverse his verdict about his state. He believed Elijah was the reason for his plight and capturing him would end his suffering.
So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. “Man of God,” he begged, “please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants! …The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So Elijah got up and went down with him to the king.
2 Kings 1:13 &15 (NIV)
Elijah met the king and delivered the same verdict that he had passed on to his messengers. Thus, Ahaziah met his demise without leaving his bed. Consequently, Ahaziah met his end without departing from his bed. With no male heirs, Joram, Ahab’s other son, ascended to the throne. Like Ahaziah, we often find ourselves consulting the experts of the world rather than coming to God directly. We are prepared to ascend mountains, endure lengthy queues, and embrace new methods simply to obtain the desired solution. Yet, all along, we could have simply sought answers from God from the comfort of our own homes.
Elijah’s Farewell Tour
When it came time for the LORD to take Elijah up to heaven, the prophet embarked on a farewell tour of the land. He visited the company of prophets in Gilgal, Bethel, Jericho, and Jordan during his final day on earth. Perhaps, in addition to bidding them farewell, he also aimed to offer them words of encouragement.
Throughout his journey, Elisha accompanied Elijah to all the towns. The company of prophets continued to remind Elisha that he would lose his mentor, assuming that he would be left without purpose. Unbeknownst to them, God had grand plans for Elisha. Elisha chose not to engage in conversation with them and simply requested their silence.
When they reached the banks of the river Jordan, Elijah took his cloak and struck the water, causing it to part and pave the way for them to cross. The company of prophets stood at a distance, witnessing Elijah and Elisha cross the Jordan.
When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”
2 Kings 2:9-10 (NIV)
Elisha regarded Elijah as his father and sought the rights of the firstborn by requesting to inherit a double portion of his spirit. Despite God’s command for Elijah to anoint Elisha as his successor, Elijah only utilized Elisha as his assistant and did not formally pass the baton to him. Even on his final day, Elijah was unwilling to anoint Elisha with his spirit.
As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.
2 Kings 2:11-12 (NIV)
Elisha picked up his master’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back the way they had come. When he reached the bank of Jordan, he took Elijah’s cloak and struck the water with it, when nothing happened, he questioned the LORD asking where is the God of Elijah. God answered his request and when he struck the water again, it divided just as He had done before. Even if Elijah had not anointed him, God had anointed him with His Spirit.
When the company of prophets witnessed Elisha crossing the dry land of the Jordan River, they recognized that the Spirit that had guided Elijah now rested upon Elisha. Those who had previously mocked him now offered themselves as his servants. They even searched for Elijah for three days, unable to accept Elisha’s account of the events surrounding the prophet’s ascension to heaven. It is possible that they had not anticipated the manner in which Elijah departed and had expected a mortal end for their leader. After their unsuccessful search, they returned to Elisha.
Elisha Starts his Ministry
The inhabitants of the city of Jericho approached Elisha, expressing their apprehension about the poor quality of water in their town. The water was not only unproductive but also hindered the land from yielding a fruitful harvest. Elisha took a new bowl full of salt and threw it into the water proclaiming that the LORD had healed the water. The impurities from it had been removed and the water was never again unproductive. This was a sign for the people that God was working through Elisha just as he had done through his servant Elijah.
Taking the same route back to Samaria, Elisha crossed the town of Bethel where he and his master had met the company of prophets on the latter’s farewell tour. However, this time when he arrived in the town, he was confronted with jeers, mockery, and demands to leave immediately by a group of young men. It is likely that they did not accept Elisha as their new prophet and wished for him to return to the northern kingdom of Samaria.
In response, Elisha turned around and invoked a curse on them in the name of the LORD. Subsequently, two bears emerged from the woods and attacked forty-two of the young men. This served as another indication that God had chosen Elisha to be his messenger in both the northern and the southern kingdoms.
Elijah believed he was the sole prophet of God, yet as we see during his farewell tour, he had contemporaries. God’s work continued despite his weariness. Elisha was handpicked by God to replace Elijah with the latter tasked with anointing the former as his successor. However, there appears to have been reluctance on Elijah’s part to pass the baton to his protégé. How will we respond when God asks us to step aside to promote one of our protégés? Will we willingly submit to God’s will, or will our hesitance trigger a forceful transmission?
Discussion Questions
- Was Ahaziah insane to keep sending his men to capture Elijah?
- Like Ahaziah, do we find ourselves consulting the experts of the world rather than coming to God directly?
- Why were the company of prophets inquisitive of Elisha’s awareness about his master being taken up by the LORD?
- Why is Elisha holding on to Elijah? Isn’t this similar to Peter holding on to Jesus and not allowing him to walk on the path that God had chosen for Him?
- Does the request from Elisha seem plausible? Is this a valid request? Does Elijah have the right to give this to Elisha?
- Why use salt to cure the water of its impurities?
- Are Elisha’s actions justified when he curses the boys for calling him bald?
The Jordan Valley 
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