2 Kings 2:7 - Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

2 Kings 2:7

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!”

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.

8 Now Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water; and ^ait was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ^bground.

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 ^aa chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah ^bwent up by a whirlwind into heaven.

12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried out, ^a“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.

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, ^ait was divided this way and that; and Elisha crossed over.

15 Now when the sons of the prophets who were ^afrom 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, ^alest 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 ^aashamed, he said, “Send them!” Therefore they sent fifty men, and they searched for three days but did not find him.

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’?”

Commentaries:

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

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2 Kings 2:1-7

ELIJAH DIVINES JORDAN. (II Kings 2:1-10)

when the Lord would take up Elijah—A revelation of this event had been made to the prophet; but, unknown to him, it had also been revealed to his disciples, and to Elisha in particular, who kept constantly beside him.

Gilgal—This Gilgal (Jiljil) was near Ebal and Gerizim; a school of the prophets was established there. At Beth-el there was also a school of the prophets, which Elijah had founded, notwithstanding that place was the headquarters of the calf-worship; and at Jericho there was another [II Kings 2:4]. In travelling to these places, which he had done through the impulse of the Spirit (II Kings 2:2, II Kings 2:4-6), Elijah wished to pay a farewell visit to these several institutions, which lay on his way to the place of ascension and, at the same time, from a feeling of humility and modesty, to be in solitude, where there would be no eye-witnesses of his glorification. All his efforts, however, to prevail on his attendant to remain behind, were fruitless. Elisha knew that the time was at hand, and at every place the sons of the prophets spoke to him of the approaching removal of his master. Their last stage was at the Jordan. They were followed at a distance by fifty scholars of the prophets, from Jericho, who were desirous, in honor of the great occasion, to witness the miraculous translation of the prophet. The revelation of this striking event to so many was a necessary part of the dispensation; for it was designed to be under the law, like that of Enoch in the patriarchal age, a visible proof of another state, and a type of the resurrection of Christ.

**Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing 2 Kings 2:7:**

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