July 15, 2024 | Be God's Light
A Double Portion
Scripture: 2 Kings 2(NIV)
1 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel.”
But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.
3 The company of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”
“Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “so be quiet.”
4 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho.”
And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho.
5 The company of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?”
“Yes, I know,” he replied, “so be quiet.”
6 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.”
And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them walked on.
7 Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. 8 Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.
9 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.
10 “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.”
11 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. 12 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.
13 Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. 14 He took the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and struck the water with it. “Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.
15 The company of the prophets from Jericho, who were watching, said, “The spirit of Elijah is resting on Elisha.” And they went to meet him and bowed to the ground before him. 16 “Look,” they said, “we your servants have fifty able men. Let them go and look for your master. Perhaps the Spirit of the Lord has picked him up and set him down on some mountain or in some valley.”
“No,” Elisha replied, “do not send them.”
17 But they persisted until he was too embarrassed to refuse. So he said, “Send them.” And they sent fifty men, who searched for three days but did not find him. 18 When they returned to Elisha, who was staying in Jericho, he said to them, “Didn’t I tell you not to go?”
19 The people of the city said to Elisha, “Look, our lord, this town is well situated, as you can see, but the water is bad and the land is unproductive.”
20 “Bring me a new bowl,” he said, “and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him.
21 Then he went out to the spring and threw the salt into it, saying, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I have healed this water. Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.’” 22 And the water has remained pure to this day, according to the word Elisha had spoken.
23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered at him. “Get out of here, baldy!” they said. “Get out of here, baldy!” 24 He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. 25 And he went on to Mount Carmel and from there returned to Samaria.
Devotional
Elijah’s ministry came to an end in dramatic fashion. Because he was taken to heaven in such a way, many believed he would come back at a future time. Nearly nine hundred years later, rumors reached the ears of both Herod and the disciples that people were saying Jesus was Elijah (Luke 9:8, 19). And when Jesus was dying on the cross, people mocked, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down” (Mark 15:36).
John the Baptist also had to deny rumors that he was Elijah (John 1:21). They certainly dressed alike, both wearing garments made of animal hair secured by a leather belt (2 Kings 1:8; Mark 1:6). And each one called the people to repentance and challenged them to follow God alone. An angel even declared that John would go “in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:17).
Elijah had left his mark in the world. Now that he was leaving, God would lift up the next leader of the prophets. That would be Elisha, who picked up Elijah’s cloak, the symbol of his prophetic authority. The double portion that he requested is reminiscent of an oldest son who would inherit a double share of his father’s estate. Elisha’s prophetic ministry would endure some fifty years through the reigns of four kings of Israel.
At the outset of Elisha’s ministry is this episode of his encounter with the boys who were jeering at him. While I have sympathy with Elisha for being bald, and while I am a big fan of the Chicago Bears, this story is more about idolatry than anything else. Bethel had become a center of Baal worship. Elijah had confronted the prophets of Baal. These young guys were probably not wanting his successor Elisha to disrupt their pagan practices as well. So, they told him to “Get out of here.”
It was clear that Elisha’s request for a double portion would not be easy. Twice as many years as Elijah. Double the number of corrupt or conflicted kings to deal with. Two times more grief. And yes, twice as many miracles.
Has God ever asked you to do something great that was also very hard? How did you handle it? What did you learn? What is God calling you to do next?
Poem
By My Side
Go not before and leave me
I will not lag behind
But stepping in your footsteps
And with your hand in mine
We’ll walk this Way together
For you have been my guide
This final journey forward
I’ll keep you by my side
We’ll reminisce the vict’ries
We’ll ponder Wisdom’s past
We’ll visit holy places
‘Til Jordan ends our path
We’ll share our love and hopings
A double portion bless
It’s by your side I will remain
‘Til you’re laid down to rest
And then after the whirlwind
Of grief, absent of you
I’ll celebrate all I have learned
While walking in your truth
I’ll pick up now the mantle
Prepare to make great strides
And carry forth the mission
Your spirit by my side
