2 Kings 2:1-15
"2 Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 And Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. 3 And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he said, “Yes, I know it; keep quiet.”
4 Elijah said to him, “Elisha, please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. 5 The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know it; keep quiet.”
6 Then Elijah said to him, “Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. 7 Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. 8 Then 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.
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 double 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.” And they came to meet him and bowed to the ground before him."
Elisha's reaction to his master's departure is significant. In agitation he cried out, 'My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horse men thereof.' This doubtless referred to the vision that greeted his astonished gaze, but it is interesting to realise that ancient Jewish tradi- tion interprets his words as referring to Elijah himself as the chariot and horsemen of Israel, meaning that the prophet had been to Israel, by his life of faithfulness and prayer, as a mighty military protection, more than all the chariots and horsemen of the king. This in fact is what God's people are meant to be in every age. Christ said, 'Ye are the salt of the earth' to His disciples, meaning that their presence in society prevents corruption from becoming so wide- spread that total disaster comes. Elisha's first instinctive feeling was therefore that the nation had been deprived of its only real strength and protection, and was now defenceless in face of its enemies. This is a tremendous testimony to the worth of Elijah's life and ministry. It is certainly true that some men have exercised such a significant and potent influence through the preaching of the Word that whole communities have been lifted to higher levels of living. It was said of Wesley in the eighteenth century that by his preaching he saved England from revolution. We should pray that God will raise up such men today whose word will lay a re- straint upon the corruption in society and be a means of protecting it from the evils that con- stantly threaten it.