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 had been appointed as Elijah's successor in the prophetic office; the great question that must have exercised his mind and heart would be whether his request to Elijah (9) for a double portion of his spirit would be recognized and answered by God. He need not have feared. God does not send any man to this warfare on his own charges. When he commanded Elijah to anoint him (1 Kings 19:16), the divine enduement of power must surely have been implied. But Elisha now put the word of the Lord to the test and, seizing the fallen mantle of his master he went to Jordan and repeated the action of Elijah, smiting the waters with it and crying, 'Where is the Lord God of Elijah?'; and the miracle again happened, and Elisha crossed over dry-shod. This is a necessary exercise of faith, to venture on the faithfulness of God's Word; indeed, it is only natural to expect to see some sign of divine enduement in the lives of those who believe themselves called to the service of the Kingdom. It is not training of this kind or that that elicits such evidences in a man's life; training is meant to give direction and thrust to the life that is called to service, but no training can implant a sense of vocation. The call must be there before any training can be of avail, and where it is, it will manifest itself in unmistakeable signs, for God will give tokens that will both assure them and others that His hand is upon them.