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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
2 Kings 2:9–12, “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.”
Elijah had been a fearless and powerful prophet who had dedicated his life to serving the Lord. He had paid a high price for this service but had done great things for the glory of the Lord. He had even prayed and the Lord stopped the rain for three years. In spite of Elijah’s great dedication and faith, Israel refused to submit to the Lord and continued in their rebellious ways. However, Elisha knew that he had been called to keep Elijah’s work going and wanted to have some of the power that the Lord had given to Elijah. When Elijah asked Elisha what he would like, Elisha asked for a double portion of the older prophet’s powerful spirit. The double portion belonged to a firstborn son who was to carry on the family name and traditions. (We can see this from Deut 21:17, “But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.” where the firstborn son had inheritance rights that his father could not abrogate) Elijah was going back to the Lord and Elisha wanted to carry on the great work that he had done with the same power so he asked for this double portion. Elijah told Elisha that he would receive this special gift if he watched the old prophet right to the end. As the two men walked along the road, a chariot of fire came from heaven and Elijah was taken away. Elisha had remained attentive to his Moses to the very end and witnessed the entire event. As Elisha looked up into heaven he called out, “My father, my father!” because Elijah had been a spiritual father to him. Elisha tore his clothes as a sign that he was mourning for the loss of his spiritual father.
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