2 Kings 2

Elijah Taken Up & Elisha Steps Up

1 When the Lord was about to snatch Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were dipping from Gilgal.

2 Elijah told Elisha, “Listen, stay here, because the Lord sent me to Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I am not leaving you!” So they went down to Bethel.

3 The sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha and asked him, “You know the Lord is going to snatch your master away from you today, right,” He said, “Yeah, I know. Just chill.”

4 Elijah told him, “Elisha, stay here, because the Lord sent me to Jericho.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I am not leaving you!” So they came to Jericho.

5 The sons of the prophets who were in Jericho came to Elisha and asked him, “You know the Lord is going to snatch your master away from you today, right,” He said, “Yeah, I know. Just chill.”

6 Elijah told him, “Stay here, because the Lord sent me to the Jordan.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I am not leaving you!” So the two of them kept it moving.

7 Fifty dudes from the sons of the prophets also came and stood watching from a distance, as the two of them stood by the Jordan.

8 Then Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up, and smacked the water with it. The water split right and left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.

9 When they had crossed, Elijah told Elisha, “What do you want me to do for you before I get snatched away from you?” Elisha said, “Man, let me get a double portion of your spirit!”

10 Elijah said, “That is a tough ask. But if you see me when I get snatched away from you, it will happen for you. If not, it will not.”

11 As they were walking along, chopping it up, all of a sudden, a chariot of fire and horses of fire popped up and separated the two of them. And Elijah shot up to heaven in a whirlwind.

12 Elisha saw it, and he yelled out, “My father, my father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And he did not see him anymore. Then he grabbed his own clothes and ripped them into two pieces.

13 He picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan.

14 He took Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and smacked the water with it, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” When he smacked the water, it split right and left, and Elisha crossed over.

15 When the sons of the prophets who were watching from Jericho saw him, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha!” And they came to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him.

16 They told him, “Look, your servants got fifty strong dudes. Let them go search for your master. Maybe the Spirit of the Lord snatched him up and dropped him on some mountain or in some valley.” He said, “Nah, do not send them.”

17 But they kept pushing him until he was embarrassed, so he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty dudes, and they searched for three days but could not find him.

18 When they came back to him in Jericho (he was waiting there), he told them, “Did I not tell you all not to go?”

19 Now, the men of the city told Elisha, “Listen, this city is chill, as you can see, but the water is not good, and the land is not producing crops.”

20 He said, “Bring me a new bowl and put some salt in it.” So they brought it to him.

21 Then he went out to the spring of water and threw the salt in it, and said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I made this water healthy. From now on, no more death or bad crops from here.’”

22 So the water became healthy and has been to this day, according to the word Elisha spoke.

23 From there he went up to Bethel. As he was walking up the road, some young dudes came out of the city and started clowning him, saying, “Go on up, baldy! Go on up, baldy!”

24 He turned around, looked at them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the kids.

25 From there he went to Mount Carmel, and from there he went back to Samaria.