It is commonly believed by most folks who believe the Bible is true that Elijah never died. When he ascended in a fiery chariot, it is commonly thought that Elijah went directly into heaven, living forever, without ever having to die. Is this so? If it is so, how does this understanding square with Jesus’ words in John 3:13 that “…no man has ascended into heaven except for he who came down from heaven…”, namely Jesus, himself?
We are told in the Old Testament that Elijah was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire (2Kings 2:11) presumably during the final days of the reign of Ahaziah, king of Israel. Nothing is said in 2Kings chapter two about the reign of any king that would date its events. However, Elijah’s chariot ride in chapter two comes between the reigns of two kings of Israel. 2Kings 3:1 says that Jehoram, son of Ahab reigned in Ahaziah’s stead. Ahaziah died of a disease not leaving a son, so his brother, Jehoram became the King of Israel (cp. 2Kings 1:15-18).
The beginning of Jehoram’s 12 year reign coincided with the eighteenth year of the reign of Jehosaphat, king of Judah. This is important, because the kings of Judah and Israel were allies. Before going to war with Moab they consulted the prophets, but Judah and Israel were not united in their faiths. Only Judah worshiped the Lord. Therefore, Jehosaphat desired a word from a prophet of the LORD before going to war, and in this case we are told the great prophet was Elisha (2Kings 3:11). Therefore, the time of this Scripture is definitely after Elijah ascended to heaven in a fiery chariot (2Kings 2:11).
In order to show that Elijah did not die and was not taken into heaven where God is, we need to consult the book of Chronicles. Elijah was merely taken into the visible heaven where the clouds are. Consider the fact that Elijah’s student prophets or disciples wanted to go look for him after the whirlwind had taken him up. They feared that he was thrown down (2Kings 2:16-18), so they may have seen a great deal of Elijah’s miraculous journey, perhaps all of it. Notice in 2Chronicles 21:1 Jehoram, the son of Jehosaphat, reigned in Jerusalem in the stead of his father. Jehosaphat was dead, but remember that Elisha was the prophet of the Lord that Jehosaphat had consulted concerning the war with Moab. Therefore, by this time in 2Chronicles 21, Elijah had already taken his chariot ride into the heavens which had to have occurred before Jehosaphat’s death. Moreover, Jehoram the son of Ahab referred to in 2Kings 3:1 with whom Jehosaphat was allied is not the same Jehoram mentioned here in 2Chronicles 21:1. This Jehoram was king of Judah and son of Jehosaphat. He did not walk in the ways of his father but in the ways of the kings of Israel, for he had married Ahab’s daughter and led Judah astray (2Chronicles 21:4-6).
The point of all this is that in 2Chronicles 21:12 we find that Elijah wrote a letter to Jehoram, the king of Judah, chastising him for walking in the way of the kings of Israel. Knowing that Elijah’s chariot ride in 2Kings chapter two took place while Jehosaphat was still alive, how could he write a letter after Jehosaphat’s death, if he was in heaven where God is? This means Elijah was still alive and earthbound. Therefore, though Elijah’s chariot ride into heaven may be a figure of our being caught up to meet the Lord at his second coming, it does not mean that Elijah was himself taken into paradise, nor does it mean he never died at a later date. All it means is that his ministry as God’s main prophet was about done. Except for this letter to the king of Judah, Elijah’s ministry ended with the fiery chariot ride up to the clouds. And, lest anyone think Elijah could have returned from heaven just to write this letter or that he inspired one of the other prophets to write the letter for him, the Scriptures deny this possibility (Leviticus 20:27; 1Samuel 28:7-8; cp. Luke16:25-26).
The sense is, therefore, Elijah was given a fiery chariot ride through the visible heaven and set down in a place away from his brethren, Elisha and his disciples. Why did this occur? We are not told. It certainly marked the end of his great public ministry, which went to Elisha. Certainly Elijah’s disciples didn’t believe he was taken into heaven where God was, because they wanted to search for his body. This implies they were able to see a great deal of Elijah’s journey and perhaps his decent. We are not told all the details, but we are told enough to see there is not a contradiction between 2Kings 2:11 and Jesus’ words in John 3:13.
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Vlad
January 6, 2011 at 14:23
I agree that Elijah did die at some point. But here is where I disagree. When Elijah and Elisha were going to the place where Elijah would be taken, some 50 children of prophets from Bethel and Jericho came out to mock Elisha (just like Elijah was mocking their fathers in 1Kings18:27). I assume that those prophets weren’t Gods people from 1Kings12:28-33. Later, in verse 23 the same children of prophets of baals (and not any “small children”) came out to mack Elisha even more, even after all confirmations that Elisha had Spirit of the God on him. I hope you see the connection I’m trying to make. I’d like to know your thoughts. Thank you.
Eddie
January 6, 2011 at 19:01
Vlad, hello again :-)
I am uncertain that I understand, but I’ll offer an opinion and you tell me if I understood correctly.
1Kings 12:28-33 shows that Israel to the north of Judah went astray from God. Jeroboam made gods and set up a house or temple in Dan and in Bethel so the Israelites wouldn’t go to Judah to worship. In 1Kings 18:27 we see Elijah mocking these priests who are the descendants of those whom Jeroboam set up. Then in 2Kings 2:11 Elijah has his fiery chariot ride through the heavens. Elisha witnesses his departure which is a sign that he is Elijah’s successor. The sons of the prophets wanted to look for Elijah’s body, fearing he was thrown down in the mountains.
Elisha waited in Jericho until these men returned then healed the waters there for the people. From there he went to Bethel and while he was still approaching the city some of the young men came out of the city to mock Elisha (2Kings 2:23), and Elisha cursed them, bringing God’s judgment upon them, as Elijah did years earlier to the prophets of Baal.
I think your question is: are the prophets mentioned in 2Kings 2:3 descendants of the prophets of Baal mentioned in 1Kings 18 and are these the same who came out mocking Elisha in 2Kings 2:23? If this is your question, I have to say no. While the young men in 2Kings 2:23 may be descendants of the prophets of Baal in 1Kings 18, I think the prophets in 2Kings 2:3 are prophets of the Lord. Can I prove this? No, I cannot, but I think it would be odd for Scripture to mention the prophets of Baal in the same chapter with the prophets of the LORD without making any distinction.
If you were thinking of something else that I didn’t address, please don’t hesitate to ask for further clarification.
Lord bless,
Eddie
Vlad
January 6, 2011 at 19:52
*I think it would be odd for Scripture to mention the prophets of Baal in the same chapter with the prophets of the LORD without making any distinction.*
– Yes, you got my point and I understand your position. I think that the distinction between prophets of God and baal was made by mentioning their behavior: Elisha told them to shut up, he said that they wouldn’t find Elijah, they made Elisha feel ashamed and at last they mocked him (if they were the same people in verse 23 as earlier). To me it looks plausible, it is good correlation with previous events in the same chapter, unlike the idea that some small children (all of a sudden) would be killed for stating the obvious. There are terrible video clips made by some ignorant people about this event, such as this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orEFUU4WFmk
You don’t have to post this comment if you have nothing to add, I suspect that this dialog wouldn’t lead us anywhere further. Thank you that you are always listening and replying in timely manner.
Eddie
January 6, 2011 at 20:37
I think that the distinction between prophets of God and baal was made by mentioning their behavior:
Nevertheless, this wouldn’t keep the enemies of Christianity from denying your claim, saying they seem to be prophets of the LORD and the innocent children were cursed by God. Later, Elisha seems to be working with “the sons of the prophets”. In fact, whenever the phrase “sons of the prophets” is used in Scripture it refers to prophets of the LORD. If it means something else in 2Kings 2 it is without precedent.
Moreover, your interpretation that Elisha told them to “shut up!” might be a little forceful. Elsewhere, all it means is to be quiet. It is used of the LORD being quiet when his people went astray, and again of the prophets of the LORD trying to be quiet but couldn’t. It is used in Ecclesiastes for a time to be quiet and a time to speak out. I believe all Elisha is saying is, the time of Elijah’s departure is too solemn a time to discuss why he is leaving etc. Elisha was sad and didn’t want to talk about it.
Concerning verse-23, it is a poor translation to render the word “children”. The same word is used elsewhere for young men in their thirties and forties and young men who had gone to war. To understand the word to mean a mere child is a purely subjective assumption, and one I (like you) don’t believe.
Is your understanding plausible? Yes, but I believe the stronger argument is the Hebrew word used in the text for children is very often used of grown men—kings, who had gone to war. The fact that the phrase “sons of the prophets” is everywhere else used for the prophets of the LORD hurts your argument. Nevertheless, it is plausible.
Have a good evening, my friend,