ELIJAH IS TAKEN TO HEAVEN
MEMORY VERSE
Acts 2:38b-39a, ESV
and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off,
DAY 1
1 Kings 19:1-8, NIrV
1 Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done. He told her how Elijah had killed all the prophets of Baal with his sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a message to Elijah. She said, “You can be sure that I will kill you, just as I killed the other prophets. I’ll do it by this time tomorrow. If I don’t, may the gods punish me greatly.”
3 Elijah was afraid. So he ran for his life. He came to Beersheba in Judah. He left his servant there. 4 Then he traveled for one day into the desert. He came to a small bush. He sat down under it. He prayed that he would die. “Lord, I’ve had enough,” he said. “Take my life. I’m no better than my people of long ago.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush. And he fell asleep.
Suddenly an angel touched him. The angel said, “Get up and eat.” 6 Elijah looked around. Near his head he saw some bread. It had been baked over hot coals. A jar of water was also there. So Elijah ate and drank. Then he lay down again.
7 The angel of the Lord came to him a second time. He touched him and said, “Get up and eat. Your journey will be long and hard.” 8 So he got up. He ate and drank. The food gave him new strength. He traveled for 40 days and 40 nights. He kept going until he arrived at Horeb. It was the mountain of God.
BIBLE STUDY
In the “Who is the Real God?” contest on top of Mount Carmel, God wiped the floor with the pretend god Baal. Afterwards, all 450 of Baal’s prophets were killed. Jezebel, the wicked queen of Israel, gave God’s prophet a deadly promise: “By tomorrow, Elijah, you’ll be dead, too!” Though he’d just seen God’s power on Mount Carmel, Elijah ran for his life away from Jezebel. Eventually, he stopped to plop down a under a bush. There he prayed a hopeless prayer: “I’ve had it, God. Just kill me!” But God didn’t send death. Instead, he sent an angel to say, “Eat and get strength. Then, head to Horeb.”
+ Why do you think Elijah said what he did in verse 4? What made him feel that way?
+ What did Elijah eat? How did the food appear there? (vs. 6)
DAY 2
1 Kings 19:9-16, NIrV
9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.
A message came to Elijah from the Lord. He said, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”
10 He replied, “Lord God who rules over all, I’ve been very committed to you. The Israelites have turned their backs on your covenant. They have torn down your altars. They’ve put your prophets to death with their swords. I’m the only one left. And they are trying to kill me.”
11 The Lord said, “Go out. Stand on the mountain in front of me. I am going to pass by.”
As the Lord approached, a very powerful wind tore the mountains apart. It broke up the rocks. But the Lord wasn’t in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake. But the Lord wasn’t in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake a fire came. But the Lord wasn’t in the fire. And after the fire there was only a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his coat over his face. He went out and stood at the entrance to the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”
14 He replied, “Lord God who rules over all, I’ve been very committed to you. The Israelites have turned their backs on your covenant. They have torn down your altars. They’ve put your prophets to death with their swords. I’m the only one left. And they are trying to kill me.”
15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came. Go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael as king over Aram. 16 Also anoint Jehu as king over Israel. He is the son of Nimshi. And anoint Elisha from Abel Meholah as the next prophet after you. He is the son of Shaphat.
BIBLE STUDY
On the same mountain where he gave Moses the law, God appeared to Elijah. “Why are you here?” God asked. Elijah gave a hopeless answer. “Israel has broken your laws. They’ve killed your prophets. It’s only me left!” After hearing Elijah’s complaint, the Lord repeatedly passed by his prophet. The first three times, he came in a windstorm, in an earthquake, and in a fire. But he did not speak. Finally, he passed by in a quiet whisper and repeated, “Why are you here?” Elijah gave the same sad answer. So God sent him to Damascus. There, Elijah would anoint a new prophet to take his place.
+ In what four ways did the Lord pass by Elijah? (vs. 11-12)
+ What was the name of the man God had chosen to take Elijah’s place? (vs. 16)
DAY 3
1 Kings 19:19-21, NIrV
19 Elijah left Mount Horeb. He saw Elisha, the son of Shaphat. Elisha was plowing in a field. He was driving the last of 12 pairs of oxen. Elijah went up to him. He threw his coat around him. 20 Then Elisha left his oxen. He ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said. “Then I’ll come with you.”
“Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?”
21 So Elisha left him and went back. He got his two oxen and killed them. He burned the plow to cook the meat. He gave it to the people, and they ate it. Then he started to follow Elijah. He became Elijah’s servant.
BIBLE STUDY
Elisha was a farmer. When Elijah arrived, he was walking behind a pair of oxen in a field as they pulled a plow to break up the dirt. The prophet put his own cloak around the farmer. This meant, “God’s chosen you to replace me as his prophet.” Being a prophet was a tough job! They did not live easy lives. So did Elisha have to take some time to think about whether or not he really wanted this job? Nope! Right away, he gave his parents a goodbye kiss. Then, he cooked up the oxen that he used for his farm. Why? To throw a farewell barbecue and say “So long!” to his family and friends!
+ How did Elijah show Elisha that he had been chosen to be the next prophet? (vs. 19)
+ What did Elisha do to show he was leaving his old life behind to follow Elijah? (vs. 21)
DAY 4
2 Kings 2:1-8, NIRV
1 Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. The Lord was going to use a strong wind to take Elijah up to heaven. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here. The Lord has sent me to Bethel.”
But Elisha said, “I won’t leave you. And that’s just as sure as the Lord and you are alive.” So they went down to Bethel.
3 There was a group of prophets at Bethel. They came out to where Elisha was. They asked him, “Do you know what the Lord is going to do? He’s going to take your master away from you today.”
“Yes, I know,” Elisha replied. “So be quiet.”
4 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha. The Lord has sent me to Jericho.”
Elisha replied, “I won’t leave you. And that’s just as sure as the Lord and you are alive.” So they went to Jericho.
5 There was a group of prophets at Jericho. They went up to where Elisha was. They asked him, “Do you know what the Lord is going to do? He’s going to take your master away from you today.”
“Yes, I know,” Elisha replied. “So be quiet.”
6 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here. The Lord has sent me to the Jordan River.”
Elisha replied, “I won’t leave you. And that’s just as sure as the Lord and you are alive.” So the two of them walked on.
7 Fifty men from the group of prophets followed them. The men stopped and stood not far away from them. They faced the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan River. 8 Elijah rolled up his coat. Then he struck the water with it. The water parted to the right and to the left. The two of them went across the river on dry ground.
BIBLE STUDY
With Elisha chosen to be his next prophet, God planned to end Elijah's time on Earth in a spectacular way. Instead of dying, God let all his prophets know that Elijah would ride to heaven in a swirling windstorm! As he prepared to leave, Elijah visited three cities. As a test to see if Elisha was ready to replace him, Elijah told Elisha the same thing in each city, “Stay here.” But each time, Elisha said, "No way! I'm coming with you!" Finally, they reached the Jordan River. There, Elijah did one last miracle, splitting the Jordan River in two like Moses had parted the Red Sea 600 years before.
+ What three places did Elijah and Elisha travel to? (vs. 2, 4, & 6)
+ When the prophets wanted to talk about Elijah leaving, what did Elisha say? (vs. 3 & 5)
DAY 5
2 Kings 2:9-10, NIRV
9 After they had gone across, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me. What can I do for you before I’m taken away from you?”
“Please give me a double share of your spirit,” Elisha replied.
10 “You have asked me for something that’s very hard to do,” Elijah said. “But suppose you see me when I’m taken away from you. Then you will receive what you have asked for. If you don’t see me, you won’t receive it.”
BIBLE STUDY
Have you ever eaten a meal so good you asked for a second helping? That's sort of what Elisha asked Elijah to do for him. Except Elisha didn't want a double scoop of mac and cheese. He wanted a double serving of Elijah’s "spirit." By “spirit”, Elisha meant the God-sent miracle power Elijah had been given to do his job as prophet. With that power, Elijah stopped the rain in Israel, raised a child from the dead, and called down God's fire from heaven. But this was a gift that only God had the power to give. So Elijah told Elisha, “If you watch me when I go, God will give you what you asked for.”
+ What did Elisha ask Elijah to give him before he left? (vs. 9)
+ What did Elijah say Elisha must do to receive a double portion of his spirit? (vs. 10)
DAY 6 - Part one
2 Kings 2:11-12, NIRV
11 They kept walking along and talking together. Suddenly there appeared a chariot and horses made of fire. The chariot and horses came between the two men. Then Elijah went up to heaven in a strong wind. 12 Elisha saw it and cried out to Elijah, “My father! You are like a father to me! You, Elijah, are the true chariots and horsemen of Israel!” Elisha didn’t see Elijah anymore. Then Elisha took hold of his own garment and tore it in two.
BIBLE STUDY
Going to heaven to be with God is a wonderful thing. But to get there, we must experience death first. However, in the history of the world, three men were taken to heaven in a different way. The first was Enoch. Genesis 5 tells us that one day Enoch was simply gone. How? God just... took him away! The second man was Elijah, who flew to heaven in a swirling wind riding in a fiery horse-pulled chariot. And the third? That was Jesus! Three days after dying on the cross, Jesus rose from the dead. After spending 40 days with his disciples, Jesus then rose up through the clouds into heaven!
+ What did Elisha say and do after watching Elijah leave? (vs. 12)
DAY 6 - Part TWO
2 Kings 2:13-15, NIRV
13 He picked up the coat that had fallen from Elijah. He went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan River. 14 Then he struck the water with Elijah’s coat. “Where is the power of the Lord?” he asked. “Where is the power of the God of Elijah?” When Elisha struck the water, it parted to the right and to the left. He went across the river.
15 The group of prophets from Jericho were watching. They said, “The spirit of Elijah has been given to Elisha.” They went over to Elisha. They bowed down to him with their faces toward the ground.
BIBLE STUDY
The swirling winds and fiery chariot that took Elijah to heaven caused his coat to fly off of him. Elisha picked it up off the ground, rolled it up, and did the exact same thing he’d seen Elijah do just a few minutes earlier. He struck the Jordan River with it. As he did, he asked out loud, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?”
Before his master left, Elisha asked for a double portion of his spirit. “If you watch me go,” Elijah had told him, “the Lord will give you what you asked.” By striking the river and asking this question, Elisha was seeing if Elijah’s words had come true.
Right away, Elisha got the answer he was looking for. The waters of the Jordan split in two, just like they had done for Elijah! It was a crystal clear sign that God had given Elisha the spirit and power he’d asked for. And with that power, it was now Elisha’s job to speak God’s messages to the people, just like Elijah had done before him.
Soon, we’ll read more about the life of the prophet Elisha. As we do, we’ll see that God really did give Elisha a double scoop of the power of Elijah. Elisha actually did double the number of miracles his master had done. During his life, Elijah stood up against King Ahab and the prophets of the pretend god, Baal. But Elisha was the one God used to completely drive the worship of Baal right on out of the nation of Israel!
In Elijah and Elisha’s day, it was not common for God’s Spirit to live with people in a special way. It was usually only given to prophets to speak God’s words or to judges and kings, to give them power to defeat God’s enemies. However, since Jesus died to pay for all of our sins, God has given us a special promise: to send his powerful Spirit to live forever with anyone who believes the good news of Jesus!
+ What was the proof that God had given his power to the prophet Elisha? (vs. 14)
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