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.
Elijah is about to be taken from the earth. For the third time he tells his companion to stay behind, this time at Jericho, while he goes on to the Jordan. Elisha answers with the same oath he has already given twice. Why does Elijah keep offering him an exit, and why does Elisha keep refusing?
A test repeated three times
Three times on this journey Elijah told his servant to stay behind. Nothing forced Elisha forward; the marching orders were Elijah's, not his. That is what made the invitation a test:
Hamilton SmithElisha is reminded of great truths at the different stages of this last journey. His affections are also put to the test by Elijah's words, repeated three times: "Please stay here." Elijah received the instructions to go forward to these different places. Elisha received no command to go with him. If then he follows Elijah it is wholly a question of affection. And the test draws out his affection, for three times Elisha replies, "As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you."
Fereday raises the obvious question and answers it:
W. W. FeredayDid the departing prophet want to get rid of his companion? Or was he testing him, to see how far he entered into the circumstances of that moment? We believe it was the latter… His soul felt that blessing was tied to staying close to Elijah, and he was set on not missing the blessing.
What each place stood for
The route was not random. Each place on it teaches something about God.
Hamilton SmithAt Gilgal we learn the holiness of God that demands the judgment of the flesh. At Bethel, the unchanging grace of God which blesses us, keeps us, and secures to us the end of our journey. At Jericho, the mighty power of God that sustains us. And at Jordan, separation from the world so that we may enter heavenly ground.
Jordan means death
One writer reads the stages of this chapter as a picture of Christ:
The Bible Treasury2 Kings 2:6. Jordan is death.
2 Kings 2:8. The power of death falls at the touch of the power of Christ.
2 Kings 2:9. After the victory Christ can distribute gifts.
One writer explains why this ending is good news for a believer:
Leslie M. GrantThe Jordan illustrates another step in Israel's relationship with God, for it speaks of death. Israel had passed through that river when the waters rolled back (Josh. 3:15-17). To learn the lesson of death rightly, we must come to see that it is a great blessing for the believer, for it brings him into the greatest joys possible.
The oath behind the refusal
Elisha does not argue; he swears. His answer is the language of a man whose mind is made up. Rossier puts words to the refusal at Jericho: any power to lift that city's curse lies in Elijah, not in Elisha.
H. L. RossierStay at Jericho, Elisha, says Elijah; as for me, I am sent further. No, could I ever feel the curse hanging over this city more than you? Since you, my lord and master, do not remedy this today, could I remedy it myself? For that I should have to have a personal power, and that I have only in you.
No fourth invitation
At the Jordan the pattern breaks. Elijah stops asking, and the verse ends with the two of them going on:
H. L. Rossier"The LORD has sent me to the Jordan." Here there is no more summons to stay. Elijah takes Elisha with him. He leads him through the river of death in the power of the Spirit, which death cannot resist, in the triumphant power of a life that death cannot swallow up… "They two went on." "They two stood by the Jordan." "They two went over on dry ground." Elijah does not go over for himself alone, but to let Elisha pass over with him.
Turpin points out who does the carrying — and when the talking starts:
W. T. TurpinElijah first of all carries Elisha, in the power that belonged to himself, across Jordan… Now every child of God has been carried over Jordan in the death of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by His power — of course I mean in position. If you are a Christian, you are over Jordan. He has carried you over. And note that they say nothing to each other until they are across the river.
Summary
- Tested — no one commanded Elisha to come. Three times Elijah offered him an honourable stop, so every step forward was pure affection.
- Trained — the road itself taught him. Gilgal spoke of holiness, Bethel of unchanging grace, Jericho of sustaining power, and Jordan of separation from the world.
- Sworn — his answer was an oath, not a preference. He would not stay in the cursed city, because any power to lift that curse lay in his master, not in himself.
- Taken — at the river the invitations to stay stop. Elijah crosses not for himself alone, but so that Elisha may cross with him.
- Rewarded — only on the far side do the two men speak. Death is where the power of Christ wins, and after that victory He gives gifts.