2 Kings 2

And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.

1God was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elijah and Elisha were walking away from the town of Gilgal. Both men were prophets, people who told others what God said.

2And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.

2Elijah said, "Please stay here. God has sent me on to Bethel." Elisha said, "As surely as God lives, and as surely as you live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel together.

3And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.

3A group of prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha. They asked, "Do you know God is taking your teacher away today?" Elisha said, "Yes, I know. Please stop talking about it."

4And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.

4Then Elijah said, "Elisha, please stay here. God has sent me on to Jericho." Elisha said, "As surely as God lives, and as surely as you live, I will not leave you." So they came to Jericho.

5And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.

5The group of prophets at Jericho came to Elisha. They asked, "Do you know God is taking your teacher away today?" He answered, "Yes, I know. Please stop talking about it."

6And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.

6Elijah said, "Please stay here. God has sent me on to the Jordan River." Elisha said again, "As surely as God lives, and as surely as you live, I will not leave you." So the two of them walked on.

7And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.

7Fifty men from the group of prophets followed them. They stood far away and watched. Elijah and Elisha stood by the Jordan River.

8And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground.

8Elijah took off his coat and rolled it up. He hit the water with it. The water split open, one side to the right and one to the left. The two men walked across on dry ground.

9And 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.

9After they crossed, Elijah said, "Ask me for something before I am taken away." Elisha said, "Please let me have a double share of your spirit."

NoteA "double share" was what an oldest son got when a father's things were passed down. Elisha is asking to be treated as Elijah's main heir, the one who carries on his work.

10And 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.

10Elijah said, "You have asked for a hard thing. If you see me when I am taken away, you will get it. If you do not see me, you will not."

11And 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.

11They kept walking and talking together. Suddenly a chariot of fire came, pulled by horses of fire. It came between the two men. Then Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.

12And 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.

12Elisha saw it happen. He cried out, "My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!" Then he could not see Elijah anymore. He grabbed his own clothes and tore them in two, to show his sadness.

13He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;

13Elisha picked up the coat that had fallen off Elijah. He carried it back and stood on the bank of the Jordan River.

NoteThe King James Bible calls Elijah's coat a "mantle." It was a large cloak worn over his other clothes.

14And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

14He took Elijah's coat and hit the water with it. He said, "Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?" When he hit the water, it split to the right and to the left. Then Elisha walked across.

15And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

15The group of prophets from Jericho were watching from far away. They said, "Elijah's spirit is resting on Elisha now." They came to meet him and bowed low to the ground.

16And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send.

16They said, "We have fifty strong men here. Please let them go look for your teacher. Maybe God's Spirit set him down on a mountain or in a valley." Elisha said, "Do not send them."

17And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.

17But they kept asking until he felt embarrassed. So he said, "Send them." They sent fifty men, who looked for three days. They did not find Elijah.

18And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go not?

18Elisha had stayed in Jericho. When the men came back to him, he said, "Did I not tell you not to go?"

19And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is naught, and the ground barren.

19The men of the city said to Elisha, "Sir, you can see this is a good place to live. But the water is bad, and nothing grows well in the ground."

20And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.

20Elisha said, "Bring me a new bowl with salt in it." So they brought it to him.

21And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the LORD, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

21He walked out to the spring where the water came up. He threw the salt in. He said, "God says: I have healed this water. It will not bring death or ruin crops anymore."

22So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake.

22The water has been good ever since that day. It happened just the way Elisha said it would.

23And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.

23Elisha left there and went up to Bethel. As he walked up the road, a group of boys came out of the city. They made fun of him and shouted, "Go on up, baldy! Go on up, baldy!"

NoteThe King James Bible says "little children" here. The word covers young people who are older than toddlers, closer to boys or young men.

24And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.

24Elisha turned around and looked at them. He asked God to send trouble on them. Two mother bears came out of the woods. They attacked forty-two of the boys.

25And he went from thence to mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria.

25From there Elisha went to Mount Carmel. Then he went back to the city of Samaria.