Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Kings 2:2

And 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.

2. Tarry here ] Not only was Elijah himself conscious of some great event at hand but Elisha and the bands of prophets in Bethel and Jericho had an intimation that the departure of Elijah was very near. But the subject is too solemn for words. The two chief persons do not speak of it, and it is only when the separation is just about to take place that direct allusion is made to it (verse 9). We can see however in Elijah’s request, here and afterwards, that Elisha should stay behind how awful the immediate future appeared to him, and in Elisha’s persistence the great love which the disciple felt for his master. Elijah, feeling that soon he was to stand before God, and was drawing near to the gate of heaven, would save his disciple from the sight of a glory on which man, as the Jew felt, cannot gaze and live, while Elisha is resolved that nothing but the last necessity shall take him from his master’s side.

the Lord hath sent me to [R.V. more precisely, as far as ] Beth-el ] The whole journey has been marked out for him, and devised that those who were to carry on the work after Elijah’s departure might at this last interview see, and remember hereafter, the last looks, fixed on heaven, and the last words, though they seem to have been but few, spoken, of him who had been their guide and father for a long while and amid constant perils.

As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth ] The combination of the two phrases imparts much solemnity to the resolve. They are not un-frequently found apart. Thus ‘As the Lord liveth’ occurs alone in Jdg 8:19; Rth 3:13; 1Sa 14:39 &c., and ‘As thy soul liveth’ in 1Sa 1:26; 1Sa 17:55 ; 2Sa 14:19 &c. Beside the places in this chapter the double form is found in 1Sa 20:3; 1Sa 25:26 and is expressive of the most intense earnestness. Elisha’s master may be withdrawn from him: he will not be withdrawn from his master.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Tarry here – Elijahs motive in making this request is not clear. Perhaps he thought that so awful and sacred a scene as that which he was led to expect 2Ki 2:9, should be kept as secret as possible.

The Lord hath sent me to Bethel – Elijah may have been directed to Bethel, because of the School of the prophets there, that the sight of him – if not his words – might console and encourage them before they lost him forever.

As the Lord liveth … – This double oath, repeated three times 2Ki 2:4, 2Ki 2:6, is very remarkable. The two clauses of it are separately used with some frequency (see Jdg 8:19; Rth 3:13; 1Sa 1:26, etc.), but it is comparatively seldom that they are united (see the marginal references).

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

2Ki 2:2

And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee.

Tested

The call that came to Elisha as he was ploughing at Abel-meholah was readily and gladly obeyed. There was no ten days tarrying between his masters ascension and his own wonderful enduement, as in the case of the apostles, and this was, probably, because he had been sufficiently tested and prepared beforehand.

1. He had learned to stoop and serve. Not one of the chosen twelve volunteered to take the place of a servant at the passover feast on the night of the betrayal.

2. He had learned to obey God rather than men. Mrs. Walton, in her book, tells us that the beautiful orange groves near the town of Jaffa are so sheltered that for some part of the year the perfectly ripe fruit of last year is seen hanging side by side with the blossom of this. Blossom and fruit were side by side on this journey. Elijah, so fully matured that he was ready for translation, side by side with Elisha, who was just blossoming out in the beauty of early faith and devotion. And yet Elijah himself was to apply the second great test to Elisha, to see whether he would obey God rather than men. God had commissioned Elisha to minister to Elijah. Would he persevere to the end, or would he allow the persuasions of others to draw him off? So three times he was tested by his own master. Tarry ye here, for the Lord hath sent me to Bethel. Tarry ye here, for the Lord hath sent me to Jericho. Tarry ye here, for the Lord hath sent me to Jordan. It was that he might test Elishas devotion, and see if he would follow right on to the end. So Elijah does not express a desire to be alone. He simply tested Elisha, as Naomi tested Orpah and Ruth. It is eight miles from Jezreel to Bethel. The road descends a steep hill into a narrow gorge which runs for some four miles to an ancient spring now called the Robbers Well. So far the road is easy, but for the next four miles the rocky bed of a dry watercourse is the only path. So Elijah suggests that he might be left to tread the last stage of his earthly pilgrimage alone. Very different was the attitude of the sons of the prophets. There were theological colleges, so to speak, at Bethel and Jericho, and Elijah s last journey took him past these. It would be an encouragement to him to see that God was not left without witnesses–that his championship of Gods truth had not been in vain. But there was no special blessing for these sons of the prophets at this time. They fell far short of Elishas portion. Their attitude and spirit were very different from Elishas. Perhaps they wanted to discuss who was to succeed Elijah, and what effect his departure would have upon Gods work in Israel. But there was no holy awe as they stood in the presence of one so soon to be summoned to the glorious presence of the King of kings. They felt no sense of need; they had no thirst for personal blessing. There are many to-day like these sons of the prophets. When God is working mightily in the quickening and deepening energy of the Holy Ghost, it is those only who follow closely, and right through to the end, who receive the blessing. Those who look on from a distance will never see the heaven opened, or share in the outpoured blessing.

3. Elisha had learned to put first things first. Once more he was to be tested. The two had crossed Jordan. That river which is the symbol of death had parted when smitten by Elijahs mantle. It was not fitting that he who was to be honoured by a deathless translation should wrestle with the swiftly flowing waters of Jordan. You say, If I can get safely to heaven at the end, that is all I want; but is that all God wants? How would you answer if the challenge, Ask what I shall do for thee, were put to you? Would your soul leap forth with ardent longing for fulness of spiritual blessing, or would some craving for ease and honour and advancement be uppermost in your heart? (M. G. Pearse.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Verse 2. Tarry here, I pray thee] He either made these requests through humility, not wishing any person to be witness of the honour conferred on him by God, or with the desire to prove the fidelity of Elisha, whether he would continue to follow and serve him.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Elijah said unto Elisha: this he desires, either,

1. That he, being left alone, might better prepare himself for his great change. Or,

2. Out of his humility and modesty; he desired no witnesses of his glorious removal, and no fame and glory from it. Or,

3. Out of indulgence to Elisha, that he might not be overwhelmed with grief at so sad a sight. Or,

4. That he might try his love, and whet his desire to accompany him; it being highly convenient for Gods honour, and the churchs good, (which Elijah sought above all things,) that there should be witnesses of so glorious a translation.

The Lord hath sent me to Beth-el; which was truth, but not the whole truth; for he was to go a far longer journey. But he was first to go to Beth-el, as also to Jericho, to the schools of the prophets there, that he might comfort and strengthen their hearts in Gods work, and give them his last and dying counsels.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

And Elijah said unto Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee,…. Seemingly unwilling he should go with him, and be present at his assumption; which was either out of modesty, not affecting the spread of the honour and glory to be conferred upon him; or to prevent the grief of Elisha at his departure, or to try whether Elisha knew any thing of it, and what affection he had for him:

for the Lord hath sent me to Bethel; to give some comfort and some instruction and advice to the college of prophets there:

and Elisha said unto him, as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee; being determined to see the last of him, and to have the benefit of his company and conversation, his heavenly discourse, and instruction from him as long as he could, and in hope of receiving a blessing from him at parting:

so they went down to Bethel; together, which, according to Bunting h, was six miles.

h Travels, &c. p. 205.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

(2) Said.Not spake, as throughout the account in 2Ki. 1:2-16; a mark of different origin.

Tarry here, I pray thee.This was said, not to test Elishas affection, nor from a motive of humility, that Elisha might not witness his glorious ascension, but because Elijah was uncertain whether it was Gods will that Elisha should go with him. (Comp. 2Ki. 2:10.) Elishas threefold refusal to leave him settled the doubt. (Comp. Joh. 21:15, seq.)

The Lord hath sent me to Beth-el.Why? Not merely to see once more this holiest place in Israel, the spiritual centre of the kingdom of the ten tribes (Ewald), but to visit the prophetic schools, or guilds, established there, and at Gilgal and Jericho, and to confirm their fidelity to Jehovah. Gilgal and Beth-el, as ancient Canaanite sanctuaries, were centres of illegal worship of the God of Israel. The guilds of the prophets may have been intended to counteract this evil influence at its head-quarters (Bhr).

As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth.2Ki. 4:30; 1Sa. 20:3. A more solemn and emphatic oath than As the Lord liveth (Jdg. 8:19), or As thy soul liveth (1Sa. 1:26). Literally, By the life of Jehovah and by the life of thy soul (i.e., of thyself, thine own life).

They went down.From Gilgal. The phrase proves that the Gilgal between the Jordan and Jericho cannot be meant in 2Ki. 2:1. (See Jos. 4:19; Jos. 5:10.)

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

2. Tarry here Why should Elijah thus exhort Elisha? Some think, to prove his fidelity and love; but others, with greater probability, think that Elijah wanted no human eye to witness his departure from the world, and that feelings of deep humility prompted this request.

I will not leave thee Elisha seems to have had a revelation, or at least a premonition, that his master was about to be taken away from him that day, and “no dread of that final parting could deter him from the mournful joy of seeing with his own eyes the last moments, and of hearing with his own ears the last words, of the prophet of God.” Stanley.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments