Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Kings 2:15
And 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.
15. which were to view at Jericho ] R.V. which were at Jericho over against him. See above on verse 7. They were in a position from which they could see him, and he might see them.
bowed themselves to the ground ] Thus expressing their acknowledgement of him as their head, and the divinely appointed successor of Elijah. ‘It was not the outside of Elijah which they had wont to stoop unto with so much veneration; it was his spirit, which since they now find in another subject, they entertain with equal reverence. No envy, no emulation raiseth up their stomachs against Elijah’s servant; but where they see eminent graces, they are willingly prostrate’ (Bp Hall).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
2Ki 2:15
They said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha.
The recognition of spiritual superiority
This is clearly an instance, not of the flunkey spirit, but of justifiable deference, a commendable acknowledgment of spiritual superiority. In the religious world, as in other spheres, some men are meant to lead and others to follow. Yes, but every man can select his own hero. Worship he must, but it is not necessary that he should become an idolater. He can determine for himself who or what shall be the object of his veneration and regard. No man is compelled to cast the pearl of admiration at the feet of swine. Hence to know the true status and quality of men it is sufficient to inquire at what shrine they prostrate themselves. To know the ideals he cherishes, the names he reveres, the heroes he admires, is to know a man at the most vital and central point. Where, then, does this test place these sons of the prophets that were at Jericho? It gives them the loftiest position; it stamps them as spirits of the wisest and noblest type.
1. How do we compare with these sons of the prophets which were at Jericho? What qualities do we require in men as the condition of our deferential regard? Is it enough that a man is of so-called royal descent? That by the accident of birth he occupies a throne and is called a king? How do we define these terms royalty and kingship? Fine feathers do not make fine birds. Neither do the trappings of kingly office constitute royalty and entitle their possessor to the loyal devotion of the people. There is a royalty of mere blood and lineage which may be, and frequently is, associated with vice and vulgar display and crass selfishness and intolerant pride. On the other hand, there is an aristocracy of the spirit, a royalty of soul, that comes not by a birth of blood, but by regeneration of the Spirit, and that displays itself in all sweet and gracious and noble living. To which of these do we Fay homage?
2. There is a further application of this thought on which we may dwell. It is sometimes said, Oh, but we must have respect for the cloth. What cloth? If cloth be the badge of authority, if the possession of it constitutes a mans claim to special deference and regard, then how strangely is Elishas first and mightiest credential overlooked here. For he comes carrying in his hand the well-known mantle of the great man who has just ascended. But these sons of the prophets do not appear to have noticed it. We do not read, Now when the sons of the prophets saw the mantle of Elijah in the hand of Elisha . . . they bowed themselves . . . Their homage was rendered on totally different ground. They saw that the spirit of Elijah did rest on Elisha. The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. In the administration of the Kingdom of God on earth there is, of necessity, a law of succession. There is but one unchangeable priesthood. Every other servant of Jehovah, however great and apparently indispensable, is presently withdrawn from the busy sphere. But he leaves behind him his mantle. He does not take with him the source of power. So the Spirit of the Lord moves with sovereign freedom, alighting upon whom He will The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisa. Why Elisha? In almost every feature he is a striking contrast to his predecessor. And when the sons of the prophets which were at Jericho saw . . . they said. Then Elishas qualification for the high position was self-evident. It could be perceived and appraised by the onlooker. (H. Davenport.)
Elijahs legacy
I. It was a legacy bequeathed with difficulty. There is a great, general truth underlying these words. It is a hard thing to communicate moral qualities It is easy to cause another to possess your material wealth; it is not so easy to enrich him mentally, morally, or spiritually. This is the experience of every good parent. You want to make men of your children. It is no easy task. What patience, what wisdom, what grace are needed to do it. Yet thank God it is a work in which many succeed. But, again, when Elijah said, Thou hast asked a hard thing–he meant, I think, that the request was beyond him. He could not give his servant what he sought. He might give him his mantle, and by doing so symbolise the transference of his office, but he could not give him his power. He could teach him–could from the resources of his own experience give him many a hint that was sure to be useful when he should fill his masters place–but the power–the spiritual force–required, and required as the chief thing–that he could not cause him to inherit. So is it with us in whatever capacity we act for the good of others. We draw a distinct line between our work, what we can do, and what is beyond us–as possible only with One higher than we. We can plough the fields and sow the seed, but we cannot quicken it. We can preach and teach, but we cannot change the heart.
II. Elijahs legacy was bequeathed with great willingness. When Elisha said, Let me have a double portion of thy spirit, Elijahs first thought was, You ask what is very hard to give; but his second thought was, Well, but I am after all pleased with your request. Now, I dont say that I can give you this; but still what I cannot do I am sure the God whom I serve will do. Yes; it is a good desire, and if thou art faithful unto the end it shall be done unto thee. There is surely an important lesson to be learned by us here. We ought not to do only the good that is of easy achievement. It will, indeed, be well for us if we always do what we can, yet the danger is to suppose that all we can do is what we can do with ease. We should remember that there is little value in the life that copes not with difficulties.
III. Elijahs legacy was bequeathed because asked, I pray thee let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. From the promptness in which the request was made it is apparent that this was the blessing his heart was set upon obtaining. When the heart is fully resolved the tongue does not hesitate. His master confesses that it was a hard thing to grant; but if he had not asked it would have been impossible to endow him with such a blessing. It is the seeing soul that is enriched, not because God would enrich only the few, but His blessing can only enter the open receptive spirit. We have not because we ask not, or because we ask amiss. The thing I ask is great, but the greatness of my faith is commensurate, and, lo! the promise is spoken–It shall be so unto thee, and after the voice the heavens open and the blessing comes down. Let Elishas case encourage us to ask for what we need.
IV. Elijahs legacy was bequeathed as the result of faithful service. A condition was attached to the bestowment of the blessing asked, If thou see me when I am taken from thee it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. (A. Scott.)
The true succession
The succession of Elisha was one marked by the sharpest and boldest contrasts.
I. In his origin. Elijah came from the mountainous country of Gilead. He was the wild man of the mountains. Elisha was called from the peaceful scenes of agricultural life.
II. The appearance of the men. This was totally unlike. Learn, that succession does not consist in dress; that a great mans successors are those who carry forward his work, not those who ape his appearance. The true succession is one of character, and not one of clothes.
III. In their manner of life, so it should be always in the sphere of religion. There are other and better ways of succeeding to our Puritan forefathers than by singing Rouses version, adopting the nasal tone, sitting in cold meeting-houses, and listening to forty-headed sermons. But how slow some good people are to distinguish between religion and its accidental dress!
IV. The particular form of their work for God. Elijahs was destruction; Elishas was construction. The first act of Elijah was to smite the land with a terrible curse. The first act of Elisha was to bless Jericho with the gift of good water. Lessons taught by the contrasts which I have mentioned:
1. The little stress which the Divine Arrayer and Architect places upon external sameness. We discover this Divine indifference far below the human level, and in the lowest spheres of life. The two blades of grass which grow at your feet are not exactly alike. They have their generic likeness, but they also have their points of difference. So with the roses. Each has its own style, its own peculiar blush. So with the noble pines which stand high up upon natures battlements waving their majestic plumes. Each one of them stands up an individual giant, itself in girth, itself in height, itself in beauty. Men come forth from the Divine Hand as unique, as peculiar, as are the roses or the planets. Each has his own beauty; each has his own orbit; each bears the stamp of the day in which he lives. Take an old Roman coin, and compare it with one which comes forth clearly cut from our own mint. What a difference between them! Yet both are precious metal, both are coin. So is it with the man whom God forms and equips for His work. He lays stress only upon the soul, only upon the spirit of a man.
2. The variety and flexibility of means and methods allowed in the kingdom of God. From the necessity of the ease, great flexibility and variety of method must be allowed to those who work for God. Because the generations change, knowledge increases, the line of battle shifts. He would be little better than a fool who should now preach to men in the style of the great divines of two centuries ago. As well might the soldier of to-day take the battle-axe, and go forth to the battlefield where the Minie whistles, and the shell shrieks, and the cannon-ball jumps miles at the touch of powder. And then as to Christian activity. Good men are afraid of many of its new forms. They shake their heads; as much as to question whether a soul, reached by the Gospel through the instrumentality of a layman, is after all much advantaged. Why, out yonder on the Western fields, the farmer harvests in one day with his reaping machine as much grain as he could do in a whole month with the old sickle. And he is not sorry; not sorry that he can cultivate five hundred acres instead of five. So, in these latter days, through the diversity of operations, the reaping power of the Gospel is multiplied a thousandfold. And yet men shake their heads. This irregular preaching of the Gospel, they exclaim. Are we not going a little too fast? After all, hadnt we better leave the world harvest to the priests and their orthodox sickles? That Gods great work in this world always proceeds from that which is negative to that which is positive; from conversion to edification, from destruction to construction. In the Divine economy, threatening, correction, repression, destruction, mark only the first stage, the incipiency of the work. They are only ordered for the sake of an end outside of and beyond themselves. And this, the Divine method, we should follow.
1. In our working for others. We must lead the penitent forward into the life of positive righteousness, or we never form the new man. A man is like a vessel. He is formed to contain, and will surely be filled either with the good or with the bad. You cannot count on a vacuum in human nature; and, if you could, the world would get no benefit from it, and God would abhor it. You have not therefore Saved a man, if you have but emptied him of that which is bad.
2. This truth has also application to our own religious life. Christianity, piety, are more than negation, and our religion, if it is long to satisfy us, must have its positive side. Inanity is well-nigh as bad as foulness, and it would be to the shame of your manhood and your Saviour if you stopped with it. Take some aims worthy of a new life. Begin on something positive in the way of goodness.
3. The proper use of the great and good men who have gone before us. This is to take up their work, and to carry it forward; not, perhaps, just as they did, but as the Divine Providence intimates, and as we are best fitted to do it. (T. T. Mitchell, D. D.)
Possessing the spirit of another
Said the late Dr. Gordon: Imagine one without genius and devoid of the artists training sitting down before Raphaels famous picture of The Transfiguration, and attempting to reproduce it. How crude and mechanical and lifeless his work would be! But if such a thing were possible as that the spirit of Raphael should enter into the man, and obtain the mastery of his mind and eye and hand, it would be entirely possible that he should paint this masterpiece, for it would simply be Raphael producing Raphael. This is the solution of our imitation of Christ. To be filled with the Spirit is the secret of becoming like our Lord.
A holy succession
A good man died a little time since, and when his body had been carried to the grave, the little funeral party returned to the house; and the minister after a few words of kindly comfort was taking his departure, the eldest son called him aside for the moment and said, There is a place empty in the church. My father is gone, will you take me instead? I want to fill up the gap: I want to be baptized for the dead. (Helps for Speakers.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 15. The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha.] This was a natural conclusion, from seeing him with the mantle, and working the same miracle. This disposed them to yield the same obedience to him they had done to his master: and in token of this, they went out to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Or, as it is in the Hebrew, And the sons of the prophets who lived in Jericho saw him over against them, from some hill where they stood at a convenient distance to observe the event, 2Ki 2:7.
They said, Heb. and they said, either by revelation; or rather, by the visible effects of it which they saw.
They bowed themselves to the ground; thereby testifying their reverence and subjection to him as Elijahs successor, and their master and teacher.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And when the sons of the prophets, which were to view at Jericho, saw him,…. Who went out from thence towards Jordan, to have a sight if they could of the assumption of Elijah; these, when they saw Elisha come over Jordan, the waters being parted by him:
they said, the spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha; or he has the same power and spirit to work miracles as he had, which they discerned by his dividing the waters of Jordan with his mantle:
and they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him; in reverence of him as their master, in the room of Elijah.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(15) To view.Opposite, over against. LXX., ; Vulg., e contra (Deu. 32:52). It is not clear whether these sons of the prophets are the fifty who went and stood opposite afar off (2Ki. 2:7), or not. On the whole, it seems likely that all the guild residing at Jericho is meant. Awaiting Elishas return, they had assembled at the river side and witnessed the miracle, which was evidence to them that Elisha was to be their future head.
The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha.Hath alighted, i.e., settled, rested. The proof was that Elisha had just repeated his masters miracle.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
15. Saw him The prophets saw all that was done at Jordan, and were thereby confirmed in the belief that Elisha was the divinely ordained successor of Elijah.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Elisha’s Miraculous Powers
v. 15. And when the Sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho, v. 16. And 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. v. 5. v. 17. And when they had urged him till he was ashamed, v. 18. And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said unto them, v. 19. And the men of the city, v. 20. And he said, Bring me a new cruse, v. 21. And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, v. 22. So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake. v. 23. And 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, v. 24. And be turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord; v. 25. And he went from thence to Mount Carmel,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
2Ki 2:15 And 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.
Ver. 15. Which were to view at Jericho, ] i.e., At a convenient distance betwixt Jericho and Jordan.
Bowed themselves to the ground before him.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
doth rest = hath rested. Compare 1Pe 4:14. Rest in “double portion” according to 2Ki 2:9. Seen in the fact that Elijah wrought eight miracles and Elisha sixteen, and all were parables in action.
Elijah’s eight Miracles (1 and 2 Kings).
1. Shutting heaven (1Ki 17:1).
2. Oil multiplied (1Ki 17:14).
3. Widow’s son raised (1Ki 17:22-23).
4. Fire from heaven (1Ki 18:38).
5. Rain (1Ki 18:45).
6. Fire on 50 (2Ki 1:10).
7. Fire on 50 (2Ki 1:12).
8. Jordan (2Ki 2:8).
Elisha’s sixteen Miracles (2 Kings).
1. Jordan divided (2Ki 2:14).
2. Waters healed (2Ki 2:21).
3. Bears from wood (2Ki 2:24).
4. Water for kings (2Ki 3:20).
5. Oil for widow (2Ki 4:1-6).
6. Gift of son (2Ki 4:16-17).
7. Raising from dead (2Ki 4:36).
8. Healing ofpottage (2Ki 4:41).
9. Bread multiplied (2Ki 4:43).
10. Naaman healed (2Ki 5:10).
11. Gehazi smitten (2Ki 5:27).
12. Iron to swim (2Ki 6:6).
13. Sight to blind (2Ki 6:17).
14. Smiting blindness(2Ki 6:18)
15. Restoring sight (2Ki 6:20).
16. One after death (2Ki 13:21).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
2Ki 2:15-18
2Ki 2:15-18
THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS VAINLY SEARCHED FOR ELIJAH’S BODY
“And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho over against him 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. And they said unto him, Behold now, there are with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master, lest the spirit of Jehovah hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send. And 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. And they came back to him while he tarried at Jericho; and he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go not?”
Keil pointed out that there were two purposes in the miracle of Elisha’s smiting the Jordan with Elijah’s mantle: (1) It confirmed in the mind of Elisha that God had granted his prayer for a double portion of the spirit of Elijah, and (2) it established Elisha as the legitimate successor to Elijah and the Divinely-appointed leader of the prophets. He then added that, “The two following miracles recorded in this chapter were also intended to accredit Elisha in the eyes of the people as a man endowed with the Spirit and power of God, as Elijah had been.”
“Till he was ashamed” (2Ki 2:17). “The New English Bible renders this `had not the heart to refuse.'” “Elijah’s work was done; it was a fierce work of judgment that became symbolic (Mal 4:5-6), even idealized (Joh 1:21) and seen again at the end of the Jewish era in the person of John the Baptist (Mat 3:1-10). After the work of Moses and Elijah, God had nothing whatever fundamentally new to say to his rebellious people, – UNTIL the coming of that Holy ONE whom Moses and Elijah would meet upon the mount of transfiguration”!
E.M. Zerr:
2Ki 2:15. Jericho is near the Jordan, and that was the place from which the sons of the prophets had stood to view afar off. (2Ki 2:7). By this we learn of the place where the two great prophets had crossed the river Jordan. When these sons of the prophets saw the miracle that Elisha did with the mantle, they concluded it was done through the same spirit that Elijah had possessed. With due respect for the successor of the great prophet Elijah, these young prophets bowed before Elisha.
2Ki 2:16. The sons of the prophets had twice told Elisha (2Ki 2:3; 2Ki 2:5) that his master was to be taken from his head that day. That meant merely that he would be deprived of his master’s personal association, but no evidence is apparent that they knew it was to be permanent; neither did they know that he was to leave the earth. All of this explains why they were so concerned about his bodily safety. They offered their services for a search of Elijah. But Elisha had a better knowledge of the affair, and objected to their proposal.
2Ki 2:17. Elisha knew he was correct in his judgment, and therefore had nothing to be ashamed of as the word is commonly used. The original is defined by Strong, “to pale, i. e. by implication to be ashamed; also (by implication) to be disappointed, or delayed.” It has been translated in the A. V. by delay, be long and others. The thought is that the men insisted so long that Elisha concluded he would not delay longer, but would let them learn a lesson by their own disappointment. Upon his consent the eager group went in search for Elijah; three days of fruitless search followed.
2Ki 2:18. Elisha was so sure the men would return that he tarried at Jericho for them. Upon their coming back, he chastised them mildly by reminding them of his advice.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
to view: 2Ki 2:7
The spirit: Num 11:25-29, Num 27:20, Jos 3:7, Isa 11:2, Isa 59:21, Joh 15:26, Joh 15:27, Act 1:8, 2Co 12:9, 1Pe 4:14
bowed: 2Ki 2:19, 2Ki 4:1-4, 2Ki 4:37, 2Ki 6:1-7, Jos 4:14
Reciprocal: Gen 18:2 – bowed Num 11:17 – I will take Deu 34:9 – full of the spirit 1Sa 10:5 – a company 1Sa 25:9 – ceased 1Ki 20:35 – of the sons 2Ki 2:3 – And the sons 2Ki 3:12 – The word 2Ki 8:7 – The man of God
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2Ki 2:15. And bowed themselves to the ground before him In token of their reverence for and subjection to him, as Elijahs successor, the father of the prophets, and their master and teacher. They had been trained up in the schools; Elisha was taken from the plough: yet, when they perceive that God is with him, and that this is the man whom he delights to honour, they readily submit to him as their head and father, as the people did to Joshua when Moses was dead. Those that appear to have Gods Spirit and presence with them, ought to have our esteem and best affections, notwithstanding the meanness of their extraction and education.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2:15 And when the sons of the prophets which [were] to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The {i} spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.
(i) The Spirit of prophecy was given to him as it was to Elijah.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The evidence of Elisha’s succession 2:15-25
Had Elijah still been alive on the earth, Elisha could not have exercised authority as his successor. In this chapter there are parallels between the succession of the prophets and the succession of the kings that the writer recorded elsewhere in Kings. Elisha gave the skeptics opportunity to verify Elijah’s departure (cf. 1Ki 18:12). After all, Elijah had been known to disappear and reappear suddenly (cf. 1Ki 18:12). The same Spirit that had empowered Elijah now rested on Elisha (2Ki 2:15).
The miracle that attested God’s messenger and his message evidently took place at Jericho (2Ki 2:15). The physical condition in the town was symbolic of the spiritual condition of the nation (2Ki 2:19). One writer suggested that the Jericho spring had become contaminated by radioactive matter as a result of Joshua’s curse (Jos 6:26). [Note: Ian M. Blake, "Jericho (Ain es-Sultan): Joshua’s Curse and Elisha’s Miracle-One Possible Explanation," Palestine Exploration Quarterly 99 (1967):86-97.] Refreshment and fertility had suffered as a result of apostasy. Elisha was a new vessel in God’s hand similar to the new jar he requested (2Ki 2:20). Salt seemed like the worst thing to add to brackish water to make it pure, just as return to Yahweh must have appeared to be a backward step to many idolatrous Israelites. Nevertheless, since salt is what God ordered, it was effective. The use of salt may have symbolized a break with the past, since this is what rubbing certain sacrifices with salt to sanctify them indicated (Lev 2:13; Num 18:19; Eze 43:24). [Note: John Gray, I & II Kings, p. 427.] Yahweh, not Baal, could restore blessing and fertility to His people. This miracle was another polemic against Baal worship (cf. 1 Kings 18; et al.). Baal’s worshippers credited him with ruling over the waters on and beneath the earth, including underground springs and fountains. [Note: Battenfield, p. 27.] God’s permanent healing of the spring would have served as a continuing reminder of Yahweh’s ability to bring fruitfulness and blessing out of the deadly sterility of idolatry.
Bethel was a center of idolatry in Israel; it was one of the golden calf sites (2Ki 2:23). Evidently Elisha’s approach triggered a mass demonstration against him by many young men. The Hebrew word na’ar translated "lads" in 2Ki 2:23 describes young men, not boys, in many other places in the Old Testament. Some of the individuals this Hebrew word describes were Gehazi, Elisha’s servant (2Ki 4:12), an unnamed young man (2Ki 4:19), and the Shunammite’s servant (2Ki 4:24). "Baldhead" was and is a term of disrespect. The idolaters challenged Elisha to "go up" to heaven as Elijah had done if Elisha could. [Note: Walter C. Kaiser Jr., Hard Sayings of the Old Testament, p. 124.] These youths were typical of a nation that "mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at his prophets" (2Ch 36:16). Not motivated by personal pride but by a desire for God’s glory, Elisha pronounced God’s curse on them for their disrespect of His prophet and Himself (2Ki 2:24; cf. 2Pe 3:3-7). As before, God used wild animals to judge the rebels (cf. 1Ki 13:24). Wild bears were common in ancient Israel. [Note: James A. Montgomery, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Books of Kings, p. 366.] These early miracles identified Elisha as God’s spokesman who possessed Yahweh’s power to bless or to curse. [Note: For some other interpretations of this incident, see David Fass, "Elisha’s Locks and the She-Bears," Journal of Reform Judaism 34:3 (1987):23-29.]
These two miracles set the tone of Elisha’s whole ministry. He would be a source of blessing to the needy, but he would be a source of judgment to those who did not respect Yahweh.
"Though having the same objectives in view as Elijah, Elisha’s manner in reaching them was somewhat different. In keeping with this contrasting background [i.e., wealthy rather than poorer], he was more at home in cities and was often in the company of kings. Also whereas Elijah had been more a man of moods, either strongly courageous or despairing to the point of death, Elisha was self-controlled and even-tempered. Elisha never staged dramatic contests nor sulked in a desert. It may be, too, that Elisha was more interested in the needs of people, for many of his miracles were for the purpose of aiding and giving relief to persons in difficulty." [Note: Leon J. Wood, The Prophets of Israel, p. 246.]
"In their persons they symbolized two aspects of the divine power toward the people: Elijah was the divine judicial power opposing a rebellious people and containing wholesale violence; Elisha was the dispensing of divine blessing when people repented." [Note: Kaiser, Toward an . . ., pp. 185-86.]