Don’s Daily Devotions

Sat 22^nd August           Read 2 Kings chapter 2:16-18:

V16:  Yet they show how little they understand what has happened, asking to be allowed to go and search for Elijah – with the rather bizarre idea that God’s Spirit has caught him up only to deposit him somewhere else. Clearly, they had not seen clearly what happened,  and we remember v10 – the gift to see what God did in taking Elijah up was indeed the seal on Elisha’s ministry, as Elijah had said.

V17:  As they keep begging to be allowed to search, Elisha finally lets them do so – knowing it will be in vain, as 3 days fruitless search proves. Perhaps we are reminded here that we can never achieve something we want, if it is not God’s will.

V18:  Elisha reminds them he said their search would be in vain, and with this, the record of Elijah’s life and ministry is complete. Elisha is now ready for the work God has called him to – his training and “apprenticeship” is over. Again, let us realise God’s work never depends upon any one servant, however gifted and godly, however greatly used, but only on God Himself, who will call and appoint His chosen servants to the work He has for them, to His own glory.

Fri 21^st August       Read 2  Kings chapter 2:13-15:

V13:  Elisha takes up Elijah’s cloak – the symbol of the prophetic office, remember – which had fallen from his shoulders. He has seen, he has the cloak, God has endorsed his call and the role he now has, and he returns to the Jordan.

V14:  He strikes the water with that cloak, just as Elijah had done, and calls on Elijah’s God to show that He is with him, and the waters part, as they once had to endorse that Joshua was God’s appointed man to succeed Moses – so here for Elisha to succeed Elijah – God’s work does not depend on any human servant in himself, but only on God’s own sovereign power.

V15: The sons of the prophets, watching from a distance, recognise that the same Spirit of God that had equipped Elijah does indeed now rest on Elisha – his request has been granted. So, they show him reverence, as the Lord’s chosen servant.

Thurs 20^th August  –  Read 2 Kings chapter 2:11-12:

V11:  A remarkable and unique work of God’s sovereign grace and will is described, in so far as our minds can conceive it – chariots and horses of fire appear, and Elijah is taken up in a whirlwind to heaven. We can do no more than wonder at this, we can not understand it and should not speculate beyond what Scripture tells us – remember Deuteronomy 29:29.

V12:  And Elisha does see it, the given sign to confirm his own office, now to succeed Elijah. Perhaps his cry ” My father!”  in some sense emphasises he is indeed Elijah’s “heir”, and the cry ” the chariots of Israel..” his awareness of God’s identification with His people – or is it simply that he doesn’t know what to say, rather like the disciples on the mount of transfiguration ( Mark 9:5-6.)? His tearing of his own clothes is a traditional sign of grief and mourning, just as we grieve for lost loved ones, even though we know they are with the Lord.

Wed 19^th August     –   Read 2 Kings chapter 2:9-10:

V9:  On the other side of Jordan, Elijah asks Elisha what request he would make of him, before he is taken away. Surely, this is to probe what Elisha most feels he needs for the work he is now called to. His response is a recognition that, before any specific gift such as boldness of speech or strength for his work, he needs the Spirit of God to fill him – a recognition that the source and power of Elijah’s own ministry has been just that, and Elisha now needs the same, no merely human resources will do. A ” double portion” is not a “greedy” request for more than Elijah had, but the double portion was the inheritance of the eldest son, the confirmation that he was the legal heir. Elisha seeks the seal and enabling to confirm that he really is God’s chosen heir to Elijah and his ministry. 

V10:  Elisha’s reply surely means that this gift is out of his hands, only God can give it, but it has been revealed to him that if Elisha actually sees what happens to him, this will be the confirmation of his call, and that the Spirit will equip him for it. Remember that in the OT, God’s Spirit came upon His servants to enable them for a particular work, but since Pentecost the Spirit is given to every believer, to indwell, guide and enable them. ( John 14:16-17; Acts 2:38-39.)

Tues 18th August – Read 2 Kings chapter 2:7-8:

V7: The sons of the prophets follow them at a distance, to see what will take place. At times there are those who are privileged to be present when God works in a remarkable way. Who knows how what these men were about to witness, though their understanding of it was, as we later see, limited at the time, would affect their future lives and ministries?

V8: As Elijah takes his cloak and strikes the water, the Jordan is parted before them, and they cross on dry ground. We are reminded of how God parted the Jordan once before, when he brought His people Israel into the promised land. ( Joshua chapter 3.) This was to confirm that Joshua was indeed God’s chosen successor to Moses ( Joshua 3:7.) Here, the cloak, symbolic of the prophetic office, remember, is still in Elijah’s hands, but that is about to change, in God’s purpose.

Mon 17^th August –  Read 2 Kings chapter 2:4-6:

V4:  The previous process is repeated, and in this the test of Elisha’s steadfastness and commitment continues. He remains resolute in holding to what God, it seems, has revealed to him, an example to us all. So, they continue together from Bethel to Jericho.

V5:  Another company of “the sons of the prophets”, apparently based there, come out to Elisha, and again they, and he, repeat what has been said before. Perhaps such repeated experience reminds us how often our days seem ” the same”, perhaps especially at the present time, and how we are to remain steadfast and continue in our walk of faith and obedience.

V6:  Elijah tells Elisha God is sending him to the river Jordan, and again Elisha will not leave his master. Note how he, like Elijah himself so often, affirms his faith in the living God.

Sat 15^th August  –  Read 2 Kings chapter 2:1-3:

V1:  We come to the last scene in Elijah’s earthly life and ministry. Here is the remarkable revelation of God’s Sovereign purpose to take Elijah directly to heaven. Only he and Enoch in all Scripture have such a departure from this world to the next, though we know no details of Enoch’s – save that he “walked with God.. and God took him” ( Genesis 5:24.) This speaks of a life of obedience and close fellowship with the Lord, which surely marked Elijah’s life too. Yet why these 2 and no others with similar walks of faith and obedience were taken direct to heaven, we cannot say and should not speculate.God is Sovereign, and does not reveal all His purposes to us. ( See Deuteronomy 29:29; Ephesians 1:11.) Elisha is with Elijah as his servant to this point, and they are journeying together.

V2:  They come to Gilgal, and Elijah tells Elisha to stay there, while he himself goes on to Bethel at God’s command.It seems that this is, in fact, a test of the younger man’s resolve, so that when he says he will not leave his master this is not disobedience but a deeper ( surely God-given ) awareness, and Elijah accepts this.

V3:  ” The sons of the prophets” here and in the next verses, appear to be companies of faithful men being taught and trained for his service, perhaps largely by Elijah and Elisha themselves up to this point. ( Some have suggested we glimpse here  a kind of ” OT Bible College “) One such group is, it seems, based at Bethel, and they come to Elisha and ask him if he realises God is to take Elijah away this day. Yes, he does. Clearly, then the Lord has revealed something of his purpose both to these men and to Elisha himself.This confirms that the request he stay at Gilgal – and soon again, at Bethel – was indeed a test of his steadfastness. Our own may be tested in various ways, may we like Elisha remain faithful to our Lord, and His revealed will.

Fri 14^th August  –  Read 2 Kings chapter 2:16-17:

V16:  Coming to the king, Elijah repeats what he sent back to him from the Lord, back in v.6, a rebuke for his denying the Lord and seeking after a false god, and a stark declaration that he will not recover, but die on the sick-bed he still occupies. Again, we are reminded we must declare all of God’s truth, including the reality of His wrath and judgement, not let fear of what others, including those in power, may do or threaten. What might have happened if the king had humbled himself and pleaded for mercy. as the third captain did? ( Contrast Hezekiah, in Isaiah 38:1-5.) Warning of judgement to come has been a means, in God’s grace, to move many to repentance and to call upon the Lord.

V17:  But there is no such repentance in Ahaziah. He dies, as Elijah – the faithful mouthpiece of God’s word here and throughout his ministry, has declared. So, we must be faithful in declaring God’s Word, even where it brings opposition and threats against us. ( Like the early church, in Acts 4:29.)

Thurs  13^th August       –    2 Kings chapter 2:13-15:

V13:  The king, stubborn and unmoved in his rebellion against God as so many are, sends yet another cohort and their captain.

This man, however, humbly begs for his life and those of his men. Clearly, he sees things very differently from the previous 2 captains, and has a genuine awareness of and regard for God and His living power, and knows Elijah truly to be the Lord’s servant. We note also his concern for his men as well as himself.

V14:  He knows what has happened to the previous 2 companies, and again pleads for mercy. To cast ourselves on the mercy of God is in itself evidence of His grace at work in us, remember.

V15:  And the Angel of the Lord  again speaks to Elijah, telling him to go with this man, and have no fear of him, and at once Elijah responds in obedience to the Lord’s word, as he has throughout his ministry. As for the captain, he reminds us that those who seek God’s mercy will find it. May we truly know the fullness of His mercy in Christ!

Wed 12^th August  –  Read 2 Kings chapter 1:9-12:

V9:  The king sends a strong force of 50  men with their captain to bring Elijah to him – in effect, to arrest him. The captain calls him ” a man of God”, but clearly has no real regard for either Elijah or his God, it is simply an empty formula to him. How many may still think – and speak – of God in such a way.

V10:  Elijah says if he is truly a man of God, the Lord will show it by sending fire to consume these who have come to seize him – and He does. We read verses like this, and find it difficult to take in such an immediate and extreme judgement. How are we to react? Surely, to realise it is nothing compared to the judgement to come upon all mankind. We must not sanitise or ” hide from ” Scripture’s revelation of the wrath against sin – but realise it is only of  God’s mercy that that judgement tarries ( See Lamentations 3:22-23.)

V11-12:  Exactly the same is repeated with another company and their captain. Notice this one emphasises the King’s order – the ungodly order of an ungodly king, to whom they give unquestioning allegiance, as if he can ” control” God’s will and God’s servant. Again,  God does not always – or usually – act in such immediate temporal judgement – He is Sovereign in all things – but such a record emphasises how solemn a thing it is when people set themselves up to resist and oppose His will, and obey human authority when it seeks to compel what is against His will.