When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.”
So they went down to Bethel. The company of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “so be quiet.” Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho.
The company of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” he replied, “so be quiet.” Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them walked on.
Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground. When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”
“Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”
As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two. - 2 Kings 2:1-12
There is something special about being with someone in their final moments. Everyone could see that the moment was coming for Elijah. Elijah saw it and didn't want to talk about it. Elisha saw it and didn't want to talk about it. The company of prophets in Bethel and Jericho saw it. You can feel Elisha's raw emotion as he watched that moment when Elijah left him, tearing his garment in two in grief.
It is doubly true when the person who is leaving is someone you have grown to respect and whose example you hope you can live up to. You wonder if there's enough in you to even live like that at all. You hope so, but you're not sure. So you ask God, even if you never chanced to ask them, if he can make you the sort of person they were. Or, if you are bold like Elisha, you ask for a double portion of his spirit. I think that Elijah was hesitant, saying it was difficult, because he knew truly what kind of person he was and what God had to bring him though to become the person standing beside Elisha. Character is not instant, it is hard earned. Maybe I'll know how to live by the time I die, God willing.
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