2:3 At Bethel there was a special school for God’s prophets, one of several “schools of the prophets” started to help stem the tide of spiritual and moral decline begun under Jeroboam. Most of the schools seem to have been located in Gilgal, Jericho, and Bethel. Those who attended these schools were trained to be spokesmen for God. These schools were gatherings of disciples around certain leaders, much as Jesus’ disciples gathered around him.
2:8 Elijah’s mantle was a symbol of his authority as a prophet.
2:9 Elisha asked to be Elijah’s successor (that is why he asked for a double share of Elijah’s spirit). Deuteronomy 21:17 helps explain Elisha’s request. According to custom, the firstborn son would receive a double portion of the father’s inheritance (see the note on Genesis 25:31). Elisha was asking to be Elijah’s successor, or heir, the one who would continue Elijah’s work as leader of the prophets. But the decision to grant this request was up to God. Elijah only told Elisha how he would know if his request had been granted.
2:9 God granted Elisha’s request because Elisha’s motives were pure. His main goal was not to be better or more powerful than Elijah but to accomplish more for God. If our motives are pure, we don’t have to be afraid to ask great things from God. When we ask God for great power or ability, we need to examine our desires and get rid of any selfishness we find. To have the Holy Spirit’s help, we must be willing to ask.
2:11 Elijah was taken to heaven without dying. He is the second person mentioned in Scripture to have this honor. Enoch was the first (Genesis 5:21-24). The other prophets may not have seen God take Elijah, or they may have had a difficult time believing what they had seen. In either case, they wanted to search for Elijah (2:16-18). Finding no physical trace of him would confirm what had happened and strengthen their faith. The only other person taken to heaven in bodily form was Jesus after his resurrection from the dead (Acts 1:9).
2:13-25 These three incidents were testimonies to Elisha’s commission as a prophet of God. They are recorded to demonstrate Elisha’s new power and authority as Israel’s chief prophet under God’s ultimate power and authority.
2:14 Elisha did not strike the water out of disrespect for God or Elijah. He was pleading with God to confirm his appointment as Elijah’s successor.
2:23, 24 According to some scholars, the victims of Elisha’s curse were not children, but a mob of young men. Because they were from Bethel, the religious center of idolatry in the northern kingdom, they were probably warning Elisha not to speak against their immorality as Elijah had done. They were not merely teasing Elisha about his baldness, but showing severe disrespect for Elisha’s message and God’s power. They may also have jeered because of their disbelief in the chariot of fire that had taken Elijah. When Elisha cursed them, he did not call out the bears himself. God sent them as a judgment for their callous unbelief.
2:23, 24 These young men mocked God’s messenger and paid for it with their lives. Making fun of religious leaders has been a popular sport through the ages. To take a stand for God is to be different from the world and vulnerable to verbal abuse. When we are cynical and sarcastic toward religious leaders, we are in danger of mocking not just the person but also the spiritual message. While we are not to condone the sin that some leaders commit, we need to pray for them, not laugh at them. True leaders, those who follow God, need to be heard with respect and encouraged in their ministry.