That request to Elijah is mentioned in 2 Kings 2:9, “And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.”

Let’s go back and read 2 Kings 2:1, “And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.” The event where the Lord would take Elijah to Heaven without death, is about to take place. Elijah began to move towards the place where the Lord would take him up to Heaven by a whirlwind. His protégée, Elisha, accompanies Elijah to that place. In verses 7-8 we see that they came to the River Jordan where Elijah smote the waters with his mantle, parted the waters, and went to the other side. In other places in the Bible, the Hebrew word for ‘mantle’ is translated as ‘garment’ or ‘robe’.

It was on the other side of the Jordan that Elijah invited Elisha to make any request of him before he left for Heaven. Elisha asked for a ‘double portion’ of Elijah’s spirit.

This reminds me of an earlier incident. Let’s read 1 Kings 3:5, “In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.” Here it is the Lord inviting Solomon to make any request of Him. Solomon’s response reveals how he viewed the world and the Lord. He did not ask for wealth, fame, or power. The culmination of his answer to the Lord is found in verse 9, “Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” Solomon asked for wisdom, which showed that he already had a great degree of wisdom and no desire for the things of the world.

Elisha’s request was very similar. He did not ask for wealth, fame, or power. He asked for a ‘double portion’ of Elijah’s spirit. We learn in Deuteronomy 21:17 that the ‘double portion’ was given to the eldest son in the family. Elisha, in essence, was asking to be looked upon as the eldest son by Elijah. His desire was to be favored in the heart of his mentor. He desired a double portion of Elijah’s spirit, power, and wisdom so that he might carry on the work of a prophet in his lifetime. As a resource for you to consider and study, below is a list of the miracles that Elijah and Elisha performed. Elijah has 14 recorded miracles. Elisha has 28 recorded miracles. A double portion!

Miracles in the Career of Elijah:

1) Causing the rain the cease for 3 1/2 years (1Ki 17:1)

2) Being fed by the ravens (1Ki 17:4)

3) Miracle of the barrel of meal and cruse of oil (1Ki 17:14)

4) Resurrection of the widow’s son (1Ki 17:22)

5) Calling of fire from heaven on the altar (1Ki 18:38)

6) Causing it to rain (1Ki 18:45)

7) Prophecy that Ahab’s sons would all be destroyed (1Ki 21:22)

8) Prophecy that Jezebel would be eaten by dogs (1Ki 21:23)

9) Prophecy that Ahaziah would die of his illness (2Ki 1:4)

10) Calling fire from heaven upon the first 50 soldiers (2Ki 1:10)

11) Calling fire from heaven upon the second 50 soldiers (2Ki 1:12)

12) Parting of the Jordan (2Ki 2:8)

13) Prophecy that Elisha should have a double portion of his spirit (2Ki 2:10)

14) Being caught up to heaven in a whirlwind (2Ki 2:11)

 

Miracles in the Career of Elisha:

1) Parting of the Jordan (2Ki 2:14)

2) Healing of the waters (2Ki 2:21)

3) Curse of the she bears (2Ki 2:24)

4) Filling of the valley with water (2Ki 3:17)

5) Deception of the Moabites with the valley of blood (2Ki 3:22)

6) Miracle of the vessels of oil (2Ki 4:4)

7) Prophecy that the Shunammite woman would have a son (2Ki 4:16)

8) Resurrection of the Shunammite’s son (2Ki 4:34)

9) Healing of the gourds (2Ki 4:41)

10) Miracle of the bread (2Ki 4:43)

11) Healing of Naaman (2Ki 5:14)

12) Perception of Gehazi’s transgression (2Ki 5:26)

13) Cursing Gehazi with leprosy (2Ki 5:27)

14) Floating of the axe head (2Ki 6:6)

15) Prophecy of the Syrian battle plans (2Ki 6:9)

16) Vision of the chariots (2Ki 6:17)

17) Smiting the Syrian army with blindness (2Ki 6:18)

18) Restoring the sight of the Syrian army (2Ki 6:20)

19) Prophecy of the end of the great famine (2Ki 7:1)

20) Prophecy that the scoffing nobleman would see, but not partake of, the abundance (2Ki 7:2)

21) Deception of the Syrians with the sound of chariots (2Ki 7:6)

22) Prophecy of the seven-year famine (2Ki 8:1)

23) Prophecy of Benhadad’s untimely death (2Ki 8:10)

24) Prophecy of Hazael’s cruelty to Israel (2Ki 8:12)

25) Prophecy that Jehu would smite the house of Ahab (2Ki 9:7)

26) Prophecy that Joash would smite the Syrians at Aphek (2Ki 13:17)

27) Prophecy that Joash would smite Syria thrice but not consume it (2Ki 13:19)

28) Resurrection of the man touched by his bones (2Ki 13:21)   (299.8)